Thanksgiving 2011 - Reflecting back on God's goodness

Reflections!

Today we are celebrating Thanksgiving in the US. This is a day families get together, cooking up sumptuous feasts, celebrating the day eating, drinking, enjoying the company of family and friends. Aside from the celebrations, we should not lose sight of the goodness in our lives as we live in a strife filled world, and take a moment to thank the LORD who makes it all possible.  We should take the time to share with our next generation of God's grace and favors in our lives.  A few things in my life that I am thankful for...

1. For loving and caring parents who sacrificed a lot for their children
2. For a brother and sisters who would stand with me through thick and thin
3. As a small child I should have lost my right eye to a cactus bush into which I had tripped and fallen face first with one of the thorns going into my eye.
4. As an adult, I should have lost my left eye to central retinal vein occlussion, but for God's grace giving me overnight healing through the power of prayer.
5. As a little boy, doing the things I shouldn't do, I was running on top of the brick wall around our family home, when a loose brick gave way, flinging me into a thicket of rose bushes. Grandma came running and extracted me from the thorny bush. It could have done some serious damage to my eyes, but for God's favor escaped with scrapes all over.
6. As a junior high school student contemplated running away from home as I was unable to meet the expectations of scoring high on my finals.
7. As a teenager in debt beyond my means to repay, unable to sleep for nights, at my wits end I prayed to God for a few minutes of restful sleep. I don't recall ending that prayer, but woke up next morning on my all fours as I had bent down to pray the night before. I believe that night turned the course of my life.
8. His favor allowed me to successfully complete high school and engineering school though I was terrible in math through high school.
9. Almost died as a young adult from an allergic reaction to sea food, but for the actions of my quick thinking family.
10. Employment.
11. His favor in bringing a loving, caring woman into my life - my wife!
12. For his protection as my wife struggled through two rough pregnancies.
13. Gave me two beautiful children!
14. God's favor allowed for promotions in the most unexpected of ways
15. Hearing my (a sinner's) prayer to experience his Holy Spirit
16. God's gentle whispers guiding me along through troubled waters of life.
17. My wife's layoff from employment, though bitter in the beginning, turned out a blessing as she was able to go to college and pursue her desire.
18. Protection on the roads, keeping us safe in accidents that could have been fatal.
19. Escape from financial ruin and allowing for repayment of debts.
20. Purchase of our first family home - a vision that sustained my faith when all seemed to go no where.
21. Renovations of our new home and our my parent's home
22. School admissions for our children - God opened a door that was closed.

In the quiet moments when I reflect back on my life, I realize his mercy and goodness that has sustained me even when I walked a life separated from him.  Every day I see the Lord's grace at work in my life. He is walking with me! His Spirit goes ahead of me!

LORD I thank you for all that you are to me - my provider, my protector, my healer, my strength, my friend, my counselor, my teacher, my savior, Abba-Father!!!!

Philippians 4:6 - do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.

Hillsongs - Still

Lessons from Obedience in Joseph's life...

I was reading the book of Mathew from the New Testament of the Bible and wanted to share some thoughts that the Holy Spirit put in my heart as I read of Joseph's (Christ's earthly stepfather) obedience to God's instructions.

We read in chapter 1 that Joseph was a just man who was engaged to a virgin woman by the name of Mary. But, Mary became pregnant while she was still engaged to Joseph. In a society that judges women very severely for any indiscretion, Joseph upon finding out about Mary's pregnancy decided to break it quietly so as not to disgrace the young woman publicly. [A gentleman, he was!]  While considering this he fell asleep and in a dream, an angel of the Lord appeared to him and told him not to break off the engagement, rather to go ahead with the marriage to Mary. Without questioning the dream, without considering the societal implications of marrying a woman who had become pregnant out of wedlock, Joseph believed the angel of the Lord who appeared in his dream and told him that Mary was still a virgin and had become pregnant with a child who was conceived by the Holy Spirit. The Bible says,

When Joseph woke up, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded and took Mary as his wife... Matthew 1:24 (NLT)

Joseph was obedient to the instructions of the angel of the Lord.

Secondly, after baby Jesus was conceived in a manger in Bethlehem and following the visit from the three wise men, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream again and told him to get up and flee to Egypt with the child and Mary. The angel further instructed Joseph to stay in Egypt until he received instructions to return. The reason for this was King Herod wanted to eliminate any competition for his crown and wanted to kill the baby Christ, the future king of Israel! In a manger! Joseph had every right to question the veracity of his dreams, question the power of the almighty God who appeared to be fearful of the motives of an earthly king towards God's child. And where were the mighty angels of God, couldn't they have defended against an earthly force of human soldiers? To add insult to injury, the instructions were to "flee." Flee...Flee!!! Was that the instructions from a mighty God, the supreme being? But we read none of these questions arose in Joseph's mind. He simply obeyed without questioning God's motives. The Bible says,

After the wise men were gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up! Flee to Egypt with the child and his mother,” the angel said. “Stay there until I tell you to return, because Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.”

That night Joseph left for Egypt with the child and Mary, his mother...Matthew 2:13-14

Then following the death of Herod, the angel appeared again to Joseph in yet another dream and told him to return with his family back to Israel. The Bible says that he returned "immediately" to Israel. Following his return to Israel he was yet again instructed in another dream to move to Galilee as Herod's son, Archelaus, was now the king in Israel, and Joseph moved with his family to the town of Nazareth in Galilee. The Bible says,

When Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt.  “Get up!” the angel said. “Take the child and his mother back to the land of Israel, because those who were trying to kill the child are dead.”

So Joseph got up and returned to the land of Israel with Jesus and his mother. But when he learned that the new ruler of Judea was Herod’s son Archelaus, he was afraid to go there. Then, after being warned in a dream, he left for the region of Galilee. So the family went and lived in a town called Nazareth. This fulfilled what the prophets had said: “He will be called a Nazarene.”...Matthew 2:19-23

In the shoes of Joseph, I may have questioned all these dreams and questioned the omnipotence, omnipresence and the omniscience of this God who was sending his angel to me in dreams and was asking to "flee" a mortal king Herod's jealousy driven motives. But, Joseph never questioned God's intentions, nor his power, nor his authority.  He obeyed without questioning! And for that he was rewarded by God, blessed of all men, to be known as the father of Jesus, Christ - The Anointed One!

When we read these scriptures we also see that each time Joseph obeyed God's instructions, a prophecy was fulfilled, to God's glory! I would conclude that Joseph had to be a godly man, who had a very close and personal relationship with his God; full of personal experiences of God's faithfulness and goodness in his life; that had built his faith to be of complete obedience to God's instructions. Obeying God, one can never go wrong!

May God's grace complete our faith to unquestioning obedience to God's instructions!

PS: this message I write here came to me at a time of my disobedience! I recommend you to listen to the following message by Rev. Charles Stanley - When a Fellow Christian Stumbles posted on November 18, 2011. Just click on the link with the title above.

Sin is crouching at the door...

I had looked up the meaning of "intelligence" and "wisdom" in the dictionary that I have and this is what it said,

Intelligence - the capacity to acquire and apply knowledge; the faculty of thoughts and reason; superior powers of mind

Wisdom - understanding of what is right, true or lasting; common sense, good judgement; scholarly learning

"Intelligence" - even the animals and plants have, but "wisdom" - only human beings have. Yet, we fail to make the right decisions in life knowing very well the consequences of those decisions.

The bible teaches us that if we want wisdom, just ask God, and he will give it to us. James writes in the book of James 1:5-6,

If you need wisdom - if you want to know what God wants you to do - ask him, and he will gladly tell you. He will not resent your asking.  But when you ask him, be sure that you really expect him to answer, for a doubtful mind is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind.

There was Solomon, who asked God for wisdom and understanding to govern his people (1Kings 3:3-14) and God answered his prayer by giving him great wisdom, wealth and honor. We read 1Kings 4:29-34,

God gave Solomon great wisdom and understanding, and knowledge too vast to be measured.  In fact, his wisdom exceeded that of all the wise men of the East and the wise men of Egypt.  He was wiser than anyone else, including Ethan the Ezrahite and Heman, Calcol, and Darda - the sons of Mahol.  His fame spread throughout all the surrounding nations.  He composed some 3,000 proverbs and wrote 1,005 songs.  He could speak with authority about all kinds of plants, from the great cedar of Lebanon to the tiny hyssop that grows from cracks in a wall. He could also speak about animals, birds, reptiles, and fish, and kings from every nation sent their ambassadors to listen to the wisdom of Solomon.

Yet this Solomon to whom God gave great wisdom and to whom God appeared twice personally turned away from God and lived a life filled with sin angering God (2 Kings 11:9).  After living a life of excess mired in sin, searching for something he couldn't find in the world, Solomon comes to the conclusion,

"Fear God and obey his commands, for this is the duty of every person.  God will judge us for everything we do, including every secret thing, whether good or bad."  (Ecclesiastes 12:13)

Why do I write this? From the man I was to the man I am since Christ transformed my life, it has been a 180 degree turn in pretty much all aspects of my life and my thinking.  But, I struggle with certain aspects of my life from time to time. Using my intelligence I try to cover up the tracks, but God's Spirit points out the folly of it.  God's wisdom makes me question myself, "What good is it if I have gained the world or should I say fooled the world, but in the process lost my soul."  While struggling with remorse, asking God for forgiveness, the scriptures from the books of James and 1Kings pricked my heart. All God asked Solomon in return for great wisdom, great wealth, and great honor that no other king in all the world could be compared to, was to make the right choice to follow him and obey his commands. It has been my experience that left up to my own devise, I tend to fail miserably.

The Lord says in Isaiah 29:14, "...I will show that human wisdom is foolish and even the most brilliant people lack understanding." Let us not trust in our intelligence nor human wisdom to fool the world, but ask God for his Spirit to give us godly wisdom to discern right from wrong and pursue what is right.  Sin is crouching at the door. Take heed to Christ's warning to Peter in Mathew 26:41, "Keep alert and pray. Otherwise temptation will overpower you.  For though the spirit is willing enough, the body is weak!"

An awesome song from Rhema Marvane - Just as I am