Eleventh Hour Gift

James 4:17 “Therefore to him that knows to do good, and does it not, to him it is sin.”

A Moral Compass

Yesterday I was reading one of my morning emails by Max Lucado, this one was titled “An Eleventh Hour Gift”. If you’re a Christian, you might know where I’m going with this and what it all means. The eleventh-hour gift was the gift of forgiveness as Jesus hung on the cross dying.

When one criminal hurled accusations at Jesus, the criminal on His other side chastised him for saying such a thing about a man who had done nothing wrong! “Yes we did something wrong, yes, but this man is innocent!” No one knows exactly what was said while three men hung bleeding to death on a cross but Jesus said something profound, “Today you will be with me in paradise.” My faith tells me that THAT is the kind of man Jesus was/and IS all about, love and forgiveness.

What? This criminal? Paradise? Full of sin gets to see paradise? Yes, people, that’s what Jesus’ death was for this tainted world, forgiving our sin-filled nature. Did these men attend church? Did they wash Jesus’ feet? Did they tithe and read scripture regularly, picking it apart word for word so they got it right with the Lord? Do they get to see paradise too? 

It gets tricky and I believe this is why we have an era stuck in a world judging God/Jesus and the moral compass. They answer to no one and forcing them to read a Bible that is full of sinners, rapist, killers, sodomy, and incest, the line of teaching gets lost and they come out on the other end with their own truth. Atheist didn’t become that way because they DIDN’T read the Bible, no, more than likely they read it and came away with their own summation.

I have a son, nieces, and nephews from blood and marriage and I know the different upbringings each of them had and what they carry with them. They define God in their own way, no matter what the Bible says, their parents said, ministers say, they come to their own conclusion of what a Moral Compass even is; they answer to no one. And even the ones that turned out to be Christians, came out believing ‘God didn’t mean it this way or that way, again, making their own truth fit what they’ve read and learned.

This is sad but when I read that email of Max Lucado’s it seemed pretty clear to me, Jesus didn’t die because we were all perfect in our moral compass worlds. He died because we are ALL sinners. So does that mean we get left behind because we’re out here with our high and mighty Moral Compass? We do everything right and honorable and fall on occasion, so does that mean we’re just going to be forgotten in our eleventh hour? I don’t believe so.

Will all of the children growing up today be forgotten because they don’t understand what the bible and the message said? No, they won’t! They are not being taught and much of what is taught is misconstrued, mixed and a jumbled up mess of laws, vows, deaths, and sins, they see no hope in the Word and are not taught of the HOPE in the Word.

People today are so vindictive, so eager to have the upper hand and smite the neighbor, it is a long line of misconceptions we teach our kids that it is okay, because of what, God forgives? TO ME, it is us, who already know that it’s a sin who will have trouble ‘knocking on heavens door.’

What I’m saying is, today is Good Friday, it is the day designated as the day Jesus was hung on the cross. I say designated because no one, and I mean NO ONE, knows of the day or hour our Lord was hung on the cross. One thing we Christians ARE certain of is that He died with one last breath forgiving a sinner who didn’t know any better all of his life, that Jesus was the God that many searches for. He forgave mankind, point blank!

I remember when I broke my femur last September and I laid crying in pain, what kept me sane at the moment was knowing Jesus suffered more as He made his way to the cross. The images of Jesus being whipped and beaten as He dragged the heavy wood to the top of ‘Skull’s Hill’ gave me something to focus on other than what I was enduring. Every drop of bloodshed, every laceration, every wail of pain from an innocent man, left my pain feeling small and petty.

As the past six weeks have been filled with pains all over my body that I DID NOT expect to feel, I thought I could handle any pain after Septembers rain of pain but this pain is just as immeasurable and I failed to conjure the images that I know might carry me through to the finish. I feel like a failure as I head into my New Year, no longer looking forward to ringing in the New Year in the fashion that I’ve done for years now. It’s all changed. Life has changed, the world has changed.

Easter Sunday will be different this year. My husband has to work, my son has to work, the family will rejoice with food and one another, sharing and caring and I’ll be left alone to celebrate my New Year in the fashion that I saw it coming, alone, with the One that forgave man, all of mankind, for being the sinners they are.

One thing I can say is that this Sunday I will RISE from my bed, and embrace the chance to live another day, basking in His glory! Another sunrise and sunset to tell the people of the world that no matter the sin, no matter the pain and shame you feel, there is the eleventh-hour forgiveness awaiting each and every one of you. Remember, it’s your magnetic moral compass that will lead you north or south

James 5:15 “And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.”

James 4:11 “Speak not evil one of another, brethren. He that speaketh evil of his brother, and judgeth his brother, speaketh evil of the law, and judgeth the law: but if thou judge the law, thou art not a doer of the law, but a judge.”

Unknown quote: “The more fake you are, the bigger your circle will be. The more real you are, the smaller your circle will be.

These are well known facts.”

May each and every one of you have a most Blessed Celebratory Day as we remember the reason for the Season!

Quotation Saturday

GOSPEL

“By the light of nature we see God as a God above us, by the light of the law we see Him as a God against us, but by the light of the gospel we see Him as Emmanuel, God with us.” 

~ Matthew Henry
 

“I don’t preach a social gospel; I preach the Gospel, period. The gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ is concerned for the whole person. When people were hungry, Jesus didn’t say, “Now is that political or social?” He said, “I feed you.” Because the good news to a hungry person is bread.” 

~Desmond Tutu

“The Church cannot save, it cannot heal, it cannot baptize with the Holy Spirit, it cannot lead us into all truth. Only the Lord can do these things. When our emphasis becomes the Church more than the Lord, we have been reduced to worshipping the creation instead of the blessed Creator, and our faith has been reduced to a form of godliness which denies the very power of the gospel. We are not changed by beholding the Church; we are changed as we behold the Lord (II Corinthians 3:18).” 

~Rick Joyner
 

“The gospel is for the salvation of the world, and we are sometimes in danger of locking ourselves inside the rescue-shop and plundering the stock of blessings for the sole purpose of spiritual self-gratification, while millions stream empty- handed past the closed doors into eternal darkness, hearing the joyful sounds and seeing the advertisements, but never being given a chance to test the goods.”

~ Graham Kendrick
 

PEACE

Resign every forbidden joy; restrain every wish that is not referred to God’s will; banish all eager desires, all anxiety; desire only the will of God; seek him alone and supremely, and you will find peace. 

~ Francois Fenelon
 

In the midst of the awesomeness, a touch comes, and you know it is the right hand of Jesus Christ. You know it is not the hand of restraint, correction, nor chastisement, but the right hand of the Everlasting Father. Whenever His hand is laid upon you, it gives inexpressible peace and comfort, and the sense that “underneath are the everlasting arms,” (Deuteronomy 33:27) full of support, provision, comfort and strength. 

~ Oswald Chambers

If we only desire a small piece of God in our lives, we will similarly have only that same measure of His peace in them. 

~ Brian G. Jett

God cannot give us a happiness and peace apart from Himself, because it is not there. There is no such thing.

~ C.S. Lewis

FORGIVENESS

Forgiveness is the key which unlocks the door of resentment and the handcuffs of hatred. It breaks the chains of bitterness and the shackles of selfishness.

~ Forgiveness is the key which unlocks the door of resentment and the handcuffs of hatred. It breaks the chains of bitterness and the shackles of selfishness.

~ Corrie Ten Boom

To excuse what can really produce good excuses is not Christian charity; it is only fairness. To be a Christian means to forgive the inexcusable, because God has forgiven the inexcusable in you. This is hard. It is perhaps not so hard to forgive a single injury. But to forgive the incessant provocations of daily life – to keep on forgiving the bossy mother-in-law, the bullying husband, the nagging wife, the selfish daughter, the deceitful son – how can we do it? Only, I think, by remembering where we stand, by meaning our words when we say in our prayers each night, “Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.” We are offered forgiveness on no other terms. To refuse it means to refuse God’s mercy for ourselves. There is no hint of exceptions and God means what He says.

~ C. S. Lewis
 

The most miserable prison in the world is the prison we make for ourselves when we refuse to show mercy. Our thoughts become shackled, our emotions are chained, the will is almost paralyzed. But when we show mercy, all of these bonds are broken, and we enter into a joyful liberty that frees us to share God’s love with others.

~ Warren W. Wiersbe
 

None of us are there yet, but if we each have this attitude, we will put to death our reactions to criticisms and offenses. And though we may still stumble, we will learn that carrying the cross is not merely dying to self; it is embracing the love of Christ that forgives the very ones who have crucified us, that the battle that comes against us has actually driven us into the embrace of God.

~ Francis Frangipane
 

Off for some spiritual healing

Did you hear…


The wind in the trees. Did it pass you by unaware? Did it whisper and you couldn’t make out what it was saying?

This is a writing blog. With over a thousand posts on the writing craft, I have poetry and famous quotations intermingled with my posts. Every now and again I’ll divulge some of my life story, so maybe one person, who might be going through the same thing, might find solace in my words.

Here lately I haven’t felt much like writing, about writing. Why? Because of stats. Statistics show again and again that many come to visit my tell tale life story. I can post a blog on writing and get 50 – 80 hits but let me whisper my life story and wham the stats go up…jumps through the roof.

We’re an odd lot, we humans. Always interested in others shortcomings. Nosey busybodies poking our nose in other people’s business. Is it so we can feel better about ourselves? Do we get a good chuckle and laugh as we say, “Wow that girl has it bad.” And then we run off to tell our other friends, “Did you hear about so and so, did such and such?” Then she tells her friend and so on and so on.

This is what the world has become. And we wonder why we’re in such bad shape? Oh I know, let’s blame it on someone else. I don’t like to talk political jargon, but you know what, I’m sick, extremely sick of people who can’t move on!

The president was nominated, so get over it. He’s here for four more years. Why waste perfect good energy on spewing hate? Do you relish the feeling that hate gives you? Does it feel good swirling around in your mind?

We had a horrific, terrible shooting (a few to my memory) and the president wants to ban assault weapons. Then the cowards sit at home, with no knowledge and spew hate. “He ain’t taking away MY right to bear arms!” So really, you need an assault weapon, for? To display and wave it in your kids face and say, “Look, Daddy’s a man!”

Daddy’s a coward if he needs an assault rifle.

But everyone isn’t really upset about ‘the ban on assault rifles'. They’re upset because ‘it’s MY right!’ Me, me, my my. That’s what the world is all about now.

I understand that the Americans have a right to bear arms, that’s all good, but when should you be given the right to bear an assault rifle? Does a hunter need one to KILL animals? I mean seriously, if he needs more than one shot to kill the doe eyed, innocent victim, an animal, should a hunter be hunting? Make the game fair if you wish to KILL.

I’m sick of all the rhetoric. I’m so tired of all the hate and slaughtering of moral values, I’m fed up with humans in general. As I fought the battle, in the end, it is I who lost.

This is the season where I will try and find myself in the midst of shadows that lurk but are never seen. I will do some spiritual healing and find myself once again.

“In both the Old and New Testaments, fasting is seen as useful for humbling oneself as a sign of commitment or repentance and for increasing faith, especially when accompanied by prayer. Fasting allowed one to be devoted to spiritual matters without distraction from earthly things. However, fasting was not to be considered an end in itself, nor a substitute for obedience to God and doing good deeds.”(Isa. 58:3-10)

As I sit alone in this world with no friends, no family, no one who cares, I will fade to the shadows and one day you’ll see my silhouette standing there, off in the distance. You’ll call out to me but there will be no answer. As you move closer to me I will fade even deeper into the mist, until I am soon forgotten. You’ll move on, forget me, and then remember me.

I hope you wonder to yourself if you had any cause in my despair. Was it you who pushed me to the shadows; Or will you go on with your merry life, consuming yourself with yourself and those that matter to YOU.

In my reflection, I will pray for you all (and for mySELF) and hope to someday return, rejuvenated, revived, reborn.

God Bless you if you are reading this.