This Could Sting a Little

Have you ever been called by someone who had the wrong number? For most of us this is a regular occurrence and we do not think too much of it. What if you were busy caring for a loved one, say a son or daughter, or a mom or dad, and someone kept calling you away? Sounds like a frustrating situation right? Now let's say that it is someone you know calling you and then not saying anything. They know you are busy taking care of your family or loved one, but still they call you over and over never uttering a word. I know this doesn't seem like a real situation. You are wrong!

But wait who would do something like this? It seems so childish and even cruel.

WE are the ones on the cell phone not saying anything! Every single time you utter the Almighty's name He comes rushing to your aid.

We talked about how we serve a Jealous God. He would DIE for a relationship with us, to talk to us! How do we repay Him for this yearning for our presence in His Kingdom? We call Him up and then never say a word to Him. He loves us so much and is jealous for us because He knows that in order to spend eternity with Him we must first come to know Him through our personal relationship with Jesus. What kind of relationship will we have if we prank call him and never say anything?

"Oh My God! I love this song!
First of all, no you do not "love" this song, and second of all, before Jesus came and forgave us, this statement was a one way ticket straight to the fiery pit for all ETERNITY! In the third commandment God tells us through Moses to not ever take the Lord's name in vain. Let's not forget that God knows all things. You do not have to tell Him if you like something or if you are uncomfortable. And because he is all-knowing do you think we can fool Him by saying, "Oh My Gosh!"? He knows that we almost called Him into our lives, if for only an instant. But instead tainted His Holy Name with a cheap substitute. Before you said, "Oh My,"he was rushing to the phone to listen to what you had to tell Him.

How do we fix this?
I have been blessed greatly, in that I have a companion who is trying to stop using our Lord's name in vain as well. It has worked well for us, so partner up and pray for one another that you will both remain  vigilant over the most powerful muscle in our body. The muscle that can call down the heavenly host and even the King of the universe. (your tongue)

He Loves you. YAHWEH is caring for you and leaving only one set of footprints in the sand. So next time you think you need to call out His name let it end in a prayer. A short conversation. Or even just a, "Oh My God....I Love You!"

Divine Personal Protection

Divine Personal Protection

[for long version read bracketed text]

        Later this year I will be turning 23 years old, and I must admit that it seems like I just turned 20. As a not-so-former-teenager I feel that I can still relate closely with those who are still in the most confusing years of their lives. Teenagers. I have a younger sister who is 15 and this next piece of advice is for her and every other young person who suffers from the heart ache so often found in our relationships today.

         I have been blessed through out my life to only ever have suffered minimal heart ache. Here I am with the secret. I have a Personal Guard for my Heart. I have asked Jesus to guard my heart for Him alone countless times. He has never abandoned me and will never leave me wanting. He is a jealous God after all. So if I love Him more than any of His flock I will never have my heart broken.

        [When with our friends and our potential more-than-just-friends we always find a way to share what we look for in a relationship. We usually outline only some of the good characteristics we require, but we find time to list every trait we consider to be “deal-breakers”. As many of us already know, that list can be quite long. So instead of listing them all, I am going to only mention one, Jealousy.

         We long for commitment to another person but then require absolute freedom to do as we please as soon as we enter that commitment. We don’t want to change any of our habits for that person in order to compromise with what they might want. And just as soon as they question something we have done we assume the worst and lash out at them. It’s not like they are some stranger calling us out for something we may have done wrong. This is someone who is supposed to care for us and us for them.

          Let’s give this a little perspective. We reject the accountability for our actions due to the conviction we often feel because of that same accountability. Perhaps that person only wants the best for us. They do care about us after all. So this jealousy trait we have come to give a universally bad connotation could have a loving nature behind it? Have we not been told that we serve a jealous God? But what does that mean? Is God going to come read all my text messages and quiz me about who I was hanging out with all day? No, our God is a very different kind of jealous and is jealous for a very different reason than we are.

           We are jealous for ourselves. We want more of someone’s time, more of everyone’s stuff, and more of the world’s power. However, The Almighty is not jealous for Himself, He is jealous for us! He wants us to be satisfied, but not just for the next few days or minutes. He longs for our eternal satisfaction on His streets of gold! He isn't the jealousy that gets upset when we go out with our friends and forget to call and talk to Him. He is the jealousy that is sad we didn't tell Him goodnight, but then forgets all about it and leaps for joy when we tell Him good morning. (We will discuss prank calls in our next lesson)  For it is through our relationship with him we are eternally satisfied; and our Lord wants what is best for us.]

            I encourage you to read John 17. Listen to the possessiveness Jesus places on His Disciples! They belonged to Him! They were not and we are not of this world because they gave themselves to Him in the same way we are called to give ourselves to Jesus!  So yes jealousy as we know it is ugly. But my God is jealous for me because He knows it is up to me to climb the staircase and I can only do so though my time spent with Him. He placed that first commandment there for each of us. For He is Jealous for me, and by my obedience to Him, He has granted my redemption.