Month: August 2023

“How do you know me?” Nathanael asked. Jesus answered, “I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Philip called you.”

Then Nathanael declared, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the king of Israel.”

John 1:48-49 (NIV)

John’s gospel doesn’t explain what happened in Nathanael’s life or the story behind him sitting under the fig tree, but when Jesus said those words to him, his heart was instantly touched and he believed. Maybe John didn’t give any details because he hoped readers like us, would relate it to our own situation. 

We’ve all had fig tree moments like Nathanael. Jesus knows our story and saw everything we have struggled with. He saw us during the hardest times, when that something happened, which momentarily felt like our hopes and dreams were shattered. 

There are fig tree moments in everyone’s life, and that’s why we can relate to whatever Nathanael’s were. Jesus only said seven words to him, “I saw you under the fig tree.” Those powerful words said it all for Nathanael. Sometimes we just need to know God is there, that He knows us and sees us. 

For Nathanael, it was a confirmation that Jesus was God and could see and know all about what was crushing his spirit at the time. Whether his fig tree moment was a feeling of overwhelming grief, unworthiness, isolation, doubt or some desperate fear, it was a turning point for him, just knowing that the Son of God saw him. 

Those seven words of Jesus, “I saw you under the fig tree,” renewed his faith and restored his hope. Until our problems are solved, and our prayers are answered, we keep hoping in Jesus, and He gives us the comfort of knowing that we are seen and known by God. He sees and knows us because He individually loves us.

Our difficult times are not the end of our story, and we don’t remain for a lifetime under our fig trees. In His love for us, Jesus travels this journey with us and has always shared every fig tree moment with us. He is taking us forward to better days. 

We can look back at some crushing time in our lives and know that God still had good plans for us, and brought us through to so much. Therefore, since He did it before, we can trust Him to do it again. 

Fig tree moments also remind me of a verse that Paul told the Corinthian church, “We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed,”

(2 Corinthians 4:8-9)

Paul described a catalog of his own suffering, for readers to identify with. Even in all these things, the negative never prevails; there is always some experience of rescue, of the presence of Christ and His eternal salvation. He rescues our hope, our faith and our spiritual self esteem, before rescuing us from actual the problem. We can say, like Paul, when we feel weak, we are actually strong. (2 Corinthians 12:10)

It is the presence of Christ who keeps us from becoming perplexed, or driven to despair. We are never destroyed because there is power in Jesus’ name, and He never forsakes us. 

The psalmist wrote, “God is near to the broken-hearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.”

(Psalm 34:18) When we suffer, Jesus is nearer to us than ever, especially since He was acquainted with sorrow and grief more than anyone. That’s why He sees us under our fig trees.

Jesus speaks these same words to each of our hearts today, “I saw you under the fig tree,” which has particular meaning to our personal lives. When we close our eyes and tell Him that we know He is near, He will make His presence real in some way, and send comfort and assurance in the midst of our affliction. 

Lord, comfort and restore our hearts today, as you have seen and known each of us during our recent fig tree moments. Renew our hope and faith, and send your blessed Presence to each reader, filling us with your love, joy and peace. Amen

“Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed, and broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.” And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you; for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. I tell you I shall not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.”

Matthew 26:26-29 (RSV)

Since the first Passover, the Israelites were instructed to memorialize their exodus from slavery by celebrating what they refer to as the Feast of unleavened bread, or the Passover. 

Throughout generations, at every Passover feast, known as a Seder, unleavened bread, or Matzo is eaten. Since the 11th century, an additional Passover tradition was added. An extra place setting is made at the table for the prophet Elijah, who is believed to attend every Seder in spirit, until the Messiah comes. 

Even the front door is left open as a sign of Elijah’s entrance. I’m pretty sure Elijah would have handed over his place setting to Jesus, long ago. Nevertheless, it adds an intriguing sense of the mystical to a major Jewish holiday full of traditions. 

Another Seder tradition is to take some matzo, break off a piece of it, wrap it in a napkin, and then hide it somewhere in the house. The child who finds it later receives a prize of candy or money.

In the final Passover of His life, Jesus instituted the memorial of His sacrifice for us, which is communion. He is our unleavened bread from heaven and we celebrate our personal Passover feast every time we receive Him in communion. We even take it a step further and invite Him to be our guest at every other table of our lives. 

We set a place for Him at the table of our heart, in our home, and whenever we gather with our family. There is a place set for Jesus at the table of all our relationships, our health matters, our job, our finances, as well as the table of our pain, grief and sorrow. 

He sits next to us at the table, when we are hurting or when we have stressful decisions to make, as well as when we receive a difficult phone call. His presence is at every table of our life, as we leave the door of our hearts open for His entry. 

He is seated next to us when we are going through something so intense that the best we can do is to just say His name, because we are too sick, too weak or too discouraged to pray. Once Jesus is invited to our table, He is with us in every area of our lives, and He never leaves us. 

In the deep mysteries of God’s wisdom, Jesus is the fulfillment of every Passover tradition. He is the unblemished, eternal Passover lamb, sacrificed for us. He is the truth behind the matzo hidden in a napkin, because He was once wrapped in linen, and hidden in a tomb, but rose again. Those who find Him really do receive a prize. It’s the prize of everlasting life, because we are all God’s children, by faith in Him. 

He is the living bread and the invisible guest from heaven sitting at our table with us. What was once given as a feast to celebrate freedom from bondage, for us has become communion, the gift of His Presence, “God with us.” 

A day is coming when we will be invited to His heavenly Passover Feast, where He sets all the places at His table, and He will set a place setting for each of us. 

Jesus, we acknowledge you as the Passover Lamb of God, by setting a place for you at every table of our lives. Remind us of the wondrous mysteries of the Passover Feast and the ransom that you so generously purchased for us.  Amen

“And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, since he also is a son of Abraham. For the Son of man came to seek and to save the lost.”

Luke 19:9-10 (RSV)

Luke, who was a physician, wrote in his gospel that Jesus was healing and delivering everyone, from all kinds of diseases and disorders. 

Being fully divine, Jesus could look at any person and see what their pathology was, in their body, mind or soul, and He knew exactly what was needed to make someone whole. 

Scripture tells us that God has the hairs of our head numbered, so I believe He probably knows the status of every cell within our bodies, as well. 

Jesus is still the great physician today, who sees within us, and has the power to heal each one of us. He may do it miraculously and immediately, or He may work it out over time. Sometimes He does it through medical science, giving a doctor the wisdom to see what is needed. 

God’s knowledge is far above man’s, and no medical breakthrough could be known without God making it knowable to medical professionals. I’m thankful that He guides every research scientist, enables every medical discovery, and gives the wisdom to physicians to make a correct diagnosis, and suggest the right treatment. 

Last week I wrote about the patience Jesus has for us who say, “Help me in my unbelief.” There is a special word, used throughout the New Testament, with a meaning that can expand our understanding, and increase our faith. That word is “Soteria.”

Soteria is the Greek word used about 120 times in the New Testament. It’s the word for salvation, which in Greek, includes complete wholeness,  healing, and deliverance. When Jesus used the term to “save” saying, “For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save what was lost,” the word save is translated as soteria, meaning a salvation that is all inclusive, of healing and deliverance of mind and body.

Here is how commentaries describe  this Greek word:

”……Soteria includes restoration to a state of safety, soundness, health and well being, as well as preservation from danger of destruction.” 

Salvation is a broader term in the Greek translation, than how we understand it in English. It not only refers to the saving of the soul, but the healing and deliverance of body, mind and spirit. It’s a word that encompasses all aspects of being made whole. 

Jesus said to the people who He physically healed, “Go in peace, your faith has saved you.” He spoke as if salvation and healing went together. 

Soteria, when translated into Hebrew, is the word “Yeshua”, and Yeshua, when translated into English, is the name of Jesus. 

Therefore, Soteria is literally the meaning of Jesus’ name. Maybe that’s why He told us, 

“If you ask anything in my name, I will do it.” (John 14:14)

The name of Jesus was given by God, to all of us, “for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12) 

Even in this verse of scripture, the Greek word “Soteria” was used. 

Jesus encouraged our persistence when we knock, seek and ask, like the woman who constantly bothered a judge for the justice she needed. Jesus said about her, “And will not God grant justice to His chosen ones who cry to him day and night?”

(Luke 18:7)

He called all of us who believe in Him, His chosen ones. 

Jesus encouraged us through this parable, to never give up in asking for justice, wholeness, healing and deliverance. He told us to ask with persistence, crying out day and night, and God will answer.  

I believe we should also conclude any prayer or petition, with “Thy will be done,” since Jesus taught us to do so in the Lord’s prayer. 

Thank God for medical professionals who can cure us and save our lives. Whether we go to church or to the medical clinic, what matters most is that our faith is in Jesus, knowing He  is our Soteria, the source for ultimate wholeness. 

I pray each reader finds a new perspective of faith to believe for their own miracle of wholeness, healing and deliverance. May it change our perspective and let us arise with a new confidence of faith.

Lord, we cry out to you and ask you to touch every aspect of our lives, which is truly possible through the holy name of Jesus. Let your will be done and complete in us, the wholeness of soteria healing and deliverance of our body, mind, soul and spirit. Amen.

“So that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which is perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.”

1 Peter 1:7 (NASV)

There is a most curious verse in Luke 12:49 where Jesus said, “I have come to bring fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled!” 

Jesus brings fire to the earth in several different ways, but the point that stayed with me is how He brings His purifying fire into our individual lives. It’s a good fire that burns and refines our faith, transforming it to purest gold. 

His purifying fire is not about judgement, but the fire of His transforming love for us. He wants to purify our heart and mind by transforming any disordered ways of thinking, or lies we are believing, which prevent us from receiving all that He has for us. 

Peter tells us that our faith is being tested by fire, to purify us as gold is purified in a furnace. If we looked at gold in its raw form, we would see an ugly lump of rock, with only a hint of a golden hue. It requires the intense heat of fire to rid it of the impurities and bring out the pure radiance of the gold. God sees us in our rawest form, but He won’t leave us as a raw lump of unrefined gold. He knows what we can become and how valuable we are to Him, so He sends the fire of His love to purify us. 

Jesus sees value in us, as someone well worth dying for, and now He desires to refine us, if we permit His fire to turn us into pure gold. The refining process may be uncomfortable, but it results in joy on the day we meet Him face to face. 

Every trial life brings, is a part of the intense heat of His refining process, which brings out the eternal gold hidden within us. Everything Jesus allows in our lives is for our eternal good. 

In short, God simply looked at each of us in the beginning, saying  “I see something highly valuable and precious here, which I will refine and perfect for all eternity.” 

Lord, we yield to the fire of your love and refine our faith to become as pure gold. Thank you for seeing such potential in us, and we put our trust in you, which will result in praise, glory and honor at the revelation of your second coming. 

Amen

“He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” Peter was distressed that he had said to him a third time, “Do you love me?” and he said to him, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep.”

John 21:17 (NAB)

Jesus asked Peter three times in a row if heloved Him. Since He already knew, why did He ask three times ? Maybe Peter needed to hear himself answer three times, while struggling with feelings of unworthiness, after he denied knowing Jesus.

Jesus never mentions Peter’s previous denial of Him, because Peter already repented, and God doesn’t dwell on our past mistakes. He is only interested in the present, asking us where we are now and today. Sometimes we obsess over our own history more than God does. Jesus was bringing Peter out of his past, and into the present because He knew Peter had the potential to be a great leader who would feed His sheep.

When the disciples were telling Jesus what people were saying about Him, He asked “Who do you say that I am?”, leading them to move their attention back to their own hearts, and to form a personal conviction of faith in Him. 

(Matthew 16:15)

When He encountered the paralyzed man at the Bethesda pool, Jesus asked him a simple question, “Do you want to be healed ?” Instead of giving a yes or no answer, the man expressed his resentment that for 38 years, no one ever helped him into the healing pool. Jesus redirects the question to the present, asking “Do you want to be healed ?” He already knows our history, our losses and disappointments. He has something to offer us here and now, and wants us to move forward.  (John 5:7-9)

In reflecting on those three questions Jesus asks, we answer by saying, “Yes Lord, I love you, I believe you are the Son of God, and yes, I want to be healed.”

If we listen in silence, we will hear another more challenging question that move us out of a stagnant state, and help us to progress forward. 

God is writing a beautiful story, and we are all a part of it. His questions are lovingly tailored to each of our life situations, to transform us and bring us to our fullest potential.

He might be asking me to forgive by doing some act of kindness for someone who has treated me badly in the past. There is no doubt that His questions are challenging ones, but His goal for us is to experience the fullness of His love and grace, and then show it to others who need it. 

Answering His questions will lead us to forgive, to be forgiven, to receive inner healing, and to discover a new calling, by the further renewal of our minds in Christ. 

It’s His way of moving us on to the next level, because we were not meant to remain stagnant. Jesus knows our potential and He sees our future, and we can become all that He is calling us to be, through Him.

Lord, purify our hearts as we listen for and answer any question today. Help us to remain in the present, so that you can move us forward into the wonderful plans that you have for us. Amen

“The woman said to him, “I know that Messiah is coming (he who is called Christ); when he comes, he will show us all things.” Jesus said to her, “I who speak to you am He.”

John 4:25-26. (RSV)

When Jesus’ disciples found Him at the well, they were shocked that He would be speaking with a woman alone, especially a Samaritan woman. Speaking with any woman by herself was a rule breaking act for His day. 

Jesus respected religious, social and cultural customs of His day, as long as love for His Father was at the core of that custom, but He also knew that to save a soul, it is sometimes  necessary to break those traditions and social customs. 

We have our own cultural and social customs today. Saying please, thank you, hello, goodbye and tipping are all forms of cultural etiquette. We routinely greet someone saying, “How are you?” yet we’re not really expecting an honest answer, since it’s not customary to stay around and find out. It’s just a phrase we say in passing. 

I can imagine Jesus in our society today, asking someone, “How are you?”, then pausing and looking intently at a person, waiting to hear how they really are. Who could walk away from that loving glance and powerful presence? 

Jesus touched and talked to people wherever He went, and even to those who were forbidden by society, to be touched or talked to. He allowed a women known as the town prostitute, to anoint Him with oil, and kiss His feet. He touched lepers, who were highly contagious, and separated from society as outcasts. 

Every person Jesus talked to or touched was in a season of their life that was, in some way, beyond hope or help. Besides lepers living with a death sentence, there were beggars, prostitutes, paralytics, demoniacs, blind, terminally ill and more. 

Then there was the woman who He purposely waited to meet at the well. She had a lifetime of relationship problems, and was living with her fifth life partner. When she met Jesus, she was already at a stage in her life of being emotionally and spiritually crippled. Jesus spoke directly to her, one on one, which was against the social norms of His society. She was impacted by His presence, and His words changed her life. She was never the same again, and couldn’t stop sharing her joy wherever she went. 

No one is too sick, too sinful, too contagious or too damaged to be saved by Him. When Jesus touched the paralytics, they didn’t just walk, they leaped for joy. We have all had some affliction or spiritually crippling period in our life, but if we have an encounter with Jesus, we will never be the same. He intends for us to leap again one day. 

During the most difficult stage of our lives, if we keep Jesus in the conversation, He is preparing us for the leaping stage that is to come. 

Jesus said a simple phrase to the woman at the well that changed her life. It wasn’t like any customary greeting that we say every day. He looked intently at her and said, “I am He”. 

He still says that to each of us and it speaks to the deep place within us where His healing is needed. Jesus doesn’t need to ask how we are, because He knows how we are. 

He wants us to know who He is, and whatever the need is, He is the One, who has the answer. 

“I am He”, means “I am the one who will cross any boundary and break every cultural rule just to reach you.”Jesus broke some rules, but He healed all the broken hearts. He frustrated the traditionalists but gave hope to the hopeless, and proved that no one is unreachable. 

He still touches, talks to us and heals us today, reminding us “ I am He”, and whatever we are going through, He gives us His living water that satisfies our thirst forever. 

Lord, you are the One, our Messiah and deliverer. You know us more than anyone, and we know that through your words and your touch is complete healing, wholeness and joy. Amen

“Only think of me when all is well with you, and please do me the great favor of mentioning me to Pharaoh, to get me out of this place.

The truth is that I was kidnapped from the land of the Hebrews, and I have not done anything here that they should have put me into a dungeon.”

Genesis 40:14-15 (NAB)

Joseph is speaking in this scripture to one of his fellow prisoners, a cupbearer for the King of Egypt, the Pharaoh. The cupbearer was punished and shared the same dungeon as Joseph, who was imprisoned after a series of misfortunes, false accusations and injustices. Joseph was abandoned by his own brothers, kidnapped, sold as a slave, and finally ended up in prison for a crime he never even committed. 

Joseph made friends with, and earned the respect and trust of many fellow prisoners and the jailers, while he was there. He befriended the cupbearer who previously worked close beside Pharaoh. When the time came for that cupbearer to be released from prison, Joseph pleaded with him to speak to Pharaoh on his behalf. The cupbearer promised to intercede for Joseph, but he actually forgot all about him. 

For days, weeks and months, Joseph kept hoping and praying that the cupbearer was speaking to the king on his behalf, but nothing changed and Joseph remained imprisoned for a long time, while no word ever came about his release. 

Two long years later, the cupbearer finally remembered Joseph and mentioned him to Pharaoh and Joseph finally received his long awaited breakthrough. 

God has an appointed time for everything. It may feel like He has forgotten us at times. People may forget us, but God never forgets us. 

If Joseph was meant to be freed sooner, God would have quickened the cupbearer’s memory, but He didn’t, because it wasn’t his time yet. When Joseph was finally set free, he was more than just a man freed from prison, he was God’s man of the hour, promoted to second in command over Egypt, during a famine.

Joseph had great wisdom and devised a plan for storing grain, long before a famine set in. He was promoted to a royal official second in command, over Pharaoh’s household and nation. His grain storage plan saved Egypt as well as the surrounding nations during that famine. Joseph would have been content just to see the ocean, sun and sky again, he never thought about being promoted, but God did. All those years he spent in a dungeon, were years of waiting, not lost years. 

The best thing about Joseph’s character is that he harbored no resentment toward others, even though all his troubles were instigated by his envious, abusive brothers, and unscrupulous people along the way, who falsely accused him. Joseph was a beautiful human being, and is considered a type and foreshadow of Christ in all that he went through. He was an example of someone who loved God and forgave others, even though he suffered false accusations and mistreatment by his own.

When God reunited Joseph with his father and brothers, there was only love and forgiveness between all of them. Although our lives can take a confusing path, full of heartbreak and disappointments, like Joseph’s, faith in God will eventually reap rewards later. Our years may be spent in waiting for something, but Joseph’s life proves that those years are never wasted.

All things work together for the greatest good, for those who love the Lord with all their heart, soul, mind and strength. God’s timing is always perfect, and if we learn one thing from Joseph, it’s that we don’t need an itinerary to our destination, as long as we know God is our driver. 

God loves us and has good plans for us. He turns our misfortune into blessings, and whatever appears to be an injustice, He can and will turn around one day, according to His purpose, promoting and lifting up those who trust in Him. 

Lord, we pray for your perfect will to be done in our lives, and give us the grace and wisdom to wait patiently in spite of disappointments. We trust that you will pour your blessings upon us all, as you did for Joseph. We ask this in Jesus’ name. Amen

“What Jesus did here in Cana of Galilee was the first of the signs through which he revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.”

John 2:11 (NIV)

The bridal party was the platform used to first introduce Jesus, the Messiah, to the world. He performed the first miracle of His ministry at that wedding in Cana, and it all began with an embarrassing moment of running out of wine at a wedding party. Jesus told the waiters to fill all the large vessels with water and then He changed the water into wine.  

Commentaries on this section of scripture say that the total amount in all those vessels would be about twenty to thirty gallons of wine. Whether all the water in those vessels was changed instantly to wine, or only changed as it was drawn into the pitchers, is not known for certain. What we do know, is that Jesus was revealed for the first time as the Messiah through this wedding miracle. His disciples and many others knew, beyond a doubt, that  He was the Lord, as He manifested His glory upon those vessels of water, and changed them into the finest quality wine. 

Personally, I would have liked to know the details of how He did it. I wonder if He held His hand over the water in the vessels as Moses held his staff over the sea when it parted. Or did He speak to the water inside those vessels and command it to become wine, the way He spoke to the stormy sea and made it calm. Maybe he just directed the waiters to draw the water out, and it became wine, in the same way He told Peter to recast his net into the sea, and it came up filled with fish. 

God does amazing things in and with water. Water is an ordinary every day element, but when He manifests His glory over it, extraordinary things happen. The water He changed into wine at that wedding, became an extraordinarily high quality wine. It was so high a quality that the head waiter questioned why it wasn’t served first. 

We are all like that ordinary water, and He changes each of us in the same way. We are ordinary until His glory touches our lives, and we believe in Him in a deeper way than ever before. We realize we are His people, not common water, but the highest quality wine, because when Jesus reveals His glory to us, we cannot remain ordinary. He turns us into the best version of ourselves. 

Every apostle that Jesus chose was an example of the ordinary becoming extraordinary. Peter was very ordinary. He had an impulsive personality, a bad temper, and was influenced by public opinion. He had all the usual human weaknesses and when pressured by people who were questioning his relationship with Jesus, he denied ever knowing Him. In spite of Peter’s weaknesses, he was transformed into a bold and charismatic preacher of the gospel, and in the end, he bravely lost his life in his extraordinary path to martyrdom. There were many other disciples who followed suit with a similar transformation. 

Jesus manifests His glory to us as He did with those vessels of water. If He can transform 30 gallons of water into wine, He can do amazing things in our lives as well. 

Whenever I used to read scripture, I would jot down notes in a journal, of what I thought God was saying to me. I would keep these notes and 

re-read them, but never in my whole life had I dreamed of sharing what I wrote. I discovered an entirely new passion for writing, and it was a hidden treasure, discovered in the wilderness of my loss, after my husband passed away in 2019. Today, about 32 people are receiving the daily meditations that I write.

I just received an email from Upper room magazine, that they have selected another meditation of mine to publish next year. One will be published in March/April’s issue and the other in July/August’s issue. It’s an international Christian magazine that publishes in 30 languages. Since this all began from God, I have no doubt He is turning water into wine. My next goal is to publish a book of meditations, called “Kissed by the Spirit; 50 days of comfort after loss.“ I also have an inspiration for a future children’s book. God willing, even more water will be turned to wine. 

Jesus hasn’t stopped since the wedding at Cana. He is changing water into wine in each of our lives. Even in the most difficult times, He is preparing us, as He prepared me for something extraordinary to come. When we seek His glory, He turns the ordinary into extraordinary. 

God has blessings in store for us that are far beyond anything we can imagine, as His word says, “Now to him who is able to accomplish far more than all we ask or imagine, by the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.”(Ephesians 3:20-22)

Lord,  manifest your glory in our lives, doing beyond what we ask or imagine, and turn our ordinary into extraordinary. Make us the people you meant us to be, so that many others will know that you are the Lord. Amen

“Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.”

Hebrews 11:1 (RSV)

There are three words that I say way too often, and I know they are not pleasing to God. No, they’re not swear words, although I am guilty of that, and neither are they words of hatred. It’s the phrase, “I give up.” When I am very overwhelmed and frustrated, it’s the first phrase that flies out of my mouth. It’s worse than swearing because it is the complete expression of faithlessness. It’s like saying “ I don’t think God can help me,” and to express that sentiment is like a slap in His face.

I am trying to catch myself before I say those three words, because God  rewards our faith, not our giving up. 

The phrase “I give up” doesn’t even exist in the vocabulary of the language of faith. 

It’s easy to trust God and have faith in all the good times, while receiving blessings, but it can also be short lived and shallow trust. 

Through each hardship and trial in our lives, we are learning a new language, one that God prefers. It’s the language of faith which strengthens us through adversity.

The world shows gratitude to all kinds of heroes. We honor war heroes, civil rights heroes, first responder heroes, sports heroes, and much more, so why not honor the heroes of faith? Heroes of faith are believers who speak the language of faith fluently. They trust God, not based on what is seen but what is unseen. 

The 11th chapter of the book of Hebrews is dedicated to some of those faith heroes. This chapter of Hebrews, is known as the Faith chapter, and it ranks among the most eloquent to be found in all of scripture. Just in reading the 13 verses of this chapter, is to be deeply moved by what people have both endured and accomplished by faith. This chapter not only defines faith, but describes those who lived the language of faith, which they spoke fluently. 

The faith heroes in this chapter all believed for something without any visible proof, and their faith was pushed to the limit.

Noah, by faith, started a massive building project. Building an ark took time, sweat and perseverance when there wasn’t a cloud in the sky anywhere, and his entire neighborhood mocked him daily. 

By faith, after hearing God’s call, Abraham left his home town to travel to a “promised land” where his “numerous” descendants would live, while he never had a descendant until he was 100 years old. 

Moses’ mother, after hiding him for three months, finally placed her helpless baby in a waterproof basket. As he looked up at his mother, wanting to be picked up, she sent him down the Nile River, alone, by faith, to give him a chance to live. 

Joshua and his army marched around the walls that were a stronghold, surrounding Jericho, by faith, causing the earth to open up and the walls to collapse, like sand into the ground. 

Faith is a language, foreign to the carnal mind, because the carnal mind lives by its senses, where the mind believes only what the body’s senses can perceive. If they can’t see, hear, taste, touch or smell it, they don’t believe it. 

Faith has nothing to do with those senses. It’s an assurance of what is not seen. It speaks into being, what is unseen, because it originates from an unseen place, within our spirit. We are also an eternal trinity of body, soul and spirit. Our soul is our mind and personality, but our spirit is the inner part of our being that connects with God. 

God speaks every language in the world, but faith is the language that turns His head, raises His eyebrows and reaps a miraculous response. It’s the language that moves mountains, calms the storms and resurrects the dead. Faith originates within our spirits. 

In this chapter we are told, 

“Without faith it is impossible to please Him, for anyone who approaches God must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who seek him.” (Hebrews 11:6)

Faith has enabled those heroes of the faith to endure mockery, torture, imprisonment and death. Some were delivered and others refused deliverance, in order to obtain a better and eternal reward.  

All these heroes gained God’s approval through their faith, even though some never saw the promises fulfilled in their own lifetime. 

The endurance of their faith is what reaped their reward. They believed God for that something they didn’t see. In other words, they didn’t throw their hands up and say, “I give up.”

Let us practice the language of faith, that brings down strongholds, and 

keeps us heading toward the promised land, even if it takes 100 years. It’s also the language that keeps our loved ones in God’s care as they travel the river of life.

Lord, teach us the language and vocabulary of an enduring faith that is weatherproof from the storms of life, and reaps an eternal reward. Amen

“For He will give his angels charge of you to guard you in all your ways.”

Psalm 91:11 (NIV)

We all begin life with a personal guardian angel who is appointed to guard us in all our ways, from womb to tomb. (Matthew 18:10) 

This guardian is one of the benefits of living in the shelter of the Most High God. We are so loved that He appointed a specific angel to watch over both body and soul all the days of our life. 

Scripture indicates that there are myriads of angels, even beyond these guardians, who dwell in an unseen realm, all around us. Although it’s not likely that we would see an angel in our lifetime, there are some scriptural accounts in which a few people did see angels.

Sometimes they appeared to these biblical characters to reveal future events, as with Isaiah, Daniel and the apostle John who wrote Revelation.

Most other times they appear to people to give strength and courage during a challenging time. 

Daniel’s first time seeing an angel was when he was cast into the lions’ den. Gideon was approached by an angel, girded with a sword, who came to give him courage to lead his army to victory. Mary was visited by an angel when she conceived Jesus, giving her courage by confirming that the baby in her womb is the Son of God. Joseph was visited by an angel in a dream, giving him courage to proceed with marrying Mary, when he was doubtful, frightened and confused. 

Each one of these people were at a crossroads in their lives, and needed courage for what was ahead of them. Today’s verse says angels are with us in “all our ways.” Sometimes “our ways” refers to a need beyond a physical protection. God, in His infinite wisdom, might see a greater need to prepare a soul for eternity, than to protect and preserve their physical life. Courage is a core virtue that every soul needs to stay faithful to God’s will for eternal life. 

There are rare instances beyond scripture, in which people have seen angels. One such instance was shared by an FBI agent, who was sent to the scene of the tragic crash of Flight 93, on 911. She was the first to arrive at the crash site in Shanksville, PA., where 44 people died,  including the four Al-Qaeda terrorists who caused the crash. Agent Lillie Leonardi, arrived at the crash site, after the plane and all who were in it, were incinerated upon impact in the explosion. Here is what Lillie saw. 

She arrived to see only white smoke billowing in the air, until the white misty smoke began to take shape. It moved and swirled in patterns of white light. As the mist took shape, she saw what appeared to be angels, hundreds of them, from every culture and nationality, who were dressed in ancient Centurion garb. They were 8 to 10 feet tall with one larger angel who appeared to lead the group, holding a sword. 

For a brief moment, Lillie was looking at a field full of angels emerging from the realm of that smokey mist. She was stunned, but at first she told no one what she saw, for fear of being judged as crazy. 

After two other FBI agents arrived at the scene, they all walked together around the site. Strangely, they found a Bible lying on the ground, which was barely singed and in good condition. Just as their attention was drawn to that Bible, a wind came blowing out of nowhere and flipped the pages open to Psalm 23, “The Lord is my shepherd…” 

Lillie’s superior officer vouched for her soundness of mind in relating what she saw that day. She was not delusional, nor was she exceptionally religious. She shared all these details later to multiple news outlets including CBS news in Pittsburgh, as well as writing a book. 

There is an inside story behind flight 93, that forty heroic passengers had the courage to stop four Al-Qaeda terrorists from making that Boeing 757 fly into a nearby power plant, the White House or the Capitol building that day. Together, the passengers fought to take control away from the terrorists, and the plane crashed into an empty field near rural Shanksville, Pa., at 10:03 a.m. 

We learned the details that took place before the crash, because several passengers and crew members called their loved ones, minutes before. The passengers displayed amazing courage, even while knowing their fate. 

The appearance of that fully intact Bible at the crash site was a sign that there were people of faith on board that plane, and their heroic actions proved it. 

Passengers Tod Beamer and Thomas Burnett Jr. seemed to be the two who led the unified fight, and might also have inspired the faith of the passengers in their last minutes of life. Angels, whether seen or not, were on that plane giving courage and inspiring faith, to every soul on board.

There were seconds, if not minutes of time for a person to surrender their soul to God, the same as the thief on the cross had done. Only eternity will tell how those forty souls found courage and grace that day. 

God left that Bible to be found intact, and allowed someone to see those hundreds of angels who were present, guarding that site of courageous souls. Extreme faith, courage and bravery was shown on that plane, probably as a result of angels, who guarded their souls in all their ways. 

What Lillie saw in that white smokey mist was a confirmation that something sacred happened there that day. 

Lord God, bless all the souls who were on Flight 93, and thank you for sending angels to care for us in all our ways, physically and spiritually. We thank and praise you for the mysterious yet treasured gift of angels who stay with us throughout our lives, all the way to the end.  Amen