Rest in the Lord

 When we think about the gifts God gives to us, His children, our natural tendency is to focus on the gifts we need the most.  We need God to be reconciled to us and so we give thanks for the gift of His Son, Jesus Christ, who redeemed us from slavery to sin and saved us by suffering for our sins on the cross.  We need to lived for God and for others and not for ourselves and so we give thanks to God for the new life in Christ that began at our conversion.  Through Word and Sacraments the Holy Spirit is working to give us a new attitude and new way of living for Christ and for others.  We need to be assured that our death is not the end and so we give thanks to God for the gift of eternal life that is ours through faith in our Savior.

 But there are so many other gifts that God showers upon us for which we are grateful.  Answers to prayers...freedom from guilt...fruit of faith...Christian fellowship...guidance for daily living.  

 And then there is this - rest.  Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  Matt. 11:28.

 The cares and problems of this life can seemingly break our backs.  We wonder where we can find relief.  To us, Jesus says, "Come."  He offers to bear our burdens.  He urges us to shed our cares.  The Lord takes the load from our backs and He bids us rest.  We rest in His compassionate love.  We rest in knowing that He cares for us.  We rest in trusting that nothing can separate us from Him.  So, rest.  Rest in your Lord.

It's Time For the Friday Funny!

A women called a pet shop one day and asked, "I need to purchase 10,000 cockroaches."

The proprietor asked, "Why in the world would you need 10,000 cockroaches?"

She replied, "I'm moving from my apartment today and the lease says that I must leave the apartment exactly as I found it!"

Have a nice (and bug-free) weekend!

Preach the Gospel...and use words!

It is St. Francis who is to have said, "Go out today and preach the Gospel...and if you must, use words."  I don't know if he said such a thing but I have a hard time with such a thought.

The Gospel is all about Jesus Christ - His suffering, death and resurrection for the redemption of the world.  The Gospel is good news, the best news anyone can hear.  The Gospel is all about words - words regarding the salvation that is God's free gift to those who believe in Jesus - the way and the truth and the life.

The life that St. Francis is speaking of is one that is motivated by the Gospel.  The love of Jesus changes us and moves us.  We want to be salt and light to the world.  We want to love our neighbor as Jesus first loved them and us.  We want to let our light shine in a world full of darkness and sin so that more and more people will come to know and trust Jesus to be their Savior from sin and death.

In Acts, chapter 8, Phillip used the words of the 5th Gospel - Isaiah - to help the eunuch see and believe in the "Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world."  Paul wrote to the Romans that the "Gospel is the power of God for the salvation of the world."  The Gospel is all about the Word - Jesus!

By all means, go out today and show the power of God's love at work in your life.  Let people see the difference that Jesus makes.  But also be ready to speak His Gospel of love and forgiveness to those around you.  Preach the Gospel...and use words to do it!

From October 2012

How valuable are you to God?

Life's value is most apparent when I look at the price God paid for it.

Richard Lauersdorf, "Together with Jesus," September 22 devotion

How does God work?

The Word, the Word, the Word."  That is how Martin Luther responded when asked how God works.  He forgives sin by His Word.  He creates faith by His Word.  He sustains faith by His Word.  He heals through His Word.  He raises the dead by His Word and He will raise the dead through His Word.

From "What They Need to Hear" by Klemut Preus, page 152 

Comforting words from Luther

I might have shared this before but I can't help myself.  It's Martin Luther and it's good, comforting news.  From Treasury of Daily Prayer:

Therefore, if consciousness of a great sin weighs you down, comfort yourself with the blood of love...it is solely in the blood of Christ that we have confidence on the Day of Judgment 

Have you exercised your faith today?

John Kleinig, in his wonderful book, "Grace Upon Grace," talks about the fact that faith is an active, living thing.  He writes (on page 44), ...we exercise our faith continually, in our work and in our rest, in the Church and in the world, just as we exercise our eyes by seeing and our ears by hearing...

We exercise our faith by practicing our piety, whether it is going to church or by saying grace before meals, by meditating on God's Word or by praying, by examining ourselves in the light of God's Law or by confessing our sins, by fasting or by presenting our offerings to God...

We are not called to live as practical atheists, people who, theoretically, believe in God, and yet act as if God has nothing to do with their daily lives....

People schedule regular times of bodily exercise each day.  We want to keep our bodies fit.  Do you do the same for exercising faith? Kleinig would have us all put to use the gifts of God in our lives every day so that faith, which is the Lord's gift to us, would continue to keep on trusting in the Lord for forgiveness, for life and for everything.

Hope you find time today for a good workout 

Books on the Nightstand

I counted the tally and was surprised to learn that I read 31 books this summer.  That's a new record for me. Most of the books were historical fiction, popular culture, sports and the arts and a few theology books thrown in for good measure.  Here's what I'm reading at the moment:

"Listening to the Law" by Justice Amy Coney Barrett.  This has been a very intriguing read.  Coney Barrett pulls back the curtain (a little bit) on how the Supreme Court works, how they decide what cases to consider, how the justices get along with each other and what a typical day is like.  I'm only a few chapters in but it's becoming one of those "can't put it down" books.

"The Stolen Life of Collette Marceau" by Kristin Harmel.  The author has become one of my favorites.  She tends to focus on the World War II years and she does a superb job of making the reader feel what it was like to live through those terrifying times, especially if you were Jewish.  The story revolves about an older women who was taught at a young age to be a pickpocket of valuable items like jewelry which were then sold with the proceeds given to help Jewish exiles.  I've only read about a fourth of the book but its becoming one of those "can't put it down" books (wait, I just said that?).

"From Here to the Great Unknown" by Lisa Marie Presley and Riley Keough.  The only child of Elvis Presley, Lisa Marie was writing her life story when she suddenly died.  Keough honored her mother's wishes and completed the book, adding her own insights and filling in the blanks.  The book is heartbreaking.  Lisa Marie had a fractured childhood without equal amounts of love and discipline.  Keough is the sole heir of Graceland, Elvis' former home and national tourist attraction.  She seems to have her life together.

For my birthday my kids gave me an Amazon gift card.  What shall I use it for? Books, perhaps?  

The Friday Funny Returns!

There's no one quite like Shel Silverstein...

The fanciest dive that was ever dove
 Was done by Melissa of Coconut Grove
She bounced on the board and flew into the air
 With a twist of her head and a twirl of her hair
She did 34 jackknives, back flipped and spun
 Quadruple gainered and reached for the sun
And then somersaulted 9 times and a quarter
 And looked down and saw

              The pool had no water. 

Does God Really Know You?

Marsha Kaitz, a psychology professor at Hebrew University in Jerusalem, did a test to see how well mothers know their babies.  According to the Associated Press, the 46 mothers chosen for the test had all given birth in the previous five to 79 hours.  They had all breast fed their newborn.

Each mother was blindfolded and then asked to identify which of three sleeping babies was her own.  Nearly 70 percent of the mothers correctly chose their baby.  Most of the mothers said they knew their child by the texture or temperature of the infant's hand.  The woman apparently learned the identifying features during routine contact, said Kaitz, because they weren't allowed to study their babies to prepare for the experiment.

70 percent of the Moms could identify their child.  That's pretty impressive.  Even more impressive is Almighty God's ability to know His children.  It's 100%!

That's the word from the psalmist David.  Read Psalm 139 this week to learn more.  David writes it clearly - God knows you through and through.  From the time your alarm clock goes off in the morning until you switch off the bedroom light at night and hit the sack, God knows what you've done, where you've been and what you've said.  There is no place where you can hide from His Spirit.  There is no darkness that can conceal you.  From the moment of your conception until this very moment, God has you on His heavenly GPS screen.

And that's good! When we're honored for our hard work on the job, God knows and rejoices.  When we pound the pavement seeking any kind of a job, God knows and is with you.  God's searching knowledge of us leads us to put down our guard and be transparently honest with Him.  His Law shows how we have offended the Lord and so His Spirit leads us to repentance and faith.  His Gospel reassures us of the Lord's forgiveness and salvation.  We have His promise - the Lord will lead us in the way everlasting.  May God bolster your faith as you pray Psalm 139 this week.