pastorjohnb

Thoughts and musings on faith and our mighty God!

Tag Archives: care


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Hand in Hand

Joshua asks the people twice if they will indeed serve God alone.  He wants to be sure they understand the importance of their decision and that they are sure about it.  After two positive affirmations, Joshua tells them to “throw away foreign gods that are among you and yield your hearts to God and obey him” (verse 24).  He knows that if they hang onto those idols, eventually they will turn back to them.  Joshua knows the importance of relying on God alone in the pursuit of a life of love, mercy, justice, and compassion.

We too face the same choice.  While we sometimes have physical idols like that new car or the latest fashion, most of our idols are things like pride, judging, envy, gossip, and control. We too must work at ‘throwing’ them out.  But we cannot do it alone.  Only with God’s help do we begin to stand a chance against these idols.

As we choose God alone to serve, we are choosing to enter into a covenant relationship with God.  In this relationship we choose to serve God alone and to love God above all else.  For His part, God strengthens, encourages, and enables us to grow closer to Him through prayer, study, worship, fellowship, and other encounters with Him.  God also leads us to serve, give to, care for, and love others as an extension of that loving, covenant relationship that we have with Him.  Loving God and loving neighbor just go hand in hand.  Loving God and loving neighbor are two greatest calls upon our lives.

Scripture reference: Joshua 24: 19-25


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Where They Are At

Shortly after being freed from cruel bondage in slavery, the Israelites begin to complain.  Instead of turning to the God who “convinced” Pharaoh to let them go, who brought them safely through the sea, and who destroyed Pharoah’s army in that same sea. they chose to grumble.  At first glance,they appear ungrateful.

Yet for how many of us does a basic need that is unmet become what we quickly whine about?  Ever heard “I’m hungry’ whined from a comfy couch while playing the latest video game on an almost brand-new gaming console?  Ever heard something along the lines of “That’s not fair!” when a coworker gets a raise from the person who just bought a new car?  It is even a greater cause to complain when the person is truly in need.  At least the Israelites where actually wandering in a desert and had next to no provisions.  Today, when one is struggling to find shelter and a bit of food to eat, then seeing anything else is often a challenge.

This is why Jesus calls us to care for the needy and to be generous with what we have been blessed with.  God’s blessings are not intended for our hording.  But to be able to share the good news with someone, we must meet a person’s basic needs first.  It is the old adage – people don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.  We must be like Jesus and meet them where they are at.  We must see them as they are and meet their immediate needs first.  Then the Holy Spirit will guide us from there!

Scripture reference: Exodus 15: 2-3


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Love As He Loves

As God continues creation He culminates His work by making mankind in “our image”.  We are created in the image of the Holy One.  Just as God made all, He charges mankind, the one created in God’s image, to care for the earth and all of creation.  We are called to stewardship over what God created.  God gives plants and animals as food and gives the command to all of creation to be fruitful and multiply.  As God finishes creation, He says it is “very good”.

It is too easy to read ‘very good’ as applying simply to mankind.  I think it refers to the whole He created.  It is like a banana split – the ice cream is good, the banana is good, the toppings are good, the whipped cream is good – but together they are very good.  God saw the sum of creation and said it was ‘very good’.

God is a God of relationships.  We are called into a personal relationship with Him through His son Jesus.  When God looked at the complete works of His hands, He saw the relationship between all parts and that was what is very good.  It is all about relationship.  In our role as the ones created in the image of God, we are called to be loving parents of one very large family.  We are called to love the earth as God loves the earth.


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The Sacredness of Life

“How lovely is your dwelling places O Lord almighty” is the opening line to he song, “Better Is One Day.”  Truly I believe God’s dwelling place is amazing – hope to find out one day myself!  The chorus to this song speaks of one day in His courts being better than a thousand elsewhere.  This too I believe to be true.

Psalm 104 speaks of all the living things God has created and sustains.  His Spirit breaths life into them and when He removes His spirit, death comes.  Within this psalm we can see and feel a sacredness to all of life, for He creates all life and is in all life.

Although we are living for that one days when we will enter His courts, we need to be equally mindful that as we wait we need to care well for all of His creation.  As Christians our great commission is to make disciples of all nations, not just some.  In the same manner, we are called to care for all of creation, not just what we find under our roof or in our neighborhood.

Psalm 104, verse 31 reads, “May the glory of the Lord endure forever; may the Lord rejoice in His works!”  And may we do our part in the living out of this psalm.


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Healing Our Hearts and Minds

In Psalm 104 we read of God’s loving care for the earth and all its creatures.  God’s Spirit brings life to the animals, birds, plants, trees, waters, mountains, and even to us. His absence brings death to all these things.  All He creates is good.  All that is lost He mourns.

In our care of His creation we have done much that is wrong or bad for the earth and its creatures.  But we are leaning and beginning to rights our wrongs and to live with more attention to creation.  God’s Spirit guides us here too if we listen.  We can trust the Spirit’s leading and the Spirit’s lead to bring our efforts to fruition.

In our care for all of mankind, we still have some progress to be made.  In a world that produces much more food than it needs, no one should be starving.  In a world full of vast medical technology, no one should be dying of diseases that are preventable and/or curable.  In our nation of amazing resources and huge wealth, no one should be living in poverty.

Please pray with me today for God to continue to nudge us with the Spirit and to continue to bring healing to our hearts and minds so we can truly love all of His creation.


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He Loves Us!!!

Satan is crafty and wise.  He is skillful.  And he is always on the prowl.  The angles and means of his attacks are actually quite impressive.  Satan uses many voices to plant fear, doubt, anxiety, guilt, lust… in our heads and hearts – some from inside our own heads, some from the voices of those we know, some from society and the media.At every chance he is working to build up our pride, our stubbornness, our individualism.  All with one goal – to pull us away from God.

But God doesn’t pull back.  He simply invites us into a relationship.  He says, “Here I am, come.”  He offers us love, no strings attached.  God is our true friend.  These things never change.

In our faith we need to be vigilant and alert to Satan’s attacks.  But just as sure as the attacks are to come, we can be even more sure of God’s love and care.  When we call upon  the saving name of Jesus, then Satan will flee.  God will strengthen us and will help us to be steadfast and firm.  God will never fail us because He loves us too much to allow that to happen.


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It’s Great Outside of the Garden

As Adam and Eve eyed the fruit of the forbidden tree I wonder what was battling in their minds.  Did they go back and between the idea of all the other foods that God provided for them each day versus eating this one that He said they couldn’t have?  To me it is almost like telling a small child not to touch the burner on the stove because it is hot – what do they do?  Touch the burner!  And the child gains wisdom, just like Adam and Eve did when they ate that fruit.  They saw they were naked and covered themselves up.

This event plunged Adam and Eve, and really all of us, into the rough and tumble world.  As the knowledge of good and evil filled their minds, hearts, and eyes they were forever changed.  There was no going back.

I wonder if we would really be better off if we were still in the Garden.  Wouldn’t it be a little like being in heaven?  God walks with them daily, provides for their food and shelter…  Now don’t get me wrong – heaven will be greater than the greatest thing one cold ever imagine – but I like this world.  I like being able to see and decide between good and evil.  I like being able to pursue God and a relationship with Him.

In the world outside the Garden we all need each other.  Adam and Eve clothed each other.  As we look at our imperfect world, are there others that we can clothe, feed, …?  The responsibility to care for the world and for others has shifted to us.  The question now is: what am I ready to do for God and for others?  What are YOU willing to do?