go

Mark 16:15 And then (Jesus) told them, "Go into all the world & preach the Good News to everyone, everywhere."

The operative word in that sentence for me this morning is "go".

I don't know what that means for me in the walking out of it.

I also figure that "go" is pretty much the operative word for all of us in that sentence.

"Go" indicates taking action, moving off square one, doing "some thing", getting going.

I wonder what the "go" in this sentence means for you?

I wonder what the "go" in this sentence means for me?

figuring

Proverbs 3:5 (The Message)
Trust God from the bottom of your heart;
don't try to figure out everything on your own.
Listen for God's voice, everywhere you go, in everything you do;
He's the One who will keep you on track.

Anybody out there besides me always trying to figure everything out?

And anybody out there besides me try to make things happen that we think we've figured out?

Anybody out there besides me tired of doing this?

Maybe we should just take one day at a time? (I feel a song coming on...)

Maybe we should just trust Him & instead of trying to make things happen, we just let Him make things happen?

This isn't just some scripture I'm spewing today. This is where I'm trying to live these days.

walk by faith

Psalm 73:24 You will keep on guiding me with Your counsel,
leading me to a glorious destiny.
25 Whom have I in heaven but You?
I desire You more than anything on earth.
26 My health may fail, and my spirit may grow weak,
but God remains the strength of my heart;
He is mine forever.

27 Those who desert Him will perish,
for You destroy those who abandon You.
28 But as for me, how good it is to be near God!
I have made the Sovereign LORD my shelter,
and I will tell everyone about the wonderful things You do.

I read this on May 6, 2003. That was the morning AFTER I said yes to God the night before about leaving 30 of music ministry behind & starting to be a part of House of Grace.

I'd started to read Psalm 73 after months of God making me restless (or "stirred") & talking to me every day in my Bible reading.

So I get up after an evening of saying the BIG yes, & there's nothing in the Psalm I'm reading that speaks to me. I was so pouty. I thought after all those months He'd have something to say to me the day after saying yes.

Then I got to verse 24.

I cried when I read it.

Tears came to my eyes as I wrote this this morning.

The past 7 years have been, all in all, glorious.


Jeremy Camp wrote a song, Walk by Faith, during his 1st marriage, which was to a woman he knew was dying of cancer.

I held on to in 2003. It's still true today.

You can hear him sing it on youtube here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dEkh_KxKao0


Will I believe You when You say
Your hand will guide my every way
Will I receive the words You say
Every moment of every day

Well I will walk by faith
Even when I cannot see
because this broken road
Prepares Your will for me

Help me to RID my endless fears
You've been so faithful for all my years
With the one breath You make me new
Your grace covers all I do

yeah, yeah , yeah, yeah, ya

well i will walk by faith
even when i cannot see
because this broken road
prepares Your will for me

Well I'm broken- but I still see Your face
Well You've spoken- pouring Your words of grace

Well I will walk by faith
Even when I cannot see
Well because this broken road
Prepares Your will for me
(Repeat)
Well I will walk by faith
Even when I cannot see
Well because this broken road
Prepares Your will for me

Hallelujah, hallelu


I will walk by faith, I will walk by faith,
I will walk by faith
I will walk by faith, I will walk by faith,
I will walk by faith
I will walk by faith, I will walk by faith,
I will walk by faith
I will walk by faith
I will walk,I will walk
Faith
I will walk, I will walk by faith

an invitation

Isaiah 55:1 "Is anyone thirsty?
Come and drink —
even if you have no money!
Come, take your choice of wine or milk —
it's all free!
2 Why spend your money on food that does not give you strength?
Why pay for food that does you no good?
Listen to me, and you will eat what is good.
You will enjoy the finest food.

3 "Come to me with your ears wide open.
Listen, and you will find life.
I will make an everlasting covenant with you.
I will give you all the unfailing love I promised to David.
4 See how I used him to display my power among the peoples.
I made him a leader among the nations.
5 You also will command nations you do not know,
and peoples unknown to you will come running to obey,
because I, the LORD your God,
the Holy One of Israel, have made you glorious."

6 Seek the LORD while you can find him.
Call on him now while he is near.
7 Let the wicked change their ways
and banish the very thought of doing wrong.
Let them turn to the LORD that he may have mercy on them.
Yes, turn to our God, for he will forgive generously.

8 "My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts," says the LORD.
"And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine.
9 For just as the heavens are higher than the earth,
so my ways are higher than your ways
and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.

10 "The rain and snow come down from the heavens
and stay on the ground to water the earth.
They cause the grain to grow,
producing seed for the farmer
and bread for the hungry.
11 It is the same with my word.
I send it out, and it always produces fruit.
It will accomplish all I want it to,
and it will prosper everywhere I send it.
12 You will live in joy and peace.
The mountains and hills will burst into song,
and the trees of the field will clap their hands!
13 Where once there were thorns, cypress trees will grow.
Where nettles grew, myrtles will sprout up.
These events will bring great honor to the LORD's name;
they will be an everlasting sign of his power and love."

2 scriptures

Psalm 71:5 O Lord, you alone are my hope.
I've trusted you, O LORD, from childhood.
6 Yes, you have been with me from birth;
from my mother's womb you have cared for me.
No wonder I am always praising you!

********

Mark 12:28 One of the teachers of religious law was standing there listening to the debate. He realized that Jesus had answered well, so he asked, "Of all the commandments, which is the most important?"
29 Jesus replied, "The most important commandment is this: 'Listen, O Israel! The LORD our God is the one and only LORD. 30 And you must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.' 31 The second is equally important: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' No other commandment is greater than these."

Iow, to boil it all down: Love God, love people

I wish someone would design a tattoo using that

;-)

have faith in God

Mark 11:22 Then Jesus said to the disciples, "Have faith in God. 23 I tell you the truth, you can say to this mountain, 'May you be lifted up and thrown into the sea,' and it will happen. But you must really believe it will happen and have no doubt in your heart. 24 I tell you, you can pray for anything, and if you believe that you've received it, it will be yours.

25 But when you are praying, first forgive anyone you are holding a grudge against, so that your Father in heaven will forgive your sins, too.

opposites

Mark 10:31 many who are the greatest now will be least important then, and those who seem least important now will be the greatest then.

Mark 10:43b Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant, 44 and whoever wants to be first among you must be the slave of everyone else. 45 For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.

This was so radical a thought process when Jesus first spoke it. The Roman/Hebrew world didn't operate that way.

Neither does ours, today, in 21st century America.

let it go to get it

Mark 8:34 Then, calling the crowd to join his disciples, he said, "If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ambitions, take up your cross, and follow me.

35 If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake and for the sake of the Good News, you will save it.

36 And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul?

37 Is anything worth more than your soul?

38 If anyone is ashamed of me and my message in these adulterous and sinful days, the Son of Man will be ashamed of that person when he returns in the glory of his Father with the holy angels."

Isaiah 49:23d Those who wait for Me will never be put to shame.

verb (used without object)

1. to remain inactive or in a state of repose, as until something expected happens (often fol. by for, till, or until): to wait for the bus to arrive.

2. (of things) to be available or in readiness: A letter is waiting for you.

3. to remain neglected for a time: a matter that can wait.

4. to postpone or delay something or to be postponed or delayed: We waited a week and then bought the house. Your vacation will have to wait until next month.

5. to look forward to eagerly: I'm just waiting for the day somebody knocks him down.

–verb (used with object)

6. to continue as one is in expectation of; await: to wait one's turn at a telephone booth.

7. to postpone or delay in expectation: Don't wait supper for me.

8. Archaic. (of things) to be in readiness for; be reserved for; await: Glory waits thee.

9. Archaic. to attend upon or escort, esp. as a sign of respect.

–noun

10. an act or instance of waiting or awaiting; delay; halt: a wait at the border.

11. a period or interval of waiting: There will be a long wait between trains.

12. Theater.

a. the time between two acts, scenes, or the like.

b. stage wait

13. British.

a. waits, (formerly) a band of musicians employed by a city or town to play music in parades, for official functions, etc.

b. a street musician, esp. a singer.

c. one of a band of carolers.

d. a piece sung by carolers, esp. a Christmas carol.

14. Obsolete. a watchman.



I am waiting for so much right now...

touching, healing

Mark 6:53 After they had crossed the lake, they landed at Gennesaret. They brought the boat to shore 54 and climbed out. The people recognized Jesus at once, 55 and they ran throughout the whole area, carrying sick people on mats to wherever they heard he was. 56 Wherever he went—in villages, cities, or the countryside—they brought the sick out to the marketplaces. They begged him to let the sick touch at least the fringe of his robe, and all who touched him were healed.

Getting in touch with Jesus brings healing.

just trust Me

Mark 5:21 Jesus got into the boat again and went back to the other side of the lake, where a large crowd gathered around him on the shore. 22 Then a leader of the local synagogue, whose name was Jairus, arrived. When he saw Jesus, he fell at his feet, 23 pleading fervently with him. "My little daughter is dying," he said. "Please come and lay your hands on her; heal her so she can live."
24 Jesus went with him, and all the people followed, crowding around him. 25 A woman in the crowd had suffered for twelve years with constant bleeding. 26 She had suffered a great deal from many doctors, and over the years she had spent everything she had to pay them, but she had gotten no better. In fact, she had gotten worse. 27 She had heard about Jesus, so she came up behind him through the crowd and touched his robe. 28 For she thought to herself, "If I can just touch his robe, I will be healed." 29 Immediately the bleeding stopped, and she could feel in her body that she had been healed of her terrible condition.
30 Jesus realized at once that healing power had gone out from him, so he turned around in the crowd and asked, "Who touched my robe?"
31 His disciples said to him, "Look at this crowd pressing around you. How can you ask, 'Who touched me?'"
32 But he kept on looking around to see who had done it. 33 Then the frightened woman, trembling at the realization of what had happened to her, came and fell to her knees in front of him and told him what she had done. 34 And he said to her, "Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace. Your suffering is over."
35 While he was still speaking to her, messengers arrived from the home of Jairus, the leader of the synagogue. They told him, "Your daughter is dead. There's no use troubling the Teacher now."
36 But Jesus overheard* them and said to Jairus, "Don't be afraid. Just trust me."
37 Then Jesus stopped the crowd and wouldn't let anyone go with him except Peter, James, and John (the brother of James). 38 When they came to the home of the synagogue leader, Jesus saw much commotion and weeping and wailing. 39 He went inside and asked, "Why all this commotion and weeping? The child isn't dead; she's only asleep."
40 The crowd laughed at him. But he made them all leave, and he took the girl's father and mother and his three disciples into the room where the girl was lying. 41 Holding her hand, he said to her, "Talitha koum," which means "Little girl, get up!" 42 And the girl, who was twelve years old, immediately stood up and walked around! They were overwhelmed and totally amazed. 43 Jesus gave them strict orders not to tell anyone what had happened, and then he told them to give her something to eat.


"Don't be afraid. Just trust me."


How many of us (besides me) need to believe these words Jesus said to Jairus for every single area of our lives?

He will carry you

saiah 46:3b I created you & have cared for you since before you were born. 4 I will be your God throughout your lifetime - until your hair is white with age. I made you, & I will care for you. I will carry you along & save you.

Psalm 63:1 O God, you are my God;
I earnestly search for you.
My soul thirsts for you;
my whole body longs for you
in this parched and weary land
where there is no water.
2 I have seen you in your sanctuary
and gazed upon your power and glory.
3 Your unfailing love is better than life itself;
how I praise you!
4 I will praise you as long as I live,
lifting up my hands to you in prayer.
5 You satisfy me more than the richest feast.
I will praise you with songs of joy.

6 I lie awake thinking of you,
meditating on you through the night.
7 Because you are my helper,
I sing for joy in the shadow of your wings.
8 I cling to you;
your strong right hand holds me securely.

Jesus

Mark 3:31 Then Jesus' mother and brothers came to see him. They stood outside and sent word for him to come out and talk with them. 32 There was a crowd sitting around Jesus, and someone said, "Your mother and your brothers are outside asking for you."
33 Jesus replied, "Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?" 34 Then he looked at those around him and said, "Look, these are my mother and brothers. 35 Anyone who does God's will is my brother and sister and mother."

Mark is such a fast-paced gospel. I think he was a little ADHD, judging from how things zip from one thing to another, with just the bare-boned facts.

Do you ever get a little jaded about Jesus?

I know this may sound a little stupid, but for those of us who "grew up" being Christ followers, &/or who have been Christ followers for a long time, we've lived for a long time with the reality of who Jesus was, & what He did/does for us.

Do you ever feel like ya need to take a deep breath & re-engage the stunning reality that the God of the universes decided to come here to be here among us, to show us what God looks like, & to show us how to live?

I'm in my annual "read thru the gospels in one fell swoop" right now. I've grown up with the reality of Jesus. This morning, I was just struck by the fact that this was a real guy (who happened to also be God) who lived & breathed, got hungry, was happy & sad, ate dinner with friends, got called LOTS of names, slept out in the cold with friends, was betrayed & misunderstood, sneezed, scratched, & all those other body functions.

Iow, He was a real guy.

I'm not in a relationship with a distant God. I'm in a relationship with a real Person - a really real person - someone who's really more real than anyone.

This concept may incinerate my brain at this hour of the day.

who are our friends?

Mark 2: 13 Then Jesus went out to the lakeshore again and taught the crowds that were coming to him.14 As he walked along, he saw Levi son of Alphaeus sitting at his tax collector's booth. "Follow me and be my disciple," Jesus said to him. So Levi got up and followed him.
15 Later, Levi invited Jesus and his disciples to his home as dinner guests, along with many tax collectors and other notorious sinners. (There were many people of this kind among Jesus' followers.)16 But when the teachers of religious law who were Pharisees* saw him eating with tax collectors and other sinners, they asked his disciples, "Why does he eat with such scum?*"
17 When Jesus heard this, he told them, "Healthy people don't need a doctor—sick people do. I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners."

How many of us have friends who blatantly do not follow Jesus - friends we're trying to win to Him?

Or do we stay in the safety of our prissy Christian friends?

(I've often wondered what ya had to be or do to be a "notorious" sinner ;-)

don't be afraid

Isaiah 43:1 But now, O Israel, the LORD who created you says,
"Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you.
I have called you by name; you are mine.
2 When you go through deep waters,
I will be with you.
When you go through rivers of difficulty,
you will not drown.
When you walk through the fire of oppression,
you will not be burned up;
the flames will not consume you.
3 For I am the LORD, your God,
the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.

5 "Do not be afraid, for I am with you.

18 "But forget all that —
it is nothing compared to what I am going to do.
19 For I am about to do brand new thing.
See, I have already begun! Do you not see it?


Psalm 60:12 With God's help, we will do mighty things, for He will trample down our foes.

You are

Psalm 59:9 You are my strength; I wait for You to rescue me, for You, O God, are my place of safety.

right word, right time

Isaiah 41:9b For I have chosen you and will not throw you away. 10 Don't be afraid, for I am with you.
Do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you.
I will help you.
I will uphold you with my victorious right hand.

Today, in the sequence of my Bible reading, I was supposed to read Isaiah 41.

It was the 1st of the 3 books in the Bible I read from this a.m. - Isaiah 41, Psalms 58 (me & Billy Graham!), & Matthew 27.

Isaiah 41 was the first book I read from.

In the whole chapter, the only thing underlined were these 2 verses.

It was like they came quietly hurtling up off the page.

It was exactly what I needed to read this morning.

(How did I manage life before January, 2003, when I started reading the Bible every morning?)

trusting will getcha

saiah 40:28 Have you never heard?
Have you never understood?
The LORD is the everlasting God,
the Creator of all the earth.
He never grows weak or weary.
No one can measure the depths of his understanding.
29 He gives power to the weak
and strength to the powerless.
30 Even youths will become weak and tired,
and young men will fall in exhaustion.
31 But those who trust in the LORD will find new strength.
They will soar high on wings like eagles.
They will run and not grow weary.
They will walk and not faint.

wealth

Friday morning, I left for North Georgia with my son, Scott Adams. We road our motorcycles.

It was VERY windy Friday. We climbed in & out of the gorge at Tallulah Falls. We had a culinary adventure for supper in Clayton. We slept like dead men.

We drove across the top of Georgia. Came down a VERY interesting road - GA Rt 60 from near Blue Ridge to Dahlonega. There were LOTS of hairpin curves. I was mostly in & out of 3rd & 4th gears for about 33 miles. It was LOTS of fun.

It was just me & Scott for about 36 hours straight, on adventure.

I'm the wealthiest man I know.

You will

Psalm 54:6b I will praise Your name, O Lord, for it is good. 7a For You will rescue me from my troubles.

(btw, I won't be near a computer in the morning, so I won't do a blog. Thanks for all of you who get concerned if I don't write one. ;-)

hmmmmmmmm...

Psalm 53:1a Only fools say in their hearts, "There is no God."

Whenever I heard someone say that, or live like that, it makes me sad, because I consider, "I wonder what they'll be thinkin' about that statement 100 years from now?"


Matthew 22:34 But when the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees with his reply, they met together to question him again. 35 One of them, an expert in religious law, tried to trap him with this question: 36 "Teacher, which is the most important commandment in the law of Moses?" (dan note: there were gajillions of them)
37 Jesus replied, "'You must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.' 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 A second is equally important: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' 40 The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments."

Codified even further?

Love God, love people.

4 words

BIG job

trust

Psalm 52:8 But I am like an olive tree, thriving in the house of God.
I will always trust in God's unfailing love.
9 I will praise you forever, O God,
for what you have done.
I will trust in your good name
in the presence of your faithful people.

what's important

Matthew 20:26 Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant. 27 & whoever want to be first must become your slave.

Can you imagine the reaction of the people when Jesus said this? Things were pretty dog-eat-dog. Everyone was pretty much out for themselves.

hmmmm...

Is it any different today?

I wonder what would be the reaction to that statement today, or in the last 50 years, on Wall Street? Or if you mentioned it in the halls of Congress, or the White House? In Atlanta? In Macon? Or in any capital or city of any country in the world?

what He really wants

Psalm 50
7c I am God, your God!

13 I don't need the bulls you sacrifice.
I don't need the blood of goats.
14 What I want instead is your true thanks to God.
I want you to fulfill your vows to the Most High.
15 Trust Me in your times of trouble;
& I will rescue you,
& you will give me glory.

23 & giving thanks is a sacrifice that truly honors me.
If you keep to my path
I will reveal to you the salvation of God.

4 views of the same fact

Matthew 28, Mark 16, Luke 24, & John 20 tell about Jesus rising from the dead.

And the world has never been the same since.

what if

Matthew 17:24 On their arrival in Capernaum, the collectors of the Temple tax came to Peter and asked him, "Doesn't your teacher pay the Temple tax?"
25 "Yes, he does," Peter replied. Then he went into the house.
But before he had a chance to speak, Jesus asked him, "What do you think, Peter?* Do kings tax their own people or the people they have conquered?"
26 "They tax the people they have conquered," Peter replied.
"Well, then," Jesus said, "the citizens are free! 27 However, we don't want to offend them, so go down to the lake and throw in a line. Open the mouth of the first fish you catch, and you will find a large silver coin. Take it and pay the tax for both of us."

I've heard Pastor John reference this story more than once. He always points out the obvious.

If you're Peter, & you go off & do what Jesus said to do, catch a fish, & find a silver coin equal to the temple tax in it, you gotta ask the question, "how...?"

There's gotta be only one answer.

So, if you're Peter, your life is changed forever.

How many of us have had something as equally miraculous happen in our lives?

And why have we not let it change our lives, like this incident probably changed his?

Or have we?

who's waiting

Isaiah 30:18 the Lord still waits for you to come to Him so He can show you His love & compassion. For the Lord is a faithful God. Blessed are those who wait for Him to help them

refuge

Psalm 46:1 God is our refuge and strength,
always ready to help in times of trouble.
2 So we will not fear when earthquakes come
and the mountains crumble into the sea.
3 Let the oceans roar and foam.
Let the mountains tremble as the waters surge!

4 A river brings joy to the city of our God,
the sacred home of the Most High.
5 God dwells in that city; it cannot be destroyed.
From the very break of day, God will protect it.
6 The nations are in chaos,
and their kingdoms crumble!
God's voice thunders,
and the earth melts!
7 The LORD of Heaven's Armies is here among us;
the God of Israel is our fortress.

8 Come, see the glorious works of the LORD:
See how he brings destruction upon the world.
9 He causes wars to end throughout the earth.
He breaks the bow and snaps the spear;
he burns the shields with fire.

10 "Be still, and know that I am God!
I will be honored by every nation.
I will be honored throughout the world."

11 The LORD of Heaven's Armies is here among us;
the God of Israel is our fortress.