Month: February 2024

Then some boats from Tiberias landed near the place where the people had eaten the bread after the LORD had given thanks. John 6:32

Around 20 AD, during the construction of Tiberias, an ancient cemetery was found, making it unclean for any Jew to live there or travel through.  Residents of this lakeside city, heard the wonders of a man named Jesus. Hungry and anxious to see Jesus for themselves, they went in search of Him. The people that took to boats to find Jesus landed shortly after the miraculous feeding of 5,000 people. When they arrived, Jesus and His disciples had already left, so they followed them to Capernaum where they found Him.

These people knew of a possible Messiah that provided free food, but on this day Jesus’ message was the Bread of Life. It was obvious to many that Jesus met the physical needs of the sick, poor, and marginalized. No one wanted to miss out on their fair share, but our spiritual well-being is what He lived to die for and that is what these seekers found.

We often begin our spiritual journey with certain expectations, thinking we know what we’re looking for. It is what motivates us. But in God’s loving kindness, we are led to exactly what we need. He’s just that kind of God. He knows best and He is good.

Love,

Gretchen

Since my people are crushed, I am crushed; I mourn, and horror grips me. Is there no balm in Gilead? Is there no physician there? Why then is there no healing for the wounds of my people? Jeremiah 8:21-22

The nation of Israel has long since fallen and Judah likewise.  All that is left is Jerusalem, the fortress and the temple of the One True God.  It has been desecrated with false prophets, idols and the perversions of man. Jeremiah warned and warned that destruction would fall, but the people believed God would never pronounce judgement on His city.  They did not understand God at all! Their misplaced confidence was their doom.

Gilead is a region east of the Jordan River rich in farm land but heavily forested.  It was a common place for people to hide for protection.  Jacob, King David, and Israelites hiding from the Philistines, are a few of its well known refugees.  It is also famous for its medicinal tree sap used in making perfume and ointment, the Balm of Gilead. 

There is no escaping judgment for constant and continued disregard for God’s commands.  The consequences are tragic!! God’s love is enduring but He does not tolerate sin! We are not created to be crushed, but until there is repentance and forgiveness, there will be no balm of healing.

Love,

Gretchen

Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you. Psalm 63:3

David knew his destiny. Anointed secretly as a very young man, he would be Israel’s second king, but at the time he wrote this hymn, he was hiding in the Judean wilderness. Saul, Israel’s first king became wicked and even though David had proven to be his faithful ally and servant, Saul sought to kill the chosen heir to the throne.  Unjustly treated as an outlaw and on the run, David wrote this hymn of gratitude and confident trust.

David understood God’s covenant love founded on God’s absolute authority. He did not question his circumstances but waited for the Lord’s will to be revealed. A future king should expect to be groomed for his position of authority and esteem.  David put these ideals aside and was satisfied with God’s sovereignty.

When God’s intimate presence in your life is a take it or leave it option, you really have nothing at all.  When God’s love is all that matters…..then it is all that matters.

Have a Terrific Tuesday,

Gretchen

And He took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.” Luke 22:19

God made a covenant with Abraham. His descendants would number as the sands on the shores, the stars in the sky and they would inherit the Land of Canaan. These people were now in slavery to an Egyptian Pharaoh. God heard the cries of His people and called Moses to return to the Pharaoh’s household and demand that God’s chosen people be set free. Calamity upon calamity occurred, but Pharaoh would not comply, until a final plague, the death of the first born son.

God provided a way for the Hebrew families to be spared. Their thresholds were covered in the blood of a sacrificed lamb. Families gathered on that night, shared their food and waited for deliverance to come.  It did. Passover is the season for celebrating this wonderful deliverance and salvation.

Jesus gathered with His friends to share in the intimate, sacred remembrance. Not only was this a time to remember God’s covenant with Israel, but a time to teach the young of God’s faithful provision and hope. At the conclusion of the meal Jesus took bread and broke it. He knew that he would not see another sunset as a man. He would face agony and humiliation. He would die. Thanking God for what He alone knew, He introduced the New Covenant in which HIS blood would separate life and death.

The Lamb of God gave His body, His life, for yours.

Love,

Gretchen

He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. Like one from whom people hide their faces He was despised, and we held Him in low esteem. Isaiah 53:3-4

It seems as though Isaiah is standing at the foot of the cross, but he lived 700 years before Christ. His vision is so clear and his faith so defined that this passage of prophecy reads as though it is past tense. The absolute of our salvation plan is not found in any clearer way than is told by Isaiah.

God long promised a King who would come to earth and reign in justice, set everything right, bring peace and restore a correct world order.  A serious conflict existed between man’s expectation and God’s omnipotent wisdom and power. God sent a servant armed with love. Man longed for a king, entitled and enthroned. Men didn’t get what they wanted so with selfish, evil hearts, they hated what they needed. 

The recipient of our hatred, the victim of our rejection was the perfect King of Kings, Lord of Lords and Prince of Peace. We need nothing else.

Love,

Gretchen

We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. 2 Corinthians 4:8

Paul, the author of the second letter to the church at Corinth, suffered beatings, imprisonment, shipwrecks, unceasing attacks and indignities as a result of his missionary work and aggressive evangelism.  The One True Gospel of Jesus Christ wasn’t a popular message everywhere. For thirty years Paul lived under great persecution, but determined the Joy of His salvation was more than worth any human discomfort.

Pressure is part of the equation that creates a diamond. It is more often constructive rather than destructive. Perplexity is not hopelessness, just the state between seeking and finding the answer. Abuse and injustice are tragedies. When things go badly, the room empties and there you are, alone. Paul experienced all these things, but determined it was not going to be his end definition, nor yours.

Heaven is full of work worn hands, calloused feet and hearts once broken. They are there because they persevered. Every voice raised in praise testifies it was more than worth the temporary pain and grief of this life to achieve life eternal.

Happy Friday,

Gretchen

For He is our God and we are the people of His pasture, the flock under His care. Today, if only you would hear His voice. Psalm 95:7

Yahweh is King over all the universe and its history.  He is ruler because He alone is the designer and creator. This Psalm is a hymn of praise to God for His creative power and justice.

Many times, both in the Psalms and in the New Testament, man is likened to sheep, a domestic animal that needs tremendous management. God is referred to as a shepherd, the wise caregiver who provides like none other, for those in His keeping.  God’s pasture is lush. All that is needed, not just nutritional sustenance, but security from predators and/or fatal temptations and distractions is given in generous plenty.

Sin separates us from God.  He cannot do for us what He desires if we do not obey. We must tune our hearts to His, train ourselves to His character and commands and follow as a sheep follows its shepherd.

Have a great Thursday,

Gretchen

Against You, You only, have I sinned and done what is evil in Your sight; so You are right in Your verdict and justified when You judge. Psalm 51:4

David wrote this Psalm in the aftermath of his adulterous relationship with Bathsheba that ended in a pregnancy and eventually the murder of Bathsheba’s noble and honorable husband Uriah, who happened to be a soldier in David’s army. Through the words of Nathan, God’s prophet David saw himself as God saw him and was driven to confess and beg for mercy. God forgave and created in him a pure heart (vs. 10).

Our sins, ALL sins are against only one, God.  Do they hurt those we share life with and possibly many we may never know? Yes. But when sins are forgiven they become God’s, and He chooses to dispose of them completely.  He will guide you to correct restitution or into ‘pay it forward’ mode. He alone is wise and all knowing and works perfectly in His time and will for our well-being when we follow Him with single hearted determination.

Satan does not like being denied access to our vulnerability so he uses what he has, our shame, memories, and the attitudes and actions of those among us.  Never forget Who’s you are, the ONE that forgave you completely for the sins you committed against Him ONLY.

Love,

Gretchen

The tempter came to Him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell theses stones to become bread.” Matthew 4:3

The destiny of all creation rested on this moment. 

Born to be fully man, our Savior came into this world a helpless child with only His mother Mary to tell Him of His origins. At His baptism the Holy Spirit fell on Him, Heaven opened and Jesus was restored to His pre-incarnation knowledge and power. Before He left Heaven He knew, now He knows again. As a human, the only way back to Heaven was through death, but now He had all the miraculous power of the universe at His disposal. He could die an easier way….or He could fulfill God’s eternal plan.

Satan tempted with fame, power, the basic need of the body and proof that He was who He claimed to be. At this moment Jesus could have condemned us all, bound us to the hell we deserve and saved Himself from the horrible ending He knew would come. This was satan’s wish, because the ONLY hope for all that mattered was at stake and the devil wanted it badly. 

The will of the Savior and His Father became one; to heal, feed, comfort, rescue……love.

God is Faithful,

Gretchen

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Acts 1:8

The author of this sequel to the fourth Gospel, Luke, is the only non Jewish writer in the New Testament. His Gospel tells of the loving and miraculous work Christ did while on earth and the forty days between His crucifixion and ascension. The Acts of the Apostles is the history of salvation, God’s purpose to save the world. 

At the time of Christ’s death the afterlife was a mystery with few clues. When He returned to life and revealed Himself to His disciples the secrets of the Kingdom became clear. What an amazing plan God had, to teach these men and women the reality of life eternal through the very real presence of a risen Savior.  The time came for Jesus to return to His Father, but He left instructions for the immediate days ahead, and then for the perpetuation of the Good News that lasts through this very day.

In verses 3-5 Jesus promises a great gift. Mortal minds turned to politics and the expected political deliverance and independence of their nation, but Jesus did not come to justify temporary things of man for a generation. Eternity is His agenda. The Day of Pentecost made these things clear. 

God created the nation of Israel to bless all nations.  This purpose is fulfilled when Jesus sends His disciples into the ends of the earth…… so you and I will know the way home. 

You are Loved,

Gretchen