At The Overwhelming

From the end of the earth I will cry to You,
When my heart is overwhelmed;
Lead me to the rock that is higher than I.
  -- Psalm 61:2

As a little sheep from the Lord's pasture we are often overwhelmed by events and emotions. While it is not always the answer to run away from troubles, it is always a great answer to run to the Lord with our cries. 

It will not surprise any of you to learn that this is from a psalm of David. It seems that when seeking out verses about worry, fear, or overwhelming, I will find that David was one who knew these things from his experiences. At the ending of this year, any of us might feel that overwhelming sorrow, despair, anxiety, or other crushing feeling that brings us down, down, to a heartfelt wail to the Lord. David published his overwhelming in a song. We can bring ours to the Lord in prayer. "Lead me to the rock that is higher than I," David wrote. We know this Rock as Jesus the Christ. Our Lord Jesus knows the weakness of every sheep in His flock. Come to Him little sheep and wail your hurt to the Good Shepherd. 

Place all of yourself in the hands of the Shepherd!

Bucky

Be It Resolved

So they resolved to make a proclamation throughout all Israel, from Beersheba to Dan, that they should come to keep the Passover to the LORD God of Israel at Jerusalem, since they had not done it for a long time in the prescribed manner. 2 Chronicles 30:5

Israel in the time of Hezekiah had done the backsliding thing and failed to keep the Passover as prescribed. This is one of two instances of the word resolved found in the NKJV of the Bible. In both cases, the key is not making the resolution, but in the doing of it. So...in our verse for today we can congratulate them for making the proclamation? Yes, the performance of the Passover we can leave between them and God for today's lesson. What we want to gain from our resolutions as we prepare for the new year lies in the doing. They made the proclamation as resolved. Therefore go carefully with your resolutions this year. After the 'Be It Resolved' on the proclamation, be sure there is the doing with commitment. Else, it would be better for us to have not resolved it.

Be it resolved in Christ our Lord that we do what we resolve to do! Amen.

Bucky

Love's Conveyance

He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.  Colossians 1:13-14

To convey is to transport or carry something to a place. The man who died on the cross believing in the kingship of our Lord Jesus was conveyed that day to Paradise. To convey is also to bear a message from one to another. As we have received the message of our Lord's love for us, so we in turn convey that love to others who have not yet heard the good news of Jesus. How do we convey this message? Some say actions are best to show the love, while others say that words tell it best. Use the means and methods God has given to you, and I will carry the message in the way that God has blessed in me. 

We are borne to the kingdom on a conveyance of love!

Bucky

Happy Christmas!

Then the dove came to him in the evening, and behold, a freshly plucked olive leaf was in her mouth; and Noah knew that the waters had receded from the earth. Genesis 8:11

Nope, no symbology or foretelling in this verse. That the angels appeared to the shepherds at night in Luke 2 and make us think of an evening birth is just coincidence. Then our Lord was baptized by John with water and the Holy Spirit of God came down like a dove, just happenstance. Then Jesus said that He was the true vine and we the branches, just a mere trifle. Then Daniel foretold that the Messiah would be cut off at 62 weeks in 9:26, and that would not make us think of a freshly plucked olive branch even if Isaiah does name Him the Prince of Peace in his own chapter 9. And Noah knew that the waters of judgment had receded from the earth. I just don't see how we can see anything in this verse relating to anything else.

It requires a lot of denial to not see the beauty of the foretelling of our Lord Jesus from Genesis to the Revelation. We have peace with God through that little dove and olive branch born in Bethlehem.

Have a happy and joyous Christmas Eve in Christ our Lord!

Bucky

Happiness And Cheer This Year?

And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.”  Revelation 21:4

Christmas time is here, but is everyone feeling the happiness and cheer that is expected of them? The song from that famous Christmas special begins like this:

Christmas time is here
Happiness and cheer
Fun for all that children call
Their favorite time of year.

When Lee Mendelson wrote the lyrics for the well known Vince Guaraldi tune, even poor Charlie Brown didn't get the feeling we are supposed to have at Christmastime. Some depend on family to help with the cheer, and this year the weather will prevent some Christmas reunions. Others by reason or circumstance don't have families to go home to this year. And then there is me with what seems to be my annual Christmas downer message about those who have suffered this year. Mental illness is often highlighted at this time also, simply because so much happiness and cheer does go around the world for a few days and the sufferers cannot participate. It just isn't everyone's best time of the year. It will happen, and no one needs to regard themselves as worse or less because this year does not bring the happiness and cheer. In fact, a time comes soon when God wipes away the tears from our eyes at a moment when it seems like happiness and cheer would be the order of the day. So, pray and be understanding of those who struggle through the holidays, and be glad as much as you are able this year. 

Rejoice in the Lord! He returns soon to wipe those tears from our eyes. 

Bucky

Abba, Father!

Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit.  Matthew 1:18 

This morning we woke up in the frozen north. There are many places further north and higher up that might be colder at this moment, but at -17°F and with a new covering of snow, we are there in spirit and in circumstance.  Looks like the high in the Bahamas will be about 77° today. It is a contrast to be sure. Another one is that you and I are not betrothed this morning and one of us has not been found with child. However, my ridiculosity is not the important point but that little prepositional phrase there in the verse, 'of the Holy Spirit'. Most societies do not want to admit to a breakage of the rules when it comes to marriage and engagement. And it was especially important in Mary and Joseph's time since those rock-chuckin' Judeans seemed always ready for a stoning. That they had other methods to deal with unwed pregnancies appears in a later verse. But, can we so easily get past that little phrase, 'of the Holy Spirit'? There is the Christmas miracle. Jesus' daddy was the Holy Spirit! 

Merry Christmas to you, and may we say with Jesus, "Abba, Father!"

Bucky

It's About Light

Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.”  John 8:12

Isaiah spoke the promise that those who walked in darkness would see a great light. Jesus presented Himself to the Pharisees and others gathered there as the fulfillment of that promise. As you will know from your Bible studies, this immediately provoked a division among those listening to Him. Some called Him a false witness, others decided He was a blasphemer, and a few believed in the Lord Jesus. To believe in Jesus as the Son of God and our Savior remains the central choice in this life. Those who love the darkness don't want to go there. And Christmas is such a great time to celebrate the Light of the World too. Refusing the Light of the World, they miss out on so much during this time of His birth celebration. 

We can pray for them to receive our Lord and Savior,

Bucky

Food On My Mind

Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you. I have given you all things, even as the green herbs.  Genesis 9:3

After Noah and his family landed on Ararat, this dietary change was given to them by the Lord. We can hardly imagine the change from what was before the flood to what came after. However, there was also this, "And the fear of you and the dread of you shall be on every beast of the earth." (9:2) So, it wasn't like Noah could just run up and take a bite of these moving feasts, er, beasts, but the art of pursuit and hunting came to be. Does that mean that the wedding feast of the Lamb told in the Revelation will be more steak or more potatoes? It may be both, or neither. For in each great change in the word there tends to be, well , great change. If the washing of the flood brought one change, what will the washing of the blood of the Lamb bring to us? Even sticking with the diet theme, as I have food on my mind this morning, we can hardly imagine what food will be served at that great feast. New wine would be a good thing to count on, Jesus made that promise to us just before the cross. 

Challenges abound, but Jesus has blessed us this morning!

Bucky

Fallen For It

Behold, you trust in lying words that cannot profit.  Jeremiah 7:8

If I brought this to you today, you might think that I'm referring to your latest Wall Street venture. It seems that there is always a false prophet willing to lie when it comes to stocks these days. When the message comes through one of God's prophets though, we can be assured that it wasn't about investment advice. Judah in the time of Jeremiah was looking quite a bit like a nation we are familiar with today. 

So, along comes Jones with some advice for us. How do we tell which are the lying words and which are not? Perhaps you know a Jones and can tell us to never  believe anything he says. However, there is another thing about this hypothetical Jones of ours, he is the minister of a popular Christian church. What do those people know that we do not? Or, perhaps they are all fallen for it. We can only go to the Word of God in prayer and meditation to seek an answer. Depending upon what you or I think we know, as the Proverbs tell us, carries too much risk. Better to trust in the Lord! 

Keep a warm heart for the Lord in these cold days!

Bucky

Beginning The Age Of Faith

Inasmuch as many have taken in hand to set in order a narrative of those things which have been fulfilled among us, just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word delivered them to us, it seemed good to me also, having had perfect understanding of all things from the very first, to write to you an orderly account, most excellent Theophilus, that you may know the certainty of those things in which you were instructed. Luke 1:1-4

Was Luke even there? We like Luke for his work as a detective and investigative journalist in the stories of Jesus. Like us, Luke probably never met Jesus or even saw Him from the outside edge of a multitude. Instead, Luke spoke with Mary, and many others to gather material for his report to Theophilus. Luke had to believe first, just as we do. Luke lived at the beginning of the age of faith. And as we read of angels, shepherds, jumping babies, and sudden outbursts into songs of praise, (and that is just in the first stories), we read that something huge, strange, and world changing is at work in Judea. However, we must first believe in Jesus or these marvelous stories will not live in us.

Have faith and joy this Christmas!

Bucky

Storehouse of Snow

Have you entered the storehouse of the snow, or seen the armory of the hail, which I reserve for the time of trouble, for the day of war and battle? Job 38:22-23

A storehouse of snow? It would be tempting to think that some of that snow has got out and come here this past day. However, this snow in that particular storehouse has a reservation on it. The reservation is for the time of trouble, and the day of war and battle. While we might say that these are troubled times, a quick read of the Revelation tells us that we are in the 'not yet' times. The questions God poses to Job and the judgments revealed in His Revelation are much more serious than our smaller challenges we face today. God does not love us less though when our daily problems are easier than a storm of 75 pound hailstones or a third of the oceans turning to blood. Our problems are enough for today, and the Lord's love has not stopped.

We will be moving about a bit less freely today in our little town. The blizzard did not miss us this time.

Love in Christ,

Bucky

Warning Words

“Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; therefore hear a word from My mouth, and give them warning from Me. Ezekiel 3:17

Yesterday, I got the quilts out from their storage. The day belied the need for them but warning words had come from the watchers. To the north we have blizzard warnings this morning; for us only a winter storm watch. Either way, our autumn comes to a close about a week early. We too have a duty as watchers for God to warn those who think things will simply continue on to some far distant conclusion. Reading in the Revelation this weekend, there is a warning there too of a storm coming. Do we continue on as if this storm will never break over us, as the world wants to do, or do we give warning words? Imagine some friends leaving to go north into that warning zone this afternoon in a car unsuited to traversing a blizzard. We would warn them.

Have a great and exciting week in Christ as we watch for Him!

Bucky

For Us Today

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Hebrews 13:8

There are those times when one might think that to live back then, any then will do, that things would be just so much better as we walked with the Lord. This statement from Hebrews is one of a great many in the Bible directed at us as we try to deceive ourselves into thinking that this other time would be better for us. We are given today, right now in fact, and that is it. Flying in the face of my youthful desire for several science fiction shows, I can no more go forward or back in time than I can wish myself to Jupiter. While you and I can both imagine ourselves in another time and place quite easily, that isn't living. The wonderful reason that we live in the here and now is that Jesus our Lord stays the same, perfect and wonderful, everyday as He walks with us and we with Him.

Persevere and continue on the way with our Lord Jesus!

Bucky

The Fringe of Power

Wherever he went—in villages, cities, or the countryside—they brought the sick out to the marketplaces. They begged him to let the sick touch at least the fringe of his robe, and all who touched him were healed. Mark 6:56

Reading this small portion of Mark this morning, do we need to wonder anymore why the Roman soldiers divided and drew lots for our Lord's garments. These were objects of magic power! I have to wonder though, did they continue to work when no longer on the holy and, at that time, dead body of our Lord? It is stories such as this one from Mark that caused a huge trade in holy objects of yesteryear to tourists of many types in the Middle East. However, like those desperate people reaching for the hem or fringe of our Lord's robe, I cannot help but think that they missed the target. Jesus did not say that these people got it. He said the Roman centurion understood it. Yes, the one who thought himself unworthy to have the Lord in his house, and knew that it was the authority in Jesus that was the real power to heal. Even the woman who first touched that holy hem was told that it was her faith, not grabbing a bit of cloth, that healed her. We are not missing something today by not being able to reach for His robe, trust in His authority today.

Have faith in our Lord Jesus, whatever answer to prayer you receive.

Love in Christ Jesus,

Bucky

Born Again

Jesus answered and said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” John 3:3

Reborn in Christ, born again, it is the most basic of the fundamentals of our faith. And yet, we hardly understand it any more than Nicodemus did back in the day our Lord spoke these words to him that night. Of course the first and tallest step to enter the kingdom of God was taken by our Lord Jesus when He paid the ransom for us on the cross. After that it became real easy, right? Wasn't there something about being directed to the left or right as we walk? No, after Jesus paid our ransom, all we have to do is go be reborn.

You may have attempted an explanation, seen the look of incomprehension on your audience, and asked to start over. Well, that isn't really starting over since they all heard that first attempt. Or, you may have been on a project team that reached a roadblock and heard someone say, "We need to back up to the start, and try a different path." Both sound a bit like starting over, but they are not. What Jesus told us to do by the Nicodemus meeting was far more profound. Reborn? How do we...? And we are in the same baffled place as the Teacher of Israel. What Jesus calls for is so deep and so far from our experience and knowledge that it must be the work of God's Spirit. What is our part in this? Believe.

Believe in Jesus, and be saved!

Bucky

The Time Of Struggle

And Jephthah said to them, “My people and I were in a great struggle with the people of Ammon; and when I called you, you did not deliver me out of their hands. Judges 12:2

From the wars and rumors of war, we might think the time of struggle is now. However, the folks of Jephthah's time would make their case for their day just as well. And then there are the struggles that come to us on whatever days they will come. Some of these struggles are great and some are little, but come they will. For a nation or a people there will be times of greater and normal struggles too. As Jephthah found, there will also be times when we count on a friend to help out and help does not appear. He was later delivered by the Lord, which as we know from our struggles is where he should have turned in the first place. No blame from us to Jephthah though, for how many times have each of us tried to win the struggle alone only to come to the Lord later after our strength has quite failed to win the day?

To the Lord in prayer with you!

Bucky

Oh Sister, We Will Miss You...For A Little While

For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus. 1 Thessalonians 4:14

We who believe in Jesus the Christ bear a certain weirdness in the sight of the world. The coroner may say they died, but we say they have gone to sleep in Jesus. Some will say their condition is permanent, but we see from this side the temporary nature of it. We miss our brothers and sisters in Christ for a little while. However, that little while is not that of forgetfulness but of an eternal reunion soon to come.

I read with delight the obituary of a sister in Christ. The delight was not of course for the sorrow her husband and children must endure for a time. Nor was it over the loss her close friends will feel. The delight is found in the testimony of this obituary to the love of Jesus in her life. Rich men may try to make much of how they will give away an enormous fortune when they die. But a testimony of the enduring love of Jesus and His salvation even as we go to sleep in Him, now that is a treasure for all of us to share in!

May we all in Christ bear such a lovely testimony on our sleeping day,

Bucky

He Is With You

And it came to pass at that time that Abimelech and Phichol, the commander of his army, spoke to Abraham, saying, “God is with you in all that you do.  Genesis 21:22

Now those are words of encouragement! It is a thing we forget at the worst of times, and fail to remember at the best of times. That God is with you and me should be a foundational thought in every moment, but is it always so with us? For those who refuse to believe, it is one of the most frightening of thoughts to occur to them. For those of us who believe in God, we sometimes try to go at the problem alone through our pride. Even in a moment of fear, when it seems that the thought of God with us would be foremost in mind, we tend to tremble in our misery for too long. It is past time for us to remember the name, Immanuel! We say it as 'God with us' but recall it personally too - God with me!

Rejoice always in Immanuel!

Bucky