Searching for Grace

 

“Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand.”  Romans 5:1(NIV)

 

Have you ever been at a juncture in your Christian walk where you doubted God’s grace covered the sin you had committed?

As I recounted in an earlier blog, Church Is Full of Hypocrites, I can assure you, this is what kept my father from entering the doors of a church for years. It wasn’t only because of his sins, but what he outwardly judged as the sins of others. He had the impression that you had to be in a state of perfection to sit in a pew. Wrongfully so, I might add.

I experienced this phenomenon at a very young age. I truly believed all the adults in my life were perfect. At the age of five, I was given a live gift of several ducklings to take care of. My greatest wish was to see them swim. Slipping out back one morning to dutifully feed them and see if I could interest them in swimming, I inadvertently drowned one of the ducklings. I tried frantically to revive it. I knew I had to face my parents, and on trembling legs, I did so. I had taken a life.

You do not have to attend church long to know that taking a life is not a sin easy for man to forgive, what would God think of me? I was deeply ashamed. A miracle happened when confessing with a trembling voice. My earthly parents met the news of my sin with love, understanding, and forgiveness.

Grace is a concept hard for many of us to grasp. Have you ever tried to do something for someone, a co-worker or a neighbor out of the goodness of your heart and because they were not Christians, they were suspicious of your motives? I’ve had this happen several times. I bring this up now because grace is offered to us from God in just that situation, with no strings attached:

1.      There is not one person on earth that deserves grace.

2.      We cannot earn grace. Not by good works, by being a good person, or by a large bank account.

3.      Grace is there for the taking … for everyone. It doesn’t matter what corner of the world we live in; the good news is here for everyone! Each one of us comes to grace through faith in Jesus Christ our Lord.

We are justified through the blood. You see, Christ’s crucifixion was not the ending of a story, the end of a thirty-three-year life, it is the completion of a promise. God sacrificed his son for our salvation. Christ knew of his destiny, and he went willingly. None of us deserve the sacrifice, yet we have received it freely. Christ’s crucifixion is the beginning of a beautiful story of love.

“This righteousness comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.” Romans3:22-24

 

Do you feel separated from God in your life at this moment? Fear not. There are times in each of our lives when we become separated from our Lord and Savior. Perhaps you just became busy, involved in this modern life, disinterested, or angry over a situation that truly had nothing to do with God. God is waiting next to you now.

Please remember: It is always us that has moved, not God. He stays with us, waiting for us to reach out and take his hand once more. Grace awaits each one of God’s children.

Today:

1.      Begin reading your Bible again. Do you have a favorite passage, or are you new at reading the Bible? Just sit down and open it up. God will guide you. Read a bit each day.

2.      Pray each day. A few moments in prayer can heal your heart and soul. Just speak with God as if he is an old friend: He is.

When you feel ready, either go into a service near you or call a Pastor at a nearby church to learn more about their services and what they believe. They will be there to welcome you when you come in the following Sunday

The Five Magic of Sleep -Steps for Newborns

    For Nine months, we sleep and play undisturbed, floating in a temperature-controlled medium, eating at will, lights on dim with noise kept to a comfortably low constant hum, our mother's pleasant voice, the tinkle of her laughter ... ah,'

All of that changes in a cold splash of steel and bright lights, and noise, and if we aren't cooperative, I hear a quick slap to the patoot!

   I'm pretty sure all I would want to do would be sleep for the next few months. After bringing home six little ones from this tortuous adventure, I can assure you, their ability to sleep seems to dissolve about the time you leave the hospital and you walk through the door to your home.

 If you're anything like many parents I've known, this is when you start to doubt your ability to parent.

Let me stop you right there. I assure you, all you need is love and your instincts. If you have those two things, you're good to go.

Your baby wants to return to what he/she had. So ... give it to him.  Within reason. I will explain. You have to attend to your baby while also looking after yourself.

TRUE:

You cannot spoil a newborn by holding it too much.

However, you can wear yourself out, make yourself a nervous wreck and make the baby so nervous it won't sleep. So, if you have done the following things:

1. Given the baby a warm, soothing bath. (If you can, there are baby baths with lavender or chamomile which help promote sleep);

2. Put a clean onesie or pajama and diaper on the baby, according to the weather and heat in the house;

3. Dimmed the lights in their separate room. Yes, separate if you can do so. It will be okay. Make sure the crib or bassinet is to code. If you need help purchasing one, there is help out there! Your baby's safety is paramount when sleeping!

4. Be flexible, yet consistent with sleep/naptimes. I know this sounds confusing, but early on, the baby will eat often. Depending upon breastfed or bottle-fed will determine how much (or how long) you need to feed. After you hit the nutritional limit for your baby's age, the baby is not eating for nutritional requirements. It is eating for comfort. You must not allow them to do this.

 If they need a little bit of mom in a rocker, give them mom in a rocker. 

If they are older and they need a little bit of mom on the floor to play and some floor exercise, give them mom on the floor for some floor exercise!

Make sure the errands YOU want to run do not interfere with the nap schedule baby sets for himself.. If you do, the baby will get overtired, he will cry uncontrollably and for the rest of the day, you will have trouble relaxing the baby and getting him back on feeding/sleeping routines, depending upon how easy of a baby he is. The bright side: This stage only lasts until they are out of the house.

5. Start early restricting electronics in the bedroom. No t.v.s for noise. No screens at all that emit blue light. If you have older children that can be propped, avoid the impulse to prop them in front of the television or an iPad, or your telephone to watch a program. Not only is it unnecessary, but it is also lazy and will deplete their focus on other things in the long run. I am convinced as an educator that this is the way we have bred our children not to be able to sit and focus on seatwork by the time they get into school.

After you have done these Fice Easy Steps To Sleep for both of you, if they fail, and there are nights or days when they will; When you cannot hold them or do one more thing for them, lay them down. It doesn't do Mom or Dad or Gram or Baby any good to be wound up beyond all measure.

One of the first pieces of advice I gave each of my children as they brought my precious grands home is that you don't want to get so upset that you can't control what you do. Lay that baby down. Put baby in the crib. Let it cry. A baby comes to no harm crying. They learn to self-soothe. It is an ability we all have to learn at some point in our lives.

Take it from me, new parents, you're doing fine. Do everything you do for your child in a spirit of love. Everything will work out in the end. The adventure will be amazing.

A Prayer for October

 Almighty God,

October is filled

with beauty and blessings.

May I never

take the wonder 

of your creation

for granted.

ANONYMOUS

Church is Full of Hypocrites

 The church is full of hypocrites. 

There, I said it, or rather, my Dad said it. It was one of his "Dadisms" whenever I asked him to attend church with our family. Exasperated one day, I asked him what he meant. Dad was a kind man. To many, who liked to judge, he hadn't lived a "Christian" life.

All of his missteps had been on the outside. You see, Dad was an alcoholic. Having alcoholism makes you act out in a certain way at times. For some people, if you are normally hard-working, can make your work history sporadic. It can make you do things out of character to get money for alcohol because that is all-consuming, your guiding star. Unless Jesus is put in that driver's seat, Alcohol sits there and commands your mind. That isn't what this article is about though. Not really. 

It is about judgment. The judgment Dad made about Church folks. I've got a whole different lecture about the judgment church folk made on my father, believe me!

Anyway, Once I understood that Dad thought everyone going to church thought themselves blameless and without sin. I understood some things. He thought that also. He thought SOME of the people sitting in those pews were sinless. Any student of the word, KNOWS  that to be false. I told him, we sit in those pews because we all sin. 

 I KING 8:46 "WHEN THEY SIN AGAINST YOU -FOR THERE IS NO ONE WHO DOES NOT SIN..."

The other enlightenment I had was that because he believed that you had to be pure before you entered a church, he didn't feel he was worthy to do so. Even though, he knew from personal experience there were people sitting in those pews not living the life Christ prescribed because they were persecuting him and making him not feel worthy.

Let me caution you that some of us wear our sins on the outside and some on the inside. If you are living your life for Christ, the gift he gives you is for discernment, not for judgment. There is a difference that I caution you about, dear brothers and sisters.

If you are sitting there today at home not feeling worthy of joining in worship because someone has shamed you for your lifestyle or for a disease, or for any other sin against man or God, I say come. Shame on that Christian. It is not your cross to bear. We all stand before God only to answer for our own individual sins. You should be welcome in the house of God.

Creative Corner

Congratulations to OMAR ABED

upon publication of his book, You, Me, and a Tree.

Two people care for a seed as it grows into a tree. In return, the tree nurtures their relationship!

www.kaileipewbooks.com

#PB23BUNCH

Do You LOOK Like a Christian?

 

“My Neighbors Bible”

I am my neighbor’s Bible
He reads me when we meet;
Today he reads me in my home
Tomorrow, in the street.
He may be a relative or a friend,
Or slight acquaintance be;
He may not even know my name,
Yet he is reading me,
And pray, who is this neighbor,
Who reads me day by day,
To learn if I am living right,
And walking as I pray?
Oh, he is with me always,
To criticize or blame;
So worldly-wise in his own eyes,
And “Sinner” is his name.
Dear Christian friends and brothers,
If we could only know
How faithful the world records
Just what we say and do;
Oh, we would write our record plain,
And come in time to see
Our worldly neighbor won to Christ
While reading you and me.

Author Unknown

I have always loved this poem. I read it first in a church cookbook, of all places. It carries a heavy message though, do your neighbor, your co-workers, and your fellow shoppers at Walmart and Target, know you to be a person of faith by your actions? Does the person in the car you just cut off, know you to be the person of compassion, kindness, and humility you profess to be on Sunday mornings?

Do the children you are raising, or the other children you go to school with, know you are a person of faith? You need not speak of Jesus. You only need to act like Jesus and let His love shine to spread your faith. YOU are your neighbor's Bible.

Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.

Colossians 3:12

Speak Lord, for Your servant, is listening.

 Speak Lord, for Your servant, is listening. I Samuel 3:9

Speak, Lord

Since I've read this passage in my daily devotions, it has resonated within my heart. How often do we speak without listening during the day?

How often do we pray without pausing to listen for God's answer?

So very often, I have heard people tell me how ineffective prayer is; that they have prayed to no avail. I disagree. More often, we have not gotten the answer we want, so we assume God wasn't listening. 

When a loved one passes after we have prayed so fervently for a miracle, didn't God fail you then? I say no. I was in such a position at 19. I lost my Mother. I must admit to some anger at the time. My entire family came together to pray at the time of her diagnosis. We are a family of prayer warriors.

I was encouraged. Nothing would happen. She would be ill for a while, but through all of the anguish and hard work of caretaking for her, I never lost hope. We were all good people, pulling together in one direction. She was the glue that bound us together. The eldest in her family, a loving Christian family that adored her. Nine short months after her diagnosis, she passed, leaving a 19 and a 17-year-old stunned and grief-stricken. 

Why had God forsaken me? In my narcissistic teenage thoughts, I forgot Mom had a husband, another daughter, mother, father, sisters, brothers, nieces, and nephews, all grieving. Because I lost my way, I had no support. I couldn't see that what God had done was release Mom from all her pain. Could she have been praying for the release?

In the years since, I have come to realize, my mother, pulled off somewhat of a miracle herself. I raised six children. I am now in my sixties and I worry about the qualityof my work. However, my mom managed to give me enough information that I was able to keep house and raise my children with more than enough confidence for most of my adult life!

I could have saved myself so much pain early in my adult life if only I were still and listened to God. To HIS will.

There are smaller examples.

One year, my husband and I had added to our family and desperately needed a new car. We found a Ford Taurus that had just rolled off the assembly line and it is no exaggeration to say we were coveting that car. We visited the dealership several times while the salesman tried everything to make our small check cover the cost. We prayed. The deal fell through. We were devastated.

What we couldn't see in our future: We were military and were handed unexpected orders a short time later to a much more expensive area. Our budget never would have let us keep a new car. At our new duty station, the new church welcomed us with open arms. When I was due to deliver our sixth son, a friend took me aside and said they had a second car they had no use for and wanted to give it to us for a low cost, knowing another child would not fit into our car! What a God send!

God saw our needs. He answered. Not in the way we wanted, but in His time. In His way. Several years later, when my husband made more rank, we were able to buy another car so that we could go places together in one car, and it was delightful! However, we will always be thankful that He was watching over us when we needed it the most and sent earth angels to assist us.

Speak Lord, for your servant, is listening.