Good News For Us

 Last Sunday I observed a child, not two years on this earth, receive Holy Communion in his mother’s arms. It was a beautiful vision now engraved on my heart.

The adults around him walked solemnly, reverently, hands at their sides or folded in front of them. Each in turn would carefully cup their hands, left under right to receive the bread.

The child, so fresh from the hand of God, held both of his little arms, fully and expectantly outstretched in front of him, palms up, fingers splayed, long before it was his turn to receive. My eyes followed him on his journey to the altar. He never once put his arms down. When it was time for him to take the bread, his eyes, wide and bright, his face beaming with a broad smile, received - he received. This little boy, barely old enough to walk this earth, conveyed to me a need for Jesus - a need that would not be denied. This babe in arms revealed to me anew the true joy of the gift, the body and the blood of our Savior, Jesus Christ.

A prayer arose from my gladdened heart - a prayer for this child, and a prayer for us all -

Dear Lord of my life, my Savior,
Thank you for this child and for the lesson he has taught me this day. Guide him, bless him - keep him as the apple of Your eye. May I receive with such a joy as his, Your greatest gift to me. May I receive my redemption, my salvation, Your eternal gift to me, with outstretched, open and unabashed joy! Amen

A psalm of David

O LORD, our Lord,
how majestic is Your name in all the earth!

You have set Your glory
above the heavens.

From the lips of children and infants
You have ordained praise…

Psalm 8:1-2

Photo ~ With Your Arms Outstretched ~ by Megan Troyer

www.flickr.com 

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 Abraham’s Faith Confirmed

Written in the 22nd Chapter of Genesis ~

1 Some time later God tested Abraham. He said to him, “Abraham!”

“Here I am,” he replied. Abraham was listening so intently, God only had to call out once. Is my ear tilted toward God?

2 Then God said, “Take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and go to the region of Moriah. God did not give Abraham a specific location in the beginning, only a general area. Am I ready to go without knowing the details?

Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about.” Abraham was just asked to sacrifice his treasured son, the son through whom God had promised would come descendants greater than the stars in the sky. Abraham did not argue, plead, or bargain with God when asked to lose his lifelong hope. Am I willing to trust God in all circumstances?

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My two youngest children often change settings on my computer. Just now as I typed the words, “Go Tell It!”  these three words showed up on my screen like this -

Go Tell It!  

I chuckled as I saw God as the definite sender of this large message. “Yes, Lord!” I said, as I went looking for the source of the giant letters. The font size was correctly set at 12. Aha! There it was - 500% zoom!

Often we want to share the Good News of God with others. Often we are not quite sure how to go about it. We may think we’re not called or qualified. Maybe we won’t know the answers to the follow-up questions others may ask us. What if they shut us down or make fun of us? We certainly don’t want to meddle in other people’s lives. They seem happy enough, don’t they?

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 My daughter, Kate, is engaged to be married on November 6th to a wonderful young man named TJ. Now Kate and I have the same sense of humor. We have even been known to have the same dream on the same night! My husband, Matt, calls her Mary Jr. I have been greatly missing Kate, now that she lives in Texas and I’m here in Louisiana.

I thought it would be fun to bridge the miles between us with a little bridal fun. I went to the store and bought a bridal magazine and a pack of post-it notes. I used the sticky notes to make goofy quotes coming out of the mouths of the brides and grooms. I made little comments about everything from the dresses and poses of the models to the food and décor of the receptions. I was upstairs, all by myself, laughing out loud for an hour. (My husband always says, “You crack you up!”)

I packaged up the magazine and sent it off to Kate. Apparently, Matt, I crack someone else up too. Kate loved it! But now it was her turn, and she figured, I’m gonna kick this up a notch! I don’t know where she gets that!

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I have a little joke with my family. Whenever I sneeze and no one thinks to say, “God bless you.” I respond. It goes like this - “Achoo!” (pause) “God bless me!” My family members laugh at my boldness, but I do get my chorus of blessings.

I don’t need to wait for a sneeze to bless another and God always answers when I pray, “God bless me.” Bless me to do Your will, to bring Your love to the unloved, Your mercy to the unforgiven and Your peace to the burdened and broken-hearted.

Ask - God will make you His instrument, no matter where you are or where your gifts lie. Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, there is not a place or time in your day when you are not in God’s mission field, purposely positioned - blessed to be a blessing.

It matters not what you do for a living - only that God is living in what you do.

My favorite ministers, evangelists and missionaries have never gone to seminary. They don’t wear a collar, have never seen the backside of a pulpit or traveled outside of the country. But they daily bless me and all who cross their paths.

One generous minister blesses me with an encouraging Word of God as she gives me a free haircut. A powerful evangelist blesses my day when she testifies to God’s goodness as she checks out my groceries at WalMart. And one amazing missionary simply appears an aisle away nearly every time I shop my local thrift store. For all I know, she has never even been on an airplane, but she’s been dubbed Songbird, for wherever she lands her sweet hymns of faith bless and remind us that no matter our troubles, God is near.

These are regular folks who simply and willingly open up their hearts, hands and voices to let the Spirit of God flow out to His children right where they are, piercing the ordinary and mundane with a grace that can only be of God. They are blessed to be a blessing - so are you and so am I.

I don’t need to wait for a sneeze to bless another and God always answers when I ask ~

Bless me

Bless my life to be Your living
Every word Your Good News giving

Bless my work to be Your mission
Every act to Your fruition

Bless my soul to be a blessing
Every moment spent confessing

You are King and Lord alone
Centerpiece and cornerstone

Solid Rock to whom I cling
Working good in everything

Bless my heart and voice this day
Bless my life that all may say

You are King and Lord alone
Centerpiece and cornerstone

Mary Graver

Photo 2 ~ Light ~ by R. Lalchan on www.flickr.com

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On April 22,1980, I was violently attacked. My life was saved by a woman who literally laid down her life for mine.

It was a beautiful spring evening. I had just purchased a gift for my mom for Mother’s Day. I was driving to my class at Wichita State University, when I was the first to innocently drive into the beginnings of what would become a historic Wichita racial riot, lasting through the night. I would later learn that it began as a result of an altercation between a white police officer and a black man during an arrest.

As I approached an intersection, black men stormed my car, shouting and throwing bricks and bottles through my windows. My first reaction was to stop and protect my head and face beneath the dashboard. That was a costly mistake, for if I had slammed on the gas pedal instead of the brake, I would have driven up to a large police force walking abreast down the street just a few blocks up. I felt the piercing pain of each brick and bottle cutting through the skin on my back.

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