Month: April 2020

The LORD commanded us to obey all these decrees and to fear the LORD our God, so that we might always prosper and be kept alive, as is the case today. Deuteronomy 6:24

The name Deuteronomy means second law and contains the restatement and reaffirmation or exposition of the Sinai Covenant (in part, the Ten Commandments). This book, said to be the words of Moses, defines the heart of God’s law.  The fact that Deuteronomy was quoted over 80 times in the New Testament indicates its relevance to today’s world.

The fear of the Lord is simply knowing who is God and who is NOT!  Add a dash of respect and acknowledgement for His power, worship and obedience become the air you breath.

We don’t love the LORD so that we may live long and prosper. That would be putting ourselves at the center of the universe.  We love because He first loved us. Peace and prosperity are simply the result of a life lived in submission to the One that created and loved us.

Happy Day,

Gretchen

His divine power has given us everything we need for life and Godliness through our knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and goodness. II Peter 1:3

Faith leads to salvation, salvation leads to the very nature of God, Holiness. The opposite of sinfulness is Holiness.  God will not dwell in the midst of sin, instead, He forgives, cleanses and forgets our transgressions.

We have been given everything we need to become like Christ and conquer the trials of this world through goodness, wisdom, kindness and love.

Have a great day!

Gretchen

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give your rest.”  Matthew 11:28

The world is looking for game changers. There is a perpetual search for over the top fund raisers, eloquent motivators, energizing cheerleaders and leather kneed prayer warriors. More and more people use the word “overwhelmed” with good reason. Entitlement combined with an implied expectation for being everything to everyone and shaming when failure is the only result, quickly brings well meaning people to the edge. Bringing the ‘A’ game 24/7, 365 is NOT an option, it’s survival!

Life is exhausting!  And then there is this invitation, “Come to me……….”  No strings attached, no give and take, just giving on the part of a Savior that left Heaven to secure peace and rest for you.  Just say, “Yes!” Jesus is the gamer changer. Rest in Him.  If He isn’t asking it of you, then maybe it doesn’t need do be done.

Love,

Gretchen

Then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, who you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed. Acts 4:10

Peter and John healed the lame man at the temple gate called Beautiful. (Read Acts chapter 3) This act drew a crowd and so the two apostles began to testify to what they knew first hand, and preach the Gospel of Good News. The Jewish political machine went into action partnered with the Roman authority in residence. Peter and John were arrested, but still, many heard the message, believed, and their number grew to about five thousand. (Acts 4:4)

The next day the High Priest (Jewish authority) wanted to know what right Peter and John had to heal this man. Yes, you read that right!  They wanted Peter and John to give account of the authority they had for this kindness, this life changing miracle, this act that improved someone’s quality of life! These Spirit Filled ministers of the Gospel, for the first time in Christian history, declared that the machinations and manipulations of men are powerless against a resurrected Savior.

Happy Monday,

Gretchen

Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” John 20:29

It has been a week since Jesus rose from the dead. He has appeared to many of His disciples, yet Thomas the doubter has not witnessed Him.  In response to the other disciple’s testimony Thomas said, ‘Unless I see the nail marks in His hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.” John 20:25b  Jesus’ response was to enter a locked room, stand among these men and state, “Peace be with you!” then invite Thomas to do what Thomas said it would take to affirm his faith.

Jesus, our loving Savior took Thomas’ question of faith and applied it very personally to you and I because we are those who ‘have not seen and yet believed.’

There is great assurance in a Savior that understands the need for evidence and provides it lavishly. If I ever choose to live vicariously, I think I’ll live through the fingers and eyes of Thomas, the one that got to touch the wounds that were suffered for me.

Have a great Saturday!

Gretchen

So they went and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and posting the guard. Matthew 27:66

Jesus died. A rich Jewish disciple, Joseph of Arimathea, worked up enough courage to go and ask Pilot for Jesus’ body so that it did not have to remain hanging through the Jewish Sabbath. He, along with Nicodemus, respectfully washed and wrapped their friend’s body and placed it in Joseph’s own newly dug tomb.

The next morning some of the Pharisees and Chief Priests remember the prophecy of resurrection and grow concerned that someone might take Jesus from His burial site and claim  He rose again. To assure the highest level of ‘integrity’ Pilate agrees to seal the entrance and post a guard.

Man tries to control and manipulate the physical world, thus reaching into things spiritual.  But these efforts are in vain.  Man’s mortar or military CANNOT measure against the power and will of God.  The sealed tomb wasn’t about the portal between life and death, in this instance a huge bolder, two guards and some quickcrete. It’s about control: God or man, and the end of the story speaks for itself. 

He is Risen!

Gretchen

“If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated Me first.” John 15:18

Hatred is sin and sin is awful.  It is the enemy of all that is good. It is personal, attacking the most intimate places in our lives. It is both very public and very private. Sin takes no prisoners. It leaves a path of destruction, a wasteland of despair. 

Whether it is our free choice to sin, or another’s behavior, the consequences are the most painful experiences man will ever know.  It’s difficult to write the words rape, murder, assault, theft, lies and gossip, the blueprint for death and trauma in every secret corner or our being leaving victims publicly shamed and vulnerable.

These are the things Jesus carried to Calvary.  It wasn’t wood and steel that bound our Savior to that cross, it was the things listed above and then some. His antidote was love.

When sin hurts, remember, it isn’t a sin against you, it is a sin against God. Give it to Him.  His love, wisdom and justice can and will deal with it appropriately, leaving us to live in peace with ourselves and each other.

Have a MOST Blessed Day,

Gretchen

Simon Peter asked him, “LORD, where are you going?”  Jesus replied, “Where I am going you cannot follow now, but you will follow later.”  John 13:36

There it is. The promise of eternal life, ‘but you will follow later.’ 

Jesus has moved out of the public eye, celebrated the Passover meal with his closest friends, modeled humble servitude and is now preparing them for the next several hours, the darkest moments earth has ever known.

Soon the Old Testament prophecies these men have been taught since childhood, will be fulfilled. The mysteries of the universe are scattered like puzzle pieces, but it’s all about to come together.  Except there’s one problem.  These twelve men cannot see the whole picture.  There is no photo on the box to guide them. Jesus understands their confusion and worry.  Only faith will see them through.  They will be heart broken, frightened, weak in body and spirit, doubtful and alone. Jesus wants to leave them strong so He gives them faith, hope and love.

History has shown that it was all they needed.  For the believer, satan was rendered powerless, the church was born and flourished.

The world has changed a great deal, but for the faithful, this one thing has not: WE WILL FOLLOW LATER.

Have a great day!

Gretchen

“Father, glorify Your name!”  Then a voice came from Heaven “I have glorified it, and will glorify it again.” John 12:28

If we had been in Jerusalem 2000 years ago and witnessed Jesus raise Lazarus from the dead, or at least heard about if through the local news line, we too would have been part of the crowd that heard this conversation between God the Father, and God the Son. 

These are the last earthly moments Jesus shared with the general public. He would soon cloister Himself with His closets friends and then only His disciples, but in these final words Jesus faced His physical death, the mystery we must all experience. In His troubled heart Jesus finds God’s assurance.

A glorified name, past, present, and forever more is the hope of the world. Jesus submits to God’s will and asks only for a glory that will assure Grace and Mercy for all humankind.  God responds, I’m here and I’m not going anywhere!

If it was good enough for Jesus, it is beyond good enough for me!

Love,

Gretchen

During the night Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said, “UP! Leave my people, you and the Israelites! Go, worship the LORD as you have requested.” Exodus 12:31

Pharaoh has just learned beyond a shadow of a doubt that there is a God and it’s NOT him!  The cries of the Hebrew children have been heard, the promises of God are becoming a reality in the biggest way ever……..and Jesus was there.  As part of the Triune God, Jesus was there when the slaves of Egypt woke up to freedom and began their journey home as the people of God.

Fast forward thousands of years, Jesus, fully human, comes to Jerusalem to commemorate this most blessed event, Passover, with His family and friends. He is keenly aware that His triumphant entry into the city is the beginning of the end and it is going to get horrific!

But…. He was there when the universe was designed to perfection.  He was there in the garden when it seemed sin had won the day. He was there when grace was put into action.  This action required a lamb and Jesus was willing, by choice, to leave the glory of Heaven. 

We see a journey to the cross but Jesus was on His way home.  Satan will never be able to alter, amend or compromise what Jesus accomplished the moment His physical heart quit beating, because at that moment Heaven had the last word, “LOVE!”

Blessings,

Gretchen