Yikes!! I forgot------“THANKS!”

So Jesus answered and said, "Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine? Were there not any found who returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?"—Luke 17:17-18

Luke 17 tells the story of some men who had a lot to give thanks for. Prior to being miraculously touched by Jesus, they were complete outcasts—the very scourge of society. These ten men had the worst disease of the time, leprosy, for which there was no cure. They couldn't get any lower in that particular time in history with this incurable disease.

Those found to have leprosy could have no contact with others. They had to leave their house and their friends and live apart from them. These men were living an isolated, miserable life. Their clothing would have been ripped from perpetual mourning. Their skeletal heads would have been uncovered. They had to cry out, "Unclean! Unclean!" wherever they went, in keeping with the Law of Moses. But they had heard about Jesus. And seeing Him in the distance, they cried out, "Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!" (Luke 17:12-13).

I find it interesting how the Lord responded. There were no special effects, there was no swelling music—not even a dramatic touch. There was only a command. Jesus simply said, "Go, show yourselves to the priests" (verse 14). According to Levitical law, the priest would take them through an eight-day ceremony, examine them, and make sure they were truly healed of their leprosy.

They weren't healed yet, but still they went—and God healed them completely. However, only one of the ten decided to go back and give thanks, and he was a Samaritan. The Jews looked down on the Samaritans, yet it was a Samaritan who came back to give thanks.

         How like us it is to forget to give thanks.  And how incessant we are with our children----“ did you remember to say thanks?” We are so quick to ask for God's help. But we also need to remember to give Him praise when He comes through for us.  The Apostle Paul said in his first letter to those first century Christians at Thessalonica (I Thess. 5: 18) “Thank God for and in everything, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus”. A godly person is a grateful person---it’s part of his nature.  So even if you forgot, when you remember “your oops” ---get after it with a heart felt THANK YOU! That my friend is God’s way and will for His children.

ABIDING IN CHRIST

ABIDING in CHRIST

The most important factor in our walk with Jesus Christ is to abide in him. The more we abide in Christ, the more we will have peace, victory over sin, and be walking in His steps.. What does it mean to abide in Christ? Let's first look at the definition for the word abide. John 15:4 says---Jesus speaking---“Abide in me, just as I am abiding in you” So what does “abide” mean:

ABIDE:
to wait for
to endure without yielding
to bear patiently
to accept without objection
to remain stable or fixed in a state
to continue in a place
Synonyms: Stay, continue, bear

ABIDING: enduring, continuing---- abide has to do with the concept of 'being' instead of 'doing'. Doing in relation to the Christian walk is: reading your Bible, going to church, praying, witnessing, doing good works, fleeing sin, etc. These are all good things to do as a Christian. These are things we should be doing. If we are not doing these things our walk with God and others will suffer. However,  if we are doing these things just because we are suppose to, or we are doing them in our own strength, we will not have victory or peace and miss out in having an intimate relationship with Christ. If we are not careful, we can become works oriented instead of Christ oriented.

To Abide in Christ is to be in the 'being' mode. We still are doing the things that God has called us to, but we are doing it in His strength. Abiding in Christ is about having an intimate relationship with Him. The relationship is more important than the things we do or don't do. The more we are abiding in Him, the more we will be faithful. We will hear His voice clearer, not be works oriented, and have more peace in our life. To abide is to experience His presence.
Let's drill down on the definition of abide:

To wait for-We as Christians need to spend much more time waiting on God. By this we mean spending time with God, seeking His will, not jumping ahead of Him

.
To endure without yielding-To be determined to experience God's presence.

To bear patiently-To abide in Christ when we don't feel like it. To be patient---waiting for God to reveal His will and Himself.

 
To continue in a place-We need to spend more time, staying in His presence

If we are abiding in Christ, we can be assured that we will walk IN HIS STEPS.
Abiding in Christ is a process. We don't get there over night. So don't get discouraged if it seems hard to just 'rest in Him'. Begin to look for God’s presence in all aspects of your world. Enjoy the forests, the lakes, the blue skies (even the thunder and lightning), the green pastures and a starry night . As you enjoy God's creation, you will begin to sense His presence. Abiding will come. Stop and 'smell the roses'---practice the presence of Jesus

There is a song by Watermark that is excellent about experiencing God's presence. It is called "Take Me There"

(Chorus) Take me there to the place where you are Take me there, take me there, I just wanna be where You are Hide me in Your shelter Hide me here, hide me here I just wanna be where you are (Repeat Chorus) (Verse) You have buried my sin in the depths, my Lord And You've covered me from the furious storm And You've kept me in the cleft of Your rock And You've loved me there right from the start (Chorus) (Verse) You are here and I can feel You I just love to be where You are Hide me in this shelter I just love to be where You are (Chorus)

REAL OR COUNTERFIT CONTENTMENT

Read | Philippians 4:10-13

Think about the times when you have felt truly satisfied. What caused you to feel that way? For most people, a sense of well-being comes when their environment is just the way they want it, but that wasn’t the case with Paul. He learned to be content in every circumstance, good or bad.

We’d do well to learn a few lessons from him. After all, we can’t avoid all difficult situations, so we might as well discover how to face them with a tranquil, settled spirit rather than with frustration and anxiety.

Contentment isn’t governed by external circumstances. Changing the situation may bring temporary relief, but satisfaction based on circumstances will always be sporadic and fleeting. It’s a matter of how you think, not what you have.

Contentment flows from an inward attitude. The apostle’s inner calm came from a mind set on Christ. Choosing to trust the Savior no matter what, Paul allowed the Holy Spirit within him to rule his emotions and shape his responses.

Contentment is learned experientially. You cannot acquire it from a book or a sermon because it’s a process that must be lived out. Paul learned contentment on the road—in persecution, suffering, and prison. The Lord used every difficulty to transform him.

Situations that cause frustration, anxiety, and dissatisfaction are also the ones God uses to produce contentment in us. When you are fed up with your own grumbling, disappointment, and dissatisfaction, then you are ready to let the Lord teach you His new way of living—in joyous trust!

STAYING IN BALANCE

Now may the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God and into the patience of Christ.

— 2 Thessalonians 3:5

Jesus said the first and greatest commandment is, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind" (Matthew 22:37). Mark's Gospel adds the word "strength" to this statement (see Mark 12:30).

To break it down, the heart, for the Hebrew mind, spoke of the core of one's being, while the soul referred to emotion. It is the same word that Jesus used when He cried out in the Garden of Gethsemane, "My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death" (Matthew 26:38). And loving God with all our mind carries the idea of moving ahead with energy and strength.

So to put it all together, genuine love for the Lord is intelligent. It is feeling. It is willing. And it is serving.

Some people love God with all of their minds, but there is no heart in it. They love to study. They love to be theologically correct. But there is no passion in their lives. On the other hand, some people love God with all of their heart and their passion and their emotion, but they haven't disciplined themselves to study the Bible. As a result, they are easily led astray. We need all of these things in play to love God as we ought to.

I know people who are sticklers for correct doctrine, yet many of them are miserable, mean, arrogant, and condemning. They will take the truth and use it like a sledgehammer in the life of another person. I also know people who are very active and busy for God, but their love for Him seems to be lacking.

If we can learn to love God with all our heart, soul, and mind, then our lives will find their proper balance

"Going with your gut!?"

Read : Psalm 119:97-104

People make a lot of decisions on any given day. Most choices present themselves quickly, leaving little time to weigh pros and cons. So we “go with our gut.” However, believers who desire to walk wisely through the perils of this world require something more reliable than flesh-based instinct. We need godly knowledge and principles to guide us, which is why we must meditate on the Word.

Over the years I would mention meditating on Scripture often in my writing and preaching—and for good reason. The Bible is the key to knowing God and following His will. Believers simply cannot neglect spending time poring over its words. If you want to be certain of God’s perspective on an issue, you go to the source book to fill your mind with truth.

All of us have a sort of grid around our minds. It’s made up of the principles we were taught as children, the habits we’ve formed, and the information we accept as true. New knowledge coming our way passes through that grid and is either assimilated or rejected. Think about TV commercials—those persuasive ads full of beautiful people are designed to steal past your mind’s defenses. Well, the Devil has the same goal of getting past your grid and gaining a mental and spiritual foothold.

Some of the darts that Satan aims at your mind seem harmless or even good—that’s why  “going with your gut” is so dangerous. A mental grid plastered with biblical truth is essential for Christians, because it identifies and rejects whatever is sinful, poorly timed, or simply not fit for God’s children.

TEN YEARS AGO---WOW!

One decade ago, the United States of America experienced a massive attack by terrorists. Our people were shaken by the realization that the country is not as safe as we once thought.
Of course, it grieved me to learn of the events that occurred and the lives that were tragically lost. But at the same time, the horrible situation led to some positive outcomes. For example, our nation unified and people served with courage and selflessness.
One of the biggest benefits, I believe, was that many of us realized our great dependence upon God. Safety in this world is an illusion. Sadly, the peace and blessing we have experienced in America has led to much complacency and self-dependence. Sometimes we need to be shaken out of our forgetfulness and into reliance upon Jesus Christ.
Just listening to the news these days can rattle our sense of well-being. There is always something unsettling taking place. But as believers, we should look at life from a biblical perspective. We are children of the living God, not people who seek security only in the natural, secular world. Our hope and refuge is firm: through Jesus Christ, our relationship with the Lord is eternal. Everything else we possess could be destroyed in a moment.
Worldly circumstances—natural disasters, wars, and assorted turmoil—may have an effect on everyone, but they can't control the believer's heart. Let your hope rest in Christ alone. Only by finding security in the arms of Almighty God can you remain unshaken in times of uncertainty.

WHAT PART OF"US" DON'T YOU UNDERSTAND?

 “On the same day, when evening had come, He said to them, "Let us cross over to the other side."

— Mark 4:35

In the Gospel of Mark, we find an interesting story in which Jesus invited the disciples, some of whom were seasoned fishermen, to join Him on a little boat trip across the Sea of Galilee. But on the way over, they encountered a radical storm.

Now the question would arise, "Did Jesus know that a storm was coming?" The answer is yes. In fact, you might even say that it was a part of His curriculum that day. It was all part of teaching the disciples to believe what they claimed to believe.

I don't want to make light of what these disciples were experiencing, because I'm sure this was a very harsh storm. Several on board had seen many storms on the Sea of Galilee. So it had to be a very difficult storm for the disciples to be so gripped by fear. According to Mark's Gospel, the waves were breaking over the boat and filling it with water.

The disciples were very afraid, but they didn't have to be. Jesus had made a significant statement they apparently had forgotten about: "Let us go to the other side."

And when God says, "Let us go to the other side," it means you will get to the other side. He didn't say it would be smooth sailing. He didn't say it would be an easy trip. But He did say, "Let us go to the other side."

Often we are gripped by fear and cease to think logically when we forget God's Word to us. That is exactly what happened to the disciples. But Jesus was on board with them, and He was there to see them through. On the occasion of the feeding of the 5000+ people with five loaves and two fish­---prior to doing it, Jesus said in John’s gospel “ where will WE get enough bread to feed this crowd?”  Regardless of the circumstances or difficult situations and challenges we face, don’t forget the “US AND WE” factor of Jesus in our life with us!!