Greetings!
Here are the top 5 posts favored by the community at "Jesus Christ The Messiah" (JCMessiah.org) during the week ending January 21st, 2012, starting with #5. Let's flashback together, all the way to #1, and feel free to forward these highlights to your family, friends, and others who might like to receive them:
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>>> #5 <<<
"The joy of the Lord is my strength."
This is the title of an old children's song, taken right from Nehemiah 8:10. I found it fitting to share this with my 9 year old daughter a few weeks ago. She was struggling with something very difficult. I explained the meaning of the song's title to her, using an illustration that I would like to share with you now. After sharing this with her, she found her "happy thoughts" and reclaimed her "spark" of joy. I feel it made her stronger, because the imagery helped her to understand some very important things as a young believer. If any of you are still very young in your walk with Jesus Christ, I hope that this will also benefit you ...
My spiritual heart, like my physical heart, is at the core of my well being. If my physical heart stops; then my strength will fade quickly and I will die. Something quite similar will happen to me, spiritually, if something goes wrong in THAT respective area.
My spiritual heart is a cup. It will never be empty, because something is always there for me to pour when I thirst. Whatever I crave most, that's what I am given.
For quite a while, I kept my cup full of bitterness. I was never satisfied, no matter how much I drank. It also made me feel spiritually ill, so I drank even more, not yet understanding that no amount would ever cure or satisfy me. I eventually lost all of my strength. My burdens were too heavy for me, and my hands were not big enough to carry my load.
One day, I grew tired of the bitterness. I decided throw out the bottomless pitcher of pride, the one that I had been using to keep my cup full of bitterness. In its place, God quickly offered me a pitcher of love.
I picked up the new pitcher, but it felt very empty. I looked within it in order to examine its contents, only to find a single drop of hope. I was puzzled as to how this single drop could even begin to fill my cup, much less keep it from becoming completely dry. Regardless, I was far more thirsty than doubtful. I was also grateful to have something other than bitterness to pour in my cup.
So, I tilted the pitcher's spout into the cup. I was gratified to see something start to pour. As moments passed, beyond what I expected to see from that single drop of hope, MANY blessings began to fill my cup. As each blessing entered my cup, I gave thanks to the one who had given me the pitcher. It didn't stop there, though. Would you believe that blessings continued to pour, not only filling my cup, BUT that it ran over with joy??
When I picked up the cup and took my first drink, my mouth was filled with life-giving waters. My strength was restored. I praised God!
However, my burdens were still SO heavy, and my hands were still SO full from the load that they carried. Even with my new and improved strength, I could tell that I would NOT be able withstand the weight forever on my own. It became clear to me that I would need help.
I looked back to God, the one who gave me that pitcher of love with the single drop of hope. I thanked Him for giving me a source of new strength, and then I asked Him if He could help me with my heavy load.
I then felt God urge me to use my new strength, just once more, to lift my burdens up high ... this time only to cast them into His capable hands. So, I got a running head start, I took ONE BIG leap of faith, and I launched all of my worries about tomorrow toward the Heavens.
I was SO relieved. For a while, my heart was full of joy, I was stronger than ever, the heavy load was no longer upon me, and my hands were free. However, I started to feel like I was getting weak again. I had become inactive. I was not exercising my faith. I was falling out of shape. The Lord then pointed something out to me ..
Romans 12:21 (NIRV): "Don't let evil overcome you. Overcome evil by doing good."
I heard the Lord compelling me to make my hands busy, by doing His good works. He wanted me to start using the NEW strength that He had given me to POWER my hands for His purpose. By doing His good works, my faith (in part) would be exercised, and my new strength would be sustained as well as increase. Once I understood this and went to work, God said, "Well done!"
So, here I am today. While God tends to my needs and keeps my pitcher filled with one drop of hope, I use the strength and the joy He has given me to spend my time serving Him. I feel that I will be able to live like this forever.
PRAYER: Thank you Lord for starting out by giving to me what I need in order to fill MY cup with joy, once emptied of ALL bitterness. Amen!
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>>> #4 <<<
"Father, I have sinned against Heaven and against You. I am no longer worthy to be called your Son."
Aren't you glad that God receives us in Love when we finally come back to Him like this, just as the father of the Prodigal Son received Him when He returned. (see Luke 15:11-32).
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>>> #3 <<<
Do you and God agree on how much "you can handle" ... so that He doesn't ALLOW more than you can take? At what point do you know you are failing to handle whatever you are supposed to be able to handle?
I have worked SO hard. I have often been in prison. I have suffered terrible beatings. Again and again I almost died. Five times I received 39 strokes with a whip. Three times I was beaten with sticks. Once, others tried to kill me by throwing stones at me. Three times I was shipwrecked. I spent more than a day in the open sea. I have had to keep on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, thieves, people where I come from, and others. Often I have gone without sleep, food, water, clothes, and shelter from the cold. On top of everything else, there are those that I make myself responsible for AND worry deeply about when they have needs.
Alright, everyone, the story above might seem familiar to you. That's good! Just to get your attention, I paraphrased Paul's words from 2 Corinthians 11:23-31. These are the things that HE said of his own suffering, BUT here's how he continued in verses 30-31 (direct quote this time) ...
"If I have to brag, I will brag about the things that show how weak I am. I am not lying. The God and Father of the Lord Jesus knows this. May God be praised forever." (NIRV)
After all that went through, Paul passed the "handle" test. He did so, by doing FAR more than accept his suffering. He ended by praising God! I'm certain that he, like any man, could not have hidden the outward signs of his suffering. I'm certain that his screams were heard and his scars were quite visible. No man or woman can "handle" such extreme suffering without showing marks or losing composure. There's going to be physical damage, as well as emotional issues to cope with. Nevertheless, Paul never gave into temptations, he did not deny his faith, AND he praised God rather than be silent. THIS is how Paul demonstrated that God did NOT give him more than he was able to handle.
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>>> #2 <<<
Oh, Lord, I pray now that we as men and women open our hearts to your truth, casting aside the chains of our complacency. Amen!
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>>> #1 <<<
To the thief on the cross (the one who recognized Jesus as the Savior of man in their final hour), Jesus said to Him in Luke 23:43 (NIRV): " ... What I'm about to tell you is true. Today you will be with me in paradise."
His sins against God's Commandments were forgiven in that instant, so we can all meet that thief in Heaven one day.
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Blessings!
Leanne Bolton - Executive Editor
Jesus Christ The Messiah" Community
His Everlasting Hope
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