(September 30, 2011 Fri 8:19 AM CDT)
"The crowd began to scold them
What do you want Jesus to do for you?
in an effort to reduce them to silence,
but they only shouted the louder,
'Lord, Son of David, have pity on us!'
Jesus then stopped and called out to them,
'What do you want me to do for you?'
'Lord,' they told him, 'open our eyes!'
Moved with compassion, Jesus touched their eyes,
and immediately they could see;
and they became his followers."
Matthew 20:31-34
What do you long for?
Call out his name.
He will stop and listen to you and heal you.
Then follow him for the rest of your days.
(September 28, 2011 Wed 6:42 AM CDT)
"Jesus got into one of the boats,
It must have been something to witness this scene ---
the one belonging to Simon,
and asked him to pull out
a short distance from the shore;
then, remaining seated, he continued
to teach the crowds from the boat."
Luke 5:3
Jesus and Simon the fisherman in the boat
and the great crowd on the shore.
Jesus will ask you to do little things.
We know Simon (aka Peter) was asked to do far greater tasks.
Be open to the tasks the Lord gives you today.
He is preparing you to do much more tomorrow.
(September 27, 2011 Tue 6:24 AM CDT)
"A certain Ananias, a devout observer of the law
Saul/Paul regained his sight.
and well spoken of by all the Jews who lived there,
came and stood by me.
'Saul, my brother,' he said, 'recover your sight.'
In that instant I regained my sight
and looked at him."
Acts 22:12-13
He had lost sight of the truth.
The Lord pointed out his errors.
He changed his life.
He became a follower of Jesus.
(September 26, 2011 Mon 6:29 AM CDT)
Pray for someone I used to work with.
"He will strengthen you to the end,
Ask for what you need.
They are sick in the hospital.
God bless them and heal them.
so that you will be blameless
on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.
God is faithful, and it was he
who called you to fellowship
with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord."
1 Corinthians 1:8-9
The Lord will give you strength.
You have been called to a life of holiness.
Be faithful.
(September 24, 2011 Sat 10:26 AM CDT)
"I know that this man ---
Paul saw the other side.
whether in or outside his body
I do not know, God knows ---
was snatched up to Paradise
to hear words which cannot be uttered,
words which no man may speak.
About this man I will boast;
but I will do no boasting about myself
unless it be about my weaknesses."
2 Corinthians 12:3-5
He saw beyond the veil.
He saw heaven.
It is there.
It is a gift that is given to us by the Lord.
(September 23, 2011 Fri 6:44 AM CDT)
"Anyone who is so 'progressive'
Protect your house and family.
that he does not remain rooted
in the teaching of Christ does not possess God,
while anyone who remains rooted in the teaching
possesses both the Father and the Son.
If anyone comes to you who does not bring this teaching,
do not receive him into your house;
do not even greet him,
for whoever greets him shares in the evil he does."
2 John 1:9-11
Do not let false teaching come near you.
Test the message for the truth.
Ask the Holy Spirit to point out these errors.
Be rooted in the teaching of Christ.
(September 22, 2011 Thu 6:42 AM CDT)
"Those who trust in the Lord
Trust in the Lord.
are like Mount Zion,
which is immovable; which forever stands.
Mountains are round about Jerusalem;
so the Lord is round about his people,
both now and forever."
Psalms 125:1-2
God always was and will always be.
He surrounds you and your family with his love.
Feel secure.
Amen.
(September 21, 2011 Wed 6:40 AM CDT)
Jesus taught,
It is a command.
"Then they in turn will ask:
'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty
or away from home or naked or ill
or in prison and not attend you in your needs?'
He will answer them:
'I assure you, as often as you neglected
to do it to one of these least ones,
you neglected to do it to me.'
These will go off to eternal punishment
and the just to eternal life."
Matthew 25:44-46
It is a serious command from the Lord.
Help those near you as best as you can.
Remember the poor.
(September 20, 2011 Tue 6:25 AM CDT)
Jesus told a parable:
You have been blessed with many talents.
"But those sown on good soil
are the ones who listen to the word,
take it to heart, and yield at
thirty- and sixty- and hundred-fold."
Mark 4:20
Use them for the kingdom of God.
Help those near you to grow in faith.
Be a blessing today.
(September 19, 2011 Mon 6:24 AM CDT)
The water level on the Missouri River is dropping
"Then Jesus poured water into a basin
Jesus came to serve.
after the flood of 2011.
It is interesting to see what is
left behind
.
There is much mud.
and began to wash his disciples' feet
and dry them with the towel
he had around him."
John 13:5
He set an example of faith.
Be like him.
Be of service to others.
You will be blest (John 13:17).
(September 18, 2011 Sun 9:21 AM CDT)
"Yet in all this we are more than conquerors
The love of God is there.
because of him who has loved us.
For I am certain that neither death nor life,
neither angels nor principalities,
neither the present nor the future, nor powers,
neither height nor depth nor any other creature,
will be able to separate us from the love of God
that comes to us in Christ Jesus, our Lord."
Romans 8:37-39
It is present in this world.
Nothing can separate you the love of God.
Open your heart and your mind.
You are loved.
(September 16, 2011 Fri 9:39 AM CDT)
"Seek eagerly after love.
There are many gifts of the Holy Spirit.
Set your hearts on spiritual gifts ---
above all, the gift of prophecy."
1 Corinthians 14:1
Ask the Lord for these gifts.
Open your heart to the wonders of our God.
Seek and you will find.
Be a prophet.
Change lives.
(September 15, 2011 Thu 6:27 AM CDT)
"As your fellow workers we beg you
Today is the day.
not to receive the grace of God in vain.
For he says,
'In an acceptable time I have heard you;
on a day of salvation I have helped you.'
Now is the acceptable time!
Now is the day of salvation!'"
2 Corinthians 6:1-2
Make a decision right away.
Do not wait.
Open your heart to Jesus.
Ask him to forgive your sins.
Receive the grace of God.
Jesus, come into my life today.
I need you.
(September 14, 2011 Wed 6:27 AM CDT)
"But now in Christ Jesus
Come near and see.
you who once were far off
have been brought near
through the blood of Christ."
Ephesians 2:13
Jesus gave up his life for us.
His blood was given to redeem our sins.
We now have access to eternal life.
Thank the Lord for opening the gates of heaven.
(September 13, 2011 Tue 6:23 AM CDT)
"As you well know,
We are only here for a short time.
we have our citizenship in heaven;
it is from there that we eagerly await
the coming of our Savior,
the Lord Jesus Christ.
He will give a new form
to this lowly body of ours and
remake it according to the pattern
of his glorified body,
by his power to subject everything to himself."
Philippians 3:20-21
Our home is in heaven above.
We are meant to be with Jesus forever.
Be eager to go home.
(September 12, 2011 Mon 6:38 AM CDT)
Yesterday I was in
Mineola, Iowa
.
"Wherefore, we who are receiving
We have an awesome God.
Most of the windows facing east are boarded up.
There was a hail storm a few weeks ago on August 18.
God bless everyone there as they fix their houses.
the unshakable kingdom
should hold fast to God's grace;
through which we may offer worship
acceptable to him in reverence and awe.
For our God is a consuming fire."
Hebrews 12:28-29
He wants our full attention.
He is king of all creation.
Give all that you are to him.
(September 11, 2011 Sun 9:31 AM CDT)
"Taking the Twelve aside, Jesus said to them:
There must have been an easier way to save us one would think.
'We must now go up to Jerusalem
so that all that was written by the prophets
concerning the Son of Man may be accomplished.
He will be delivered up to the Gentiles.
He will be mocked and outraged and spat upon.
They will scourge him and put him to death,
and on the third day he will rise again.'"
Luke 18:31-33
Why did Jesus go to Jerusalem and die for us?
He knew he would endure great suffering and pain.
It is interesting to think about.
The only explanation is that he loves us
more than we can imagine.
Jesus, thank you for your great love.
(September 10, 2011 Sat 10:20 AM CDT)
"On the first day of the week
Attend church each week.
when we gathered
for the breaking of bread,
Paul preached to them."
Acts 20:7
Worship God and give him praise.
Share your faith with each other.
Experience the grace of God in your midst.
(September 9, 2011 Fri 6:35 AM CDT)
"For this reason,
Welcome the Holy Spirit into your life.
I remind you to stir into flame
the gift of God bestowed
when my hands were laid on you.
The Spirit God has given us
is no cowardly spirit,
but rather one that makes us
strong, loving and wise."
2 Timothy 1:6-7
Receive this new gift.
Be strong in the Lord.
Love one another.
Call on the wisdom from the Spirit.
(September 8, 2011 Thu 6:22 AM CDT)
"You see, brother,
Be of service.
I want to make you 'useful'
to me in the Lord.
Refresh this heart of mine in Christ."
Philemon 1:20
Be useful.
Refresh the spirit of others today.
Be a joyful soul in the Lord.
(September 7, 2011 Wed 6:44 AM CDT)
"That divine power of his has freely bestowed on us
We have all that we need.
everything necessary for a life of genuine piety,
through knowledge of him who called us
by his own glory and power."
2 Peter 1:3
Jesus gives us the grace to live a holy life.
Listen to the Lord.
Walk with him daily.
(September 6, 2011 Tue 6:15 AM CDT)
The Sudoku puzzles in the newspaper for
"Have no love for the world,
We live in the world,
September 3 and 4 were the same.
.53..27.....49.5....2.....3.8.2........63..816......25.7............7.94..1.5...6
It took me 3 minutes longer to finish it the second time.
You would think it would help me
to have the same puzzle two days in a row.
nor the things that the world affords.
If anyone loves the world,
the Father's love has no place in him,
for nothing that the world affords
comes from the Father."
1 John 2:15-16
but we do not want to forget about heaven.
We are meant to live with the Father forever.
The things of the world can be large distractions.
We can lose our focus.
Live a simple material life.
(September 5, 2011 Mon 9:19 AM CDT)
"But when Peter perceived how strong the wind was,
Walking on water is an amazing thing to witness.
becoming frightened, he began to sink
and cried out, 'Lord save me!'
Jesus at once stretched out his hand and caught him."
Matthew 14:30-31
It was a miracle.
Peter saw it and then experienced it himself.
Something went wrong and he began to sink.
It says a lot about us.
Sometimes our faith is very strong and sometimes not.
When we fail we just need to call out to Jesus
and ask him to save us from sinking.
Jesus, come and save us.
We have much to learn.
(September 4, 2011 Sun 9:28 AM CDT)
I cut up the two branches from the backyard yesterday.
"At one point, children were brought to him
What does it take to get to heaven?
It filled up 4 trash cans.
so that he could place his hands on them in prayer.
The disciples began to scold them, but Jesus said,
'Let the children come to me.
Do not hinder them.
The kingdom of God belongs to such as these.'
And he laid his hands on their heads
before he left that place."
Matthew 19:13-15
How should we live?
It is not that complicated.
Jesus says to be like children.
Be dependent on him.
Desire to come near to him.
Wait patiently to receive blessings from him.
(September 3, 2011 Sat 10:02 AM CDT)
We had a cold front go through
"Thus it was that John the Baptizer
The seasons are changing.
last night at 8:40 PM in Omaha.
There are two 8 foot long branches
down in the backyard.
It is turning much cooler today.
appeared in the desert,
proclaiming a baptism of repentance
which led to the forgiveness of sins."
Mark 1:4
Your life is changing.
Draw near to the Lord
and he will draw near to you.
Ask Jesus to forgive your sins today.
(September 2, 2011 Fri 6:32 AM CDT)
"He then said,
Call on Jesus to save you.
'Jesus, remember me
when you enter upon your reign.'
And Jesus replied,
'I assure you:
this day you will be with me in paradise.'"
Luke 23:42-43
He wants to help you.
He loves you.
You are his child.
Go to him and find peace and joy.
Find true paradise.
(September 1, 2011 Thu 6:27 AM CDT)
"Day after day, both in the temple and at home,
In this year of disasters we need good news.
they never stopped teaching and proclaiming
the good news of Jesus the Messiah."
Acts 5:42
FEMA
is running low on money.
Jesus is alive.
He will rescue you.
He is your Savior.
