Month: December 2018

Remember what is important.

I wanted to reflect on the dream I had last night. I was at home with my 2 young daughters. It was stormy outside but nice and warm inside. My younger daughter was playing with 2 balloons she had received the previous day. She was happy and contented. The balloons had lost much of their content but she was happy anyway because they were her  balloons. Then she realized that she was missing a third balloon. She came to me and showed me the 2 balloons she had and asked me to help her find her lost balloon. I looked at her and smiled. Of coarse I would help her! Then I looked at her and said “but first, let me hug you”. I picked her up in my arms, held her tight and whispered in her ear “Remember that you are always hubbagle.” (We always said “huggable” that way. It was a family thing.)

Yes there are always storms outside. Inside I pray that you have built on a firm foundation of love and security that comes from knowing that you are a child of God. We play with our deflated balloons of previous joys and are sometimes content with the past experiences. Our heavenly father just wants to pick us up and remind us of the joy we bring to Him. Not because of any particulate good thing we have done to deserve it, but just because we are His.

Take a moment right now to thank Him for His love for you. Do your part to spread His love to others. Love your enemies, pray for those who persecute you.

Where we go ONE we go ALL

This phrase reminds me of the “Band of Brothers” who are united in love of their cause and their love for each other. Similar phrases are like “One for all and all for one”.

We have a choice. Follow the ONE who sinned, or follow the ONE who paid the price of sin in this world. How? Show love in your own circle of influence. Don’t let hate depression and despair become your companion. Perform acts of kindness. Don’t do kindness out of a feeling of obligation, but from a true heart of Love knowing that God has loved you even when you were not so lovely yourself. Don’t act religious, pious, uppity or better in any way to others. Serve them!

Consider this passage from Romans 5

Death in Adam, Life in Christ
12 Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned— 13 for sin indeed was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not counted where there is no law. 14 Yet death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those whose sinning was not like the transgression of Adam, who was a type of the one who was to come.

15 But the free gift is not like the trespass. For if many died through one man’s trespass, much more have the grace of God and the free gift by the grace of that one man Jesus Christ abounded for many. 16 And the free gift is not like the result of that one man’s sin. For the judgment following one trespass brought condemnation, but the free gift following many trespasses brought justification. 17 For if, because of one man’s trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ.

18 Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men. 19 For as by the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous. 20 Now the law came in to increase the trespass, but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, 21 so that, as sin reigned in death, grace also might reign through righteousness leading to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.