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Buckle up, precious cargo

Buckle up! You are “Precious Cargo”!

Mia wanted to be sure that Pooky and Rudolph were safe in the car.

Are you safe and ready to step out into the world today? Have you put on the full armor of God to protect you from the schemes of your enemies?
He put on righteousness as his body armor and placed the helmet of salvation on his head. He clothed himself with a robe of vengeance and wrapped himself in a cloak of divine passion. He will repay his enemies for their evil deeds. His fury will fall on his foes. He will pay them back even to the ends of the earth. In the west, people will respect the name of the Lord ; in the east, they will glorify him. For he will come like a raging flood tide driven by the breath of the Lord . “The Redeemer will come to Jerusalem to buy back those in Israel who have turned from their sins,” says the Lord . “And this is my covenant with them,” says the Lord . “My Spirit will not leave them, and neither will these words I have given you. They will be on your lips and on the lips of your children and your children’s children forever. I, the Lord , have spoken!

Isaiah 59:17‭-‬21
A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places. Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm. Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness. For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared.  In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil.  Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere. And pray for me, too. Ask God to give me the right words so I can boldly explain God’s mysterious plan that the Good News is for Jews and Gentiles alike.  I am in chains now, still preaching this message as God’s ambassador. So pray that I will keep on speaking boldly for him, as I should.

Ephesians 6:10‭-‬20 NLT

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Persevere


“Because you have obeyed my command to persevere, I will protect you from the great time of testing that will come upon the whole world to test those who belong to this world.” – Revelation 3:10 NLT


“Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me. “Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing.  Anyone who does not remain in me is thrown away like a useless branch and withers. Such branches are gathered into a pile to be burned.  But if you remain in me and my words remain in you, you may ask for anything you want, and it will be granted!  When you produce much fruit, you are my true disciples. This brings great glory to my Father. “I have loved you even as the Father has loved me. Remain in my love.  When you obey my commandments, you remain in my love, just as I obey my Father’s commandments and remain in his love.  I have told you these things so that you will be filled with my joy. Yes, your joy will overflow!  This is my commandment: Love each other in the same way I have loved you.  There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.  You are my friends if you do what I command.  I no longer call you slaves, because a master doesn’t confide in his slaves. Now you are my friends, since I have told you everything the Father told me.  You didn’t choose me. I chose you. I appointed you to go and produce lasting fruit, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask for, using my name.  This is my command: Love each other.” – John 15:4‭-‬17 NLT


“If the world hates you, remember that it hated me first.  The world would love you as one of its own if you belonged to it, but you are no longer part of the world. I chose you to come out of the world, so it hates you.  Do you remember what I told you? ‘A slave is not greater than the master.’ Since they persecuted me, naturally they will persecute you. And if they had listened to me, they would listen to you.  They will do all this to you because of me, for they have rejected the one who sent me.  They would not be guilty if I had not come and spoken to them. But now they have no excuse for their sin.” – John 15:18‭-‬22 NLT


From that time on, Esau hated Jacob because their father had given Jacob the blessing. And Esau began to scheme: “I will soon be mourning my father’s death. Then I will kill my brother, Jacob.” But Rebekah heard about Esau’s plans. So she sent for Jacob and told him, “Listen, Esau is consoling himself by plotting to kill you. So listen carefully, my son. Get ready and flee to my brother, Laban, in Haran. Stay there with him until your brother cools off. When he calms down and forgets what you have done to him, I will send for you to come back. Why should I lose both of you in one day?” – Genesis 27:41‭-‬45 NLT


“So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor. Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you. Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your family of believers all over the world is going through the same kind of suffering you are. In his kindness God called you to share in his eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. So after you have suffered a little while, he will restore, support, and strengthen you, and he will place you on a firm foundation.” – 1 Peter 5:6‭-‬10 NLT


But Moses told the people, “Don’t be afraid. Just stand still and watch the Lord rescue you today. The Egyptians you see today will never be seen again. The Lord himself will fight for you. Just stay calm.” – Exodus 14:13‭-‬14 NLT


“So follow the steps of the good, and stay on the paths of the righteous. For only the godly will live in the land, and those with integrity will remain in it. But the wicked will be removed from the land, and the treacherous will be uprooted.” – Proverbs 2:20‭-‬22 NLT

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When Passion runs High, Pride is at Work

Amos33We are on vacation at the beach this week, and I’ve been taking pictures — both of our family, and of the sights and people around us. So my eyes have been open to pay attention and see more than I would usually recognize. One thing that I’ve noticed is that it seems like long periods of time together seems to multiply the impact of emotions. As friends begin spending every waking hour together for day after day, passions can run high. Families can enjoy and appreciate time together until the breaking point when everyone just wants their own corner of the house to hide in.

 

As I was taking pictures today, I caught a picture of two girls riding on the back of a golf cart. They were apparently friends (not sisters), but they had turned away from each other and slid as far from each other as they could. I’m guessing they had a disagreement and were each pouting and mad with one another. Out here this week, I’ve seen the same thing between adults — between families — between spouses. And I don’t think that it’s any different than what happens at home, but it might be a little bit heightened because of the concentrated amount of time together.

 

Let’s be honest. Without love, we would be ready to kill each other. We can get on each other’s nerves. We can lose our patience. We can become offended over silly things that really shouldn’t compromise our relationships. But all of that comes down to pride, right? At some point, our true colors shine through once we’ve been tested to our limits. And in most cases, when the “being nice” wears off, we’re faced with whether or not we will just turn to the person and say “I’m sorry.”

 

Yesterday, we were tired and ready to head home from the pool, but someone had left their golf cart parked sideways behind ours and two others, blocking us all in. We were all parked legally in spaces, and this cart had just decided to do as they pleased with no concern for our being able to get out. We looked around for signs of anyone around to no avail. We even helped one of the carts on the side navigate their way barely past the edge of the offending cart. A security guard on his cart even saw what was happening from a short distance away and gave us no help.

 

So eventually, we got tired of waiting, and I walked over to the offending cart, pressed the gas pedal on it to release the brake, and began pushing the cart by hand out of the way. At that moment, I hear a “Stop! What do you think that you’re doing?” from behind me. I turn around to see a woman security guard walking over with a stern look, telling me “You can’t do that, don’t you know that’s a security cart?” To which I replied, “No, there are no markings on it, and no one is here at it, and it has been blocking our way.” She continued to try and tell me that what I was doing was wrong. To which I said, “Look, you have no right to be telling me about right and wrong when you’ve left this cart abandoned, illegally parked, and left multiple families blocked in with no other option than to do something about it since your buddy over there saw the whole situation playing out and didn’t lend a hand or tell us what was going on. Please move so we can get out.”

 

I was not very loving in my response because I was tired, frustrated, and ready to get home. I was not trying to be rude or disrespectful, but I felt justified in my pointing out that she was actually the one in the wrong and that I was just trying to deal with the situation she had left for me by her inconsiderate actions. But it completely passed over her head and she seemed as if she could care less, moving her cart over to join the other security guard she had been talking with (who had been watching the whole time). I drove up, and I asked her for her name. “Jill”, she said. At first, I was thinking of asking so that I could make a complaint. I can be honest enough to admit that.

 

But this morning, I’m going to pray for “Jill”, and I’m going to pray for myself — that I will be able to show a little more love. My daughter was witness to me standing up for what was right — but she did not see an example of what would have been the most loving way to handle the situation. Lord, help me, even in these times where my patience is stretched thin to rely upon your strength, to call out upon your name, and to trust you. Help me to leave room for your wrath, your correction, your guidance — and for your kindness to lead others to you. Help me to find points of agreement instead of falling into division and offense. Help me to die to self, and see even challenges when I feel wronged as an opportunity to remember that you truly were wronged, persecuted, mocked, and falsely accused – so that I might offer to others the same measure of forgiveness that I hope to receive myself.

 

“Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.” – 1 Corinthians 13:4-7