Response and Responsibility

In Chapter 4 of the Revelation, we are given a vision of God's throne as John saw it after he was called up to Heaven. In this room, which we call a room in order to put a container on that which cannot be contained, are many wonders. John sees the 24 elders, the four living creatures, He who sat on the throne and the throne itself with its magnificent emerald aura. For those who struggle to find a meaning in every bit of the Revelation, this chapter raises more questions than answers. Who are the 24 elders? Where do they come from? Are they humans from the Earth or have they always been there in Heaven? What call to action do we gain from Revelation 4? What does this represent in the future?

Perhaps God is not looking to place a responsibility on us in this vision related through John, but to gain a response. We see into God's throne as John places the best words he can on what he has witnessed for us. There is no question to answer, no duty to perform. What God wants is our response. Wonder, awe, a certain difficulty in even coming up with a mental picture of what John has written. We gaze upon the heavenly words of Revelation 4 with earthly eyes, of course we come up short of seeing what John witnessed. The four living creatures are marvelous and almost completely strange to us. The 24 elders are an enigma. The throne of God awe-inspiring and too wonderful for a clear picture. Lightnings and thunderings? Is that its normal condition or is a storm brewing in Heaven? Voices from the throne - what are they saying? But let us put off responsibility and just see as best we are able. Let us pray for the right response.

Have a great Friday in Christ!
Bucky

You Can't Face Them Alone

A typical device in much of writing is the friend or companion yelling something like, "You cannot face them/it alone!" This sort of thing goes on a lot in fiction land. The humor, I suppose, is that the hero is not alone, he's got that other character with him, the one who apparently wants very much to go and leave our hero to not face them/it alone. The funny thing for us is that we so often feel alone in facing something when we are never alone. Sure, you and I may not be together facing a thing, and each of us may not have another body standing beside us, but we are never alone.

Jesus promised that He would never leave us or forsake us. Yes, it might be comforting to reach out and touch the Lord Almighty in a moment of stress but that wouldn't be faith. As Thomas reached out to touch the wounds of our risen Lord, he heard that great promise, "Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed." (John 21:29) A good reminder to us every day in this age of faith without touching the Lord. How do we remember that Jesus is always here? The Spirit, His Spirit, reminds us if we will listen, "...and lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the age." (Matt 28:20). Amen.

Not one of us can face the world alone, and we don't! The love of Jesus to you,

Bucky

He Dined With Me!

I want to introduce a most famous verse from the Word of God. Uh, if it is 'most famous' as you say, why would you need to introduce it? Exactly, but sometimes a good reminder and comment on a verse is edifying and uplifting too. Here is the verse for today:

Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me. (Revelation 3:20)

Imagine hearing that voice from the other side of your door, opening the door, and having dinner with the Lord. We couldn't wait to tell our friends the next day. Texts and e-mails would fly from our fingers. The social media post would go viral. "What did you eat? What did He say? Is He still here?" The questions would come from your friends faster than you could answer. And yet we do not believe. That will never happen to me. Jesus is in heaven and I am here. Boo, hoo, hoo.

Yes, there is a spiritual meaning to that verse, and yes there is also an eternal meaning as I'm sure Jesus will delight to dine with each and all of us on the New Earth, but this is what He said in His word. Might there not be a meaning we can partake of here and now? Can we not invite Him in? Wouldn't dinner with Jesus be great? I know that Jesus wants to do this in His great love. So, how important is that Second Coming anyway? Well, it may be so important that He holds off on dinner for just a bit. We dine with our Lord in faith as He partakes with us in His Spirit. One day though, there will be a knock on the door of a house. It might be yours! Let Him in.

Grace and peace to you from the Amen (see Rev 3:14),

Bucky

Like A Smiling Snowman

As I look in the mirror, I'm starting to see a little sagging here and a bit of drooping there, I think the dust of the earth is starting to call back its own. With the recent snows out east, I expect a profusion of snowmen to grow up. Like a smiling snowman standing in the sun with his arms raised up to the heavens, I know that my time here is limited. My body is temporary and one day will return to the dust from which it was made. Like that snowman though, I want to make the most of this time by praising God.

I may look a bit melted compared to my appearance at say 20 or 25 years of age, but I've never been closer to God than I feel right now. My circumstance says blazing sun, time is fleeting, I am melting away, but the Spirit says that life begins when Jesus comes. One sun melts me into a puddle, but the Son restores me to life eternal. In time, the sun may look down on no sign of me at all on this earth; but in just a little more time, the Son will bring me and my brothers and sisters into a new Earth that will never die. We have so much to look forward to in Christ. The smile may droop a bit from time to time, but the spirit within soars to the song from on high. Jesus is coming!

Have a great Tuesday in Christ,
Bucky

There's a Lot of Attacks Out There!

Anxiety attack, terrorist attack, heart attack, my frequent companion - the sneeze attack, and many other attacks wait out there for us on any given day. This world seems just full of things meant for our destruction, or at least the grabbing of many tissues. This weekend, I got to enjoy the weekend-without-Internet attack. I figure it a small price to pay for not being buried in snow like the folks out east. It was, however, annoying at times as I came to realize just how many bits of information I look up on the Internet in a 48-hour period. Knowledge most certainly has increased, now we await the remainder of the end times prophecies.

In a world where attacks seem to lurk in ambush on every path, the church at Philadelphia (The one in Turkey circa 95 AD, not the one buried in snow this weekend.) got by on little strength. In His message to the church in Revelation 3, Jesus writes that the church did three great things with their little strength: "...for you have a little strength, have kept My word and have not denied My name...you have kept My command to persevere." (3:8,10) The church at Philadelphia seems like the servant who received only one talent, but instead of burying it, put it to work for the Lord. With their little strength, they stood firm in the Word like the Bereans, refused to deny the name of Jesus like the martyrs, and lived each day persevering in faith, love, and the hope of Christ's return like, well, us.

There's a lot of attacks out there, and for those with little strength perseverance is our commanded duty in Christ. We overcome by getting up each day, living in the Lord's grace, and letting our little light shine. In this present darkness a little light shines a long way!

Have faith in Christ,
Bucky

Discoverer or Witness

One of the comic strips I follow is Back to B.C. by Johnny Hart. These are his strips from back in the day when he began the B.C. comic, like 1958 when some of us weren't not yet born, or even knew how to type good American English. One of the guys in the strip today wishes that he was born a discoverer instead of a witness. That reminded me of the wishing I hear from not only myself but my brothers and sisters in Christ too. We can be a pretty discontented bunch at times, even a bunch of grumblers. Oh dear, not those guys, not us!

Witness is not such a bad title after all. John was called to witness the Revelation. Matthew, Mark, and John were called to witness the life of Christ. Luke had a little different calling as an investigator of the life of our Lord, but then he was called to witness the acts of the apostles and even scribe some of Paul's great letters to the churches. Witnessing is so very important to our Lord as we can see from the testimony of John, Luke, Paul and many others. Bearing witness, carrying the story of our Lord Jesus to those who live with no hope is an important job in the Kingdom. We need not be ashamed of our witness; it is the work for which we were reborn.

Have a great Friday in the grace of our Lord Jesus!

Bucky

The Hate of Compromise

The term Nicolaitans does not occur in the Bible until the Revelation. Then it comes up twice in the same chapter. Who were these people and what was this doctrine? Actually Paul had addressed this issue back in his letter to the Romans with: And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. (Romans 12:2) In other words, the Nicolaitan doctrine was one of compromise or being conformed to the world. Jesus had a message for two churches:

"Thus you also have those who hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, which thing I hate." (Rev 2:15)

"But this you have, that you hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate." (Rev 2:6)

One church had some conforming folks and the other church hated the doctrine of compromising with the world. Bear in mind that these are from a collection of messages from our Lord to SAVED people. The hate of compromise is stated twice by Jesus, and we know our Lord loves to love first.

There is something in us that would like to take these messages and turn the verbal guns on others, but this is about a personal response. Giving ourselves a pass on a sinful action, failing to love a neighbor by daydreaming of sexual immorality with his wife, entertaining ideas of how to make money dishonestly, or holding grudges and many other ways that conform to this sinful world are not for us, as Jesus, Paul, Peter, Jude, John, and the other books of God's word told us in so many words. Praise God this change comes through God's Spirit from the inside, because I haven't been quite successful yet in changing it from the outside.

Thank you, dear Lord, for strengthening us to flee sin and hate compromising with it.

Bucky

Does Our Work Matter?

The question buried under that may be more like: Does my life matter? Do I matter? This may trigger a remembrance of some list of accomplishments or lack thereof. Looking at the self, we will likely fall short of making an eternal difference. Maybe we will even see more harm than good in the life we have lived thus far. (Bear in mind that one who wants to steal, kill and destroy is quite good at highlighting only the bad events in our lives.) We look in the wrong direction though when we attempt to find worth in the self.

Looking at what Jesus has done to redeem my life, I come up with a wonderful answer to my net worth. Jesus gave His very life to redeem each and all of us. That is some serious worth; a pearl of great price; a treasure recovered from a field. Not only did Jesus give His life, but He suffered the death of a criminal to pay for my sin! Then, He rose again from death and the grave to prove His great love. Am I worth anything? Yes! Look at Christ and what He has done. Look at the Son of God and who He is. Have you or I done nothing to build God's kingdom on this earth? We were saved by Jesus and that makes you and me one more building block in God's church, one more member of God's eternal kingdom.

When our work is in Him, yes, it matters very much!

Bucky

As Long As We're Speculating

The subject of rushing to the defense of a brother in Christ was raised by me at our Bible study this morning, and we began to speculate on how much easier it might be if the Marine veteran in the group was 30 years younger, hadn't suffered the injuries he has, and was a bit lighter on his feet. As long as we're speculating, we might as well think that our group includes Sgt. Rock, Chesty Puller, and Superman too! As I returned home, I thought that we only have what we are given; the scars of our past injuries, the weakness of our old age, the talents we were born with, those friends present at the time...and God.

My timing may depend on a broken down old clock but my Lord said that He would never leave me. My strength might be less than the proverbial 90-lb weakling but my Lord is the Almighty. A little bit of pain, a deficiency in my diet, and a lack of sleep may leave me useless in the physical world but my God is sovereign, untiring, and always present. Sickness and disease may come home with me and make themselves my constant companions but my Lord is the great Healer. I could go on, but the main point is that none of those who belong to Christ need speculate on strength, power, or authority when God is near, as He always is for those who will believe.

And by the way, my Lord fasted for 40 days and still resisted the worst the Devil could throw at Him!

Blessed be His name,
Bucky

Jesus, My Unforgettable Hero

On the back cover of a book that came to me was a complimentary statement that said, "An unforgettable hero." Now that's one thing for a fictional character, but what about someone who can help us here in this life? A firefighter, police officer or EMT who breaks a window and pulls a person from a flaming wreck might be nigh unforgettable to the person saved. The soldier in the field who pulls a buddy down into the foxhole just before the bomb hits will hold a heroic place too for that one person. But what about that one person who sacrificed all to save all? Some may not believe it or in Him, but Jesus did that very thing.

My unforgettable hero is Jesus Christ my Lord. Through faith, I know that the Son of God came down from Heaven, was born of the virgin Mary, grew to manhood, and lived the sinless life. Jesus went to the cross to pay for our sins and then rose again in victory over death and the grave. Through faith, I repent of my sins and God's grace in Christ saves me for all eternity. The One who sacrificed Heaven and His life to pay for my sins, and then rose to confirm in us the promise of eternal life is the hero I have sought since the earliest days of my life. But this is one hero I can share!

Jesus said to His disciples one day, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me." (John 14:6) We all desire to return to God, and Jesus is the hero who makes that possible. The sacrifice on the cross, the grace that gives eternal life, and the love that came down from Heaven in Christ the Lord, make Jesus my eternal hero!

Amen. Come Lord Jesus!
Bucky

The Titles of Christ

Reading the titles of Christ in the first chapter of the Revelation, I often compare those titles to the titles man assigns in this world. The titles of Christ appear permanent and unique. The First and the Last, who else can claim such a thing? The Alpha and the Omega, similar but different titles. Even in Isaiah: Prince of Peace, Almighty God, Everlasting Father - these are titles that get your attention! All of them belong to Christ; they are godly titles that belong to no other. Our titles by comparison are pale wispy things that are difficult to grasp and harder to hold onto.

Anyone who has ever entered a large corporation has gained a title, perhaps the first was Guest or Interviewee or maybe Applicant. Those fortunately didn't stick around long. Then, upon acceptance, you may have become Associate or some other thinly disguised word for Serf. You gained a new title. After years and much effort, perhaps some adult education, you attained Supervisor, Manager, Director, or dare we hope too much, Executive Vice President of Puddin' Pop Production, the EVPoPPP! Yay, go you! That really sounds like a good job to have, if you like puddin' pops that is.

Titles are things the world puts out there for us to grasp for. Think about this, if that title is so wonderful, how come we strive so hard to get promoted out of it? To get a new title? A better one? More money? Ah, that one will get us every time. I once worked in a place that became infamous for promoting to a new title without granting additional salary. Ouch! Hopefully they have that fixed by now. Even the lofty title of President of the United States may only last for four little years after all the effort and money expended in getting elected. Our titles don't stick around very long.

Those titles we read in the Bible though, His titles, they are there as one states - forevermore. Another begins 'Everlasting', which is as permanent as a title can get. One good thing about our titles is that they remind us this place and our place in it will soon be gone. When we take up the titles the Bible has for us, lost sheep, sinner, prodigal... believer, reborn, saint, follower of Christ, then we do indeed take that lowest place at the banquet. The good news is that we have one big promotion coming when our friend and Lord returns to take us right up to the Bridegroom's table to dine with Him.

I cannot take His titles, but I can be His!

Bucky

Seeking Jesus

Good morning! Why do we seek Jesus? I wondered about that and found several reasons in the Bible. Some wanted to question Jesus, others to see their son and brother, a few wanted to know if they were on the right track, and of course many sought healing in the physical sense. It is interesting that taking today's verse, we get an interesting picture of seeking.

When the people therefore saw that Jesus was not there, nor His disciples, they also got into boats and came to Capernaum, seeking Jesus. (John 6:24)

The people in this case knew where Jesus was not, and they had some idea where to go to find him. Just from this verse we cannot tell if they ever found the Lord, but we read that they were seeking him in a particular place. Today, the people know that Jesus is not here in the walking, eating, physical presence part of knowing. They cannot see him with their eyes, so they say that He is not here. Those who believe have a different take on that, but permit the people their seeking. From the word of God, we know that Jesus is in Heaven seated at the right hand of God. The people cannot seek Him there and so some will turn away even to the point of saying that He does not exist.

Living in faith presents an interesting mystery for us all. I cannot point to Jesus like I would a friend on the other side of the street, yet, I know that He is here with me. Those who have sought Jesus have found Him, just as He promised, but we don't get to hold onto Him as we would a father, mother, sister, brother or friend. Those who fall asleep and go away from us in this life we know are with Jesus, yet we say that He is with us always, again just as He promised. Through prayer, Bible study, worship, and meditation we continually seek Jesus and just as often find Him, but still we cannot say, "Here He is, touch Him!" One day people will make the journey to Jerusalem to touch the Lord. For today we get faith, and in Christ faith is all we need for His presence to bless us.

Bucky

A Quiet, Simple Meditation

The shepherds in the field, tending their flocks by night, were sore afraid when the glory of the Lord shone round about them. We might picture the quiet of the early morning hours, the flocks of sheep bedded down and making little noise, and shepherds dreaming peacefully of warm beds and loving wives when, 'Boom!' the quiet is shattered by the sudden arrival and announcement. John could well relate to that. On the island of Patmos, the last remaining apostle settled in for a bit of meditation, at least that's what we may think when he says, "I was in the Spirit on the Lord's Day." The elderly John, perhaps looking to serve out the remainder of his mission as a prisoner on the penal island of Patmos, meditated on the Lord's word on perhaps his only day off from work in the mines or whatever the Romans had him doing as a part of enforced labor. A quiet, simple meditation as befitting the senior disciple of our Lord.

"I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s Day, and I heard behind me a loud voice, as of a trumpet..." (Rev 1:10)

Behind him, a loud voice, as of a trumpet. Isn't that the sort of thing that us old folks would rather not have? Imagine sitting down in your favorite chair to read a bit of the word of God when suddenly, and with great volume, some lout turns on some trumpet music right behind your chair!

As announcements go, in both cases God got someone's attention in a big way and in a way they could hardly forget. The shepherds were sore afraid. John, writing the revelation down himself as per the Lord's instructions, perhaps forgot to let us know how startled he was at the shattering and sudden intrusion into his quiet, simple meditation. We give him no blame for that, the words of Christ were the important message. The bit about, "as I pounded on my chest with a goodly-sized rock to get my heart started again, the Lord gave me this message..." could be edited out in favor of passing on the Lord's announcement.

The word of the Lord has some wonderful understated humor as we read and study. "...and I heard behind me a loud voice, as of a trumpet..." John's shriek of surprise must have been lost in a translation somewhere. Praise God for those times when He gets our attention in an unmistakable way!

Bucky

My Duty Is To Improve Myself? How Selfish!

I searched and searched in Romans 12 as I prepared for the lesson this morning, and I quite failed to find where my Christian duty according to Paul was to improve myself. For years I labored under the delusion that to please God was to improve myself to the point where I could be a better servant to the Almighty. At some point, the Spirit pointed out to me, rather comically it seemed, that the name Almighty kind of removed the need for any help from the likes of me. In other words, if God needs my help then He is not so mighty. What I found in Romans 12 was instead many words about relationship.

Two great commands Jesus gave us: Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. And, equally as important, love your neighbor as yourself. Both commands are about relationship and Paul expands on that rather dramatically in Romans 12. Leadership, teaching, prophecy, lovingkindness, and hospitality are about relationship. The rule about doing unto others as you would have them do for you is also about relationship. All of those failures to make myself into a Christian superman went to the cross with Christ, because I can't make myself into what I think I should be much less what God would have me to be. All that I see in my duty in Romans 12 is about loving God and loving others as I love myself.

Now, what do I do with all that time I set aside to make myself into Super Christian ver 6.0?

Bucky

Ruler of Kings

Good morning as we are reminded that this is an election year for most of the year. Don't you just feel tired thinking of that? In John's time they often had a different kind of ruler, one the common person did not get to vote for or against, the king. In the Revelation, John passes on an interesting title for our Lord: "Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth." (1:3) It's that last one that stands out when it comes to leaders, whether they be presidents or kings. Ruler over the kings of the earth, a fine thing to say about our Lord, one that the world might not want to acknowledge.

Of course, John makes clear from the very beginning of the Revelation that the words and titles come from God. It is God's revelation not John's. Therefore, when it comes to Ruler over the kings of the earth, it is a matter of believing it or don't. For us who believe in Him already, Jesus is the King of kings and Lord of lords, simple as that. We need to participate in our republic but we don't have to worry over who the nation selects as the next leader. We already have a ruler over any kings or presidents that come along. Election year is a bit of a trial that seems to have started early, but no worries!

Have a better day in Christ!
Bucky

No Mercy To Any Transgressors?

A Friday without a holiday, I was getting kind of used to those three to three and a half day weekends. In the year 1,000 BC, give or take a year or two, King-to-be David looked out the windows of his house and saw Saul's assassins gathering to take him out. Think of the FBI, BATF, DEA, and a few other government agencies with guns and authority surrounding your house with orders that say something like "Shoot to kill". Not because they have some warrant or crime to charge you with, but just because the king has decided that murder is the best way to solve his little problem, namely you, you little problem you.

David of course goes to the One who we must seek when the forces of the world gather to destroy us.

Deliver me from my enemies, O my God;
​​Defend me from those who rise up against me.
Deliver me from the workers of iniquity,
​​And save me from bloodthirsty men.

​

​​For look, they lie in wait for my life;
​​The mighty gather against me,
​​Not for my transgression nor for my sin, O LORD. (Psalm 59:1-3)

David goes to God in prayer with a call for help. Then, in verse 5, David prays:

You therefore, O LORD God of hosts, the God of Israel,
​​Awake to punish all the nations;
​​Do not be merciful to any wicked transgressors.

No mercy to any wicked transgressors? As a former wicked transgressor myself, I depend on God's mercy. Can we have a stay of execution here? A little chance for all the nations to seek an advocate for our defense? Why the sudden call for universal punishment? David, as we can see in many psalms of his, did not go back later and edit what he felt to tone down the words. What he felt in the moment, he wrote to God in prayer. What David prayed to God, he set down in music and sang in the congregation. We are not quite sure what a government like that is like in this age. Transparency in government seems quite opaque to us. In any case, David simply states what we deserved as sinners against the one true God. Thanks to God on this fine morning that we did gain an advocate and a propitiation for our sin about a thousand years after King David's time.

God's grace and mercy to you and me!
Bucky

Oops, Glad I Ain't That Guy

Our little town was treated to the smell of a gas leak yesterday at about 4:30 in the afternoon. I saw the town manager driving furiously about with his nose out the window, people dumping soapy water on their gas meters, and gas company trucks rushing to the town...oh, all that is a bit of marketing speak for the town manager driving down the street, one person checking his meter, and one gas truck parked at their office. Well that's not so much fun. We are more accustomed to emergencies delivered and solved in hour-long shows. What do you mean a junk collector accidentally dropped a bucket with just a cup or so of the stinky gas chemical? We want drama, chaos, and a superhero!

On the other hand, I'm glad that I ain't that guy. I'll use 'guy' because most junk collectors are still men. No matter what you might call your wife's collection of knick-knacks, most of us see the older gent in the pickup and trailer doing the junk collecting. With that in mind, we'll just be glad that we aren't that guy, Public enemy number one (more tongue-in-cheek marketing speak) in our little town today. He caused a fright, a scare, a potential calamity with his fumbling fingers. How dare he! Oh, the relief when we found out it wasn't gas at all, just the stinky chemical (methyl mercaptan, CH4S,in case you were interested.) Still, what a disruption to the normal peace he caused. Cause for outrage, take to the social media, grab the torches and pitchforks! Wait, maybe not the torches.

In every time and place someone has played the part of the untouchable, the pariah, those no one wants to be. Yet, in one time and place, a man named Jesus sought out those very people. The woman at the well who had to get her water when no one else was around, the despised tax collector, the leper, and the crippled invalid, all sought out and healed by our Lord. When we follow Him, which of the despised and rejected of men are we led to find?

Have a graceful day in Christ,
Bucky

Something Other Than

I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, to a different gospel, which is not another; but there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ. (Galatians 1:6-7)

Paul set out to bring the Galatian church back into the fold. Someone came with something other than the gospel of Jesus Christ, and they went for it. With these two verses, we don't know whether it was the Judaizers with their doctrine of circumcision and becoming a Jew first, or the gospel of works fellowship with their work-to-save-yourself doctrine. What we know is that Paul saw a 'something other than' coming to pervert some of the Lord's sheep. Later in his letter, Paul sent a more shocking question:

O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you that you should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed among you as crucified? This only I want to learn from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made perfect by the flesh? Have you suffered so many things in vain—if indeed it was in vain? (Galatians 3:1-4)

Foolish? Bewitched? Yow! Paul brings out the big guns to get the Galatians attention in a shocking way. I have experienced something like that at work a time or two back in the day. One memorable time began with the words, "What did you just do?" Paul wanted the Galatians in this same condition. "You just messed up! Hear my words and stand corrected!" We all have those times when we are just plain wrong. Correction can be tough, but it's tougher still when the teacher must use shocking words to get our attention. The Galatians had a letter from Paul, we have our teachers too, and all of us have Jesus and His Holy Spirit to guide us back into grace and His love.

God's grace to you! Watch out for those things that are something other than the Good News of Jesus Christ.

Bucky

Maybe It Is You

The new year continues on the fifth day...That could sound a bit ominous or it may lean toward the positive depending upon your view. Have you broken a resolution yet? Perhaps you took care of that by not making any this year. As far as I know there is no law commanding resolutions every time we change out calendars. As they say, everyone is a little different. You may feel more than a little different and maybe it is you who is among the very different.

We enjoy and praise God for the great variety among those who believe in Jesus. Some are perfectly at home in a crowd while others are more solitary. Some sing wonderfully while others couldn't carry a tune in a bucket as the old saying goes. Some were given a full cup for their attention span while some few were given but a thimble. Some are very pious in their worship while others prefer to speak with God on the go. Of course most of us do not fit all the way into the extremes, but rather we are like many in some things and more different in others. We also change as the Lord's Spirit works in us and through us to His glory.

If you have failed at a resolution already don't despair overmuch; it may be something the Lord wants around for just a bit longer. If you seem very different from other Christians, maybe it is you ...the Lord has made for a very different mission and separated for a time. Maybe it is you the Lord loves with an everlasting love. When Jesus says, "I want that one!" Maybe that one is you!

Have a blessed new year starting with Christ!

Bucky

Until We Meet Again

The first Monday of the new year has arrived and with it the news of the passing of my former neighbor in Sidney. For my friends at Cabela's this is like a kick while they are down, bad news at a time when good news would be welcomed and is greatly needed. Cancer is still a tough one; many do not survive that first diagnosis. Cancer seems like a prosecution where the accused does not get to hear the charges against him until the sentence is passed. In some cases, it seems that every time the defendant is allowed to return to his family another judgment against him has been passed while he was serving the first sentence.

Of course when one falls we are reminded that we too stand under sentence of death. What will get us? Will it be quick or prolonged? Why can't the Rapture come first? What might Thad or my uncle Kenneth (passed last November), or the many others we knew say to us now? Probably they would let us know about Jesus and His unfailing love and goodness. They might urge us strongly to let go of the worry and embrace the Savior. We cannot know every mortal peril that lurks around the next corner in life, but we do know someone who has gone down to death and the grave, and best of all - He rose again!

To those we will meet in the resurrection and to those we suffer with daily in this life, God's blessings and love to you and yours until we meet again.

Bucky

The Last Day (of the Year)

The morning of Thursday, just another day, right? Somehow that last day of the year is not just another day for us. We have the conclusion of 365 days in one year and we like to look back on the life we lived this past year. Why do we do this? Why say goodbye to a year when tomorrow is just another day? God gave us the years and they were important to Him in the Creation.

"Then God said, “Let there be lights in the firmament of the heavens to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs and seasons, and for days and years." (Genesis 1:14)

Days and years: something that God created that was not overthrown or thrown off by Adam's sin. One day we feel a bit sad with the closing of a year, and the next day we feel a renewal of hope in the beginning of a new year. One day each of us may feel a bit sad on the last day of our life on this earth, but the next we will feel a permanent renewal of hope and joy as we see Jesus. Each year at the close, we get just a bit of that by way of reminder. So, that's a big yes, this is not just another day for us. The last day of the year is indeed something to live and reflect. Tomorrow, not just another day but the beginning of a new year in Christ.

A little grief then great joy, rejoice in the Lord!

Bucky

The Rumble of Repetitive Sameness

Hear that? It comes this way! The rumble of repetitive sameness draws near and we are powerless to stop it. Is it that way though? Look at that hand knitted or crocheted scarf. Is it not beautiful in its repeating pattern? See the pattern in the carpet or tile, do we not take comfort in the stability of its repeated design? We may be of that type of person who fears the job on the production line where every piece is the same year after year. Even that sort of person can take comfort in the unchanging vista (at least to our limited view) of the mountain range to the west. Above all is it not a comfort to know of God's unchanging sameness in His holy perfection?

Much of what we judge right or wrong comes out of our viewpoint. We want to be able to say quite emphatically and without the least doubt that this thing is wrong or right or whatever. We may realize fully that our point of view is a slippery thing often dependent upon circumstance and how we feel on any given day. Yet, we still want the independence to decide right and wrong, good and evil, and declare the thing or action to be ever so. Open the Bible, see the Pharisees telling the Lord of all that He cannot do this thing. Read as the Pharisees set themselves as final arbiters of the Law to pronounce doom upon the Almighty for telling them who He is. We face the same temptation and we don't always resist the Tempter as we should.

To some the rumble of repetitive sameness may be in that very production line that others fear. To them the sound is a comfortable living with the ability to give the children a chance at college. The sound of the conveyor belt each day may be a repetitive sameness to you or me, but to those who take comfort from it the sound is one of progress toward a goal. I don't get to say that this person's means is a horrible thing from which he must be freed. We who follow Christ have but one thing we must do for him. We get to share the good news of Jesus Christ. Often, we will find that his contentment in life is due to Jesus being there before us. We can then share the good news with each other, loving our neighbor as our self.

Have a loving day as we journey toward the New Year!

Bucky

Heal One, Release Another?

Good Monday morning in the between the holidays season! Lots of folks take this week off and I am glad for them. Others will go to work much like normal today with the exception that all the kids off from school will be laughing at us. Then there are those few who are fighting off the Grim Reaper in this season of the year. My former neighbor in Sidney is one such person. I have followed his struggles on Facebook and prayed many a time but still the battle goes on. What do we say when the prayers for healing seem to go unanswered and it appears that God is silent? That is always a tough one.

God is good and He acts in love. This I believe in faith. I cannot prove it based on my anecdotal evidence of medical cases. I have seen many healed slowly after serving time in the ICU, enduring surgery, graduating to the general ward, and finally released to recover at home. I have heard of miraculous healing taking place too - no time in the ICU! Then there are those cases where the release is from this life. Which of them is God's will? All of them, or maybe none of them?

I don't recall the Bible mentioning a hospital in the Garden of Eden. Our need for healing may only come from Adam's decision to go it apart from God by his disobedience. All the sickness and injury we experience in this world may be different forms of those thorns the cursed earth brings forth. All of them hurt us but some drive deeper than others even to the point of death. Is it any wonder our Lord was crowned with thorns by the world?

In Christ,
Bucky

The Good News of His Birth

We were out of options. Paradise was lost, the law couldn't save sinful man, and a special people finally disobeyed so much that God's presence left the temple. All we had left was one hope, a savior who would come out of Bethlehem. On that first Christmas, the shepherds heard the good news of His birth from angelic messengers. "For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord." (Luke 2:11)

The angel imparts the news of the coming of our one great hope. The news of the ages spoken on a night in Judea. Darkness is banished as the angelic hosts arrive to celebrate the good news. God's great gift to mankind is born! A manger was His bed, a stable His first earthly home, but with the arrival of Jesus we were saved. How wonderful the good news! How joyous the tidings!

Rejoice in the virgin birth and in the good news of our Savior!

Bucky

Fear Fell

Merry Christmas as the day draws ever closer! In Luke 1 we read about Zacharias, a priest whose lot was to burn incense one day in the temple. First, he enjoyed the honor of selection, but then fear fell on him. To paraphrase the scripture a bit, it seems that an angel stood to the right of the incense altar. As in many other cases in the Bible, the angel first tells Zach to not be afraid. Angels bring messages of good news from God, but we in our sinfulness suffer that avalanche of fear when confronted with the uncanny.

It is interesting that while we pray for and take comfort in guardian angels, when actually confronted by an angel the people in the Bible are frightened. We can claim no exemption as I am quite sure that I would be frightened in much the same way as Gideon, Zacharias, Mary, and the many others who met angels in the scripture stories. A bit over a year later, some shepherds abiding in the field by night had the same reaction - they were sore afraid. There does seem to be a lot of fear in the Christmas story.

The good news is that amongst all that fear, God sent His Son to cleanse us from fear. Do you still suffer the problem of fear in this life? Yes, me too. We have been given faith in the Good News though, and that faith will one day see the banishment of fear, forever. Another interesting picture to hold in mind is that while our Shepherd leads us toward home, He drives fear before Him. Rest in His love as we celebrate the birth of Christ!

Bucky

Christmastime Again!

Merry Christmas! I'm feeling the joy of the season once more. The sun is rising over the snowy cold plains, and the love of Jesus pours down from Heaven as we prepare for another day. Immanuel, do we use the name Christ was given way back in Isaiah as much as we should? His name means, 'God with us', just as Jesus said after He rose from the grave,"... and lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the age." (Matt 28:20) Always with us, just as His name foretold. I wonder that His name has not taken hold in us as much as it should. Of course, His name is Jesus too, and God has indeed saved His people from their sin.

Our Lord has many names: Wonderful, Counselor, Almighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. We don't have to worry about getting them all in every time we speak of Christ. Just speak to Him as we rejoice in the season of His birth. Give thanks to the Lord and praise His name! Perhaps Immanuel is something we remember more than we speak. God with us, God with me. Thank you, dear Lord Jesus, for being with us always.

Bucky

Ho Hum, It's Christmas Week

Christmas shopping for weeks, the Nutcracker already done, too many Scrooge/Christmas Carols watched and read; and It's a Wonderful Life I've seen twice this year - once in B/W and once in colorized. One more Christmas song and I'll give up the whole thing for Lent. What happened? Did I peak too early in my holiday celebrations or is it just a Monday?

It's easy to get weary during a month-long celebration. We don't have the endurance or strength for a holiday this long. In fact, if I didn't have a chance to take a break with some work, I'm not sure I could go on. Is it possible to have too much of a good thing? In this life, I do believe that is quite possible.

Physically we tire quite easily, emotionally we may go on a bit longer, but in time we will grow weary there too. So, how are we going to make it through an eternal celebration? Of course, as Paul was kind to point out, something must change. The corruptible must put on incorruption. The failing flesh must be reborn of the Spirit, and as Nicodemus found it must be different than our first birth. We need God to prep us for the eternal celebration of life in Christ! Praise God, He is doing just that.

Have a Merry Christmas this week!

Bucky

The Gift We Get Each Year

Christmas, one week from today, hooray! The struggle to give the right and proper gift comes to us all. What to get for the man who has everything? What to get for the mom who says that anything will do? The former kind of excludes all and the latter doesn't help narrow it down much. Eeek! Holiday stress! Then, there is that gift we get every year.

No, I'm not talking fruitcake here. Each year at Christmas, we receive from God the Father an "I love you!" It seems just a little more beautiful and a bit more joyous than the love God gives each day. Not that God's love is any less on those other days, the difference is in the perception of the imperfect ones receiving the gift. At Christmas we are reminded of God's great love in that special way that says, "Jesus!" We celebrate the birth of the Christ, and that adds a special kind of love to God's Christmas gift.

Next Friday, when God gives me that special Christmas gift of His, I believe I'll take notice and do my best to give a special thanksgiving for His great gift. Have a merrier Christmas in God's love!

Bucky

A Life Reversal

Already this morning I have made two egregious gaffs, what will the remainder of this day be like? To be sure, I looked up the word 'egregious' and found as expected that it means: outstandingly bad; shocking. The funny thing is the archaic definition which was: remarkably good. What happened to this poor word? It seems to have suffered a serious life reversal. That reminds me of what happened to our Lord.

Sure, one might think of His entry into Jerusalem that we celebrate as Palm Sunday and then His rejection by the same crowd at His trial, but I was thinking today of His coming down from Heaven. It might seem a terrible reversal to enjoy a place as the Son of God in Heaven and then to be born into this world suffering what we suffer and seeing the terrible suffering of others, and it most certainly was. However, we are told in the Bible that Jesus volunteered through His great love in order that we might be saved.

Serious life reversals come to many of us, but seldom is it voluntary. Usually, we try with all our might to avoid such things; what with them being the frightening and uncomfortable adventures that they are. Only a greater love must be present in our Lord Jesus that He would give up Heaven to die for the likes of us. How remarkably good is our great God!

Merry Christmas!
Bucky

Convinced!

Merry Christmas on this cold and snowy morning! We are convinced of many things through our faith in Christ. The virgin birth in Bethlehem, the wise men traveling to see the newborn King of the Jews, a star guiding those travelers to the place where Jesus was, and many other stories of the Christmas celebration. We are also convinced of what came after in the life of Christ. There are a lot of other things that have been added to Christmas over the centuries, but we hold true to those things that are Christ.

Paul was convinced that nothing could separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus. Love is central to the Christmas story. The love of God may be what some resist hardest of all. Accepting God's love threatens that independence some cherish above all things. Is it so hard to be dependent upon God and let Him love us? That is a question only the individual in us can answer. We all face the temptation to be strong only in our own might. With that understanding in our hearts of what those who would fight against the love of God as shown in Christmas struggle to accept, let us take the love of Jesus and our dependence upon the Almighty and rejoice in this great holiday!

Ow, I think I broke something writing that last sentence, maybe my independence? May God have mercy on our nation this Christmas.

Bucky

They Couldn't Have Been There

Wow, it must be getting closer to Christmas both inside and outside today. The weather foretells of a white Christmas and the tone of the pile of shopping ads in the ol' inbox smacks of vendor desperation.

And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. (Luke 2:8-9 KJV)

The shepherds were not supposed to be out in the field on December 25th. At least that is one of the arguments against our Christmas Day. How do we know that though? Throughout many twists and turns in this life, you and I have found ourselves in a place we weren't supposed to be at a time we weren't supposed to be there. That is generally part of the back story of many disaster novels and movies too. The shepherds may have been turned out to make room for David's latter day generations as they descended upon little Bethlehem to be registered by the Roman authority.

For their troubles, the shepherds got to be sore afraid. Wouldn't you be? An angel of the Lord coming to visit and a good old-fashioned surrounding by the glory of the Lord might make any of us sore afraid. Yet, what great news they got to hear first!

"For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord!"

Merry Christmas,
Bucky

You Should

Tis the season of giving, and it sure is easy to give a lot of rules to folks, eh? We study the word of God and learn the rules. Jesus came to Earth and fulfilled the law. We are freed from slavery to the law by His grace. We turn around and lay a bunch of rules on people. How is it that we manage to do that so well?

Perhaps it is the example of our government: the earth groans with the weight of governmental rules and regulations. It may well come from our childhood authority figures and we just pass it down to the next generation. Some rules are just good advice or warning: Step off a cliff and you'll fall. (Codified under Title 473 of the Code of Federal Regulations: Gravity.) Others help prevent injury to others. Obeying those stop signs ranks kind of high on my list in this category. However, the only real problem with all those rules may begin with the words, 'You should'.

When we preface quoting the rules with that personal command we may err on side of the Pharisees. Those two words say that I know better than the other person and that I know all about his special circumstances, sort of a grand theft of God's place if you will.

Since I don't know all about his or her personal circumstance, I might try it with a little understanding and compassion when another asks my advice. "Hmm, that's a tough situation to live with, I will pray for you and seek God's wisdom in this." Then, if I have personal experience, I could relate a story like, "Back in the day, I faced a similar situation and I did this thing, and I sure wouldn't do that again!" (Too many stories of that nature.) Of course, the first thing was the asking part. A 'You should' is much worse perhaps even socially embarrassing when there has been no asking.

Have a merry Christmas and love those neighbors as yourself!

Bucky

A Bit More o' That Christmas Spirit, Please!

Yesterday's news was a portion of woe, but today's is much better. We say, "A bit more o' that Christmas Spirit, please!" Yes, the house was a total loss and the family displaced. Yes, the children's presents under the tree were all consumed in the fire. As of yesterday afternoon, the news had gone out that the presents were replaced, clothing in the appropriate sizes for all the family had arrived, and money donated to see the family through this tough time.

It is with news like this that we may not believe we deserve to live in a community such as this with such generous people. To have the love of neighbors demonstrated so well is humbling and gratifying. God's provision is good and timely.

So we go forth into the weekend with our faith proven once more and a goodly portion of that Christmas Spirit. Have a very merry Christmas!

Bucky

The Bad News at Christmas

Two weeks until Christmas! Yet, more bad news. How many times in this age have we heard of homes lost just before Christmas? How temporary are things in this world. Bad news at Christmas hits hard. A time of joy and peace we long for arrives and the mood is shattered by disaster. Then, the sun rises on a new day. A reminder that God is not moved off His throne. Opportunity to help arrives with the disaster. The family escaped without injury, better news! Possessions can be replaced with generosity but human lives we cannot return. Praise God the family lives!

Yes, we lost another house and all the kids' presents to fire in this little community last night. Always a heart-breaking kind of story and one we seem to hear too often. Christmas will still come though, and with it a reminder that the things of this world pass away. We enjoy giving material things to touch and hold, but the good news of Jesus Christ will survive any calamity. Love, friendship, compassion, and kindness survive where worldly things are consumed.

It is tough to write about the tough things we suffer. I find it much easier to write of the joy at Christmas than to pass on bad news, but we are to share with our brothers and sisters in Christ. May God's blessings in this Christmas season touch our neighbors in a special way.

Bucky

To Save The Lost

"The Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost." Luke 19:10

Why do we celebrate the birth of Christ? Someone may ask us that question today. To them, a child of the modern world, Christmas may be a national holiday set aside to bolster retail sales prior to the ending of the year, Santa Claus a corporate shill invented to help sell product (there's some basis for that one), and a bit of time off work for families in the capitalist state. Yes, we have a different take on this holiday, but why?

The Blue Letter Bible blog gave 12 reasons for Christmas and I grabbed number four today. To save the lost is plenty of reason all by itself for Jesus to come to Earth, and I'm glad He did. You might say that I am grateful with my very life for Jesus coming to save the lost. The problem is that those who do not believe cannot understand that reason on their own.

Many in the world are, or at least think they are, in complete control of their lives and destiny. The security they seek in life is just around the corner of one more year of work or that next promotion or perhaps a few more crunches in the gym. Worse, the religious leader tells them that just a few more good deeds will see them safely home in the hereafter. To admit to being lost and dependent upon a savior is too much of a blow to their sense of security by human effort. Like the driver who won't ask for directions because he or she does not feel lost, that person cannot admit to a need for salvation.

Praise God that we have found the need and the salvation through Christ our Lord! We know lost and we know the Lord. Christmas is that time of the year when we celebrate the arrival of our Lord and Savior.

Bucky

Harbinger of the Good

Aaargh! Already I have forgotten the oatmeal on the stove. Is this how the day will go? A harbinger is often seen as bearing bad news, but it wasn't always so. In one definition, I read that originally a harbinger was one sent ahead of a travelling party to arrange for lodgings. A good harbinger might then have rooms at a nice inn and negotiated a good price, opened the rooms up to air out, made sure of fresh linens, and even scouted the local restaurants. These days harbingers have fallen out in favor of the Internet on mobile devices. The tendency toward the bad news in our age might also come from the amount of bad news we have access to in any given day. It just seems like everything is a harbinger of worse to come I guess.

Well, it doesn't have to be that way with us. John the Baptist was the herald or harbinger of the Lord Jesus. He brought good news of the coming good news! The tribulation we suffer prior to the end is not so bad when we see what comes after. Paul in Romans 8:18 wrote: "For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us." Good news for those of us who suffer! The coming glory to be revealed in us is so great that there is no comparison with the suffering present. What a great and good God we worship!

Merry Christmas in the love of Christ Jesus,

Bucky

An Unwanted Journey? Maybe Not

It's true that we take some uncomfortable trips at times. Going to the doctor in another state because the doctor in your hometown couldn't fix that thing that is hurting in his office is not the most fun journey. Traveling to a town a hundred miles away to bail a friend out of jail because he got into some legal trouble is not the trip we may have wanted to take. Mary and Joseph perhaps wanted to have the baby Jesus in Nazareth because family, friends, and Joseph's business was right there. Perhaps they had a favorite midwife or healer who had a 100% success rate in delivering babies in their hometown. Bethlehem? Who lives in Bethlehem that we know? I hear they don't even have a decent inn at Bethlehem.

We don't know why Joseph and Mary journeyed while Mary was near to baby time, but that is what happened. Not the best time to make a mother expecting her first child ride a donkey 70 miles it would seem to us, but down the road to Bethlehem they went. Then again, what if the Adversary could keep Jesus from fulfilling just one prophecy, like maybe the one about the Messiah coming forth from Bethlehem?

It may be that Joseph and Mary wanted very much to have Jesus born in Bethlehem, but faced all manner of obstacles in getting there. Joseph may have seen a sudden rush of jobs in the carpenter shop that needed finishing. Mary's father might have refused permission until that decree came from the Roman emperor. Mary may have struggled in her first pregnancy with illness. To think that Joseph and Mary didn't want to make the trip may well be unfair. If the Devil could have stopped the birth of Jesus... Ha, who are we kidding? When the Almighty says something is going to happen, there's just no stopping His sovereign will!

Praise God for the virgin birth in Bethlehem of His wonderful Son, Jesus!

Bucky

Christmas Prophecy

Merry Christmas at this most joyous time of the year! Isaiah 9:1-2, Micah 5:2, are just a couple of the prophecies of Christmas fulfilled in the following passage:

Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, to be registered with Mary, his betrothed wife, who was with child. (Luke 2:4-5)

There are more, but the point is that centuries before the Messiah came, God had put down in writing the who, what, and where. God reserved the when to Himself, much like a certain other prophecy we look forward to on this day. We think it impressive when someone correctly guesses the score and winner of a football game a few days before game day.

I hesitate to think of all that had to come together to make sure all was ready for Messiah. Israel as a people and a nation, the physical location of Judea, Galilee, Nazareth, and Bethlehem even to the tribe and family that lived there. Then, the family line had to be maintained from David all the way to Jesus, unbroken and alive through the battles and accidents of the world for a thousand years. Think of the accidents and illnesses that have taken our loved ones through a mere 100 years or so those living right now can remember and we can see the difficulty of keeping that one family line going for ten times that span. Then God did it twice as we read the family trees of Mary and Joseph in Matthew and Luke. All that accomplished for but a couple of the many prophecies of Messiah.

All we lack is the when of the Second Coming of Christ, is there any doubt that God will do all that He requires to make that happen? None for me, sir! Amen. Come Lord Jesus!

Bucky

The Stage Got Moving

In the waning days of the BC era, a man and woman were engaged to be married. Not a big deal in those times as far as unusual news might go; certainly lots of people got engaged and married in their time much like we do now. However, the young lady was already pregnant before the marriage ceremony had taken place. News of a gossipy sort to be sure, but again probably not as uncommon as the leaders of the time might like us to believe. The young lady was still a virgin. Oh, that's different, but that's a story for another time. The problem we read today is that Joseph and Mary were in the wrong town. The Messiah was to come from Bethlehem and they were not there even as Mary was great with child. The Son of God was ready to arrive but His stage was stuck in Nazareth. Enter the far reaching hand of the emperor in Rome.

And it came to pass in those days that a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. This census first took place while Quirinius was governing Syria. So all went to be registered, everyone to his own city. (Luke 2:1-3)

Of course the family and couple wanted to have the baby near home. We would too, no blame to them for that from us, but God's will has a way of working out. Most likely a date was set on the decree from Caesar and a punishment for not making it in time. Given that Judea was occupied territory, the punishment was probably harsh or even final for disobedience of the emperor's will. Joseph packed up the stage, or donkey, or his feet, or whatever, and off the young couple went on the 70-mile or so journey to Bethlehem. All because of a government census ...and a certain prophecy from God that needed fulfilling.

Many things are going on in the world today that may look like chaos and confusion (and they probably are), but God is not asleep at the switch or enjoying some alone time in a galaxy far, far away waiting on the next Star Wars movie. His will and His prophecies are coming due. We look around at the news in this world today and well we may wonder whether we will celebrate Christmas here or perhaps with the One who was born on that day in person.

Amen. Come Lord Jesus!
Bucky

Someone Attacked Christmas Yesterday

Speculation about the motives of the killers will run rampant in the news media today, but I am concerned most about the attack on my faith. No one tried to shut down my Bible study yesterday and no one that I know of tried to stop my devotional or interfere with my prayers to God. Yet, somehow I feel that my faith was attacked because the killers targeted a Christmas party. I also realize that while Santa Claus may have been invited to this particular Christmas party, Christ the Lord may have been kept waiting outside. Still, I feel that because my Lord lent His name and title to the holiday party then anyone trying to end a party by murder must have something against Jesus. Therefore, I will take up that best weapon against evil in the world - the sword of the Word of God!

So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying:“Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which is translated, “God with us.” (Matt 1:22-23)

God is with us even and perhaps especially when the world seems a very dangerous and evil place to live. As we go to a Christmas party or to decorate a home or office for this holiday of our Lord's birth, let us remember that this anti-Christ evil has a very limited time. No matter how many fall to the guns of the murderers they cannot change the fact that our Lord Jesus was born of the virgin Mary and He is coming back soon!

Immanuel,
Bucky

The Eve (or two) Before Christmas

Let's say for this morning that it is about 10 BC on the calendar. Things are tough all over, but in Israel the prophets that once spouted reams of scripture have been gone for about 400 years. The great kings of old, David and Solomon, are represented by Herod, a king approved by the Roman occupiers but of questionable lineage and blood. God's voice must seem silent to those few remaining who believe in the Lord. Does anyone in the land have a clue about what is about to happen?

Well, there was one man, Simeon, it seems who was told he would not see death until he had seen the Lord's Christ. (Luke 2:26) Maybe he was around this year and his waiting had begun, but we don't know that for sure. Other than Simeon, the people of Israel waited much like we do today: they knew Messiah was coming but not when. The eve or two before Christmas was pretty bleak it may have seemed on the spiritual front.

Advance the calendar a few short years and this is the year Jesus will come. However, those folks still do not know that the arrival of the Christ is imminent. Mary is already pregnant and well along. Zacharias has met with Gabriel and served his sentence of silence. Elisabeth has born the herald and messenger, little John the Baptist. Simeon may or may not know of his doom at this time. Yet, for most of the land they are still in that waiting and wondering mode. The eve before the first Christmas is yet a time of stark silence from the Lord by the reckoning of most believers. But we know from scripture that much was going on in God's work at this time.

That is the case on this day more than 2,000 years later. We are waiting and wondering, but God's work is ongoing and advancing. This day may be the eve of that next Christmas when Christ comes to take us home. Don't give up hope, as the first blessed birth happened then, so will the second coming in God's perfect time.

Have a Merry Christmas! (Go ahead and start now, it's only about 22 days to Christmas.)

Bucky

What Some Folks Knew

Lots of people knew the Christ had arrived. Shepherds abiding in the field (keeping watch o'er their flocks by night), Mary and Joseph, John the Baptist's parents, some wise men far away, and a prophet and prophetess hanging around the temple (a few days later). It was no secret. The arrival of a savior had been foretold centuries before and written down in holy scripture. Angels announced the birth and sent forth some shepherd messengers. I guess we could say that our Lord did not exactly sneak into the world.

What some folks knew back in the day, we can know and proclaim today. Jesus, God in human form, came down to earth to save us all. We love God because He loved us so much that His Son died to save us on the cross. Born as a baby into a world filled with the stain of sin, Christ came to love. How did we earn such a blessing?

Of course, we didn't. God's love came down without our deserving Him in any way. Love didn't wait for someone to attain some degree of holy because none of us could make that grade now and none could then. If Abraham, Joseph, Moses, David, or Daniel could not live a life deserving of a savior, how could we? The arrival of our savior was not earned by us or them, but it was because of the lost sheep of many generations that He came. Love set the time and the timing. Love saw the need and the needy. Love gave the prophecies and sent the prophets to spread the knowledge. What some folks knew then and we know now, is that love came down in the Christ child.

Merry Christmas in Christ!
Bucky

The Knots in My Rope

We have many fine opportunities to get knots in our rope in this age. Not that folks back in the day had it easy or anything, but we have perhaps too many means of getting bad news. Each message can bring more bad news until we have one big knotted-up rope. The voice of the old man wants to cry and whine, and maybe stick in an 'unfair!' here and there. The old man thinks that God is mean and feels that grumbling ought to do the trick. But we don't live in the Spirit without a new voice rising up to contest what that old sinner says.

Love reminds us that God is anything but mean and does not need to tie knots in our line to bring us to sanctification. However, since we have labored to tie some of the knots and the world has provided many others: the voice of faith in Christ says that those knots have a purpose, and that though our loving God did not cause them He can certainly use them for our good. Faith reminds us that God will untie those knots at just the right time.

The start of the Christmas season is a real knot-tying time for many of us. Our Adversary does not want any of God's children to enjoy this time. A time of joy and renewal for Christ-ones is not in the world's plan for us, but it is God's plan and ways that bring us joy and peace. We don't always know or notice all the ways small and great our God is working for us and in us daily for our sanctification. We do get the reason for the season though!

Have a very wonderful and merry Christmastime in the love of Christ!

Bucky

A Little Extra Charge

Thanksgiving feasting passes for another year but the leftovers remain for a while. As winter begins, I start charging up my truck battery every couple of weeks. Living in a small town as I do, the truck does not go far enough in a day to charge the battery, so I must give it a little extra charge. I have found that my walk with Christ requires a little extra charge from time to time. Perhaps it is due to not driving enough miles each day in His word. Maybe it comes through an insufficient current of prayer. It may well be that this life is just too tough for the children of God and we need that little extra charge on a regular basis. Above all, it may be a reminder that I can never bring myself home to God's Heaven in my own strength.

We need the constant current of prayer and meditation in the Word. We also need that extra charge at times. In this season, we may find it in Christmas songs or in Christmas programs at the church. We may find a little extra voltage in the joyous faces of children at Christmastime, or even in a cheerful greeting from our brothers and sisters in Christ. All of this simile and metaphor may be the long way of saying that you and I need Jesus every day, even every moment.

Have a very merry Christmas in Christ!

Bucky

Happy Thanksgiving!

To my brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus, Happy Thanksgiving! I pray that your celebration of Thanksgiving holds joy, peace and the love of Christ.

Giving thanks to God for our many blessings,

Bucky

It's Tough To Be Thankful Sometimes

The day before Thanksgiving dawns with a promise of change in the weather. Last night, I slept like the proverbial log, very easy to be thankful. Unfortunately, my log was one rolling down a rocky hillside, much tougher to be thankful. We all have those circumstances and situations where we find it tough to thank God. We have a few examples in the Bible where our heroes of the faith found the same problem. Paul asked three times for a certain thorn in his side to be taken away. The great apostle wasn't feeling the love in his circumstance until God explained to him the reason and provided the grace. Jesus, our Lord and Savior, asked that a terrible cup might be taken away from Him, but obeyed God and said, "Not My will but Thine be done." We are grateful to Him because the reason was to save us!

It's tough to be thankful sometimes. Tests, trials, tribulations and other circumstances come our way frequently in this fallen world. If you believe in Jesus, then I doubt you have it easy. The world just doesn't like to go easy on those who believe in the One it hates. Yes, there is an evil power behind that hatred, and yes we do get to share in the suffering of our Lord because of it. However, between us and that hate is the sovereign power of God, and we can be thankful for Him. Like Job, we may suffer many terrible things in this life, but we are always in God's mighty hands.

Thank You, dear Lord, for Your grace!

Bucky

Grace Makes Thanksgiving

Two days, and the travel has already begun. Thanksgiving means getting away from home for many, for others it is a time to stay put. In either case, we trust in the Lord to guide us and keep us safe against the day of His returning. This spirit of faith in us also causes us to speak out for Christ as Paul tells us in today's scripture:

"And since we have the same spirit of faith, according to what is written, 'I believed and therefore I spoke,' we also believe and therefore speak, knowing that He who raised up the Lord Jesus will also raise us up with Jesus, and will present us with you. For all things are for your sakes, that grace, having spread through the many, may cause thanksgiving to abound to the glory of God." (2 Corinthians 4:13-15)

In this, we also learn where our giving of thanks comes from - grace. What an amazing thing that grace raises up in us the thanksgiving that God desires from us. We learned a couple of days back, or many books and a thousand years or so in Bible time, that the Law commanded thanksgiving offerings only come from freewill. Since all good things come from God, how do we choose to give thanks? This is what Paul tells us in this verse this fine morning. Where grace comes by way of faith in Christ, thanksgiving to God our Father will abound to His glory.

Amen, come Lord Jesus!
Bucky

Thanksgiving Week!

It's here! The week of thanksgiving leading up to Thanksgiving! I realize for some that the holiday is all about travel, food, football, food, time off work, food, shopping, and food. However, as we recall who saved us from our sins, granted us grace for eternal life, and promised to come back for us, we tend to get all thankful at this time of the year. We don't know the author of this psalm but he or she said it quite well.

Enter into His gates with thanksgiving,
And into His courts with praise.
Be thankful to Him, and bless His name. (Psalm 100:4)

Be thankful to Him, and indeed we do on this week especially. This may well be the manner in which the saints will enter into the New Jerusalem when it comes down in the great day of the Lord. This may be how you and I will enter Heaven should we sleep before that time. Thanksgiving and praise lead us into prayer and meditation, worship and song here and now. How much more will the sight of our Lord's city cause us to burst out into thanksgiving and praise! Great will be our rejoicing when Jesus comes to take us home.

Enjoy this week of giving thanks to our Lord,

Bucky

Magnify The Lord!

How does one magnify the Lord? It seems at first an impossible thing to accomplish. The Lord is all present and all powerful, how can a worm like me magnify the Lord? Yet, a couple of times in the Bible we have answers to that. First our psalm-ic friend David tells us of magnifying the Lord with thanksgiving.

But I am poor and sorrowful;
​​Let Your salvation, O God, set me up on high.
I will praise the name of God with a song,
​​And will magnify Him with thanksgiving. (Psalm 69:29-30)

So many lessons on life and living come from the psalms that we might well expect to learn of this in the music of the Bible. Obviously we don't make the Lord bigger in size such as one would magnify a grain of sand with a magnifying glass. Instead we magnify the Lord by telling of Him in our thanksgiving. Jesus is our salvation. Therefore, we spread the Good News of Jesus Christ just as He commanded. Which is how Mary began her great thanksgiving song.

"My soul magnifies the Lord" (Luke 1:46)

Look, we have a Christmas lead in for thanksgiving. Let our souls magnify the Lord in thanksgiving this holiday season!

Bucky

The Voice of Thanksgiving

One of our greatest witnesses in this life is the voice we use toward the Lord. Is it one of anger, shaking the verbal fist at God over this thing or that thing that happened to you? People see that and they wonder, 'Where is the love?' Like Job, we may demand to meet God in court over a seeming injustice in our lives. We also, like Job, may in time be brought up short by the realization that we are quite in the wrong. David tells us of a better way to proclaim the Lord: with thanksgiving.

That I may proclaim with the voice of thanksgiving, And tell of all Your wondrous works. (Psalms 26:7)

The voice of thanksgiving may not gather the same attention quite so quickly as anger, but we can see that it is a much better witness of our Lord's goodness and mercy. The love they seek is in the wondrous works of God. We get to tell of them!

During this season of giving thanks, let us speak with the voice of thanksgiving. If your day is so terrible that you cannot think of anything to be thankful for, ask the Lord and let Him show you the way, or even better - the Way. Even on the worst of our days, the wondrous work that Jesus did for us still holds us safely in His salvation. We can be thankful for our Lord Jesus when things seem just awful. When the trials of life threaten to overwhelm, witness with the voice of thanksgiving that God loved the world so much He sent His Son to save you and me.

On those worst of days, the voice of thanksgiving might just lift us out of our self-pity and into the knowledge of God's love. Give it a try!

Bucky

Freewill Offerings

Just a bit over one week from now, we will offer up to God our thanksgiving on a holiday not coincidentally named Thanksgiving. In the Law we have this command from the Lord:

"And when you offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving to the LORD, offer it of your own free will." (Leviticus 22:29)

Some things, holidays being one, can become institutionalized and religion-ized until we forget that the original command and purpose was that it be of our choice. God didn't want thanksgiving that was done from duty or obligation, particularly that which was forced by an authority. So we have a command from the ultimate authority that thanksgiving be done only when freely chosen. And they say the Bible is without humor.

We see that now, but there was a time when it was dark to those of us who did not believe. What good is a religious system that commands freewill? How do you control the people that way? Of course, God wants our thanksgiving to come from a thankful heart full of love. We should give thanksgiving offerings to God often, but not because we have to or feel it is our duty. Offer it of your own free will, what a great privilege and honor! How many times in this world have you been made to obey some regulation and not understood the need? Here is one that commands that it be followed only out of the freedom to choose to do so. If I have any authority and command you to celebrate Thanksgiving, then I ruin its goodness for you. As God commands, do it of your own free will.

In God's grace,
Bucky

Do You Feel Anger?

A good question for any day, but especially so when the news media reports on events that should make most anyone angry. Terrorist acts, deaths of children, persecution of Christians, lies of politicians, a bright sunny day in a place where you ain't - there is usually something for everyone when it comes to anger. Jesus felt anger too.

In and of itself, anger is not sin, for we know that Jesus never sinned. We can be angry when anger is called for, but the peace Jesus gave to us should always return. Remaining angry for too long tends to cause damage both inside and out. Jesus even told us to be angry and sin not (by David in the Psalms (4:4) and Paul quoting the psalm in his letter to the Ephesians (4:26)). The second part of David's verse tells us a valuable insight: "Meditate within your heart on your bed, and be still."

After the anger comes, we may need at times to repair to the bed for some meditation alone with God heart to heart. I have at times found to my embarrassment that my anger was unjustified and myself just downright in the wrong. Of course, if the anger is directed at God, we are always going to end up that way.

Enjoy a peaceful day in Christ!
Bucky

The Latter Days

Reading Acts 2, I find it interesting that just after the outpouring of the Holy Spirit energized the disciples, Peter stands up and reminds the crowd of the words written by Joel the prophet. You recall some of the words:

But this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel:

​

‘​And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God,
​​That I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh;
​​Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
​​Your young men shall see visions,
​​Your old men shall dream dreams.
​​And on My menservants and on My maidservants
​​I will pour out My Spirit in those days;
​​And they shall prophesy.
​​I will show wonders in heaven above
​​And signs in the earth beneath:
​​Blood and fire and vapor of smoke.
​​The sun shall be turned into darkness,
​​And the moon into blood,
​​Before the coming of the great and awesome day of the LORD.
​​And it shall come to pass
​​That whoever calls on the name of the LORD
​​Shall be saved.’ (Acts 2:16-21 from Joel 2:28-32)

This is a prophecy about people making prophecies. You might even come up with a tongue twister, "Peter prophecies per the prophet's prophecy that people will prophecy!" That was so hard that I had trouble typing it, forget speaking it.

This prophecy is the one that sometimes gives us trouble. Was that dream I had last night significant? Should I be telling the world? Am I young or old? Our part is not with the young men or the old men for they are 'yours'. Where we fall is in the menservants and maidservants of God, the 'My' part. Ever wonder why there are so many men and women preaching today? This prophecy is why. God said once through Joel, twice through Peter, and again through all of us that this would happen. Don't knock those menservants and maidservants: you and me and they are part of this new army of prophets speaking through God's Holy Spirit. Have fun, prophet of God!

Bucky

Not My Will, But Thine

Ah, Friday, what a great day for God to release me from suffering! I know this works because that is what happened when Jesus asked that God take away the cup of suffering from Him! It worked right? Anyone? No? Uh oh...

We know from reading the Word that Jesus said those great words signifying His eternal submission to the will of God His Father, "Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done." (Luke 22:42) We win because God's will did not waver and His Son did not escape the suffering. Therefore, should we ask for God to remove our suffering when our Lord and Savior did not escape His? Do we dare expect such a thing even on a Friday? Actually, given that Friday may have been the day of our Lord's greatest suffering, we might be way off base in asking for release on this day of all of them. "Nevertheless not my will, but thine..."

In this life, we face much suffering. Like Job, God doesn't send the suffering to make us hurt, He doesn't send the suffering at all. We may be targeted specifically by the Adversary, like Job, or things may just happen in this fallen world. We may have a spouse who tries to cheer us up by saying, "Curse God and die!" like Job's wife did. Or, we may have friends who gather to verbally beat a confession out of us as Job's friends did, fully convinced that Job had done something very wrong. Think of the alternative Job's friends were desperately trying to avoid: the man had done nothing wrong and yet his life was turned upside down by disaster after disaster. You can see why Job's friends earnestly wanted Job to have done something heinous that they could easily avoid doing.

I cannot claim to be without sin in my own thoughts and actions. How much more should I suffer than my Lord Jesus who did nothing wrong? Hmm, but Jesus did all the suffering for my sins in my place. Better to ask, "How do I merit such a sacrifice on my behalf?" Of course, I do not merit any such thing. The love of God sent His Son to save me from my sins. So, why again do I dare to ask for removal of suffering? God is good and I have faith in His goodness, love and mercy. No quality of mine is enough for this asking, it is all dependent upon God's goodness and love.

May God bless us on this Friday and every other day too!

Bucky

Blindsided!

Isn't that the way it goes in this world? We worry about one thing that might happen while another is sneaking up on us from the rear. In case you haven't heard yet, Sidney is losing the cabling plant owned through the years by Prestolite, Krone, ADC, Tyco, TE Connectivity, and finally Commscope. Some of that mess o' names were parts of/subdivisions/subsidiary companies of the other, but for the people working there it meant their jobs and means of making a living. I dealt with them for many years and bought a ton or two of cabling with their various brand names. Many Cabela's facilities boast cable that has served well and lasted for many years. The plant will be sold, so there is a possibility that it will be purchased quickly and put back into operation, but possibilities never put food on the table and they don't usually pay very well.

A pile of years ago, I might have worried more over the loss of my supply (the cable), but today the Lord has brought me to see the plight of the people. Uncertainty in your finances is a frightening way to live. The fear spreads throughout the community as wallets and purses get held more tightly. Do we declare the Holiday Season of Fear or do we look elsewhere for assurance?

I have held that dreadful season a couple of times in the past decade, and it is probably the least fun way to spend Thanksgiving and Christmas. Looking to God is definitely the way to go, but it must be every morning and evening and quite a few times in between. The fear creeps back in every day through the myriad of little things we do. Pay a bill and wonder how many more times you can afford to pay it. Buy groceries and you are reminded of the dwindling or empty pantry back home (if you still have one). Little luxuries like a movie or a CD become risky if not impossible. Those and many other things project that fearful uncertainty right back into the forefront of your mind. Each time, returning to the Word of God with verses memorized helps to turn us back to God in prayer. In those times of fear it is then that we realize what Paul meant by constant prayer. Fight the fearful uncertainty with the blessed assurance of God.

Pray for our brothers and sisters in Christ,

Bucky

The Armor We Wear

Snow falls on this Veterans Day. It may well have done so on the 11th day of the 11th month so many years ago when the First World War concluded with a treaty. Someone then coined the phrase The War to End All Wars. It wasn't. Perhaps a reading of the Bible might have prevented that little slogan that so badly failed. WWI was terrible, but in the Bible Jesus tells of wars and rumors of wars before the end. We may need to give those folks from long ago a break though. The Revelation speaks of conquest, war, plague, and famine. The time before the war, the great war, and the influenza epidemic right after that war may well have seemed that a fourth part of the world had indeed suffered under the four horsemen of the apocalypse. Then along came the great depression as though to confirm the famine part. Had we lived in those times, we might well have thought the end had come, the tribulation started and Jesus on the way with the hosts of Heaven.

So where do we stand in relation to eternity on this Veterans Day? Several of us have served in those wars and rumors of war, all of us have lived through it. Earthquakes shake the ground in diverse places. Persecution happens all over the globe. Yet, Jesus has not come to take His beloved home. We soldier on.

Indeed, Paul used the model soldier of the Roman legions to issue all of us a set of armor for the war we fight daily. A breastplate of righteousness, polished and gleaming. Not our righteousness but the imputed righteousness of Christ Himself. The helmet of salvation - not earned, but given to us, protecting our head and the wonderful mind inside. A belt of truth to protect our softer parts, and who is the Truth but Jesus our Lord! Feet, those important carriers of us when all mechanical things have failed, shod with the gospel of peace. A shield of faith to protect everything and a weapon of unsurpassed potency that is the Word of God.

We celebrate today those who served in our nation's armed forces, and we do well in that, but in Christ all of us are veterans of the most important war, the war to choose eternal life.

Bucky

One Hefty Lesson, Please!

Whew! I think I expended all I had in the Bible study lesson this morning, so I have nothing left for you. While I am quite exhaustible in many ways, the dear Holy Spirit of our Lord is perfectly not. We have within us a well that never runs dry. When I have tapped out and dried up, the Lord has only begun. No desert has ever dried up so fast as those of us who depend upon a personal store of love, grace, peace, and hope to share with others. Our personal store is tiny; the tank of our cistern very small indeed. We have so little to share that few will notice when we dry up and blow away. However, tap into that inexhaustible storehouse of love and joy contained in God's Spirit within and we gush with the flow available to the least of these.

When it comes to love, joy, peace, patience, kindness and the other fruits of the Spirit, God is never stingy or miserly. We have all we can hold and then some. We drink all we can and overflow with the goodness. One hefty lesson from the Word, please! And God pours it on us with both His mighty hands. We reach for the regular coffee and find the pot filled with super-mocha-cafe-espresso triple-brewed ultra-Atlantean blend. (Please don't ask me "Where can I get some of that?") In other words, God is always ready to help when we have reached the end of the little bit that is our offering to Him. Ask and ye shall receive!

Have a wonderful new day in Christ!

Bucky

Back to the Book

Advertising uses the word 'creamy' a lot to describe various food products and occasionally some that are not for food. One might think that the best ingredient to use for making something creamy would be cream. However, we are just beginning to come out of the cholesterol scare of the last 2 or 3 decades so cream is still not often used to make something creamy. In our Christian training we have access to a great many books that are not the Bible. Though the books are helpful and good for us, we still need the pure word of God. It is interesting that even with our common abuse of many words, the one set of books that remain biblical is the Bible.

Of course I won't be totally correct in that. In this age of writing most anything on the Internet, someone will have used 'biblical' for something other than the Bible. What we want to get at is the yearning we have for getting back to God's Word often. Max Lucado's book, 3:16: The Numbers of Hope is a wonderful book, but it doesn't replace John's gospel (and was never meant to, I'm sure). Various commentaries are great to have on the book shelf, but still we like to reach for the the Bible, that great book on which the commentaries are commenting. The Spirit calls us back to the Word, and what a wonderful Word He is!

Every word of God is pure;
He is a shield to those who put their trust in Him. (Proverbs 30:5)

Bucky

What A Mess We're In!

No, no, the little cloud is not on the horizon; the entire sky is covered in the darkest thunderheads. The danger is not faraway; it's right here! There are those days when the trouble seems to have arrived in the blink of an eye. The little cloud of warning yesterday has grown into the full-blown hurricane this morning. It's just too bad I missed the little cloud. We all have days like that.

Whether we fell asleep and missed the warning signs or the storm came quicker by far than we expected, the troubles are now here and fear rises to choke off our action. We can hardly pray for the fear that blankets our thoughts and emotions. God must be off on vacation. What happened?! Panic seems too tame a word for what we feel, and everyone talking about it doesn't help to get a handle on the thing. Yet, somehow, God's throne is not rocking and rolling on the waves of trouble. The crystal sea before the throne remains still and calm. Isn't God paying attention? What a mess we're in!

When prayer does come, we always find the same thing - God is not upset or afraid. His Holy Spirit is not agitated within us by our thoughts of fear, but perhaps just a little disappointed that we haven't showed up in prayer all the sooner for our feelings of dread and despair. The wolves may be scratching at the door and the buzzards circling overhead. Horrors of the world may parade themselves before you. The peace of our Lord is still given to us.

David faced times of fear, and from them come great psalms: try Psalms 56 & 57 when that time of fear comes to you.

Bucky

Let Us Look For The Lord

The Unbeliever looked for the Lord in books but found nothing to convince him. The Unbeliever looked for the Lord in humans and found no one good enough. The Unbeliever looked for the Lord in nature but found only striving and blood. The Unbeliever looked for the Lord in technology and science and the other deeds of man, but found no hope there. He read the Christian Bible, but found it full of much of what he had already discovered. The Unbeliever then, through lack of evidence, convinced himself that God doesn't exist. The world welcomed him with open arms, a hero to the unbelieving. Someone wanted that unbeliever though, someone who does not give up easily.

Years passed, and the Unbeliever felt the pains of growing older. Modern medicine helped him some, but cures for the worst of his ills and pains were themselves often brutal, slow, and not entirely effective. While looking upward from a hospice bed one morning, the Unbeliever began to ask, "God are you there?" Death stood in the corner of his room, but something held it at bay for the moment. A cacophonous parade of sins marched past, but greatest of all of them, the champion anchoring the entire line, was his own cherished unbelief. Near to Death it stood, powerful and unrepentant, a sin to be reckoned with. The Unbeliever had found no hope in his unbelief and he had none to comfort him at the end. Death drew closer.

Suddenly the parade ended, frozen in the midst of their celebration, stopped cold by someone. A man stood beside Death. A man of no particular beauty, one that a person might overlook in a crowd. He told the Unbeliever that the entire parade of sin had been paid for long ago on a cross near Jerusalem. As the man had paid for them, he wanted them back. All the Unbeliever had to do was believe.

We know that story in a way because we too looked for evidence of the senses at one time and found it not. We walk near Death every day as the multitude of possible deaths pass us on every side. We wish that every unbeliever might meet the Lord and believe as Doubting Thomas did. Some do meet Jesus: Paul on the Damascus road, Stephen as the heavens opened before him, and John as he was called up there. One did not believe and two very much did believe in the Lord. Most of us will not get to meet our Lord until that moment when He brings us home. Yet we believe, and we pray for those who do not. Those prayers are not ignored. Perhaps even now a lifelong unbeliever will meet the Lord in his last few moments. Keep on praying!

Have a wonderful day in Christ!

Bucky

No Denial, Just Prayer

Have you ever been bothered by something? Some would have us do a sort of mental trick by repeating a denial until the problem somehow magically goes away. If you've ever had a hungry kid or pet, you will know that the brink of insanity is much closer than one might think and that repeating nonsense is one way to get there faster. A much better method we find is to bring all problems to God in prayer.

Prayer is our constant communication channel to the Creator of Heaven and Earth. A privilege of staggering proportions is prayer. No denial, just prayer. We realize and speak our need for God by prayer. Jesus taught us to pray and gave us a model to follow. Many times our Lord went away by Himself to pray to God. In His final moments on the cross our Lord Jesus prayed by calling out to God. We follow our Lord by praying.

Denial probably never solved anything. Prayer on the other hand brings you and me to God. He already knows about the problem. What He wants is for us to come to Him in prayer. Paul reminded us to let our requests be made known to God. (Phil 4) Find new strength, good help, endurance, perseverance, encouragement, and resolution in prayer. Don't be afraid of wearing out the divine ears, Jesus told us to come often to prayer and repeat as needed.

In Jesus Name!
Bucky

Faith In...

In my own strength I have accomplished nothing worth mentioning. Actually, even those unmentionable accomplishments were accomplished under the strength God gave to me before I knew that God had strengthened me to have faith in Him. What did I just write anyway?

Faith in all things is our journey with Christ. We don't come by this naturally, for born as sinners we look first to the things we can sense. I cannot feel faith, or touch it, or see it. Yet, I know that it is there in me. Where did this thing come from? The Book of Hebrews tells us that faith is the substance of things hoped for; the evidence of things not seen. (11:1) Paul tells us in his letter to the Romans that it comes by way of gift. I didn't earn faith, find it by the roadside, or accomplish it in my strength. My faith came by way of a gift from above. First through Christ who died for us, and then by way of the Holy Spirit given to us. I don't get to claim that it was my accomplishment. I cannot mount the podium to receive a faith award, yet I received an award of faith just the same. How did I rate such a wonderful thing?

It can only be through God's love that we are given such faith in what we cannot see or feel or touch. Faith in writing comes when I begin writing; I don't deserve it, but I do get to exercise it. Faith in ministry comes to those who minister. They deserve it no more than do I, yet the ministers minster in faith so well. Faith in Jesus comes to those who believe in Jesus. Part of me wants to grab faith and present it to those who do not believe. "Here it is! See it?" But that cannot be or faith would no longer be faith.

Glory to God for the gift of faith,

Bucky

I Love to Have Him Here With Me

In its terrible pride the diabolical part of me seeks to proclaim some extreme. Gladly it would say that I am the worst of the worst in something or the most of the most in something else. The Lord is with me always though. His Spirit and my spirit communing together in holy fellowship. The Lord tells a different story about those extremes. I love to have Him here with me. For what that diabolical pride would speak of me, I don't need. I am content to be one of many sheep in my Lord's pasture. Special because of Him, and not through something I have done or failed to do. Blessed through His grace and not through my merit. Saved by His blood and not by a religious system. Just a sheep in the Good Shepherd's flock is much better than anything that diabolical pride has spoken in any case.

Each day we need to be reminded of and take into our hearts our Lord's presence. The Lord will not leave us because we don't think of Him on a particular day, but the day goes so much better when we take that time to pray, meditate on the Word, and just be aware of His presence in our lives.

Imagine the Lord always waiting to hear from us. Eager to hear our slightest and briefest thoughts directed to Him in prayer. We don't need a priest to tell it to, nor a carefully edited formal prayer. We only need to speak to our Lord from the heart, at any time and at all times. Blessed and glorious is our Lord, who loves us so much that He wants to hear from you and me today!

Have a loving and graceful November with the Lord Jesus!

Bucky