My son, Nathan, had sinus surgery several months ago. It was outpatient surgery, so he wasn't admitted to the hospital. We went in on a Friday morning and were back home by the middle of the afternoon.
I really hadn't prepared myself for seeing him once the surgery was over. He was very groggy, to say the least. Since it was sinus surgery, the doctor had taped a huge mound of gauze right underneath his nose. Before we left the surgery recovery area, the nurses gave us instructions on what to do in the next few days. They told us to expect a lot of bleeding. That was, to say the least, an understatement, like Noah saying "It looks like rain!" Nathan had a lot of blood that was contantly draining from the sinuses down the back of his throat. As a result, he kept spitting out a lot of blood.
I was handling everything okay until I saw my son bleeding. I had worked in a funeral home before and even helped to enbalm bodies. Blood isn't something I'm squeamish about...... but this time it was different. It was my son who was bleeding.
That night I was getting ready for bed and the Holy Spirit spoke to my heart and said, “Hey, it was very uncomfortable as a father seeing the blood of your son, wasn’t it?”
WHAM! It hit me right between the eyes! What I had felt earlier that day with Nathan bleeding paled in comparison to how God must have felt as He watched Jesus shed His blood for the sins of the world.
No parent likes to see the blood of their child, yet God watched Jesus receive a beating that left Him beyond recognition. He saw the nails in the hands and feet. He saw the splinters on the cross dig into His back. He saw the crown of thorns. He saw the whole thing.
No parent likes to see the blood of their child. Yet God, according to Romans 5:8, allowed Jesus to die a brutal death while we were still sinners.
I’ll have to be honest, that kind of love blows me away. I don’t EVER want to either of my children hurt – yet the love of God is so amazing that He allowed His Son to come and bleed and die so that you and I might have life.
I'm so thankful to God for such a love that I can't fully understand, but it's a love I'm desperate for!
Have you ever expected something, and when you got it, it wasn't all that it was cracked up to be? I think we could all give a testimony to an experience like that. When we anticipate something.... especially something humongous..... we tend it build it up in our mind. Sometimes, our mental buildup reaches the point that the anticipated thing, event, or even a person has a hard time meeting our expectations. It's really a bummer when that thing, event or person doesn't quite measure up to the standards of what we had in mind.
Think of something you once anticipated, and then multiply the level of anticipation by spreading it out over 1400 years or so, with each year getting exponentially greater and adding to the intensity of your expectation. Now you have some sort of idea what the Jews, God's chosen people, were expecting when they imagined what their Messiah would be like.
Read the Old Testament. Over and over the prophets had proclaimed God's promise to the Jewish nation that He would deliver them from their problems by sending a king to establish God's kingdom on earth. This deliverer was often referred to as "The Messiah". Moses was a great deliverer, but Moses didn't quite meet the qualifications for being the Messiah. He never had a kingdom. In fact, no leader of Israel ever had a kingdom until David came along. The name "David" literally means "anointed one", but David was not "the" Messiah. Jesus cleared that one up when He preached during His ministry on the earth. The Jews who studied the scriptures understood that no human king could ever fulfill the high ideal of the true Messiah, who would be God Himself coming down to earth.
After David's earthly kingdom came to an end, the prophets began endowing the anticipated Messiah with names that clearly placed Him beyond mere mortal humans. He would be called "Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace." (Isaiah 9:6). Scriptures also tell us that the Messiah would be a direct descendent OF King David (Isaiah 11:1). Micah 5:2 foretold that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem, David's old stomping ground. Isaiah gave the most staggering qualification for Messiah: Being born of a virgin (Isaiah 7:14). That one by itself was a mind-blowing prediction.
So the stage was set, and the time was right for God to send the Great Deliverer to rescue His people...... and that's just what God did. He sent Jesus, the Messiah, the Anointed One, who was a descendent of David.... (check out Luke 1:31-33). Jesus was also born in Bethlehem (Luke 2:4, 6-7). Most of all, Jesus was born of a virgin (Matthew 1:18, 22-23). God even sent a personal messenger from His fleet of angels to proclaim: "I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. The Savior..... yes, THE Messiah, the Lord.... has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David. And you will recognize him by this sign: You will find a baby wrapped snugly in strips of cloth, lying in a manger." (Luke 2:10-12).
In other words..... you couldn't miss it. There was no mistake. The prophecies had been fulfilled. God had indeed stepped out of the portals of Heaven and come down to earth in the person of Jesus. The Messiah had finally come. Surely now the Jews would embrace their King.
Hold the fort. Slight problem. The Jews were anticipating a different kind of Messiah, and the Baby lying in a manger in Bethlehem didn't quite do it for them. They expected a royal king born in a palace..... God sent a common baby born in a stable. They expected a royal birth announcement from the major religious leaders and news media of the day...... no such luck. God didn't even bother telling the religious folk. (Maybe He knew something they didn't)? Jesus' birth was announced to rugged shepherds living out in the middle of nowhere. The Jews anticipated a king who would come in and trounce their enemies and rule the nation of Israel politically...... but Jesus messed up their plans of grandeur. He came to serve and to give His life for others.
Now..... hang on before you start criticizing the Jews for "missing the Messiah". "But, Danny, they missed their Messiah after hundreds of years of waiting...."..... yeah, I know. But before you start pointing a finger at the Jews, look at your hand. There are three fingers still pointing at you....(and me).
Ask yourself this question.....what kind of Deliverer am I looking for? Okay, now we're getting down to where the rubber hits the road. Do we really expect Jesus to deliver us from our problems, or do we choose to worry and fret? Are we expecting Jesus to deliver us from our enemies? Do we expect Jesus to rid us of our poverty and sickness?
Truth is..... Jesus can do ALL those things, but that's not why He came. More than anything else, Jesus....THE Messiah.... came to deliver us from our sins. The name Jesus means "Savior", and "save" is what He came to earth to do.
The true Messiah doesn't simply meet the expectations of those looking to be delivered. He exceeds them.
You may not fully understand WHY Jesus came into the world. Just be glad He did.
Selah
It's early in the morning, and I can't sleep. Isn't it great to finally get some time off in the middle of this busy season....only to find that you can unplug your alarm clock on your nightstand, but can't unplug the internal clock inside you?
I love the quietness of this morning. I'm sitting on the floor in the living room. The candles are lit, filling the room with a myriad of different fragrances. The Christmas tree is glowing in the dimly lit room. John Tesh's Christmas CD is playing softly in the background......(very softly. Just because I'm up doesn't mean that Dawn is ready to get up yet)! So, I've been sitting here reading my Bible and praying before this day gets going full speed.
And, as He always is faithful to do, God's voice speaks clearly in the stillness of the early morning hours.
I started out in Luke 1 and 2 this morning. Call me crazy, but it's Christmastime, I do believe. Go figure. Then, for some reason, I flipped over to Luke 15. It's a passage I've read many times. You remember it. Jesus gives us three parables back to back in this chapter..... first, a missing sheep, second, a missing coin, and third, the parable of the prodigal son. Three great messages there. But God had the Holy Spirit reveal another gem to me that's been right there all the time right under my nose.
Rick Warren, pastor of Saddleback Church in California, wrote a great book recently called "The Purpose Of Christmas". He claims that the statement the angel of the Lord made to the shepherds on the night Jesus was born holds the key to the three purposes of why we celebrate Christmas.
10"And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.
11For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.
12And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.
13And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,
14Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men."
Rick says that the three purposes of Christmas are: 1:Celebration, 2:Salvation, and 3:Reconciliation. You can see those three right there in Luke 2:10-14. You don't have to look long and hard to see those three purposes there. I totally get what Rick is saying here as I read these verses in Luke 2.
But it was Luke 15 that really spoke to me this morning. Those same three elements are found in the three parables of Jesus in Luke 15. In all three stories, something was lost, then found, and then celebration broke out.
Here's where it gets good. As I thought about the "celebration" aspect, my eyes caught Luke 15:10. Don't you just love it when God turns the lightbulb on and you see something in a different light?
(Luke 15:10) "Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth."
To quote the familiar Christmas song.... "Do you hear what I hear?"....(or should I say, "Do you see what I see?")
Maybe you've heard people say that when someone accepts Jesus as their Lord and Savior, the angels in heaven throw a party. I've said that all my life. But that's not what the Bible says. According to Luke 15:10, it's not the angels who are dancing and celebrating and whooping it up. Look at it again......
"Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth." It's not the angels who are rejoicing here, according to what Luke penned down under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Looks like to me that it's God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit having a "hallelujah hoedown". I'm sure the angels see them rejoicing and join in. Who wouldn't? But God Himself is the One who gets the party started!
Yes, our God is the God who loves to party. That night on the hillside in Bethlehem, a party erupted! In Luke 15, the party is still going on! All three parables ended in celebration after the salvation and reconciliation had taken place.
So celebrate this Christmas. Get together with friends and family and have a great time as you we remember and celebrate the birth of the Son of God. It's a great reason to party.
Just remember whose birthday it is. Keep that focus in the forefront of your heart and mind. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, came to seek and to save that which was lost. That's "salvation". Remember the words of "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing?"..... "Peace on earth and mercy mild, God and sinners reconciled!" That's "reconciliation". Isn't that what the angels told the shepherds that night long ago?...... "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men." The world is crying out for peace. It can only be found in the "Prince of Peace".
And "celebration"? ...... it's a natural by-product of the first two. It's party time! Let's get this party started! And while we're at it, set a few more places at the table and invite some who've never met Jesus to experience the joy first-hand.
He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life of the party!
Merry Christmas!
Selah!
Once in a while at Christmastime I catch myself complaining. (I’ll wait until you catch your breath. I know the shock of that opening statement is hard for you to believe!) My complaints and comments usually center around little things….. inconveniences, mainly.
Don’t get me wrong. I absolutely love Christmas, and I love doing what I do. Still, sometimes I hear myself saying….."I don't need this now!," or "Why does this have to happen to me?”, “Who planned this extra rehearsal?...Oops, I did!”, or “Why is God doing this? Is He mad at me?"
Then my thoughts turn to Mary and Joseph. Face it. Their story doesn't center on sugar cookies, Christmas musical productions, or last minute Christmas shopping.
Joseph was off work for weeks because the government made him travel to a distant town to fill out some stupid registration papers.
You can bet the Nazareth biddies hounded Mary about her pregnancy. If there was an Aramaic word for "slut", it was probably being bantered around at the local well and market place, with Mary being the object of their judgment and ridicule.
Can you imagine taking a four-day donkey ride to Bethlehem at full term? Of course, if Mary didn't want to ride, she could always walk ... or waddle.
Think about a camping trip with winter winds whistling through your tent. Or do you have a tent?
How about being in labor in a dirty cattle barn? One whiff was all Mary needed. And then, in the middle of the night after a grueling labor, there are herdsmen banging on the door.
Why, of all things, did God let His own Son to be born under those conditions? Was God mad at Mary and Joseph? Of course not. Maybe God allowed the stable so we could see His glory backlit in the middle of life's humbling experiences.
Life does have it’s downside, it’s reversals, it’s annoyances. And where is God when we despair? He was with Mary and Joseph every moment, working out His plan, just as He is with you and me right now.
I guess Christmas reminds us look to beyond our aggravations. God is in the middle of doing something awesome in our lives. If we all take the time to shift our gaze from the mirror to the manger, we all might just catch a glimpse.
Selah.
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1. “And if I claim to be a wise man, well, it surely means that I don’t know.”
2. “There’s so much that we need to share, so send a smile and show you care.”
3. “Woke up this morning with a wine glass in my hand.”
4. “I’ve got to be free, free to face the life that’s ahead of me.”
5. “It’s time I had a good time. Ain’t got time to wait.”
6. “Ha, Ha woman it’s a crying shame, but you ain’t got nobody else to blame.”
7. “Shake it down, shake it down, shake it down now.”
8. “When we are together, the moments I cherish with every beat of my heart.”
9. “I’m just moving along. You’ll forget about me after I’ve been gone.”
10. “Love doesn’t come in a minute. Sometimes it doesn’t come at all.”
11. “She said it grieves me so to see you in such pain. I wish there was something I could do to make you smile again.”
12. “And I know, I know, I know, I know, I know, I know, I know………”
13. “Gimme the beat, boys and free my soul. I wanna get lost in your rock and roll…”
14. “All the downtown ladies call him ‘Treetop Lover’. All the men just call him ‘Sir’.”
15. “All over the country I’ve seen it the same. Nobody’s winning at this kind of game.”
16. “Well, John at the bar is a friend of mine. He gets me my drinks for free.”
17. “I live in hotels, tear out the walls. I have accountants pay for it all.”
18. “Now Muscle Shoals has got the Swampers, and they’ve been known to pick a song or two.”
19. “Relax, said the night man. We are programmed to receive.”
20. “There was voodoo in the vibes, but I could not catch your eyes.”
21. “Why in the world would anybody put chains on me? I paid my dues to make it.”
22. “I’m gonna find me a hole in the wall. Gonna crawl inside and die.”
23. “Sitting cross-legged on the floor.”
24. “I want to sleep with you in the desert tonight with a million stars all around.”
25. “Billy Mack is a detective down in Texas. You know he knows just exactly what the facts is.”
26. “So won’t you smile for the camera? I know I’ll love you better.”
27. “I guess you didn’t know it, but I’m a fiddle player, too.”
28. “There is no other to compare to you. You’ve got me blindly, blindly, blindly giving all I have to you.”
29. “But every morning I wake up and worry what’s gonna happen today.”
30. “Just give me a kiss!”
31. “I’m gonna be a happy idiot and struggle for the legal tender.”
32. “Brother, what a night it really was! Brother, what a fight it really was! Glory be!”
33. “I’ll take you on a trip beside the ocean, and drop the top at Chesapeake Bay.”
34. “Fly me away to the bright side of the moon, and meet me on the other side.”
35. “Yeah they were dancing, and singing, and moving to the groovin’ ”.
36. “A kiss for luck and we’re on our way.”
37. “Tonight’s the night. I’m gonna push it to the limit. I’ll live all of my years in a single minute.”
38. “He came on a summer’s day, bringing gifts from far away.”
39. “And if your train’s on time, you can get to work by nine.”
40. “You know the queen of hearts is always your best bet."
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I wonder who will be the first to name the titles of all the songs and the artists?
I always look forward to coming home after work. Nathan and Morgan and I have this little game we play. As soon as they hear the garage door start opening, it's not too long before the door going from the house into the garage will fly open and out they come! They both try to be the first to open the door, give me a hug or a kiss and say "I LOVE YOU!" Sometimes they both say it in unison! I mess with them sometimes, locking the door and not letting them in the car...... which used to work until I gave Nathan his own key to the car! I absolutely love the fact that they look forward to their Dad coming home. Yesterday, Nathan even called me while I was driving home and asked, "Dad, when are you going to be home?" Every time I'm running a bit late, one of them will always call. There's nothing like seeing the smile on the face of my children when they see me! They don't fear me bringing up their past…and their past HAS been nasty if you think about all of the dirty diapers and snot and vomit that they've produced over the years! They're not fearful that I'm going to yell at them and begin asking them to do things that would eventually hurt them and make them hate life. They're not worried that I'm going to hurt them or harm them in any way. They trust their Dad. They don't think that I'm going to take something away from them, or that I'm actually "out to get them" and make them as miserable as possible. (Now, there ARE times when I will chase them down and tickle them within an inch of their lives, but they absolutely LOVE that! In fact, they'll come into a room and start messing with me, trying to provoke me into "getting them"). That's a whole different game altogether!
Still, there's no fear or worry on their part when their Dad comes home. They just run out the door, look at me and smile because they know that I'm going to open my car door and give them a big hug and tell them I love them!
There's anticipation. There's joy. There's trust.
They look at me like any child should look at their father…and how I should look to God!
God's not out to get me…OR I’d have already been gotten!
God's not out to hurt me, only to bless me and teach me.
God’s been so good to me! Seriously! He owes me NOTHING, but He's given me so much!
God’s not out to remind me of my past. He’s already paid for that and made me brand new.
God wants to see me SMILE at Him, to see true JOY in my life, and complete TRUST that He IS who Scripture SAYS He is…my PERFECT heavenly father.
Listen to what The Message Bible says in 1 John 3:1-2:
"What marvelous love the Father has extended to us! Just look at it! We're called children of God! That's who we really are. But that's also why the world doesn't recognize us or take us seriously, because it has no idea who he is or what he's up to.
But friends, that's exactly who we are: children of God. And that's only the beginning!"
Selah!