Heal you? Are you sure?

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“"When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, "Do you want to get well?""

                                                                                   - John 5:6

The door handles in the old Chevy had long been broken and 2 of the windows no longer roll down. The seat belts are in knots and there are cigarette burns all over the upholstery. As the young couple look at the car they had just drove onto the lot and then look at the rows and rows of new cars. The salesman walks over and what are the first words from his mouth, "What can I do for you today?" ahhh, duh...it seems quite obvious doesn't it.

  Have you noticed that Jesus had a tendency to ask this or similar questions prior to many of his miracles? To the blind man, "What will you have me do?" ; to the boy with the fish and loves, "How many do you have?"; or to the woman caught in adultery, "Woman, where are your accusers?" Rhetorical questions from the Almighty, or something deeper?   I propose that it was something deeper. He could have easily cast out the demons, healed the sick and lame, and brought love to the accused without even saying a word.

  No, there was a purpose to everything that Jesus said and this was no different. First, these events in the public’s eye were teaching opportunities. Having the individual publicly acknowledge their faith in God for healing and salvation demonstrated to all those observing the need for faith. Furthermore, it demonstrated the relationship between Jesus Christ and man-kind, that we can ask anything and with belief and faith in the Son of God, it will come to pass.

  Secondly, I propose that Jesus was truly asking them if they truly wanted to leave their old ways. We all have the opportunity to bring our weakness', shortcomings and sinful nature to Jesus for healing. Yet, for some reason we choose not to, or we give it lip service and inside really want to hang on to it. I know someone who struggles with pornography, and is angry with God for not removing the temptation from his life. Yet he is the one moving the mouse and typing the URL to go to those places. He may have asked to be rid of his sinful nature, but I can picture Jesus Christ standing behind him, looking over his shoulder saying, "Do you want to be healed?" Deep inside it is unlikely that he truly wants to give it up.

  Prayers are said with the best intentions in mind, but unless our heart and our mind are in sync with the request, in James 4:3 we discover "You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you might spend it on your pleasures." He's asking you, "Do you truly want to be healed?" Let your heart and mind come together with a solid "Yes". He's shown us numerous times in the scriptures where He will give to those with pure intentions. We can't have it both ways folks. Commit to the Lord and turn away from your sins and He will deliver upon His promises.

PRAYER:

Father,

  Your word is clear Lord that you are desiring our full commitment. As we learn from this scripture to search ourselves and our true intent before coming to You in prayer, help us to reach that place. Build within each of us the desire and courage to look at our sinful nature with the direct purpose to be rid of it and serve You wholeheartedly. Strengthen our resolve Lord to not hold onto those things that prevent us from being in full service to You. Break the bonds of satan on our lives that we might rejoice with You in fulfilling our desires. For it is through the power of Your Son- Jesus Christ that we are redeemed and made whole again. - Amen
             

© Sondove Enterprises, 2012
For more Daily Thoughts go to: http://sondove.blogspot.com

Patientily Strong

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“For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.”   - Philippians 1:6

I for one have a really hard time with patience.  I watch the news at night and say to myself, “It can’t get any worse.”  and then it does.  In the last 30 years, yes I’m old enough to remember the 80’s, I have watched the world become more and more accepting and tolerant of the very unrighteousness that God warns us about continually throughout scripture.  People just seem to not care, or they do not want to get involved or rock the boat.  We have gradually become a society of complacent Christians, concerned solely about our own self righteousness.  The old story of how to boil a frog comes to mind, perhaps you’ve heard it before.

To boil a frog you must first catch one.  Place a pot of water on the stove, but do not light the burner yet.   Place the frog into the pot, and secure the lid (this is important because those little suckers like to jump).  You’ll find the frog relaxed in the water.  Light the burner and put it on a low temperature.  The water will begin to slowly get warm, turn the burner up to 50% after 10 minutes and let the water warm up again, then finally turn the burner up to 100% and bring the water to a boil.  The gradual warming of the water is unnoticed by the frog until such time that it is too late and his defenses are gone.

The rise and adoption of a worldly view in society has slowly and gradually removed the knowledge and understanding of what it means to serve God.  My fear is that we are drifting farther from the coast without any understanding that the tide is taking us out to sea, because it is so gradual.  If you have ever been to the ocean, you know what I mean.  There is an undercurrent, not visible to the swimmer or those on the beach.  The beachcomber sees the waves crashing in and perceives that all things will wash back to shore.  The swimmer who might be 50 feet off of the shoreline may have the same perspective as they frolic and play in the surf.  It doesn’t take long for one to realize, that while in the ocean you are actually being drawn away from the shore though.  Under the water’s surface is a current that results from the rolling waves, and this current will push an unaware swimmer down the beach and out to sea.  Suddenly, the swimmer is no longer 50 feet, but 75, then 100 and then the water begins to get deeper and it becomes harder to swim back against the current. 
 

We must remain diligent in our efforts and purpose in serving the Lord.  He has placed us on this earth for this very point in time, with the ability and the gifts to serve His Kingdom right where we are.  It requires patience and persistence though.  God does not work on our timetable and although there are times we wish Jesus would come back today, He realizes there is still much work to do.  Paul reminds us in Philippians 1:6, that what God has started inside of us, will come to pass in due time.  He has not forsaken or forgotten us, and we need to be strong in staying the course, standing for His righteousness and glory, and spreading His love and message to those in need.  Do not allow the slow dulling of the world’s opinion influence the strength of yours.  You are an overcomer through Christ Jesus and you are destined for an eternity with the King.  Stand for His principles, His truth and refuse the tolerance of unrighteousness perpetrated by society.  For on that day, when He comes again, you will be in His glory and serving His Kingdom.


 

© Sondove Enterprises, 2012
For more Daily Thoughts go to: http://sondove.blogspot.com

He Must be a Christian

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“By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thorn bushes, or figs from thistles?  Every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit.”   - Matthew 7:16-17

When the spotlight shines they are quick to point to the heavens, even kneel and bow their head as a representation of thanking God for their success.  You’ve all seen it, in the NFL, Baseball, NASCAR, Soccer (football), Cricket and even in the Entertainment Industry awards ceremonies.  The Christian observer immediately finds a bond with the individual and forms an alliance to defend the person.  There have been times when I did not care for an athlete because of a perceived inflated ego and questionable off field antics, yet found myself looking at them differently after observing this type of public display.  How much does the outward impression actually have to do with our acceptance of another individual in life?

We think of missionaries and immediately our mind stirs images of dedicated Christians going above and beyond to support those suffering in 3rd world countries and disaster torn countries.  Yet, who says that all missionaries are Christian?  The very term – Missionary implies that the person is there on a mission to spread the Word of God to all nations “The Great Commission”.  Does this therefore rule out the non-believing individual from going into a country and providing assistance and love to those that are in need and hurting?  Of course not.  The difference is that a “missionary” is also sharing their faith while helping those in need.  So by definition, the non-believer isn’t a Missionary, but we must agree that their help is still valuable to those that are suffering?
 
Even atheists, with no belief in God or any higher power at all, will roll up their sleeves and help others with a love and compassion for their fellow man.  The real question of the day is how can you look at two people standing side by side acting the same way towards outside audiences and determine if one is a Christian and one is not?  It is true that the works of a man can be deceiving when discerning a foundational belief structure, when those works are good.  Is it likewise true when those works are against the word of God and the beliefs of the Christian church? 

We are all sinful by nature and unworthy of the grace of God (Romans 3:23).  Is there any difference between the sin of a person who attends church and a person with the same sin who does not?  Is God’s grace sufficient to absolve the one of their sins, and not the other?  You see, by looking at an individual’s appearance and actions it is often times very difficult to discern their beliefs and relationship with the Son of God.  When someone claims to be a Christian we will instinctively watch them to see if they screw up, thereby proving that they aren’t.  Likewise when we see someone publically make an example of their faith before crowds, we likewise watch to see what they do outside of the limelight so we can criticize their faith. 

To understand Matthew’s scripture we must first identify “good fruit”.  Good fruit is that which expands God’s kingdom and calls glory to His name.  Good fruit stems from the Holy Spirit dwelling within the Christian.  Evil doers – “those who do not believe in Christ” cannot produce good fruit for they do not have the Holy Spirit within them.  Certainly, they can do good things, but that is very different than bearing good fruit for the Kingdom of God.  Likewise, a man convicted by the Holy Spirit, saved by grace and repentant of his transgressions cannot produce bad fruit (evil).  The scriptures tell us that the tree bringing forth “bad fruit” will be plucked from the earth and cast down.  Be of sound mind and body and let your witness and fruit bear only the “good fruit” of the Lord.  People are watching.


PRAYER:
Heavenly Father,
Thank You for Your unwavering authority over good and evil.  Thank You for providing the Holy Spirit as a counselor within each of us to convict us of wrong doing and lead us toward Your righteousness.  Build within each of us a strong gathering of good fruit that might be shared with the world.  Help us to recognize Your will in our life and to follow the call upon our heart to bear good fruit when called upon.  We honor You in all things and bring You the glory. Amen

             

© Sondove Enterprises, 2012
For more Daily Thoughts go to: http://sondove.blogspot.com

Dusty Shoes

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“But when you enter a town and are not welcomed, go into its streets and say, 'Even the dust of your town that sticks to our feet we wipe off against you. Yet be sure of this: The kingdom of God is near” – Luke 10:10-11

     With exasperation she continues walking the streets of Las Vegas.  If she could just find one person on this rainy night under the neon lights it would make it all worth it.  The rain keeps the card peddlers at bay so she’ll have to take her ministry inside of the clubs and bars. There are plenty of opportunities in this seedy town, but it certainly wears on one’s faith and commitment.  The majority of the individuals she reaches out to are middle aged, married and living a double life in this city of sin.  From the throngs of people that continue to flock to the casino’s and shows to the hundreds and thousands that daily make their ways to the strip clubs and reviews, she will always have targets for her message.  Her love of the Father and His Son drives her to daily put on her humble clothes, tennis shoes and with cards in hand make her way out into the world to spread His word. 

  You see, 15 years earlier her husband of 27 years had come to this city for a convention.  After drinking with his friends and losing unbelievable amounts of money on the craps table, he proceeded to take a card from a sidewalk peddler.  That night 3 scantily clad girls showed up at his door, when he opened the door to let them in and begin his night of adulterous pleasure. Immediately, busting through the door following the 3 girls were 2 very large men.  They proceeded to beat, abuse and steal from the man.  He was taken from  the hotel and left to die outside of the city limits.  He didn’t die that night. The next morning he was found by a young couple just married in Vegas.  They made sure he was taken to a hospital, where the police captured the details of his story. His wife was notified, but before she could make it to Las Vegas he died.

  She has a cause behind her ministry.  She has a passion to prevent this from happening to another family.  Most of her attempts to “help” someone heading down the wrong path to right themselves are received with a coarse, “Mind your own business.”, but every now and then, when the Lord brings her path to cross another’s at the right time, she has been an instrument of God to bring another sheep back into the fold.

  The truth of the matter is some people just don’t want to face God on His terms.  Many of us have been in situations where starting a discussion about God and salvation falls upon deaf ears.  The bible is clear on this matter, and Jesus' own words here in Luke 10:10 affirms that we are not to lose hope when someone denies or turns from the Good News.  God’s plan of salvation is that ALL mankind be saved through His abundant grace.  But it is by His plan not ours.

  I’ve often found myself in a position thinking that if I don’t get this person or that person to recognize the need for Christ they will go to Hell.  What arrogance, what pride?  As if I have any ability to bring salvation to anyone.  God’s resources are not limited to my ability to spread His word.  If so, we are all in a whole lot of trouble.  Thank goodness that He can bring a person to a point of salvation without me.  This in no way says I shouldn’t be out there giving back and sharing His gospel, though.  When we accept Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord, we acknowledge that His way is the only way to heaven.  By accepting this, we accept the Great Commission along with that. 

  This states that we need to take the truth, righteousness and word of God to the world and baptize them in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.  We can’t buy into the comfortable parts of the scriptures, that talk about how much God will do for us, and ignore the parts that say we are called to do His work.  It’s all or nothing; it is either God’s word and deserves our full commitment or none of it is true.  There is no way to take part of the salvation story and simply ignore the rest.  When others refuse to accept the truths we are speaking, we are to move on with respect as our Savior did.  Do not fret and believe that God is not capable of saving them in another manner.  That’s a pretty limiting perspective of the Almighty Creator, wouldn’t you agree. As followers of Christ we are called to spread His love to all nations. It's not a request, it's a command.

PRAYER:
Almighty God,
  You have called us to be Your hands and feet to the world. You have empowered us and bestowed upon each of us the necessary tools and gifts for the success of our mission. Grant us the humility and serenity to understand our place in Your plan, and to have a heart drawn to serve as You need us to serve. All glory goes to You as we lift You up in our cause. Amen

             

© Sondove Enterprises, 2012
For more Daily Thoughts go to: http://sondove.blogspot.com