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Change: Never Say “Never!”

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There’s an old saying, “If nothing changes, nothing changes.” As believers in Christ Jesus, we are called to change. Join me this week and consider some aspects of change in our lives as we walk with the Lord. Is there anything that you need changed?

 

Never Say “Never!”

“But Lord,” exclaimed Ananias, “I’ve heard many people talk about the terrible things this man has done to the believers in Jerusalem! And he is authorized by the leading priests to arrest everyone who calls upon your name.” 

Acts 9:13-14, NLT

Monday_Day_One_Pic-Praying_Woman “She’ll never change!” Have you ever said that about someone? Would it flip your weave to find out that she really had changed? We sometimes forget, even as believers who have been changed, that God has the power to change people! Maybe you’ve been labeled incapable of change or even believe it about yourself. But is that true?

Saul was a man changed by the Lord. His dramatic conversion, from a murderous, enemy of believers, to a follower of Christ himself, is told in Acts 9.

“As he was approaching Damascus on this mission, a light from heaven suddenly shone down around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul! Saul! Why are you persecuting me?” “Who are you, lord?” Saul asked. And the voice replied, “I am Jesus, the one you are persecuting! Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.” … Saul picked himself up off the ground, but when he opened his eyes he was blind. So his companions led him by the hand to Damascus. He remained there blind for three days and did not eat or drink.” (Acts 9:3-9 NLT)

Read today’s Dose verse. Ananias was the believer whom God instructed to go find Saul (the new believer) and lay hands on him to receive the Holy Spirit.

God had changed Saul but Ananias had a hard time believing that Saul had really changed. I bet he thought, “This is the guy you want me to go befriend, pray for, and restore to sight? Come on, Lord, You know that Saul guy is straight craycray! He’s been killing us at the rapid rate!” I can understand his fear, can’t you? That kind of guy doesn’t ever really change, does he? But, he does indeed, if his heart is willing. God is all about changing people with willing hearts to be more like Jesus Christ. Once Ananias reached out to Saul and spent time with him, he found out that Saul really had changed.

We don’t need to reach the point of murderous intentions to realize change but we do need to reach the point where we believe that God can change anyone and will do so for those whose hearts are willing.

Dear one, do you believe you can never change? It’s not true. Be encouraged today in knowing that nobody is beyond God’s reach to change.

By grace through faith,

Rita

[Read Acts 9:1-31 for more of this story of Saul]

Let It Shine!: Carry the Light

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“This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine. Let it shine, let it shine, let it shine.” 

The words of this children’s gospel song, written in 1920 by Avis Burgeson Christiansen, are simple and their message far reaching. What child hasn’t sung it? What adult doesn’t remember it?

But the more important question: do we hold true to its mission?

“Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” 

Matthew 5:16, KJV

 

Carry the Light

Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. 

Psalm 119:105, KJV

Shine,_Day_5,_Photo_1The rain made it extremely difficult for me to see the dark and narrow two-lane road ahead. As I neared the intersection, a large semi-truck pulled onto the road in front of me. Normally, I don’t like to get behind a truck; it blocks my vision and slows me down. However, that night I was grateful. As the truck rounded every curve along the route, its taillights served as beacons in the darkness. The truck took the guesswork out of my journey, and my trek home was much easier. I simply had to follow.

Wherever Jesus went, crowds formed. People followed Him for various reasons: some sought His healing touch―others showed up to mock Him. Many arrived to hear Him teach―some moved in to trap Him. A number were simply curious―while others aligned themselves as His disciples when He said, “Come and follow me.”

Today, His invitation remains the same. Some people follow Him, but for many following is hard. They prefer to be out front blazing their Shine,_Day_5,_Photo_2own trail, casting their own vision, setting their own pace. We’re called to be light-bearers, but if we’re not following the Light ourselves, it’s impossible to lead the way for others. “Can a blind man lead a blind man?” Jesus asked. “Will they not both fall into the pit?”

(Luke 6:39, NIV).

A man traveled down a dark and lonely road one foggy night. After walking for some time without seeing a soul, he saw a light coming toward him in a zigzag fashion. As it got closer, he made out the shadowy figure of a man feeling his way through the darkness with a white cane. He staggered from one side of the road to the other. When the blind man reached his side, the traveler said, “Tell me why a blind man carries a light.” The man said, “I carry the light so that I won’t cause someone else to stumble in the darkness.”

Shine,_Day_5,_Photo_3The darkness of this world often restricts our vision, but God has given us everything we need to navigate life and share the Truth of the gospel. He’s given us a roadmap―His Word, and a light to illumine our path―His Holy Spirit. The Spirit serves as a beacon that illumines every bend in the road. He takes the guesswork out of our journey. We simply need to follow.

Do you carry the Light of Christ so that no one will stumble?

Jesus declared, “You’re here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We’re going public with this, as public as a city on a hill. If I make you light-bearers, you don’t think I’m going to hide you under a bucket, do you? I’m putting you on a light stand. Now that I’ve put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand―shine!

(Matthew 5:14-16, MSG).

Let it shine!

Until next time,

Starr

Let It Shine!: Don’t Let Satan Snuff It Out

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“This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine. Let it shine, let it shine, let it shine.” 

The words of this children’s gospel song, written in 1920 by Avis Burgeson Christiansen, are simple and their message far reaching. What child hasn’t sung it? What adult doesn’t remember it?

But the more important question: do we hold true to its mission?

“Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” 

Matthew 5:16, KJV

 

Don’t Let Satan Snuff It Out

Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. Hebrews 12:1–3, NIV

Shine,_Day_4,_Photo_1Time and again, our daughter, who has Down syndrome, came to a place in the hall, rose up on her toes, pressed her arms and back up against the wall, and sidestepped her way to the stairs. Unable to make sense of her repeated behavior, I asked her what she was doing. Aggravated with my intrusion, she huffed, ran upstairs, and kept the secret to herself.

After studying the floor for a few moments, I noticed it―a rectangle of light, cast from the landing above. A voice in my spirit whispered, “Not stepping into the light may be a game to her, but for many it’s a reality. Some choose to remain in the shadows, afraid that their evil deeds will be exposed.”

The first recorded words of God in Scripture were “Let there be light.” God spoke light into existence, separated it from the darkness, and saw that it was good. Sadly, many refuse to see God’s light as good. Shine,_Day_4,_Photo_2

Christians worldwide experience widespread persecution as oppositionists choose to walk in darkness. The persecution of those who profess faith in Jesus Christ is as old as Christianity itself, but never in my lifetime, has there been such hostility toward those who align themselves with Jesus and the truth of His Word as there is today. In over sixty countries, believers are beaten, beheaded, tortured, isolated, raped, imprisoned, enslaved, and put to death for engaging in unauthorized religious activity.

Christians in America undergo persecution on a much smaller scale, but daily we experience attacks on our freedom of worship and references to anything related to the name of Jesus.

Prior to the Beijing 2008 Olympics, a torch was lit in Athens, Greece, from the original flame of Olympia. Scheduled to reach the top of Shine,_Day_4,_photo_3Mount Everest in Tibet after an 85,000-mile global tour, the 2.5-foot propane gas torch, weighing 2.2 lbs, lit thousands of torches along its route.

The purpose of China’s Journey of Harmony, was to unite people of different cultures around the world in friendship, harmony, and peace. But the journey was anything but harmonious. In city after city, protesters tried to extinguish the flame in objection to China’s fifty-year occupation of Tibet.

The Olympic relay bears an overwhelming resemblance to our spiritual journey. As we strive to carry the light of Christ throughout the world, many along the route try to snuff out His light in us. As athletes, we must endure, hold His light high, and pass it from one light-bearer to another so that unity between God and man will be restored.

Let it shine!

Starr