Invisible

Do you feel invisible sometimes? Like no one is listening to you or caring about you. No one is returning your texts or calling you. It IS almost like you're invisible.

I feel that way sometimes too. That's usually when we should begin talking to God... in prayer. Like...

"What's wrong, Lord? Am I missing something? Is there something that you would like me to do for you? I feel so alone in this world. It's almost like I'm invisible."

"It is not good that man should be alone." - Genesis 2:18

Inevitably though, God always answers the prayers of His children. Someone eventually texts or says something, but often it can take a few days. What do we do in the meantime?

The answer is always found in the Bible. We just have to look for it. Check out these reminders for our lonely days.

"Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand." - Isaiah 41:10

Oh, that's a good one. Here's another.

"Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the Lord your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you.” - Deuteronomy 31:6

God knows exactly what it feels like to be alone. We've been turning our backs on Him for millenia. Still, He welcomes us when we  come to him...

"If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him." - John 14:23

Does that comfort you? Knowing that God will be with you if you want Him too? It does for me.

I stumbled acoss the following question on the Internet. It asks one of those hard questions that children can ask sometimes.

Why do I have to believe in God if I can't see Him?

My answer is this: Can you see your heart? Can you see your lungs? Can you see the brain inside your head, or the very air that we breathe. No. Yet without any one of those "invisible" things we would all be dead. Lifeless.

It is the same with God. We can't see Him, yet there are signs everywhere that He exists. The sun, moon, and stars; the whole of creation points to Him. And let's not forget that God Himself is literally living inside ALL of us who believe in Him - the promised Holy Spirit.

You don't have to believe in God. But my question to you would be, "Why not?" Look at all the benefits!

"He will wipe away every tear from your eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain any more, for the former things have passed away." - Revelation 21:3-4

Amen to that!

Invisible - Linkin Park

URWHATUEAT

Recently, a friend of mine shared this picture on Facebook. It's on a can of Campbell's soup. So, I quickly ran to our pantry closet, grabbed a can, and read the ingredients label... Oh, my. It was just as the picture showed. Try it for yourself.

Genetically engineered corn and soy beans? Hmm. 🤔

So, why did Campbell's put this "warning" on their soup cans? It couldn't have been to boost sales. The result of a law suit perhaps?

"Honey, look! Bioengineered food!! Let's eat some!"

Umm, no.

"Bioengineered" is the term the U.S. Department of Agriculture requires on a label under the National Bioengineered Food Disclosure Standard. Congress passed the law in July 2016, USDA announced the standard in December 2018, and mandatory compliance began on January 1, 2022." - Tallow.app

Here's an acronym that came up in my research about all this - GMO. That doesn't stand for The Greater Milwaukee Open. It's short for Genetically Modified Organisms.

Ya know . . . I don't think I want to eat those either. I wonder. What other foods contain GMO's? Here's the list:

Alfalfa, apple (Arctic varieties), canola, corn, cotton, eggplant (BARI Bt Begun varieties), papaya (ringspot virus-resistant varieties), pineapple (pink flesh varieties), potato, salmon (AquAdvantage), soybean, summer squash (virus-resistant varieties), sugar beet, and sugarcane (Bt insect-resistant varieties).

I'm not sure I want to be eating those either. 🤔 There is actually an answer on this subject in the Bible.

"So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.

²⁸God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”

²⁹Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. ³⁰And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds in the sky and all the creatures that move along the ground - everything that has the breath of life in it - I give every green plant for food.” And it was so." - Genesis 1:27-30

That was the beginning. God gave us everything we needed, "and it was good."

But then in chapter 3 of Genesis came the fall and sin entered the world. And with it came death and decay. And fruit and animals that were "not so good."

“Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat food from it all the days of your life. ¹⁸It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field." - Genesis 3:17-18

Ever since The Fall we have been trying to become like God - to make food more desirable to our taste buds. Remember The Tower of Babel?

"The Lord said, “If as one people speaking the same language they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them. ⁷Come, let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other.” - Genesis 11:6-7 

Satan wanted to be like God too. The Bible tells us that's not a worthy endeavor.

Eat what you want, "but as for me and my family, we will serve the Lord." (Joshua 24:15). And we won't be eating GMO's either.

What Is The Biblical View On Genetically Modified Food? - GotQuestions.Org

Hold On To Your Butts

I have a few words to say about the results of the recent election. "Ick" and "Poo" come to mind. Or pehaps the two words should be "Hold on!" Yet, my two words for today are "Look up!" Why? This election was just another sign that we are living in the last days.

Remember all of the signs that God brought against Pharaoh in Egypt?

"Then the Lord said to Moses, “See, I have made you like God to Pharaoh, and your brother Aaron will be your prophet. ²You are to say everything I command you, and your brother Aaron is to tell Pharaoh to let the Israelites go out of his country. ³But I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and though I multiply my signs and wonders in Egypt, ⁴he will not listen to you. Then I will lay my hand on Egypt and with mighty acts of judgment I will bring out my divisions, my people the Israelites. ⁵And the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord when I stretch out my hand against Egypt and bring the Israelites out of it.” - Exodus 7:1-5

I believe that what we are seeing in the United States, Israel, and the rest of the world, are all signs of our prophesied exit - The Rapture of The Church.

Would God really punish His own people, Israel? And the Gentiles that have drifted away? You betcha der hey. Have you read the Bible? This is from the prophet Amos:

“I sent plagues among you as I did to Egypt. I killed your young men with the sword, along with your captured horses. I filled your nostrils with the stench of your camps, yet you have not returned to me,” declares the LORD." - Amos 4:10

"Arameans from the east and Philistines from the west have devoured Israel with open mouth. Yet for all this, His anger is not turned away, His hand is still upraised." - Isaiah 9:12

What needs to happen so that God will relent from these warning signs and judgements? We must repent and return to Him! But will we do it? Nope. But there is some hope.

In all of the Bible stories of God's punishment against a disobedient and an obstinate people, God has always left a remnant and His chosen people have always been saved in the end.

My friends, we are nearing the end.

The Rapture of The Church will soon take place. And then? It going to get really REALLY ugly. The words of Jesus:

"Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. ⁸All these are the beginning of birth pains.

⁹“Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. ¹⁰At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, ¹¹and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. ¹²Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, ¹³but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved." - Matthew 24:7-13

Do you remember that computer guy in the first Jurassic Park movie? The one played by Samuel L. Jackson. That guy had some prophetic words for the time we are living in today.

"Hold On To Your Butts."

And then, he flipped the switch.

Hold On To Your Butts - Jurassic Park 

Take The Test

I used to be quite the note taker in church. I have years of sermon notes downstairs in my office. But lately I haven't been taking very many notes. Why not?

Right now we're in the last chapter of Romans. Is it the book itself that is not interesting? I don't know. I don't think so. So, what is it then?

As near as I can figure, it's a holdover from all of the news and political commercials. My wife and I frequently turn off the sound during then news and just wait for an interesting story. It can be a long wait.

I suppose it could also be me detaching from my church, but I don't think so. I love my church family and pastor. It's got to be something else.

It could be my hearing which is getting worse over the years. Maybe some hearing aids would help? I don't know. They couldn't hurt I guess.

Here's a thought. Like I said, we'll be finishing the Book of Romans this month. Before that we were in Acts. Maybe I'm just getting bored with Paul's writing style and lengthy sentences. Lol!

But I think is comes down to one thing. I miss Jesus. I miss His style. I miss how He is constantly thinking ahead of the curve and asking questions.

I'm reading in Luke right now. Here's an example of what I am talking about.

"Then he told this parable: “A man had a fig tree growing in his vineyard, and he went to look for fruit on it but did not find any. ⁷So he said to the man who took care of the vineyard, ‘For three years now I’ve been coming to look for fruit on this fig tree and haven’t found any. Cut it down! Why should it use up the soil?’

⁸“‘Sir,’ the man replied, ‘leave it alone for one more year, and I’ll dig around it and fertilize it. ⁹If it bears fruit next year, fine! If not, then cut it down.’” - Luke 13:6-9

We're the fig tree my friends. Are we bearing any fruit?

What good are all of the notes I took over the years if they just sit in my basement and gather dust? Shouldn't I use those notes for something besides taking up space?

True, I do use some of those notes for writing these stories. But maybe the problem is in me. Am I being distracted by other things besides what God wants me to be focused on? Perhaps I am. Time to "examine myself" to see what I am lacking. Which is actually what I am doing right now.

"Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you - unless, of course, you fail the test?" - 2 Corinthians 13:5

More Paul. Lol!

Have you examined YOUR self lately? If you did, did you pass? Is your fruit good?

Giving Thanks

I learned something in church today. How about you? I love learning new things. But before I tell you about what I learned, let me tell you about something that perhaps you've never thought of before. Open your Bibles to Mark, chapter 14. We'll start reading in with verse 17.

"When evening came, Jesus arrived with the Twelve. ¹⁸While they were reclining at the table eating, he said, “Truly I tell you, one of you will betray me - one who is eating with me.” - Mark 14:17-18

Jesus was there with all 12 of His disciples, including Judas, who would betray Him.

Verses 22-25 should sound very familiar. It's what many churches recite before taking communion.

"While they were eating, Jesus took bread, and when He had given thanks, He gave it to His disciples saying, "Take it; this is my body." - Mark 14:22

What I would like to remind you of is that Judas took communion with Jesus on the night he betrayed our Lord. Wow.

On to the new thing I learned in church yesterday. The word eucharist.

If you look this verse up in an interlinear Bible, you will find the Greek word for "giving thanks" is eucharistEsos. It is where we get the word eucharist from.

Now, if we go to Catholic.com (the Catholic Church's website), we find this:

"Holy Communion is the practice of receiving the Sacrament of the Eucharist."

Question: How can someone receive the eucharist if they are supposed to be "giving thanks?"

Our pastor grew up in the Catholic Church and he said that this "tradition" is a little concerning, this "receiving," when we should be giving. "Giving thanks."

The Catholic Church is not alone in their mis-definition of the word eucharist. The Lutheran church does this very same thing, and several others do too. This is from the Lutheran church.

"The body and blood of Christ are truly and substantially (vere et substantialiter) present, offered, and received with the bread and wine."

What they say we "receive" is the actual flesh and blood of Jesus. Transubstantiation. The bread and wine actually physically transform into Christ's boby and blood. I don't even want to talk about that. Jesus died "once for all."

"For the death he died he died to sin, once for all." - Romans 6:10

These churches, and others as well, believe that the communion taker actually receives something, when their members should be GIVING something. THANKS!

This is an error that needs correction. But they never will. May the Lord forgive.

What Is Communion? - Catholic.com

Unsustainable

Life can be frustrating at times. Even downright mean. So, how do we cope with the sudden unpredictable nastiness that enters our lives upon occasion?

This was a tough couple of weeks on my calendar. Two funerals, the anniversaries of two youth groups who took their own lives. All that plus a Facebook birthday reminder of another youth group related kid who was murdered. That's a lot. But that's just me. Everybody's going through something.

So, how do we handle these negative events in our lives? I guess that all depends on how severe the life events are, our support system, and our own mental and emotional and spiritual strength.

Maybe I'm just weird, but after the initial shock of a traumatic event, I'm usually pretty good at handling it. But there was a time . . .

Part of my testimony of how I came to faith in Christ involved the death of a 9-year-old girl in our community. That was a disturbing event for our entire state. But that took place before I became a follower of Jesus. I was angry at God for allowing that to happen. That's how my unsaved mind was working back then.

Now, thankfully, I look at things differently. And that difference is Jesus. The peace I feel in my mind and heart now is amazing.

It's easy to get frustrated, and even lost, watching all of the negative news headlines. Here's a suggestion. Turn off the TV. Who cares.

One might say they want to stay informed. Okay. I would reply with the words from a couple of prophets.

"All the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, and He does according to His will among the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay His hand or say to Him, “What have you done?” - Daniel 4:35

"Declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose." - Isaiah 46:10

Removing ourselves from the situation and focusing on the needs of others in the situation is another thing that helps. However, having the Holy Spirit to guide us in these things is essential. That brings us to the most important mental health survival tip: Have Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior.

The world we are currently living in is not sustainable. Do you have your reservations in for the next one? It's coming.

"Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. ²I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband." - Revelation 21:1-2

Sensus Plenior

Sensus plenior is a Latin phrase that means "fuller sense" or "fuller meaning". It is used in Biblical exegesis to describe the supposed deeper meaning intended by God but not by the human author. - Wikipedia

Sensus plenior is basically a hidden, deeper meaning. Perhaps an example might help us understand. Let's go to Matthew 1.

Matthew begins the chapter with the genealogy of Jesus. Then Joseph (the earthly father of Jesus) had a dream. In that dream, an angel of the Lord (quoting the prophet Isaiah), said this: “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”). - Matthew 1:23

The angel in Joseph's dream used Isaiah's prophecy to talk about Jesus. But Isaiah spoke of a virgin giving birth 700 years before Jesus was born, preceeding the prophecy with this: "Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign:" Isaiah's prophecy was from the Lord, about Himself."

Isaiah's prophecy had a deeper meaning than anyone would have expected. The hearer would have thought, "What? A virgin giving birth? That's crazy." But to Joseph, Isaiah's words were actually happening in his life, right then.

This sensus plenior stuff occurs a lot in the Bible. Here's another from the prophet Zechariah (6th century BC).

"Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion! Shout, Daughter Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey." - Zechariah 9:9

Now, check THIS out.

"As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage on the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, ²saying to them, “Go to the village ahead of you, and at once you will find a donkey tied there, with her colt by her. Untie them and bring them to me. ³If anyone says anything to you, say that the Lord needs them, and he will send them right away.”

⁴This took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet:

⁵“Say to Daughter Zion, ‘See, your king comes to you, gentle and riding on a donkey, and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’ ”

⁶The disciples went and did as Jesus had instructed them. ⁷They brought the donkey and the colt and placed their cloaks on them for Jesus to sit on." - Matthew 21:1-6

Jesus fulfilling prophecy 600 years after it was spoken. But in Zechariah's day, tge hearer would have thought, "What? A king coming on a donkey? Aren't kings usually carried on a litter?"

Matthew 24 is another example. Jesus and His disciples were talking about the stones in the city of Jerusalem. Jesus told them that one stone would not be left on another. That happened in 70 AD when the Romans destroyed the temple.

Then Jesus goes on to talk about "the abomination that causes desolation" in verse 15, referencing Daniel's prophecy. 

A Greek ruler by the name of Antiochus IV desecrated the temple in Jerusalem. Antiochus called himself “Epiphanies” (“illustrious one” or “god manifest”). He set up an altar to Zeus over the altar of burnt offering, and he sacrificed a pig on the altar. But he did this BEFORE Jesus was born. Who was Jesus referring to then with His Daniel reference?

The Antichrist.

This prophecy has not been fulfilled yet. And there's the perfect example of sensus plenior. A deeper meaning.

The Bible is an amazing thing to explore and study. The deeper one digs into it, the more amazing it becomes.

The Whole Counsel

I am reminded of our shortcomings as I read a verse from Hosea this week. There are some Christian churches that do not teach "the whole counsel of God." That is sad. The flock will never hear from Hosea. You will today. But let's first start in Acts.

"For I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole counsel of God." - Acts 20:27

What does that mean?

It means EVERYTHING - Genesis to Revelation. Everything God told us in His Word, the Bible. Including Hosea!

"All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness." - 2 Timothy 3:16

There are some churches that do not venture very far outside their conformable little bubble of the four Gospels - Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. That is a mistake. Just one OT verse, one NT verse, and a Gospel verse? There's so much more!

The four Gospels, the first chapter of Acts, and Revelation are the only places where we can find the words of Jesus, right? There ARE other times Jesus speaks, but that's a different story. For know, remember that God is manifested in three parts - God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.

Getting back to Hosea, here's a verse that will get you thinking and wondering. There are many choice bits to chew on in this verse. The WHOLE THING is CHOICE! Here's it is.

"After two days he will revive us; on the third day he will restore us, that we may live in his presence." - Hosea 6:2

Two days - that doesn't sound like much until you read this verse from 2nd Peter.

"But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day." - 2 Peter 3:8

So, TWO days are like 2,000 years? Hold that thought.

Back in Jesus' day, "teachers" began teaching at age 30, which Jesus did.

“Jesus himself was about thirty years old when He began his ministry.” - Luke 3:23

He taught for approximately three and a half years, according to Gotquestions.org. His earthly ministry ended in 33AD.

Now, taking 33AD, and going back to Hosea (with 2nd Peter in mind) we add 2,000 years to 33AD and we get 2033 AD.

Wow! That's pretty close to where we are in time right now! It get's even closer.

Subtract the seven year Tribulation period. What do you get then? Umm, 2026. Interesting. Again, a lot of these dates and numbers are approximate. Then you've got several kinds of calendars, etc. As Jesus said, "No one will know the day or the hour" of His coming.

Back to Hosea. "on the third day He will restore us." Jesus already did that when He sacrificed His life for ours and rose from the dead. On the third day. What other kind of "restoration" might there be in this timeline though? The rapture of The Church? Hmm. And then there's this:

"that we may live in His presence."

The Millenial Kingdom?

"Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! Over such the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years." - Revelation 20:6

We live in an exciting time! How blessed are we to be here and now, waiting for His soon return.

As Jesus Himself said, "There will be signs." - Luke 21:25

The signs are everywhere my friends. Look up!

Worship

Back in April I wrote a story named "Breaking The Bow." It was about the prophecy of Jeremiah against Elam (Iran). I am finding myself drawn back to Jeremiah 49 today for some reason. I wonder why.🤔

Most of my "sources" think that something big is going to happen in the Middle East before the Israeli elections, which happen on Tuesday. Will Iran strike Israel? Quite possibly.

Did you notice that U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth met with Benjamin Netanyahu in a lengthy, unannounced meeting in Israel this past week, at a military base? Something's cookin'. 🫨

"But what will you do in the end?" - Jeremiah 5:31

What will I do? What would YOU do? 🤔

Theoretically speaking, what would you do if Jesus returned for His church, tomorrow? I don't know about you, but I would want to make sure that everyone of my family and friends knew Jesus, today. But how can we KNOW for sure that they KNOW? We can't. What then?

Do you see what I'm doing here? I'm thinking like the world. "What would WE do" instead of "Watch what God will do."

We need to relax and read some scripture.

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; ⁶in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight." - Proverbs 3:5-6

"Because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved." - Romans 10:9

"Oh come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker!" - Psalm 95:6

The answer to this world, and all that is in it, the calming, reassuring answer, is found in one single word.

Worship.

Here I Am To Worship - Maranatha Music

School Bus!

My wife and I have a tradition in our house. We have to watch and wait for the school bus to go by each morning and every afternoon. And, when we see it, we shout out, "School bus!" It's what we do. Yes, we're weird.

Each school day we go about our usual business, but, when we hear that school bus comin' down the street, we stop what we're doing and watch that big yellow bus roll on through.

Summer months are a struggle for us. Lol!

Similarly, we Christians should be watching and waiting for the return of Jesus. Especially as we "see the day approaching." We will only get one shot at seeing Jesus coming in the clouds.

"Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him, and all tribes of the earth will wail on account of Him. Even so. Amen." - Revelation 1:7

Jesus told us that there will be signs of His soon return. It is the same with our school bus. The calendar, the clock on the wall, kids waiting on the street corner, the increasing sound of the bus. They're all signs. Then finally, the visual. "School bus!"

It is the same with our Lord's return.

“Watch out that no one deceives you. ⁵For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many. ⁶You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. ⁷Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. ⁸All these are the beginning of birth pains.

“⁹Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. ¹⁰At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, ¹¹and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. ¹²Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, ¹³but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved." - Matthew 24:4-13

Here's an abbreviated list of the signs Jesus told us to watch for:

1. Deception
2. Wars
3. Rumors of Wars
4. Nation rising against nation
5. Kingdom against kingdom
6. Famines
7. Earthquakes
8. Persecution
9. Hatred by all nations against Christians (and Jews)
10. People turning away from the faith
11. People hating and betraying one another
12. False prophets
13. Increase of wickedness
14. Love growing cold

ALL of these things are happening in the world today. Israel has become a nation once again (1948). That was a major sign! Keep an eye on the sky! And instead of shouting "School bus," it will be, "Jesus!"

Wait a minute. Did you hear that? What was that sound? Was it the sound of a distant trumpet? Or was it just the school bus?

"For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:

¹⁷Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord." - 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17

Amen!

Jalen and the Gnome

"Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, ⁴not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others." - Philippians 2:3-4

Today's story is a reminder for all of us that it doesn't take much effort at all to make someone's day; to turn a frown upside down. All it takes is thinking of others, first.

During my summer disc golf class for kids, we had a quiet young man do something quite unexpected. As you might have guessed, his name was Jalen. He was 10 years old.

One night, Jalen showed up with a handful of 3D-printed gnomes and gave one to every kid in the class. He even gave one to his instructor. Suddenly, Jalen was loved by everyone in the class.

This kid didn't have to do what he did. He wanted to do it. But he had the ability (the gift) to make those gnomes. So he did.

"Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows." - James 1:17

Was Jalen's gift "good and perfect?" I'd say 'yes' because I know how it made me feel. But the beautiful thing was, Jalen never expected anything in return.

What "gifts" have WE given to others recently? Does anything come to mind? Think about it. What was the last nice thing you did for someone? 🤔

Uhh.....

Maybe if we did unto others as we would have them do unto us ("Golden Rule," Matthew 7:12) we would all be better off. But we don't do that. At least not often enough. Why not? It's a command from our Lord.

Start off this work week "in Jesus' name." Buy some donuts for the office for no reason. Compliment someone on a job well done. Open a door for someone. Drop something in a tip jar. Donate something to the local food pantry. Donate blood or platelets. Clean out your office and donate the items to Goodwill. Take a walk and pick up trash. Give someone a hug.

"Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. ³⁵By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” - John 13:34-35

The Intercessor

Chapter 5 in the Book of Jeremiah contains an interesting rant from God, through the prophet Jeremiah, against Jerusalem. As I read it, I soon began to wonder, "Am I reading my Bible? Or is this a sermon from my pastor about current events in the world of today? Here are a few examples that caught my attention.

It starts with this interesting question:

"But what will you do in the end?" - Jeremiah 5:31

The text is about Jerusalem, but it could also apply to us as well. It continues into Chapter 6.

"Peace, peace," they say. When there is no peace." - Jeremiah 6:14

Does that sound like today's world? How many ceasefires and memorandums of understanding can there be? I lost track.

"Are they ashamed of their detestable conduct? No, they have no shame at all; they do not even know how to blush." - Jeremiah 6:15

Are we ashamed of our conduct? No. We just keep right on sinning, even inventing new detestible things to do that could only anger God.

God continues . . .

"So they will fall among the fallen; they will be brought down when I punish them,”

says the Lord." - Jeremiah 6:15

And that we will. We will surely fall!

Unless.

Unless there was someone - an intercessor - who would step up and take away our sins. All of them, though they are many. Thankfully there is. His name is Jesus.

One more verse, and this one is from our Lord and Savior.

"Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near.” - Luke 21:28

Nearer My God To Thee - ThecSharin Singers