Month: February 2023

“Let those who seek my life be put to shame and disgrace. Let those who plot evil against me be turned back and confounded. Make them like chaff before the wind, with the angel of the Lord driving them on. Make their way slippery and dark, with the angel of the Lord pursuing them.”

Psalm 35:4-6 (NAB)

When I graduated from 8th grade, my great aunt gave me my first bible. It was white leather with a gold zipper, gold letters on the front, and the words of Jesus were all printed in red. I thanked her and put it on a bookshelf in my bedroom, where it remained unopened for six years. I never knew the powerful treasure of God’s word hidden inside that white leather. After pursuing my own path without God in my teenage years, I had a wake up call in a dream one night. I dreamed I was running to catch a train and finally jumped on board, but realized I was riding in a train of coffins. After waking up startled, I had a new hunger for God and a curiosity for truth, which later led me to repent and surrender my life to Christ. Years later, I discovered the treasure and power of scripture and began to pray as I read it. A day came when I prayed a scripture in the Psalms for the protection of that same great aunt who gave me my first bible. She and my mother, both elderly widows, had moved in together. They were living peacefully until the schizophrenic adult son of my great aunt started to regularly harass them for money. He was frequenting their house where they lived, far away from me in another state. After giving him meals and money out of their kindness, they finally told him they had no more money to give. The day they refused him entry and money, he became very angry and started kicking at their front door. My mother told me about it the next day and naturally I felt worried and helpless, living so far away from them. Of course if he returned again, they would call the police, but I had a bad feeling about him and didn’t want him to return again. I was unable to protect them, but God was able to. I lived far away but God was near them, so I brought my anxieties to God and started praying Psalm 35. I found my hope in the truth of what God promises to do to protect us, so my daily prayer was “Lord, please send your angel and drive him away like chaff in the wind, as your word says.”  A short time afterward, we heard that he ended up in a nursing home with a double foot amputation, resulting from diabetes. I was shocked but relieved that my mother and great aunt were safe. Her son was still alive with the opportunity to repent and turn to Christ, as he lived out his days in that nursing home. God worked it all out to a fair and just solution. I have prayed this Psalm many times since then, and sometimes God helped me to be at peace with an enemy, and there was no need for an angel to drive them away. Whatever the situation, I know God will protect His people, sending angels as needed, because of His promises written in that white leather bible.  What a mighty God we serve, who fulfills the promises of His own word, when we ask and believe Him for it. 
Lord, we all face frightening times and uncertain predicaments in our lives, and we call upon your angels today, to drive any enemies away and keep each one of us safe, in Jesus’ name. Amen

“And he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.”

Mark 5:34 (RSV)

The woman with the hemorrhage was determined to go see Jesus. It all began by speaking to herself saying, ”If I but touch His clothes, I shall be cured.” In most other gospel accounts of healing, a person is brought to Jesus by friends or family. Scripture doesn’t explain her family situation, only that she suffered with a hemorrhage for twelve years, and came to see Jesus alone. She was probably lonely and physically weak from losing blood over many years. Her healing is unique because she inspired herself to go where Jesus was, to touch the edge of His clothes and to be healed.

There will be times in our lives when we are weak or alone and need to speak faith to ourselves. We may need to go to church alone, go to the doctor alone, pray alone, or troubleshoot problems alone. 

During those times, when we feel that no one is around to support us, we need to tell ourselves, as she did, that touching Jesus is all we need. When the woman in this gospel story touched the hem of His garment, she unleashed His power. Jesus instantly felt power leave His body, and turned around, asking who touched Him. 

The woman didn’t stand by, dwelling in self pity, and waiting for Jesus to approach her. She initiated her healing by persevering to push through the crowd, and put her faith into action by touching Him first. Immediately the flow of blood dried up and she knew that she was healed of her twelve year affliction. Jesus was impressed with her faith, which started by speaking to herself. 

Sometimes we need to speak words of faith to ourselves, and then put our words into action. This woman’s example teaches us that even when we feel weak or alone, or suffer for years, we can still find perseverance deep within, to reach out to Jesus and believe for our miracle. Our faith unleashes God’s power, and if we reach as far as we can, Jesus meets us the rest of the way, saying, “Your faith has healed you, Go in peace.”

Lord, give us the self determination to persevere and believe for our miracle, even when we are alone. Give us the courage and the faith to reach out and touch you, in faith and trust. Amen

“For we are a fragrance of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing”

2 Cor 2:15 (KJV)

I once dreamed someone gave me a very expensive bottle of perfume and I was in awe at the value of the gift. Although I didn’t smell it in my dream, I just knew how costly and extravagant this gift was, and woke up with a sense of awe. After thinking about the dream I realized God has given each believer a highly valuable gift of His fragrance to wear in the world. I don’t wear perfume anymore, but I do love a certain men’s cologne, and whenever I smell it on someone, I always linger in place, after they walk away, just enjoying the scent. God also has a special fragrance that He loves most. It was purchased for us at a very extravagant price, and whenever He smells it, He loves to linger in the scent. It’s the scent of Jesus, His son, living in us who believe. God can smell the aroma of Christ in His believers, everywhere on the earth. The scent of Christ lingers after we walk away, leaving His impression on others. The crucifixion was a gruesome scene, yet the criminal hanging next to Jesus was able to smell His fragrance of mercy, and turned to Him, asking for forgiveness. The sweet scent of Christ touched his heart as he was dying and led him to heaven. Since the thief on the cross, there have been many death bed conversions, because of someone who carried the scent of Christ to them. We are wearing the costliest perfume of all, it was purchased with precious blood, and as we go about our life, the sacred scent of Jesus is trailing behind us. When we pray in Jesus’ name, God lingers in our midst, as He smells the fragrance of His beloved Son.

Lord, we pray that others may come to know you through the valuable gift of your fragrance in all of us who believe. Amen

“Likewise, no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the skins are ruined. Rather, new wine is poured into fresh wineskins.”

Mark 2:21-22 (NAB)

Since antiquity, wine was stored in the carefully prepared skins of animals. A wineskin is made of leather, the most common of which is goatskin. Goatskin was better suited for craftsmen to handle because of its flexibility. It was also harder wearing, increasing the life of the wineskin.
Jesus said in this parable not to put new wine into old wineskins, but I never really understood the reason until now. New wine is still fermenting in the wineskin, which would require the leather to stretch as it ferments. Only a new wineskin could be stretchable enough to handle new wine. It was not wise to use an old used wineskin after it was empty, because it had already been stretched to the max, and wasn’t capable of anymore stretching. If new wine was poured into that old wineskin it would burst or tear under the pressure of fermentation. That is the mystery I never understood before.

Jesus has new wine He wants to pour into us, and we are to be His new flexible wineskins, His containers for what He is fermenting in us. We were meant to stretch, not tear under pressure. To remain stretchable and new, we need to abide in Christ. In other words, He is saying “I am going to do a new thing in your life that will require some stretching, so abide in Me.” The Bible tells us “Therefore, if any one is in Christ, he is a new creation, the old has passed away, behold, the new has come.”

 (2 Corinthians 5:17) This verse seems to go hand in hand with the parable about new wineskins. To abide in Christ is to stay new in Christ, so that we won’t be like old, stretched out wineskins that easily burst. We want to be flexible enough for the new things or the special new wine He wants to pour into us. We may not always understand the new thing He is doing, or why we are going through some strange trials, but He is fermenting His special new wine within us. If we remain flexible for Jesus, trusting that He is doing all things for our good, He helps us to stretch with the plan. The Lamb of God is the source of our new wine, who is worthy of all honor, glory, and praise. He is also worthy to work with stretchable containers.
Lord Jesus, thank you for making us the new wineskin containers that you desire, and as your new wine is fermenting within us, give us the grace to remain strong, yet flexible for your glory. Amen

“I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.”

John 15:15 (NIV)

There is a type of isolation that is caused by circumstances beyond our control. A single life shattering event can change our life and separate us from everything we once knew as normal. It’s times like these that we need the personal friendship of Jesus more than ever. This isolation could be the result of the loss of a loved one, a severed relationship, a diagnosis of a serious illness or becoming a caregiver for a disabled loved one. It’s a challenging and painful time in our faith journey and it’s known as the wilderness. In the wilderness, we are separated for a reason and are being pruned for a purpose that we don’t yet understand.

 I entered a wilderness in 2018, when my late husband first received his terminal diagnosis of ALS, followed by his death in 2019. God helped me to meet the practical needs of being his primary caregiver, but I left my spiritual life far behind during that trying period. The following year Covid restrictions further separated me from all that was familiar. Besides being spiritually depleted, I was also isolated from all family and friends. God never left me while I was in that wilderness, He was there all along, but I left Him, by neglecting my prayer life. 

The Holy Spirit patiently pursued me, inviting me back into His friendship. It’s hard to explain, but there is something sacred about the wilderness. As I started praying and reading scripture, I found a deeper intimacy with Jesus. Scripture inspired me to write what I learned each morning and I discovered a new passion for writing. I began to share these meditations with two friends everyday and they forwarded them to their friends and the number of people receiving these meditations grew to over four dozen today.

I found a hidden treasure in writing, and haven’t stopped since, but the greatest treasure is the friendship Jesus offered me during the hardest time of my life. 

God desires our friendship as He leads us through this temporary wilderness, and there are many hidden treasures to discover along the way. Despite how it feels in the moment, there is an inner strength that comes from His friendship. He eventually leads us out of the wilderness and into our promised land, because the best is always yet to come. 

Lord, keep us in close friendship with you during our journey through the wilderness, and we trust that many hidden treasures will be revealed along the way. Grant to each reader, your peace which surpasses all understanding. Amen