Posts

EXPECTATIONS

"My soul, wait thou only upon God; for my expectation is from Him." (Psalm 62:5).   We all have expectations.   We expect to be reasonably healthy in our lifetimes and to grow old before we die.   We expect to be financially stable and be able to care for ourselves and for our loved ones.   We expect to be valued and respected as individuals and to be treated justly by those who rule over us.   Those are just a few of the big things that we expect, but it goes much further than that.   We expect that our favorite sports team will always win.   We expect that every light will turn green for us when we are in a rush, and that we won't get behind any slow or elderly drivers.   We expect that our private time be respected and not interrupted by unplanned phone calls, visits, or requests for assistance or time.   Our expectations are all too often dashed, however.   We are told to "hope for the best," but by doing this very thing aren't ...
Post a Comment
Read more

CLIMB A TREE!

As Jesus was on His way to Jerusalem to suffer His final Passion, He passed through the town of Jericho where there lived a man by the name of Zacchaeus.  Zacchaeus was the chief of the publicans in that area and very rich.  The people in general despised Publicans at the time because they gathered the taxes that were exacted upon them by their Roman oppressors.  Often they were unscrupulous in their methods and weren’t above collecting extra to pad their own purses.   Scripture tells us that Zacchaeus “…sought to see Jesus who He was; and could not for the press, because he was little of stature.”   It was in his heart to see Jesus.   This was not just a casual curiosity to see a famous figure and be able to boast about it later.   No, this was a deep desire to know “who He was”.     There were some obstacles to seeing Jesus that stood in Zacchaeus’ way.   For one, he was rich.   Riches have a way of robbing a man of those ...
Post a Comment
Read more

THE COMMUNICATION OF YOUR FAITH

The letter of Paul the Apostle to Philemon is one of the two shortest books in the New Testament.   At just 25 verses, it ties with Jude as the least lengthy.   What it lacks in length, however, it more than makes up for in content.   The letter reveals the story of Onesimus, a runaway servant who had served Philemon, but had grown unhappy with his servitude and had left his master without having been released by him.   Many of the particulars of the story are unknown to us, such as, exactly why Onesimus left, did he steal any of his master’s goods to help him on his journey when he left, and was he the only servant in Philemon's household?   The things that we do know and can reasonably deduce from the information that we have, however, is enough to give us an inspiring story of repentance, faith, obedience, and restitution.   At the time that Paul wrote this letter, between 60-63 A.D, he was in prison for the first time in Rome.   Paul hoped...
Post a Comment
Read more