My Uncle Harold

This devotion is dedicated to my Uncle Harold.  He has become ill, and as a result, has been put in a nursing home.  He shows severe signs of some type of dementia, but doctors can not find anything wrong with him.  There is most definitely something wrong.  He sees things that are not there.  He talks almost completely out of his head, and now, he doesn't even know my aunt, who has been married to for ever. It breaks her heart to have to place him in this nursing home, but she is unable to take care of him while he is in this state.  Uncle Harold is retired Army and has never been sick other than an occasional cold.  That's why this hurts so much.  This is one of the strongest men I have ever known, physically, emotionally, and intellectually.  You may not know my Uncle Harold, but you probably know someone in this same shape.  God only knows what is going through his mind!

You know what?  That's one thing that gives me strength at this moment:  God does know what is going on in his mind.  Uncle Harold may not be able to communicate with us the way he used to, but I feel positive he is still communicating with God the same way he always has.  He is a Christian and loves the Lord very much.  God is holding him right this very minute.  Please pray for him, and also, please pray for my Aunt Glenda, as she is a bucket of emotions right now.  I also feel positive God is holding her, too.  Our God holds all of us when we need Him.  Praise be to the Lord!

Psalm 119:165 says, "Great peace have they who love Your law, and nothing can make them stumble."

Father, I pray for Uncle Harold right now and ask you to give him a speedy recovery.  Also, please be with my aunt as she also struggles through these hard times.  In Jesus name, Amen.

Bad Habits

The other day, I noticed that one of the spindles on the railing around my front porch was broken.  Upon closer inspection, I noticed that a small bush had grown into a fork.  And wouldn't you know it, the spindle on the railing just happen to be in the middle of the fork in the bush.  As the bush continued to grow, the fork pushed the spindle so hard that it broke it from the bottom.  If only I had noticed it sooner, I could have trimmed the bush back and saved myself $12.99 and 20 minutes of my time. 

That's the way it is with our bad habits.  We all have them, but if we try to keep them cut-back to a minimum, we just might be able to keep them from destroying things around us.  I admit that my spindle was only a little thing, but you and I have both heard of some people's bad habits destroying much, much more.  It is so much easier to pull-up a small twig from the ground before it grows into a medium-sized bush.  And if we let that bad habit continue to grow to tree-size, well, we may never be able to remove it.

Psalm 68:19 says, "Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens."

Father, help us to keep our bad habits in check.  We admit we are not perfect, but agree that You are and that You are willing to help us with our burdens everyday.  In Jesus name, Amen.

Pop-Up Blocker

I used to get so aggravated when surfing the net because of those annoying pop-ups.  I know it only takes a second to close them, but some are so sophisticated that once you close one, two or three more pop-up in its place.  Thank Goodness for pop-up blockers!  Most are free and easily down-loadable from the Internet.  I love the sound mine makes when it blocks a pop-up.  It sounds like a bug hitting one of those outdoor zappers.

When Jesus Ascended into heaven, He sent the Holy Spirit in His place.  The Holy Spirit does many things for us.  One thing in particular that I like is that He is like one of those pop-up blockers.  Everyday, we are faced with scores of temptations, some small and some large.  But if we stay in-tune to the Holy Spirit, he can zap those "pop-ups" away in an instant.  Have you down-loaded God's pop-up blocker?  It's free, and 100% effective.  And once you install it in your heart, you can surf through your day with a lot less aggravation.

Ezekiel 36:27 says, "And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgements and do them."

Father, thank-you for the Holy Spirit.  Help us to always listen for His voice.  In Jesus name, Amen 

Scars

I was watching an episode of Criminal Minds just a second ago, and one of the actors said a line that made me jump out of bed and write this devotion.  Rossi said, "emotional scars show where we have been, but they don't have to dictate where we are going".  We all carry scars, emotionally and physically, that are tough to deal with.  Everyone of us have scars from the past, and in that sense, we are all the same.  But the difference between us is what we do with those scars.  Do we continue to let them haunt and hurt us, or do we force them away and go on with our lives?

Jesus suffered many scars while he spent some 30-plus years here on earth.  But he certainly moved on and didn't allow them to derail His path.  And with  His help, we can do the same thing.  Here's an idea:  Gather up all your scars and give them to the Lord.  He promises He will help to share your load.  We may never lose those scars completely; Even Jesus still carried the scars in his hands and his side, even after his dead body was resurrected.  If He can do it, we certainly can to, with His help.  

Psalm 30:2 says, "O Lord my God, I called to you for help and you healed me."

Father, please help our scars to heal.  Remind us that it is not where we have been that matters as much as where we are going.  In Jesus name, Amen.

Facebook

I guess I am like most everybody else these days: I enjoy "playing" on Facebook. I know I am also guilty of this, but it is very comical what some people write on their status. One I read recently said, "I just woke up, now I am gonna watch some TV..later". Another one simply said, "Taking the dog for a walk." Do we really believe that there are people out there that truly care that much about us and what we do?

I bet if Jesus had a Facebook account, He would love to see every single one of our posts. I saw a movie one time about Jesus coming to earth as a man and visiting a teenager. She didn't believe He was really Jesus until later in the movie. When she realized He was truly Christ, of course she was full of thousands of questions. After answering most of them for her, Jesus then started asking her some questions. She started answering His questions, and then it hit her, and she stopped in mid-sentence. She said, "Lord, why are you asking me anything? You are Jesus and know everything I am going to say even before I say it." I will never forget His response. He smiled very warmly and replied, "Yes I do know what you will say, but I sure am enjoying having a conversation with you." We can "Facebook" Jesus anytime just by praying. I bet it would thrill Him for us to just talk to Him...even if it is in short "status updates".

Jeremiah 33:3 says, "Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know."

Father, here is my status update for You: "Just woke up. Gonna go through my day speaking with You often". In Jesus name, Amen.

It Is Over

Goodbye 2010. Although there were some good times, the year as a whole was not a good one for me. And it was totally my fault. For one thing, I got away from writing devotions. That one bad decision led to a domino-effect of bad consequences. But not this year, Satan. You hear me! Jesus is and always will be Lord of my life. You have been kicked from my life, Satan. Trust me, it won't be a long process. My Jesus promises me it will be instantaneous!

So happy New Year to all. I pray that God wraps you in so much peace that you can hardly stand it. Let 2010 and Satan go....welcome in 2011 and our precious Jesus Christ.

Psalm 40:2 says, "He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock gave me a firm place to stand."

Father, I love you. I dedicate my life to you in 2011.

It's The Thought That Counts

I wanted to share with you what my daughter Bailey did last night at the grocery store. While we were buying a few items, she came up to me and asked for a couple dollars. I reached into my wallet and took out two bucks. As I was handing it to her, I guess I just naturally asked what she needed. She said, "I am going to donate it to the lady outside who is collecting for diabetes research." I thought to myself, "instead of buying some junk?" I was very proud of her at that very moment.

But then the funny part hit me: It is so easy to be generous with somebody else's money. I nearly laughed and wondered why she didn't just ask for 5 or 10 dollars. Bailey has a kind heart, with my money or with her own. The more I thought about it, the more I wondered if I would have given those same two dollars to the lady outside. I guess the bottom line is that the money was given, and hopefully it will do some good. Is it truly the thought that counts? This time, it was my 14-year old's thought that counted the most. I love you, Boo.

Psalm 112:5 says, "Good will come to him who is generous and lends freely."

Father, thank-you for Bailey. She is such an awesome young lady, and I am so lucky you chose me to be her daddy. In Jesus name, Amen.

As Good As...Almost New

First of all, I wanna thank those who commented on my recent devotion concerning being a little upset at God. Your comments were very thought-provoking and really helped me deep down. So again, thank-you very much.

Today I had some medical trouble that landed me in the E.R. When I got there, I was praying like crazy, asking God to take away the pain and discomfort I was feeling. Due to the pain, needless to say my blood pressure was through the roof. It is amazing what the Good Lord and a doctor can do. I am back home now and feeling 100% better. I am having a slight case of insomnia, but I think that is more because I wanted to write this devotion. I got to thinking how we can have moments of extreme pain, and then with some help, can have moments of total relief. That's what I experienced today physically. But we also have those same episodes spiritually. Yesterday, I was questioning God why such mean people can hurt the innocent, and in turn, hurt us. But then today I can pray to God for relief, and He can give it to me in such a short time. Yesterday, I was "upset" at God. But today, I didn't hesitate to ask him to cure my physical pain. So I wanted to give God some praise for helping me today physically and spiritually. I have learned that it is OK to be upset with Him sometimes. He still loves us enough to make all our hurts and fears go away. Thank-you, Lord for helping me learn another level of your incredible Grace. You are my Lord; Please use me however You want.

Pure Hell

I am writing this devotion just to get it off my chest. I invite you to give your thoughts in the "comments" section. When I read the testimony of Elizabeth Smart and learn of the pure hell her captor put her through, first of all, I realize I have no problems that can even compare. Second, how could a person possibly be so cruel to another human being? How could that monster completely rob that little 14-year old baby of her life? And this question hurts to ask: How could a loving, caring God ALLOW that child to go through such horror? I know it is not my place to question God, and I also know He lets people make up their own minds. I understand it was not God's fault, but why would He allow it to happen?

I love the Lord and believe He will "fix" humanity one day. It almost makes me think I am sinning to ask God why He would allow this to happen, for He is perfect and none of us come close to understanding His perfect ways. But He also gave me a brain and a heart. Doesn't He understand that sometimes we can be so over-whelmed by grief that we may ask such questions? Is it alright for us to be "upset with God" during these times?

Forgive Me, Forgive Me Not

I have a friend (we'll call him John) who is constantly deciding to start all over. Do you know what I mean? He decides to do everything for Christ, then after a little while, he back-slides. Soon after, he will ask everyone to forgive him and then start the whole process over. It's like he can't stay on the right path long before something comes along and derails him. Gosh, how many times will I continue to fall for his "I'm sorry, please forgive me" line? How many "just one more chances" do I give him? The fact is, as a human, I may number those "one more chances" that I allow him, and one of these times, it will be just too late; I will give up. I can't keep going through this time and time again. Do you blame me?

Our Jesus goes through this "on again, off again" process with every single one of us to some degree or another. We may not be able to forgive others 100 times, but Jesus sure does. Thank God for that! So if you are like John, and I think we all probably are, then rest assured that Jesus forgives us EVERY SINGLE time we ask Him. Don't worry if other people won't keep forgiving you; that is their problem. God does! And to show our appreciation for that, we should really work on forgiving others...no matter how many times they ask.

Jesus said in Matthew 6:14, "If you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly father will also forgive you."

Father, forgive me of all my sins. Thank-you for being a gracious God. Please help me to forgive all others. In Jesus name, Amen.