Walking With Jesus

When God Leaves Us in the Dark

“This is what the Lord says: ‘You will be in Babylon for seventy years. But then I will come and do for you all the good things I have promised, and I will bring you home again. For I know the plans I have for you,’ says the Lord. ‘They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.’” (Jeremiah 29:10-11 NLT)

Have you ever wondered why God doesn’t fill us in on our whole life when we become an adult? The Lord prompted Jeremiah to write a letter to all the people who had been exiled to Babylon by King Nebuchadnezzar. The Jewish people in exile would have been happy to learn that they weren’t going to be in captivity forever, but likely bemoaned the fact they were going to be there for seventy years. A lot of them would not live to see freedom, but those who did would never view their freedom the same.

If the Lord would tell us what lies ahead, many would choose to respond like Jonah – “Oh, so you want me to go east, hmmm, I think I’ll go as far west as I can.” But you see what happened to Jonah. We’re a lot like Jonah who, even after he carried out God’s will, still belly ached and was upset with God because God did exactly what Jonah believed He would do, but Jonah didn’t like it. He thought the Ninevites got away with their sin when Jonah wanted them to suffer.

How like many today. We want people – everyone but us – to get what they deserve. If the Lord outlined our life when we were twenty and told us: “You’re going to fall in love with a beautiful person, but it’s not going to work out and your heart will be broken. But don’t worry, you’ll meet someone else and just when you think everything is perfect, yep, they’re leaving also. But take heart, when your son gets cancer you’re going to meet someone else…and on it would go until you’re probably thinking: “Thanks, Lord, I think I’ll find my own way.” Which, of course, would be even more disastrous.

Rick Warren wrote: “You cannot see the whole picture now. You will not fully understand here on Earth why some things have happened to you—but you will one day. And while you wait, you can trust that God is working and using your pain to guard and protect you. Your pain will not be wasted!”

The key as I understand it, is trust. I trust the Lord, so when He told me I had Alzheimer’s I didn’t jump up and down with glee, but I said essentially, “Okay, Lord, I trust You and I know You know what You’re doing, so, let’s see where this leads us.” Whatever the outcome, I’m not blaming God for what I perceive as “bad news,” I delight in knowing I’m not walking this path alone.

Anything can become “good news” when we’re walking with Jesus. If this life was all there was, I’d likely be very bummed, but it’s not. My life now is really good, even with a lot of physical issues, but how ever bad I get, I’m just inching closer to perfection and wholeness that isn’t an option in these bodies of clay. One day I’ll put all the pain, sorrow, and heartache behind me, get a new, perfect body that the Lord made special just for me, and celebrate King Jesus every second for eternity.

But honestly, I can’t wait, I’m going to celebrate Him every second while I’m still on earth. There’s no amount of worship, praise, honor, or adoration I can offer Him that could approximate all He’s done and given me in this lifetime. There may be some things He’s holding back to keep from scaring me to death, but I’m confident the light of His love will extinguish the darkness, whatever it may look like.

Food for thought.

Blessings, Ed 😊

Where Did the Love Go?

“Long ago the Lord said to Israel; ‘I have loved you, my people, with an everlasting love. With unfailing love I have drawn you to myself.” (Jeremiah 31:3 NLT)

It’s easy to love when things are going well, not so much when the bottom drops out. We tend to equate an easy life with being “loved” by God, but when times are hard, too often, we believe the Lord has withdrawn His love from us. Just so you know, that’s a lie, and you know the source of every lie, and it isn’God. God’s love is everlasting, which, like Him, has no beginning and no end.

God’s name isn’t “I was” or “I will be,” it’s “I AM!” It’s always present tense because He is always present in every moment of our life. He loves us when we’re good and when we’re not; when we’re happy and when we’re not; when circumstances are great and when they stink; He loves everyone the same and there’s never a moment He doesn’t love.

And I suspect you’re tempted to question His love when the diagnosis is cancer, or dementia, or heart issues, or when you’re in an accident or you lose everything in a fire, or __________ and you can fill in the blank. But that’s our emotions, it’s not the reality of God’s love.

And I can sense some of your hearts screaming: “But I sure don’t feel His love!” And I get it, but here’s the irony – love isn’t an emotion, it’s a decision, and God made the decision when He created us to love us. Emotions change like the weather and are often changed by circumstances, but God knows none of that, in the sense that His love for us is constant – it literally NEVER changes.

The people who never speak His name or make any effort to live right or allow Him to change their heart are loved just as much as me and you who have loved and followed Him for decades. We’re tempted to believe that when we deliberately sin God looks away and withdraws His love, but that’s a lie. In my heart I sense He leans in and listens more intently when we’re running away.

Think of the prodigal son as he was nearing home – did he expect his father to be on the porch watching for him, or running down the dusty path to wrap his arms around him? The Bible says the angels rejoice more when the straying one returns than for those of us who stay close to home and continue faithfully our assigned duties.

Does that hurt your feelings? Do you feel left out, like all your efforts to please Him are simply ignored? “Where’s His love for ME?” Sadly, we become the prodigal’s brother who gets angry for the way the Father responds to his wayward brother. “All these years I’ve slaved for you and never once refused to do a single thing you told me to. And in all that time you never gave me even one young goat for a feast with my friends.”

I seriously doubt he had any friends, but if he did, everything the father had was his to use as he wanted. The older brother received his inheritance just as the younger brother did, but he chose to stay and work for his father, likely believing if he did, he would receive a greater reward.

As Jesus followers there is no greater reward than to be in the presence of the Father. All of our efforts to please Him are our ways of expressing our appreciation for being His son or daughter, not to get brownie points.

Where did the love go? It’s where it’s always been. In the heart of the Father.

Food for thought.

Blessings, Ed 😊

Who Are You?

“He trusted God, so let God rescue Him now if He wants Him! For He said, ‘I am the Son of God.’” (Matthew 27:43 NLT)

Jesus may well be the only human being who has ever lived who is genuinely and without reservation exactly who He claimed to be. Social media compounds our problem when it comes to revealing who we really are. We use carefully photo-shopped photos and exaggerated words to describe, not who we are, but who we’d like others to believe we are.

André Malraux wrote: “Man is not what he thinks he is, he is what he hides.” What are you hiding? Who are you behind the mask of the person you’re pretending to be? Are you like me? Afraid if I let someone in, they might not like what they see? We carefully craft the person we want to “sell” to our friends and even our family, but especially those who know us from church.

Isn’t it ironic that we say we want nothing more than to be like Jesus but hide our “dark” past or secret sins for fear if someone really knew us, they wouldn’t like us or accept us. There are at least two problems with that thinking. First, if someone only likes the “false” version of us, is that really better than having them reject us if they know the “real” us?

And, secondly, if we’re harboring secret sin how will we ever work through our fear, shame, regret, and unforgiveness until we come clean and get help with whatever it is? In either case, our witness and effectiveness for the Lord is crippled at best or prevented at worst. It seems odd that the only perfect Person to ever walk the earth is first to open His loving arms to us when we finally come home.

Do you think the “prodigal son” was proud of his behavior in the far country where he went to hide? He had the world by the tail until the money ran out, then he got a full picture of who he really was – not the playboy ready to party, but the fearful, lonely, and ashamed boy who had no place to go and no way to get there.

Who are you in this season of your life? Still running wild in a lifestyle you can’t sustain? At night when you can’t sleep are you quickly becoming the person you promised yourself you’d never be? Are you still living the “front” of the perfect Christian, but it’s been months since you’ve opened the Bible, and you can’t remember the last time you prayed more than a few words? Do you fear you’ve gone too far, or worse, maybe you don’t even care anymore?

Maybe you’re thinking the life you’re living now is the “real” you, “footloose and fancy free,” not stopping long enough to realize where you’re heading isn’t leading to freedom, but bondage. Sin doesn’t liberate, it captivates, not just for this life, but the next as well. Satan only knows how to lie. Think about that for a minute.

He paints a picture in your mind where you’re the “star,” the “hero(ine),” the “winner,” and for a while it feels really good. You love your new image, your new “friends,” you’re finally where you dreamed of being, yet, when you’re home, viewing yourself in the mirror, with no one around but your quickly fading memories, are you listening? Can you hear that still, small voice saying: “I love you, stop running! Come home to Me!”

Food for thought.

Blessings, Ed 😊

The Church’s Greatest Apologetic

“Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good. Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other.” (Romans 12:9-10 NLT)

Apologetics in Christianity are the intellectual defense and establishment of the Christian faith using rational and logical arguments¹ ² ³. Apologetics respond to questions or attacks on Christianity from different belief systems or skeptics²³⁴. Apologetics can be a branch of theology or a field of biblical and theological studies that may involve other disciplines ¹ 4. Apologetics aim to bring the truth forward and sanctify Christ as Lord in the hearts of believers and others ³⁵.

Please don’t confuse Apologetics with someone apologizing for the Christian Faith. Quite to the contrary, there are strong arguments and compelling responses from followers of Christ to those who would seek to discredit the Faith we follow as Jesus followers. Just follow the links above to see for yourself.

But the point of my post today isn’t to argue a specific line of reasoning, but to encourage you in your walk with Jesus. Burk Parsons wrote: “The church’s greatest apologetic is our love for one another.” In a conversation I had recently with a dear friend I met in a church I served, we spoke of her deceased husband who was a big reason I chose to move cross country in the dead of winter, during a blizzard. By the way, I didn’t plan the blizzard, that was a gift from the Lord. 😊

Her husband had the voice of an angel and I loved to go into the sanctuary on Sunday morning and listen to him rehearse. He didn’t just sing notes, he communed with His Savior. It was worshipful to watch and listen to him sing. For John it wasn’t a performance, he was singing to an audience of One. The Lord prepared my heart as He listened to His servant. I loved John like a brother, and I can’t wait to see him on the other side.

Hopefully, there are men and women in your life about whom you feel that way. Men of God like John are a credit to the Kingdom and are among the strongest apologists for the Savior. John not only sang well, but he also loved well, and he didn’t care who you were he loved first and asked questions later. It would be a real accomplishment if I could be half the lover of God and others that my friend John was.

Who is there in your life like John? Perhaps you’re “John” to someone in your life. What you saw with John is what you got. There was no pretense, nothing artificial or fake, just the love of God personified and lived out in real time. I want to be that kind of man of God. How about you?

Friends, we only have one shot at living this life, let’s give it our best effort. Every time I fail to be all I know God saved me to be, I’m one step closer to getting there. Nearly every morning I ask the Lord to enable me to be the husband to my wife that He would be if He were her husband. I can never be Jesus, but with the Spirit’s help, each day I can draw a little closer and live a little better in my efforts to be more like Him.

Who is seeing Jesus more clearly for having seen Him in and through your life? Someone is closer to yielding their life to Him because of your efforts. Please don’t be discouraged. Please don’t stop trying to help them see their need of Him and allow Him to forgive and cleanse them of their sin.

The closer we live to Jesus the more convincing is our “argument” for our Savior.

Food for thought.

Blessings, Ed 😊

Is It Worth It?

“And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but are yourself lost or destroyed?” (Luke 9:25 NLT)

Every human being will one day stand before a holy God to give an account of the way we have lived our life. We will then realize that if our choice wasn’t to submit to the authority and leadership of almighty God, we have literally lived our lives in vain. I realize that there are more excuses people use for not following the Lord than I have room to list, but there are a few I’d like to address.

First, the battle we most often lose isn’t with Satan, it’s with ourselves. We want our way before anyone else’s including God’s. John wrote in 1 John 2:15-16: “Do not love this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you. For the world offers only a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world.”

The question Jesus asked in the verse from Luke’s Gospel (above) sums up the questions with which we must wrestle. Obviously, most human beings would like to have all the world offers, never realizing what they’re paying for their pursuit. Imagine for a moment you were the richest, most powerful person on earth. Whatever you wanted, whenever you wanted it was at your disposal 24/7.

You may believe you’re the happiest, most blessed person ever to be born, but Solomon, who was a person like that, summed up his experience like this: “’Everything is meaningless,’ says the Teacher, ‘completely meaningless.’” What’s the bottom line? Things – money and all that money can buy, are worthless in comparison to knowing your name is written in the Lamb’s Book of Life. Why? Because that’s how God designed us.

Ecclesiastes 3:11 reminds us: “Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end.” We are designed and created to love and be loved by our Creator. Nothing will satisfy us long term except knowing, loving, and walking in harmony with the Lord Jesus.

Some may wonder why I so often return to this theme of helping every person come to a saving knowledge of Jesus. It’s simple. It’s how the Lord wired me. Part of the satisfaction I have in knowing my sins are forgiven and I’m going to spend eternity with the Lord Jesus in heaven, is realizing that as long as I have breath, I need to try with every ounce of my being to influence everyone I possibly can to seek forgiveness of their sin and to walk in harmony with the Lord Jesus.

Nothing this world offers can ever approximate the peace, joy, satisfaction, and delight of knowing your sins are forgiven and you have a home in heaven. Yes, you can make a home on earth, but you’re still going to die and when you do you’re going to have all eternity to bemoan the fact you were a fool to trust in anything but Jesus.

Please, I implore you, if you haven’t yielded your life and allegiance to Jesus, please don’t wait another second. Get on your knees and hold your hands out in front of you with your palms up and ask the Lord to take your sin, your inability to save yourself; to forgive, cleanse, and free you from the shackles of sin and to fill you with Himself. Feel the weight of the world lifted from your shoulders, then thank Him for His forgiveness, His faithfulness, and the joy of knowing He’ll be with you every step of the way from this moment on.

Then find someone with whom you can share the news of your new birth in Christ alone by faith alone and ask the Lord to direct you to a Christ-honoring church family in which you can grow and learn to walk in faithfulness with the Lord and His people.

If you have questions or if I can help you in your journey, please let me know. My email address is walkingwithjesus09@gmail.com.

Blessings, Ed 😊

Are You Feeling Overwhelmed?

“I cry out to the Lord; I plead for the Lord’s mercy. I pour out my complaints before Him and tell Him all my troubles. When I am overwhelmed, You alone know the way I should turn. Wherever I go, my enemies have set traps for me.” (Psalm 142:1-3 NLT)

It’s not hard for me to feel overwhelmed these days, but fortunately, the Lord is never far away. If I let my focus slip from Him to me, I start to feel sorry for myself and quickly lose perspective. Psalm 142 is David’s prayer in a precarious season in his life.

He felt trapped, like his world was getting smaller and smaller, and he was quickly losing his way, not seeing clearly which direction he should go. Wisely, he took his fear, confusion, and uncertainties to the Lord, believing the Lord alone knew the way he should turn.

As I feel time quickly closing in on me, I’m reminded of just how fragile life is and how quickly time passes. If I allow my mind to roam it involuntarily fills with “what if’s” as the enemy of my soul seeks to fill me with fear. Gratefully, my Savior is my Ruler and Keeper, so, as a frightened child I run to my Father’s arms.

It’s ironic that as I age, I tend not to focus on all the ways I wisely invested my time, but on all the ways I wasted it and thwarted opportunities to make my life count for Jesus. My jumbled priorities brought about by desiring to please people rather than the Lord, at times leave me wanting, saddened, alone. Francis Chan spoke to me when he wrote: “Don’t get overwhelmed by how much time you have already wasted, and don’t dwell too long on past mistakes. Just take the next step. And keep the end in view.”

Fortunately, I came to the Lord as a teenager, but nonetheless have wasted more opportunities than I care to admit. Too often Satan leads us to believe we have a lot more time than we do. The truth is, we don’t know if we have another second. A dear friend shared part of a conversation he had with a young man who believed he was going to get into the Kingdom under the proverbial “wire,” on his death bed.

My friend wisely told him: “That’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard!” which, of course it was, but he went on to ask this young man: “Do you own a motorcycle?” to which he responded, “Yes.” So, he said, “Do you realize how many people are killed on motorcycles every day? All it takes is for someone in a car to not see you and BAM, you’re off to eternity. Then what’s going to happen?”

My friend is tall and has a great sense of humor, so he can get away with things like that, but he’s right. If you’re waiting until you get old for whatever reason, who gave you the idea you’re ever going to get old? And even if you do, the Bible teaches there is a point when we can wait too long and the Spirit will no longer draw us.

There comes a point when our heart becomes too hard, our mind too seared by sin, our conscience too warped to respond even if the Spirit would draw us. The Spirit of God works on His timetable, not ours. Ideally, the Lord speaks, we listen, and our lives are forever transformed, but our hearts and minds can become so overwhelmed by inattentiveness to God’s Spirit; our hearts become so callous we no longer hear His voice, and our eternity is sealed, not because God is not able or willing to forgive, but because we waited too long.

Food for thought.

Blessings, Ed 😊

When Life Seems Hopeless

“In those days you were living apart from Christ. You were excluded from citizenship among the people of Israel, and you did not know the covenant promises God had made to them. You lived in this world without God and without hope.” (Ephesians 2:12 NLT)

Hopelessness is like looking into the future and seeing only darkness; like being hungry while staring through a glass at an abundance of food; like knowing what you want or where you’d like to go, but every way you turn is a dead end.

There have been times in my life that I’ve read about or seen someone who exemplified who I’d like to become, but that never happened, and for good reason. God didn’t design us to be anyone but ourselves. He uniquely created and equipped us to be US and only Us! If He’d wanted us to be different than He created us to be, He would have made us that way.

The most hopeless season in my life was after my divorce. I had no money, no job, and no real prospects. I was saddled with thousands of dollars of debt and could foresee no possible way to repay it, yet, my conviction was, even though I felt my life was bankrupt, that bankruptcy wasn’t an option. I can smile now, but in those hopeless moments when I felt so alone, the Lord had never left me, not for a single second, but He was waiting for me to stop enjoying my pity party so much and yield myself completely to Him.

Chariots of Fire was an inspiring movie about the life of Eric Liddell who said: “Circumstances may appear to wreck our lives and God’s plans, but God is not helpless among the ruins.” (See Turning Point A Plan and a Purpose – 03-17-23) In the “ruins” of my life God showed up in miraculous ways. I could have papered my walls with eviction notices, but the Lord always gave me a way to pay my rent. One day my mind was flooded with “what if’s” as I walked to the rental office with no way I would be able to pay my rent. As usual the young woman in the office was smiling, but this time she gave me reason to smile as she said: “Mr. Hager, you don’t have to worry about your rent this month, it’s been paid.”

While nothing I have or will face in this life compares to all Job endured, I sometimes relate to his words in Job 14:14: “Can the dead live again? If so, this would give me hope through all my years of struggle, and I would eagerly await the release of death.” Whatever you may be facing in this season of your life, please don’t despair! Please don’t give up hope! Because of Jesus whatever we face as His followers, we will never face it alone.

As long as I have breath, I pray I will praise and honor the Lord. I’ve asked the Lord to please allow me to always remember Him. My dad knew no one in the closing chapter of his life and I’d be lying if I told you that doesn’t frighten me. But the presence of the Lord is my hiding place, the rock upon whom I stand, the hope that fills my heart and mind, guiding me through this season of uncertainty.

Unlike Job, we can know with certainty that there is life after death, but even more wonderful to me is knowing we have life BEFORE death as we learn to walk by faith in the Lord Jesus. We all struggle, it’s a part of the fabric of life as a human being, but I pray today that whatever you’re facing, please know that you don’t have to face it alone. Jesus loves you and longs to walk with you, comfort, strengthen, and guide you. Please invite Him to be for you what you can’t be for yourself in this difficult season of your life.

Blessings, Ed 😊

Have You Found Your Calcutta

“He died for everyone so that those who receive His new life will no longer live for themselves. Instead, they will live for Christ, who died and was raised for them.” (2 Corinthians 5:15 NLT)

Many people across our world recognize the name Mother Teresa, the Roman Catholic Nun who devoted her life to serving “the poorest of the poor.” Her name was Mary Teresa Bojaxhiu (born Anjezë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu). From an early age the Lord spoke to her regarding working among the poor and severely disadvantaged.

Ron Hutchcraft wrote: “Years ago, a young man wrote to Mother Teresa with a pretty compelling question. This woman who had buried her life in the needs of the most broken in Calcutta’s slums was clearly the one who would know the answer. He asked, ‘What can I do to have a significant life like you have?’ Mother Teresa’s postcard reply was only four words: ‘Find your own Calcutta.’ Or, ‘Find some people who need you and be there for them.’”

Have you found your Calcutta? Don’t be confused, serving the Lord Jesus doesn’t mean looking only to work among the poor, but neither should you be overlooking the poor. That’s one of the reasons I enjoyed, but also wrestled with Pastoral ministry. I remember when my wife and I were serving a church doing a summer internship. This was before we had children and we were staying with my wife’s parents, so we didn’t need much to live on. So, we believed the $75 a week the church gave us would be fair.

We could buy gas and help with groceries, but that was about it, so, when a couple in the church asked us if we’d like to use their condo in South Carolina, we hesitated at first, not knowing if we’d have enough money to cover our expenses, but finally took them up on their offer. We lived in a three room apartment when we were at school that cost us $15 a week, so when we opened the door to this condo we thought we’d died and gone to heaven. It was beautiful and close to the beach.

What does that have to do with serving the poor? Two things. First, we were poor, but had a heart to serve, so the Lord laid it on the hearts of people in the church to bless us in practical ways. One man didn’t think $75 was enough, so he gave us another $25 each week that was a huge blessing to us. But the second reason is, even after we got out of school and our income increased, we were drawn to those who were struggling financially because we understood what that felt like.

The Lord will often lead you into an area of ministry out of which your own experience has drawn you. Finding your own “Calcutta” may mean for you to look at your own life, evaluate your own desires, abilities, skills, and inclinations, seeing where they may lead you. More often than not our areas of service will grow out of our own experiences, including where we live or have lived; the people we’ve met who impacted us in some way; our knowledge and abilities; and how the Lord has wired us.

One thing I believe is true – the Lord will never call us to serve in any context in which He hasn’t equipped us to be effective and fruitful. If you’re having a recurring thought, dream, or vision of someplace or someone you should be reaching out to for the Lord, don’t ignore it. Often the Lord’s voice is quiet, but persistent, and He will always let you know what He wants from you and when.

Food for thought.

Blessings, Ed 😊

God Has Given You a Voice

“If you keep quiet at a time like this, deliverance and relief for the Jews will arise from some other place, but you and your relatives will die. Who knows if perhaps you were made queen for just such a time as this?” (Esther 4:14 NLT)

You were born for such a time as this! Nothing about you has been an accident. Everything from your size, weight, eye color, intelligence, family, friendships, the type of work you do or did, the person you married or the reason you chose to stay single, your voice, personality, preferences – everything about you was designed by God to allow you to become the person He designed and desires for you to be.

He even factored in the sins you’d commit, the lies you’d tell, the thoughts you’d ponder, the wrong decisions you’d make, it’s all part of why you are the way you are today. He’s perfectly placed you where you are, with all your “credentials” to be His voice at just such a time as this.

Do you realize there are people who will only hear what you have to say to them? And I’m not speaking of the sound of your voice, I’m referring to the content of your conversation. There are people in your spheres of influence who trust you, love you, respect you, who would listen to you and believe you if you took the time and made the effort to speak the truth of the Gospel to them.

And yes, I can hear you! “But I’ve tried, and they shut me down!” Yes, been there, but this is a new day, perhaps you or they have had an experience, perhaps a medical issue, a divorce, an accident, the loss of a job or a death of someone they loved deeply. Whatever it was it positioned them to be a more careful listener, especially to you – to your voice.

Esther approached the king regarding the plight of her people. He likely didn’t have a clue about the Jews, nor did he care that she was of Jewish descent. All he cared about was that she was beautiful and pleasing to him in many ways. Why did God make her so beautiful? Because He was able to see all of this playing out before the creation of the world.

And just as surely as He designed and created Esther, He designed and created the king to be attracted to and influenced by his queen. Nothing catches God by surprise or off guard, nothing then, nothing now. And the irony is, it’s not only good things that He sees and uses. Mother Theresa was no knockout, actually anything but, but she changed her world because she saw a need, spoke up and did something about it.

Perhaps you’ve been abused, mistreated, taken advantage of and you believe that you’re “used goods” and God could never use you. That’s exactly the reason you’re exactly the person He can use to have a voice among others who have suffered in ways just like you.

The mistake we often make is believing that because we’ve had such a wretched past God wants nothing to do with us. Quite to the contrary, our Holy Father has a special place in His heart, not only for people LIKE you, but specifically FOR YOU! You’re the apple of God’s eye, and yes, He knows every gory detail. He didn’t cause your pain, nor make things happen in your life as they did, but He was nonetheless with you, walking with you, crying with you, preparing you for such a time as this when you could raise your voice to His honor and fame.

The only question is: will you?

Food for thought.

Blessings, Ed 😊

Messages From the Cross

“Jesus said, ‘Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they are doing.’” (Luke 23:34a NLT)

Have you ever thought about what kind of person forgives the people who are murdering them? I wrestle with forgiving the people I love over silly things. Only God can forgive that way, and, by His grace and with His strength, those who are filled and empowered by His Spirit.

Have you ever wondered why there are so many divorces, even among professing believers? I’m one of them, so I can assure you it’s selfishness, brought about by losing focus on our faith, and caring more about ourselves than anyone else. Please read carefully these words by Lisa Lakey (See Family Life I Do Every Day: This Has Nothing to Do With Jellybeans and Rabbits – 2022)

“Here are three things I’ve learned about marriage from the Easter story. 1. Marriage takes forgiveness. Even through the pain of the cross, Jesus called out on behalf of those who crucified Him. ‘Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.’ (Luke 23:34). A good marriage involves a lot of asking for, giving, and receiving forgiveness. Even in the midst of pain.

2. Marriage takes faith. When Thomas heard about Jesus’ appearance after His death, he was skeptical. ‘Unless I see in his hands the mark of the nails … I will never believe.’ A week later, Thomas found himself face-to-face with Jesus, who offered him His hands. ‘”Believe,” Jesus told him.’ (John 20:24-29). There’ve been times I wanted proof my marriage could get better. Holding on when you want to let go takes faith. But Jesus is holding out His hands to us. Believe in His power to save.

3. Marriage needs a Savior. (And it’s not you.) Marriage is a gift, but make no mistake, it’s hard. You can’t do it on your own strength and determination.

Not long after our honeymoon, we realized our marriage needed something bigger than both of us. Stronger. Like the criminal hanging next to Jesus who said, ‘Remember me when you come into your kingdom’ (Luke 23:42). The only One who can resurrect your marriage? A Savior.”

The reality is these truths apply to everyone because we all need a Savior. Life is too hard to navigate on our own. And yes, of course, we’re all capable of going from point A to point B if we don’t care where point B leads us. Billions of people go through life and some die with a lot of money, fame, and material possessions, none of which can help them one iota after they close their eyes in death.

If this life was all there was, sure, “eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die!” But Jesus changed all of that. He gives us a purpose we never had, a mission in which we never dreamed we could share, a partnership with Him and our brothers and sisters whose lives He’s transformed – and that’s all in THIS life! That’s not to mention an eternity with Him and our “blood-bought” family of God.

Jesus’ messages from the Cross supersede time and space to speak to us and bring us to our knees with the realization that there’s more to life than what this world offers. Forgiveness, hope, peace, purpose, a goal to live for and life in Him that’s worth dying for.

If you haven’t yet met this wonderful Savior who took your place on the Cross, please go to Ron Hutchcraft’s Bridge to God video and discover for yourself what it means to be forgiven and freed to live as you never dreamed possible.

Blessings, Ed 😊