EXPOSURE TO THE SON

Posted on August 1, 2018 by randscallawayffm
John – God and Love
 
It’s summer on our side of the world. Commercials warn us of our fun in the sun and want to sell us their “complete protection” products they claim will save us from our exposure to the sun’s rays. All we have to do is spray it on or apply it liberally. The more you put on the more they sell, I mean, the more you are protected. (Smiling.)
 
John is telling us the opposite. “Walk in the Light!” We need protection from the darkness! Our “complete protection” from darkness and hidden sin is our repentance and complete forgiveness applied by Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord! SO, get out of the darkness where we attempt to hide our sin and come into the Light where all sin is exposed. Repent with humble hearts desiring not to return to the “scene of the crime” where sin tried to destroy us. Live freely in the Light of God’s love and care. Rejoice in His salvation! Live redeemed lives under His complete protection and guidance!
 
1 John 1, The Message
Part Two
 
Walk in the Light
5 This, in essence, is the message we heard from Christ and are passing on to you: God is light, pure light; there’s not a trace of darkness in him.
 
6-7 If we claim that we experience a shared life with him and continue to stumble around in the dark, we’re obviously lying through our teeth—we’re not living what we claim. But if we walk in the light, God himself being the light, we also experience a shared life with one another, as the sacrificed blood of Jesus, God’s Son, purges all our sin.
 
8-10 If we claim that we’re free of sin, we’re only fooling ourselves. A claim like that is errant nonsense. On the other hand, if we admit our sins—make a clean breast of them—he won’t let us down; he’ll be true to himself. He’ll forgive our sins and purge us of all wrongdoing. If we claim that we’ve never sinned, we out-and-out contradict God—make a liar out of him. A claim like that only shows off our ignorance of God.
 
1 John 1 walk togetherBonus! “If we walk in the light, God himself being the light, we also experience a SHARED life with one another, as the sacrificed blood of Jesus, God’s Son, purges ALL our sin.”  What a Savior! What a Mighty God we have, love and serve!
 
I am reminded of an old VBS song I taught to kids years ago…
 
Step into the sunshine,
Get out of the shade
This is the one time that you’ve got it made,
And you can feel yourself smilin’
Way down to your shoes
Step into the sunshine, find the great good news!
(By Evie Karlsson)
 
I’m smiling. How about you?
 
Dear Heavenly Father,
Thank you for redeeming us and making us whole. Thank you for removing our sins forever and completely. Thank you for your Light that guides, heals, protects, and fills our hearts, minds and souls. Thank you for restoring the joy of YOUR salvation in us even this morning. On this rainy, cloudy day, I will walk in the Light! And smile.
In Jesus Name, Amen
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GOD AND LOVE

Posted on July 31, 2018 by randscallawayffm
John – Know God to Know Love
 
Many are looking for love, true love in all the wrong places as the old country song goes. Love is twisted into a “thing” that is unrecognizable to God and full of judgmental conditions. It is no longer pure and simple when the world translates it and tragically displays love as something man alone can produce. Love is cheapened and desecrated as portrayed in unholy media presentations.
 
1 John 1 know loveYes, the two most difficult things to get straight in life are love and God. More often than not, the mess people make of their lives can be traced back to failure or stupidity or meanness in one or both of these areas.
 
The basic and biblical Christian conviction is that the two subjects are intricately related. If we want to deal with God the right way, we have to learn to love the right way. If we want o love the right way, we have to deal with God the right way. God and love can NOT be separated.
 
John’s three letters provide wonderfully explicit direction in how this works. Jesus, the Messiah, is the focus: Jesus provides the full and true understanding of God; Jesus shows us the mature working-out of love. In Jesus, God and love are linked accurately, intricately and indissolubly.
 
But there are always people around who don’t want to be pinned down to the God Jesus reveals, to the love Jesus reveals. They want to make up their own idea of God, make up their own style of love. John was pastor to a church (or churches) disrupted by some of these people. In his letters we see him reestablishing the original and organic unity of God and love that comes to focus ad becomes available to us in Jesus Christ.
 
As we read John’s letters in the coming week, may God’s Holy Spirit speak to our own hearts about His inseparable link with His love. May our minds be opened to understand that to know God is the only way to know Love. Love God first, know His story of salvation. Be humbly repentant and grateful. Love others like He loved us first. That is the story of true love.
 
1 John 1, The Message
(Part One)
 
1-2 From the very first day, we were there, taking it all in—we heard it with our own ears, saw it with our own eyes, verified it with our own hands. The Word of Life appeared right before our eyes; we saw it happen! And now we’re telling you in most sober prose that what we witnessed was, incredibly, this: The infinite Life of God himself took shape before us.
 
3-4 We saw it, we heard it, and now we’re telling you so you can experience it along with us, this experience of communion with the Father and his Son, Jesus Christ. Our motive for writing is simply this: We want you to enjoy this, too. Your joy will double our joy!
 
1 John 1 God is
Dear Heavenly Father,
John’s “love letters” to us, your children, dearly loved by You will affect how we think and behave. May every thought and action be guided by Your love for us. Help us to know you more so that we can love more deeply. Thank you for the joy your love gives to every part of our redeemed lives.
In Jesus Name, Amen
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UNDISTRACTED ATTENTION

Posted on July 30, 2018 by randscallawayffm
Peter – The Day of God
 
The sky shall unfold
Preparing His entrance
The stars shall applaud Him
With thunders of praise
 
The sweet light in His eyes, shall enhance those awaiting
And we shall behold Him, then face to face
 
O we shall behold Him, we shall behold Him
Face to face in all of His glory
O we shall behold Him, yes we shall behold Him
Face to face, our Savior and Lord
 
The angel will sound, the shout of His coming
And the sleeping shall rise, from there slumbering place
And those remaining, shall be changed in a moment
And we…(Sandi Patty, “We Shall Behold Him”)
 
This song is in the background of my mind as I read the last words of Peter’s letters to believers everywhere. “My dear friends, this is now the second time I’ve written to you, both letters reminders to hold your minds in a state of undistracted attention”. We are a people who are easily distracted! Is your head in your cell phone right now? Look up, see the Savior and live!
 
2 Peter 3 not slowPeter has our attention as he warns believers of mockers and skeptics of whom they are already enduring. We must turn our heads away from the mockers and hurting jeers to Christ who saved us, went to hell and back for us and is returning again to take us home to the promised place He has prepared for us. YES, we shall behold Him!
 
God brought the world into existence with merely His word and He will destroy it just as easily, “ready to give the signal for the judgement and destruction of the desecrating skeptics.” Whose side are we on? There are only two choices to make, skeptic or focused believer? There isn’t a middle ground to stand on.
 
WHEN is up to God whose desire is for all to be saved. This merciful God looks all over the world for those whose hearts are completely His. ( 2 Chronicles 16:9) Those with undistracted attention on Christ will “hardly notice” when God brings it all to an end. “We’ll be looking the other way, ready for the promised new heavens and the promised new earth, all landscaped with righteousness.” Hallelujah! Blessed be the Name of the Lord! “The sweet light in His eyes shall enhance those awaiting…”
 
2 Peter 3, The Message
In the Last Days
 
1-2 My dear friends, this is now the second time I’ve written to you, both letters reminders to hold your minds in a state of undistracted attention. Keep in mind what the holy prophets said, and the command of our Master and Savior that was passed on by your apostles.
 
3-4 First off, you need to know that in the last days, mockers are going to have a heyday. Reducing everything to the level of their puny feelings, they’ll mock, “So what’s happened to the promise of his Coming? Our ancestors are dead and buried, and everything’s going on just as it has from the first day of creation. Nothing’s changed.”
 
5-7 They conveniently forget that long ago all the galaxies and this very planet were brought into existence out of watery chaos by God’s word. Then God’s word brought the chaos back in a flood that destroyed the world. The current galaxies and earth are fuel for the final fire. God is poised, ready to speak his word again, ready to give the signal for the judgment and destruction of the desecrating skeptics.
 
The Day the Sky Will Collapse
8-9 Don’t overlook the obvious here, friends. With God, one day is as good as a thousand years, a thousand years as a day. God isn’t late with his promise as some measure lateness. He is restraining himself on account of you, holding back the End because he doesn’t want anyone lost. He’s giving everyone space and time to change.
 
10 But when the Day of God’s Judgment does come, it will be unannounced, like a thief. The sky will collapse with a thunderous bang, everything disintegrating in a huge conflagration, earth and all its works exposed to the scrutiny of Judgment.
 
11-13 Since everything here today might well be gone tomorrow, do you see how essential it is to live a holy life? Daily expect the Day of God, eager for its arrival. The galaxies will burn up and the elements melt down that day—but we’ll hardly notice. We’ll be looking the other way, ready for the promised new heavens and the promised new earth, all landscaped with righteousness.
 
14-16 So, my dear friends, since this is what you have to look forward to, do your very best to be found living at your best, in purity and peace. Interpret our Master’s patient restraint for what it is: salvation. Our good brother Paul, who was given much wisdom in these matters, refers to this in all his letters, and has written you essentially the same thing. Some things Paul writes are difficult to understand. Irresponsible people who don’t know what they are talking about twist them every which way. They do it to the rest of the Scriptures, too, destroying themselves as they do it.
 
17-18 But you, friends, are well-warned. Be on guard lest you lose your footing and get swept off your feet by these lawless and loose-talking teachers. Grow in grace and understanding of our Master and Savior, Jesus Christ.
 
 
1 Peter 2 follow
SO, look forward, not back! “Do your very best to be found living at your best, in purity and peace. Interpret our Master’s patient restraint for what it is: SALVATION.” “Grow in grace.”  Yes, we shall behold Him…Our Savior and Lord! What a day that will be! The “last days” are only the beginning of forever with God because of Jesus, His Son.
 
Dear Heavenly Father,
Thank you for these words of blessed assurance, hope for our future with You, peace in our walk and strength for our steps. You are God and we are not. We trust in You. You are the Truth, Way and Life…forever and ever, Amen. Continue to help us live Your best as we do our best to live holy lives.
In Jesus Name, Amen. I believe.
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DEAD SOULS

Posted on July 29, 2018 by randscallawayffm
Peter – A Breath of Fresh Air
 
Peter, honest and concise, tells it like it is for his day…and ours. Those who manipulate others to get what they want to satisfy self are corrupt. People in positions of influence who dabble in corruption are morally bankrupt. Not everyone of influence who is corrupt is a selected, paid leader. Influential people are those who speak the loudest and longest or silently and skillfully turn the focus from what is right and good to what makes them more powerful. Gossip of others is one of their tools. Watch out for people like this, in and out of the church, who may have an effect on our thinking and of the thinking and behaving of our offspring. These people are dead souls. Dead souls do not give life. They take life.
 
2 Peter 2 graceI once heard a speaker say, “Satan is seeking to have a whole generation of people to himself…who will not know Christ.” This was about 25 years ago at a Billy Graham School of Evangelism. We see the effects of this battle for a lost, dead soul generation. These thoughts quicken my heart beat and ramp up my prayers for the lost who live in and around my life. I cry out to God to save family members who have turned their backs to salvation and/or growing and maturing in His love, grace and mercy.
 
Peter is bold in these words but speaks with a heart for people who need God. Read and see what it does to your heart. Think of those in your life who need to know Christ and ask God to keep the doors open to their salvation. Ask God for wisdom, boldness with behaviors and words to tell His story of salvation, clearly and concisely with pure love in our hearts for others.
 
Jesus is coming back, you know. Who will be going home, back to the place He has prepared for those who love and follow Him? Dead souls will, indeed, be left behind.
 
2 Peter 2, The Message
Part Two
 
Predators on the Prowl
 
2 Peter 2 control10-11 God is especially incensed against these “teachers” who live by lust, addicted to a filthy existence. They despise interference from true authority, preferring to indulge in self-rule. Insolent egotists, they don’t hesitate to speak evil against the most splendid of creatures. Even angels, their superiors in every way, wouldn’t think of throwing their weight around like that, trying to slander others before God.
 
12-14 These people are nothing but brute beasts, born in the wild, predators on the prowl. In the very act of bringing down others with their ignorant blasphemies, they themselves will be brought down, losers in the end. Their evil will boomerang on them. They’re so despicable and addicted to pleasure that they indulge in wild parties, carousing in broad daylight. They’re obsessed with adultery, compulsive in sin, seducing every vulnerable soul they come upon. Their specialty is greed, and they’re experts at it. Dead souls!
 
15-16 They’ve left the main road and are directionless, having taken the way of Balaam, son of Beor, the prophet who turned profiteer, a connoisseur of evil. But Balaam was stopped in his wayward tracks: A dumb animal spoke in a human voice and prevented the prophet’s craziness.
 
17-19 There’s nothing to these people—they’re dried-up fountains, storm-scattered clouds, headed for a black hole in hell. They are loudmouths, full of hot air, but still they’re dangerous. Men and women who have recently escaped from a deviant life are most susceptible to their brand of seduction. They promise these newcomers freedom, but they themselves are slaves of corruption, for if they’re addicted to corruption—and they are—they’re enslaved.
 
20-22 If they’ve escaped from the slum of sin by experiencing our Master and Savior, Jesus Christ, and then slid back into that same old life again, they’re worse than if they had never left. Better not to have started out on the straight road to God than to start out and then turn back, repudiating the experience and the holy command. They prove the point of the proverbs, “A dog goes back to its own vomit” and “A scrubbed-up pig heads for the mud.”
 
2-peter-2-target.png
Dear Heavenly Father,
I love you with all that is in me. Show me your ways. Give us opportunities and the discernment to say the right words at the right time in the right Spirit so that others may find, know and follow You.
In Jesus Name, Amen
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YOU GIVE LOVE A BAD NAME!

Posted on July 28, 2018 by randscallawayffm
Peter – A Breath of Fresh Air
 
When a self-pronounced leader draws a following with talk that sounds good, looks attractive, seems full of love and uses “mostly” Truth from God’s Word as a tool to hammer in a stake of importance in this world…watch out! Peter warns us today about “lying leaders” among us. It is an age old problem.
 
I think of the pop song, “You Gave Love a Bad Name” as I read Peter’s warning about lying leaders. The betrayed lover sings…
 
Shot through the heart
And you’re to blame
Darlin’, you give love a bad name
 
An angel’s smile is what you sell
You promise me heaven, then put me through Hell
Chains of love got a hold on me
When passions a prison, you can’t break free
 
Oh, you’re a loaded gun, yeah
Oh, there’s nowhere to run
No one can save me
The damage is done
 
Shot through the heart
And you’re to blame
You give love a bad name (bad name)
I play my part and you play your game
You give love a bad name (bad name)
You give love, a bad name
 
2 Peter 2 bad nameYes, lying leaders give the way of Truth and Love a bad name to the world. Peter outlines a way to spot LL’s and run from them. Here are but a few ways:
–Will cause divisions. Put down someone else to lift them high.
–Will manipulate and pit you against each other so you will look to them alone.
–Perform ridiculously splashy presentations to turn your focus from Jesus to them as your “savior”, the only one with answers for your life.
–Recruitment of others to them is mandatory to their survival.
–LL’s are only out for what they can get for themselves.
–They’ll say anything, ANYTHING, that sounds good to exploit you. (It’s happened to me! From a small group of pastors with the main pastor as “lord” of the following.)
 
2 Peter 2 read the word
Peter reminds us, “They won’t, of course, get by with it…God has never just stood by and let that kind of thing go on.” In the meantime, BEWARE. Be in tune with God’s Truth. Check and double check what is said to what is read in God’s Word. Ask for the Holy Spirit to help us discern Truth from fiction.
 
2 Peter 2, The Message
Part One
 
2 Peter 2 one biteLying Religious Leaders
1-2 But there were also lying prophets among the people then, just as there will be lying religious teachers among you. They’ll smuggle in destructive divisions, pitting you against each other—biting the hand of the One who gave them a chance to have their lives back! They’ve put themselves on a fast downhill slide to destruction, but not before they recruit a crowd of mixed-up followers who can’t tell right from wrong.
 
2-3 They give the way of truth a bad name. They’re only out for themselves. They’ll say anything, anything, that sounds good to exploit you. They won’t, of course, get by with it. They’ll come to a bad end, for God has never just stood by and let that kind of thing go on.
 
4-5 God didn’t let the rebel angels off the hook, but jailed them in hell till Judgment Day. Neither did he let the ancient ungodly world off. He wiped it out with a flood, rescuing only eight people—Noah, the sole voice of righteousness, was one of them.
 
6-8 God decreed destruction for the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. A mound of ashes was all that was left—grim warning to anyone bent on an ungodly life. But that good man Lot, driven nearly out of his mind by the sexual filth and perversity, was rescued. Surrounded by moral rot day after day after day, that righteous man was in constant torment.
 
9 So God knows how to rescue the godly from evil trials. And he knows how to hold the feet of the wicked to the fire until Judgment Day.
 
SO, DON’T FALL FOR IT!
Last week, a salesman used holy scriptures to try to sell me on a product. Another person said I “won $950,000” and quoted scripture when he figured out I was a believer in the first few minutes of the conversation. “If I truly believed”, he said, I would pay him a small amount of money to get the big money…SERIOUSLY? But that is the way of lying leaders….They give love and truth a bad name.
 
2 Peter 2 trust me
Dear Heavenly Father,
Thank you for helping us sift through a world of lies to find Your Truth, love, mercy and grace. Help us to STAND for your truth so that we do not fall for fiction and lies. Help us to walk in Your ways, led by Your Hand in ours. May your Holy Spirit help us to discern the world around us with your wisdom, insight and understanding. I may have fallen for it once but not again! I love you, Lord with all my heart, mind and soul.
In Jesus Name, Amen
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THE ONE LIGHT

Posted on July 27, 2018 by randscallawayffm
Peter – A Breath of Fresh Air
 
Our son has been deployed with his unit for a few months. What joy we have to see him come home this morning! We are grateful for his tenacious service to our country. We are grateful he can rejoin his family physically. The only thing that tops homecomings of loved ones like this is knowing that Jesus, the One Light in this dark world, will return to claim his own sooner than we think. “The stakes are high” says Peter, “I’m not going to let up for a minute in calling you to attention before it.”
 
“I’m sticking to it as long as I live.” Peter knew his life was drawing to an end and this made him even more passionate with the urgent Message of salvation through Jesus Christ.
 
Why I am compelled to write to you each morning with this “Daily Manna” is for similar reasons and passion for Christ. I, too, will stick to it as long as I live or God tells me to quit. Read and be blessed…I’m off to the National Air Guard base to greet our son!
 
2 Peter 1, The Message
Part Two
 
Earth SunriseThe One Light in a Dark Time
12-15 Because the stakes are so high, even though you’re up-to-date on all this truth and practice it inside and out, I’m not going to let up for a minute in calling you to attention before it. This is the post to which I’ve been assigned—keeping you alert with frequent reminders—and I’m sticking to it as long as I live. I know that I’m to die soon; the Master has made that quite clear to me. And so I am especially eager that you have all this down in black and white so that after I die, you’ll have it for ready reference.
 
16-18 We weren’t, you know, just wishing on a star when we laid the facts out before you regarding the powerful return of our Master, Jesus Christ. We were there for the preview! We saw it with our own eyes: Jesus resplendent with light from God the Father as the voice of Majestic Glory spoke: “This is my Son, marked by my love, focus of all my delight.” We were there on the holy mountain with him. We heard the voice out of heaven with our very own ears.
 
19-21 We couldn’t be more sure of what we saw and heard—God’s glory, God’s voice. The prophetic Word was confirmed to us. You’ll do well to keep focusing on it. It’s the one light you have in a dark time as you wait for daybreak and the rising of the Morning Star in your hearts. The main thing to keep in mind here is that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of private opinion. And why? Because it’s not something concocted in the human heart. Prophecy resulted when the Holy Spirit prompted men and women to speak God’s Word.
 
Dear Heavenly Father,
Thank you for Your Word that blesses us with reminders of our own homecoming with You some day. Thank you for saving our souls by your sacrifice. Thank you for working in us to refine us. Thank you for all you have provided. Thank you for loving us so much that we cannot help but tell others. I’m sticking with You until You call me home.
In Jesus Name, Amen
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GROWING GRASS

Posted on July 26, 2018 by randscallawayffm
Peter, A Breath of Fresh Air
 
It is the season of growing and mowing grass. The rains fall and the grass grows faster. You can almost hear it reach out and up as it looks for the sun after the rains. In the hot summer sun, grass will grow better in the shade. Mm.
 
2 Peter 1 grass growingWhen our kids were teenagers, we were getting ready to mow and clean the yard. One of our kids asked, “Why is it that grass grows deeper and greener here, in this spot?” We gave them a lesson about septic tanks and leech fields and how dirty water from the house travels to this place. The crap, (pardon the real), of our lives is displayed here and the grass grows as a result. It is even nourished by it and grows faster and deeper than the grass around it. Hence, if we don’t mow said grass, we will become engulfed by it if we stand here much longer discussing it. The grass is growing right under your feet as we speak! Let’s get to mowing!
 
I think of that episode as we read the beginning of Peter’s second letter to believers who call Jesus Master and Lord of their lives. We can’t just stand around discussing Christianity, we need to confirm it with our lives. God chose us. Our job is is to let Him do His work in us, refining us, trimming the grass under our feet that might entangle us so that the characteristics of Christ would take hold and be developed in us.
 
2 Peter 1 grass
“Don’t let the grass grow under your feet!”, Peter warns. That means laying self down asap and allowing God to work in us. “Don’t lose a minute in building on what you’ve been given, complementing your basic faith with good character, spiritual understanding, alert discipline, passionate patience, reverent wonder, warm friendliness, and generous love, each dimension fitting into and developing the others. You can’t have one without the other, so the old song goes. By the way, the tall grass is where the “lion, seeking to devour” roams. So keep moving!
 
2 Peter 1, The Message
Part One
 
1-2 I, Simon Peter, am a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ. I write this to you whose experience with God is as life-changing as ours, all due to our God’s straight dealing and the intervention of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ. Grace and peace to you many times over as you deepen in your experience with God and Jesus, our Master.
 
Don’t Put It Off
3-4 Everything that goes into a life of pleasing God has been miraculously given to us by getting to know, personally and intimately, the One who invited us to God. The best invitation we ever received! We were also given absolutely terrific promises to pass on to you—your tickets to participation in the life of God after you turned your back on a world corrupted by lust.
 
5-9 So don’t lose a minute in building on what you’ve been given, complementing your basic faith with good character, spiritual understanding, alert discipline, passionate patience, reverent wonder, warm friendliness, and generous love, each dimension fitting into and developing the others. With these qualities active and growing in your lives, no grass will grow under your feet, no day will pass without its reward as you mature in your experience of our Master Jesus. Without these qualities you can’t see what’s right before you, oblivious that your old sinful life has been wiped off the books.
 
10-11 So, friends, confirm God’s invitation to you, his choice of you. Don’t put it off; do it now. Do this, and you’ll have your life on a firm footing, the streets paved and the way wide open into the eternal kingdom of our Master and Savior, Jesus Christ.
 
2 Peter 1 get to itRead verses 10 and 11 until you believe it and a grin appears on your face. We are redeemed! His CHOICE is US! Don’t put it off, confirm God’s invitation by following Him and allowing Him to shape us into His best for us. This road leads us right into His Kingdom where, forgive me, all the grass is mowed and trimmed neatly. (Smiling.)
 
Dear Heavenly Father,
I am not where I want or need to be in developing all the characteristics you have given us in this passage. But I am farther down the road than I was yesterday and for that I praise and thank you. You are God. Jesus is my Master, Savior and Lord. Your Holy Spirit helps me. I need you every hour. You are my righteousness. I am not. Continue to transform me.
In Jesus Name, Amen
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PUT YOUR HAND IN THE HAND…

Posted on July 25, 2018 by randscallawayffm
Peter – A Breath of Fresh Air
 
1 Peter 2 follow
Weird flashback. The song going around in my mind this morning is a very old tune sung by our youth group in the seventies. It was written just after “I Wanna Hold Your Hand” by the Beetles. Looking for love, was the theme of the day. But this song came to mind as I read our next passage in Peter. Do any of you remember, “Put Your Hand in the Hand”?
 
Put your hand in the hand of the man
Who stilled the water
Put your hand in the hand of the man
Who calmed the sea
Take a look at yourself
And you can look at others differently
Put your hand in the hand of the man
From Galilee
 
My momma taught me how to pray
Before I reached the age of seven
When I’m down on my knees
That’s when I’m closest to heaven
Daddy lived his life, two kids and a wife
Well you do what you must do
But he showed me enough of what it takes
To get me through, oh yeh!
 
Put your hand in the hand of the man
Who stilled the water
Put your hand in the hand of the man
Who calmed the sea
Take a look at yourself
And you can look at others differently
Put your hand in the hand of the man
From Galilee
Oh yeh!
 
Chorus repeats…(forever or until you get tired of strumming your guitar around the campfire.)
 
Songwriters: Gene Mac Lellan
Artist: Anne Murray
Album: Honey, Wheat and Laughter
Released: 1970
Nominations: Country Music Association Award for Song of the Year
 
What I remember…This song, a “pop” song was almost blasphemy to sing in the full worship service with “grownups” but it was aloud to be sung at camp or in youth group. Oh my, what silly things our parents thought back then. This, now a bit boring and repetitive song, was sung sometimes just to annoy anyone over the age of 25. It was written in the time of the “Jesus movement”…youth searching for truth and not satisfied with the status quo of the day. The song was not earth shattering but did stir our thoughts about the difference in “doing church” and “being the church”.
 
I am thinking…what’s changed in the searching and grappling for what is right and good for the soul to the world at large? Many are still searching for the Truth. Many are still trying to live the Truth in changing times with each generation more accepting of what is not good for us in God’s eyes.
 
I think about all this and give credit to our parents whose initial thoughts were to protect us, to be vigilant and alert, keeping their guard up against evil that seeks to look like Christ but isn’t. Evil, that is ready to pounce on unsuspecting, weak and venerable people without God as well as Christians who should know to seek God first. Always remember. Greater is HE that is in you than he that is in the world.
 
Peter tells us God will have the last word. Peter finishes his first letter to Christians with “Stay alert!” “Keep a cool head”. “I have written as urgently and accurately as I know how. This is God’s generous truth; embrace it with both arms!”
 
1 Peter 5, The Message
Part Two
 
1 Peter 5 last wordHe Gets the Last Word
 
8-11 Keep a cool head. Stay alert. The Devil is poised to pounce, and would like nothing better than to catch you napping. Keep your guard up. You’re not the only ones plunged into these hard times. It’s the same with Christians all over the world. So keep a firm grip on the faith. The suffering won’t last forever. It won’t be long before this generous God who has great plans for us in Christ—eternal and glorious plans they are!—will have you put together and on your feet for good. He gets the last word; yes, he does.
 
12 I’m sending this brief letter to you by Silas, a most dependable brother. I have the highest regard for him.
 
I’ve written as urgently and accurately as I know how. This is God’s generous truth; embrace it with both arms!
 
13-14 The church in exile here with me—but not for a moment forgotten by God—wants to be remembered to you. Mark, who is like a son to me, says hello. Give holy embraces all around! Peace to you—to all who walk in Christ’s ways.
 
1 Peter 5 God led
SO, put your hand in hand of the Man who is God’s Son, who died and rose again to set us free to love Him back. May His Holy Spirit guide and direct, challenge and convict, comfort and bless us today. Stay alert…pray for discernment in all things. Our hope is in Jesus Christ!
In Jesus Name, Amen
 
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NOT BECAUSE YOU HAVE TO…

Posted on July 24, 2018 by randscallawayffm
Peter – A Breath of Fresh Air
 
When you hear a big sigh and see the eye roll from the one leading, you understand right away that you haven’t done it right in his (or her) eyes, to their way of thinking. Working for a boss who isn’t happy, who doesn’t show you how, only tells you when you haven’t done it right and arrogantly tells you your job is to make him look good isn’t doing it for the right reasons. He or she is doing it with a “because I have to” attitude. Those kinds of leaders are hard to work with and for.
 
1 Peter 5 be carefreePeter reminds leaders and followers of WHY we do what we do and how to do it. We work at it with all our hearts, minds and souls to please God! It doesn’t matter if you are in a secular or clergy position. God tells us plainly…to be plain people who love Him and love others. If we really take this seriously it gives us the freedom to leave everything to God for the results. We take on too much responsibility when we try to “play God” in people’s lives. We are all to be servants of God…not self.
 
Leading is also not trying to soothe our fractured egos with putting and keeping others down so we look lifted up. Yikes, that is a horrible place to be, to live, and keep doing. That takes more work on our parts to be always thinking of self. There is never peace with self motivation. “Be content with who you are”, says Peter. “Live carefree before God; he is most careful with you.”
 
1 Peter 5, The Message
Part One
 
1-3 I have a special concern for you church leaders. I know what it’s like to be a leader, in on Christ’s sufferings as well as the coming glory. Here’s my concern: that you care for God’s flock with all the diligence of a shepherd. Not because you have to, but because you want to please God. Not calculating what you can get out of it, but acting spontaneously. Not bossily telling others what to do, but tenderly showing them the way.
 
4-5 When God, who is the best shepherd of all, comes out in the open with his rule, he’ll see that you’ve done it right and commend you lavishly. And you who are younger must follow your leaders. But all of you, leaders and followers alike, are to be down to earth with each other, for—
 
God has had it with the proud,
But takes delight in just plain people.
 
6-7 So be content with who you are, and don’t put on airs. God’s strong hand is on you; he’ll promote you at the right time. Live carefree before God; he is most careful with you.
 
 
1 Peter 5 God wants usWow. Take this in. Think about it. Take all the time you need, I am. What or Who is our motivation in life as we work, relate to others, serve and love. Is our love with conditions? Is our service expecting something in return? Is our work just that…”our” work? You’ll know if all you seek is recognition and you are highly dissatisfied when you don’t get it. Are our relationships motivated by what we can get from them?
 
Dear Heavenly Father,
I am contemplating my own motivations for this journey and come up short of the goal you have for me. May Your desire be my desires and motivations for a life that wants to please you in all I think, say and do. Transform me. You are God and i am not. We will keep it that way. Help us to keep a firm grip on our faith and trust in You alone for all situations, trials, successes, and challenges. Thank you, Lord for never leaving us and always being the best shepherd of all. My life is in You. My life is in Your Hands.
In Jesus Name, Amen
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TRUST HIM, IT GETS BETTER!

Posted on July 23, 2018 by randscallawayffm

Peter – A Breath of Fresh Air

Current truth. Our less than two year old fridge went out…on the weekend…when no repair services are available. Does this inconvenience in our life mean that we have fallen from God’s blessing? Does them mean that God took the weekend off?

Past truth. Years ago, I worked for a place where I was under constant stress because of underhanded, secret dealings, behind the scenes behavior that was not of God, with leaders over me with little integrity and could not be trusted. I felt led there and worked hard to fulfill what God was telling me to do. But soon questioned God as to why He sent me. I knew from the first week on the job that it would be difficult knowing what I believed to be true versus what I saw when I arrived on the scene. I knew after the first staff meeting that I was different in belief and behavior. But I did that job, knowing I would have little time to do it, judgement and abusive words thrown at me, with testing and trying situations always in front of me. Did God lead me to this place as a cruel joke? Did he leave me? Was God not on the job all those months?

All minor and major inconveniences and trying situations are known to God. It is this scripture (and other passages) that saved me, grew me and transformed me. I was put through the fire to refine me. I am still put through fires to refine me. (Slow learner or faithful believer?) That’s what it means to stand firm in our faith in a world that thinks the opposite of what God’s Word says to us. I’m still growing, learning and trusting God to do what He wants in me. I need God. I need Him every hour of every day. I trust God to know what He is doing. AND the best is yet to come! Glory is just around the corner!

1 Peter 4 courageWe who are Christians will be judged first for our reactions to life’s situations and circumstances beyond our control. (By the way, everything is beyond our control!) God is in all of it to help us, guide and direct us…if we let go and let Him. Take that to heart first. God does not take vacations and never sleeps. He is ALWAYS on the job, and knows you and I very well. He knows just what we need and when to deliver.

“So if you find life difficult because you’re doing what God said, take it in stride. TRUST him, He knows what He’s doing, and He’ll keep on doing it.”

1 Peter 4, The Message
Glory Just Around the Corner

1 Peter 4 grace on grace12-13 Friends, when life gets really difficult, don’t jump to the conclusion that God isn’t on the job. Instead, be glad that you are in the very thick of what Christ experienced. This is a spiritual refining process, with glory just around the corner.

14-16 If you’re abused because of Christ, count yourself fortunate. It’s the Spirit of God and his glory in you that brought you to the notice of others. If they’re on you because you broke the law or disturbed the peace, that’s a different matter. But if it’s because you’re a Christian, don’t give it a second thought. Be proud of the distinguished status reflected in that name!

17-19 It’s judgment time for God’s own family. We’re first in line. If it starts with us, think what it’s going to be like for those who refuse God’s Message!

If good people barely make it,
What’s in store for the bad?

So if you find life difficult because you’re doing what God said, take it in stride. Trust him. He knows what he’s doing, and he’ll keep on doing it.

1 Peter 4 God is thereDear Heavenly Father,
Thank you for Your Word and Holy Spirit that reminds us of your unchanging love, mercy and grace. Grace upon grace as the song goes that we sang yesterday at church. Thank you for never leaving us where you put us. Thank you for guiding and providing. Thank you for protecting us when we stand firm in You. YOU are God of all…and we are not. Continue to transform me.
In Jesus Name, Amen

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