Skip to main content

Life's Reminisces and Future Glory




The image above reminds me of my childhood Kansas. Every winter my brothers and I would go down to a wooded patch behind our home where a low-lying seep would freeze over in winter to make our very own skating rink. We were not wealthy enough to have ice skates, and it didn't matter, our boots sufficed just fine. For hours on end we would skate or play stick hockey, all the time being so thankful that winter had come. For us winter was special. It allowed a closer time to bond together as siblings and to appreciate things such as a home and heat to warm it, hot soup, and of course snow...and in Kansas we got plenty! 

Those days are gone just like the year that has just passed. I no longer live in Kansas, but Illinois. Nevertheless, the childhood memories will linger and I do hope that all of us can find something to be thankful for in our past.

Here in Illinois, Christmas passed us as fast as it arrived and the New Year has now come. We are all anticipating how the Lord will use us in this coming year. As I think about this I wonder what thoughts passed through Mary's mind as she held the Lord Jesus in her arms. Christmas, at least as we celebrate it, would have passed and the days that followed were before her. All she may have known for sure was what had been revealed to her by the angel Gabriel (Matthew 1-2; Luke 1-2). Did she know that wise-men would come from the East bearing gifts for the Babe? Did she know that shortly after she brought the Lord into this world, that the family would be soon whisked off into Egypt? I wonder if she wondered if they would ever make it back to Nazareth of Galilee? Her life and that of the Lord Jesus was purely providential at this early time. Of course, we know the many prophecies that foretold His birth and I suppose she was also aware or, at least, made aware of them as well. But even still, with much of the life of Jesus laid out in the Old Testament, she, being human, may have wondered "what did" and "what did not" apply to the future life of her Son. Its kind of like us knowing the Lord is to one day come with the clouds, whisk His church to heaven, then return to earth to set up His millennial kingdom; we still wonder about when it will be and even squabble about the particulars. But one thing I am sure of, Mary, knew her life was in God's hands and that the miracle produced in her womb would one day rule the world. This she expresses in her song:


Luke 1:46–55 (NKJV)

46 And Mary said:

“My soul magnifies the Lord,

47 And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.

48 For He has regarded the lowly state of His maidservant;

For behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed.

49 For He who is mighty has done great things for me,

And holy is His name.

50 And His mercy is on those who fear Him

From generation to generation.

51 He has shown strength with His arm;

He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.

52 He has put down the mighty from their thrones,

And exalted the lowly.

53 He has filled the hungry with good things,

And the rich He has sent away empty.

54 He has helped His servant Israel,

In remembrance of His mercy,

55 As He spoke to our fathers,

To Abraham and to his seed forever.”

It is my prayer for all, and for all who read this, that you will place your faith solidly in the hands of Jesus, the Creator of the world and the universe, the Savior and Lord over this world and for all who will believe in Him. The angel said "...you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins" (Matt. 1;21). 

We maybe clueless as to the outcome of the days ahead, but we will never be alone if we will place our faith in the Son of God, Jesus, who also promised to all who believe, "I will never leave you or forsake you" (Heb. 13:5; Josh. 1:5). With Him, the days ahead will one day be memories of our childhood, and we will look back and say "Great is the Lord" and like Mary, "who is mighty has done great things for me." 

God Bless you and 2017


Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

25 Reasons to Believe - In Jesus FREE EBOOK

FREE EBOOK click to download - When book comes up click down arrow on Upper Right to save a copy . A while back the Barna Group released a report titled, "Six Reasons Young Christians Leave Church." 1  Under reason two, " Teens’ and twenty-somethings’ experience of Christianity is shallow" they write:  "A second reason that young people depart church as young adults is that something is lacking in their experience of church. One-third said “church is boring” (31%). One-quarter of these young adults said that “faith is not relevant to my career or interests” (24%) or that “the Bible is not taught clearly or often enough” (23%). Sadly, one-fifth of these young adults who attended a church as a teenager said that “God seems missing from my experience of church” (20%)."  If one takes a look at the modern church-scape I can see why. The gap between those pastors and teachers that are fired up about Jesus and those that do not preach all of th
4 comments
Read more

Fornication - The Acceptable Sin?

In the Bible there are several sexual sins that are categorized under the term,"Sexual Immorality." Not the least of these is, "Fornication." However fornication has become an outdated, and in many places, the acceptable sin in the late twentieth and twenty-first centuries. As a matter of fact, many do not even know what the term "fornication" means. Since the advent of the modern Bible translation, many have never heard of it. This article focuses on what the Scripture says about this out-of-control acceptable sin. Fornication is mentioned thirty-six times in the Bible (MT), thirty-two times in the New Testament. In almost all modern translations the word has been substituted with, "sexual immorality" and has come to mean any number of sexual sins. However, sin (missing the mark) is still sin and sin still separates a person from God. So why has this sin become so acceptable even in modern churches???? UPDATE : Here is a testimony of life
5 comments
Read more

The Bride of Christ Has Made Herself Ready!!

The Bible teaches of an upcoming Wedding Day that the Church should be on cloud nine over!! Rev. 19:7-9 states: Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come , and His wife has made herself ready." And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints. Then he said to me, "Write: 'Blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb!' " And he said to me, "These are the true sayings of God." The passage above speaks of two distinct events, the Marriage of the Lamb and the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. Both of these events are reminiscent of the ancient Jewish wedding ceremony where the Bride would become betrothed to her Groom and he would go away to build her a home. In the meantime she would wait anxiously for his return with shouts from his wedding party of "The Bridegroom Comes!" When the shouts were he
2 comments
Read more

Understanding Grace…without it no one can be saved!

Years ago as a pastor, I faced an issue concerning the topic of “Grace.” I had noticed some congregants who were taking Grace to the extreme and beginning to teach that since our sins were bought and paid for at the cross—all of them, past, present, and future—there was no need to strive against sin. Thanks to our Lord, this was noticed and the He quickly allowed it to be curbed. This heresy occasionally rears its head in Christian circles and indeed must be stopped before it becomes out-of-control. The good thing is that a proper understanding of Grace can arrest the heresy in its steps. Because this false perception thrives in loose living, many well-meaning Christians go completely to the opposite extreme and throw the Biblical teaching of “Grace” out altogether. That too is heresy. How should we approach it? Grace, as a doctrine, should always be presented in its entirety. By that I mean, a starting definition, followed by why it is important, and concluding with keeping it scri
15 comments
Read more

Guest post: Hind's Feet

Adrian Bateman, 2016          The Lord God is my strength; He will make my feet like hind’s feet, And He will make me walk on my high hills. — Habakkuk 3:19 For most human beings the primary goal of life, after survival, is the pursuit of happiness. Indeed it’s one of an American’s “unalienable rights”. But what is happiness? The definition of happy is surely situationally derived. For the hungry it would be having enough food; for the homeless, a home. For the average person it might be having more time, more leisure, more friends, more comforts, more things. Ultimately, happiness involves the removal of obstacles and the correction of problems so that we might live a life without struggle. Or, at least, without what we view as onerous or unnecessary struggle. But this is not God’s definition of happiness. No. True peace—biblical peace, that deep inner peace which we cannot explain—is found only in the presence of God. When we are continually aware of the Pr
Post a Comment
Read more