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We live in a beautiful mountain valley in the Cascade foothills. I love this place, but there are days, especially in winter, when I wish I had the faith to say to the mountains around us “Move from here to there.” (Matthew 17:20)

The dark days of winter are made even darker by the mountains blocking the sun. There are days when the sun doesn’t hit our house till about 9 AM and sets by 4 PM. Add in a little fog you begin to question if the sun will ever shine again.

Life can be like that sometimes. Problems surround us, blocking our view of the Son. Life can seem dark, dreary, cold, like our valley on a winter morning.

It is in times like these, the days we walk through life’s darkest valleys, when the words of Psalm 23:4 mean so much. It says there, “Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil for [God is] with me.”

But how is God with me?

He is there in the touch of a friend’s hand, a smile from a stranger, a kind word or a comforting hug. He is there when you and I care for each other.

It is in life’s darkest valleys we need each other most. It is through you and me God reveals Himself to others. As we reflect His love to those around us, we light their way through the dark.

Today, don’t give into the gloom. Reflect the Son! Let God’s love reflect off you and brighten someone’s day. Show those you meet they need “fear no evil”, for God is with them. Even in the darkest valley, He is there, in the touch of someone who cares.

Lord, Fill Me Up!

Each of us has a love cup, hidden within our soul.

For some their cup is empty, for others over-full.

All around us there are people who need their love cups filled.

Life has knocked them over and their cups have spilled.

Their hearts are now quite empty, their spirits parched and dry.

They long for us to see them, to hear their plaintive cry.

These are our sisters and brothers. It’s up to us to fill them up,

to show them they are not alone and with Christ’s love fill up their cup.

If we do not do this, if we don’t listen to their cry.

then hate will take the place of love and their hope within will die.

So, take your cup to Jesus. Cry out, “Lord, fill me up!

Give me more love than I need, that I may fill another’s cup.”

If we do this every morning, what a difference we will see.

Love will flow like water, to meet each other’s need.

“The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you…” 2 Peter 3:9 NIV

Don’t you hate it when you get behind a slow driver when you’re in a hurry?

You’ve got places to go, people to see, things to do, but the old guy in the car up ahead apparently has all the time in the world!

When this happens it drives me crazy! I’m tempted to forget about the double yellow line and go for it, hoping there’s not a car coming or a cop just around the corner.

Sometimes I think God is like that slow driver, holding me back.

God seems to have a different sense of time then I do. I know “With the Lord a day is like a thousand years…” (1 Peter 3:8), but come on, Lord, I ain’t got a thousand years. Sometimes I feel like passing Him up so I can get on with my life. The words “Wait for the Lord” (Ps 27:14) have got to be the hardest command in Scripture!

The problem is my vision is limited. I can’t see around the corner, but God can. If I go rushing ahead, ignoring the “No Passing” signs, there’s a good chance I’m going to make a wreck of my life.

God does everything in His own good time and for our best. He promises that “…that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.” Isaiah 40:31.

Remember, “The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” 2 Peter 3:9.

If God is going to slow for you right now, be patient. He knows what He’s doing. Put your trust in Him, relax and enjoy the journey. Let Him take the wheel and He will get you safely home – in His time.

The Bible says, “Love never fails”, but let’s face it, it does. Husbands cheat. Wives stray. Relationships die. Children pull away. Human love can be fickle and temporary. It’s a fact of life.

That’s why Valentine’s Day, a yearly celebration of love, is for too many the loneliest day of the year, a reminder of love gone wrong, of promises unfulfilled, and hopes discarded.

But there is one kind of love which never fails – God’s love! He declares in Jeremiah 31:3, “I have loved you with an everlasting love…’ and in Psalm 103:17, “But from everlasting to everlasting the Lord’s love is with those who fear him…”

Human love may fail, but God’s love never does, “For as high as the heavens are above earth, so great is His love for those who fear Him.” Psalm 103:11. He has proven His love by giving His Son, Jesus, to die, so that “…whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16.

“‘God is love’ is written upon every opening bud, upon every spire of springing grass. The lovely birds making the air vocal with their happy songs, the delicately tinted flowers in their perfection perfuming the air, the lofty trees of the forest with their rich foliage of living green — all testify to the tender, fatherly care of our God and to His desire to make His children happy.” Steps to Christ, p. 10

This morning, open your eyes to God’s love. The evidence is all around you. No matter what blows life has dealt you, no matter how often human love has failed you in the past; God’s love will never fail. Put your trust in Him. Give Him your life and discover for the first time what unfailing love is all about!

God bless and Happy Valentine’s Day!

Decisions, decisions, decisions!

With so many choices out there how can anyone know what is the right way to go?

Thankfully you do not have to depend on your own wisdom, because you have a Heavenly Father, “who teaches you what is best for you, who directs you in the way you should go.”

If you will “accept the one principle of making the service of God supreme, [you] will find perplexities vanish and a plain path before [your] feet.” Help in Daily Living, p. 21

As you face decisions today, whether great or small, remember God cares about the smallest details of your life. Put your trust in Him, determine to serve Him with all your heart, and He will show you the way.

God bless and have a great day!

“I hate Donald Trump!”

“Hillary’s a liar!”

“Republicans are evil!”

“Democrats are traitors!”

Rhetoric like this spews from our television sets and is tweeted over the Internet every day. Even in lunch rooms at work, the halls of our schools, and from the podiums of our churches, hate-filled speech seems to have become our native voice.

We live in a house divided, a land where even the words, “One Nation Under God” are a trigger for debate. Republicans hate Hillary! Democrats hate Trump! Blacks hate whites and whites hate blacks! Christians hate Muslims and Muslims hate Jews!

This is not the way it was meant to be! We are supposed to be the “United” States, but instead we have become a nation torn apart.

If only we would take Jesus’ advice to “love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you”, what a different land this would be! Imagine how things would change if:

• Instead of bipartisan bickering, our politicians did some bipartisan praying.
• Police agreed that black lives mattered and blacks accepted that blue lives did too.
• Instead of throwing rocks at each other, we sat down together and passed the potatoes.

If we’d all learn to pray for those we disagree with I think we’d find a lot more to agree on.

“Pie-in-the-sky” thinking? Maybe so, but it’s what Jesus told us to do, so I think it’s worth a try. It has to start somewhere, so why not with you and with I?

Loving our enemies and praying for those who despitefully use us is not natural for us, but God calls us to a higher standard.

We can shout and scream at each other all we want, but it’s not going to change a thing. But if we love like Jesus loves and pray like Jesus prayed, change will happen, even if it’s just in our own hearts.

Give it a try today! Choose to “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” After all, aren’t we all children of our Father in heaven? It’s high time we started acting like we were!

I’ve just started reading the book, How Not to Die, by Michael Greger, MD, the founder of NutritionFacts.org. It’s a terrific book about how, with simple lifestyle changes, we can significantly decrease our risk from dying of the fifteen leading causes of premature death.

As I was reading the title it dawned on me it was a little misleading. Although it is true we can prolong our lives by the lifestyle choices we make, no matter how well we live we all will eventually die.

We all know our time is coming, As Ecclesiates 9:5 reminds us, “For the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing; they have no further reward, and even their name is forgotten.”

There is good news, however. Do you want to really know “How Not to Die”? Then open the Bible, the original survival manual. In its pages you will meet Jesus, “the resurrection and the life.” Believe on His name and you “will live, even though [you] die.” John 11:25

For the person who has given their heart to Jesus, death is not something to be feared. It is just a rest stop on our journey to heaven. The apostle John celebrated this fact in Revelation 14:13 when he said, “Then I heard a voice from heaven say, ‘Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.’ ‘Yes,’ says the Spirit, ‘they will rest from their labor, for their deeds will follow them.’ ”

The dear ones we have lost along the way, like my little brother, sleep peacefully in the grave, awaiting Jesus’ return. They feel no pain, know no heartache, shed no tears. They are just asleep, awaiting that glorious day when “…the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.” 1 Thessalonians 4:16.

That will be so amazing, but it gets better! “After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.” 1 Thessalonians 4:17.

Never again will we have to say goodbye to a father or son or daughter, for “God shall wipe away all tears from [our] eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.” Revelation 21:4

Soon, very soon, “…as lightning that comes from the east is visible even in the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.” Matthew 24:27. On that day we will no longer need to read about “How Not to Die”, because Jesus has promised, “whoever lives by believing in me will never die.”

Do you believe this? Then “encourage one another with these words” and share them with a friend right now.

I’ll never forget spelunking in Tennessee when I was a teenager.

The entrance to the cave was this gigantic hole in the ground, but, when we got to the bottom of the pit, the only way into the main part of the cave was through a small hole about the width of a man’s shoulders.

I had to get down on my hands and knees and squirm my way into the opening. I had to leave my backpack behind, because there just wasn’t room for both it and me to get through the hole.

I felt a moment of panic when I was halfway through. The passage took a right-angle turn and I had to turn on my side, so my body would bend around the corner. It was pitch dark and I could feel the walls closing in on me.

Just when I thought I couldn’t take anymore, the passage opened up into a massive underground room, with beautiful stalagmites and stalactites illuminated by the lanterns of the other members of our group. Just to see the beauty of that place was worth all the sacrifice and struggle which had gone before.

Jesus said in Matthew 7:13-14, “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.”

Just as there was only one way into that cave, there is only one way to heaven – through the narrow gate. Jesus said, “I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved.” John 10:9.

It is only through faith in Jesus Christ and His sacrifice for our sins we will make it to heaven. Our gold, our silver, our good works, all are worthless at the gate. Only Jesus’ blood can pay our way. Everything else must be left behind.

Just as I could not carry my backpack with me through that hole, so we cannot carry the things of this world with us into heaven. Our possessions, our pride and ambition, unbelief and fear, hatred and anger, only hinder our way. They must be left behind at Jesus feet.

Today, what is holding you back? Guilt, resentment, anger, fear? Whatever it is, let it go. Give it to Jesus. Leave it behind and take His hand. The road ahead is narrow and rough, but you are never alone. Keep your eyes on Jesus and He will guide you safely Home.

I love to suture. Of all the things I do in my job, suturing is what I enjoy the most. It is so rewarding to take an ugly wound and draw the edges together, leaving only a thin scar behind.

Many times, however, the damage is too extensive for a simple repair. In those cases, I have to cut away the dead and damaged tissue and undermine the edges before the wound can be repaired.

With my scalpel I outline where my final edges are going to be, then, taking sharp scissors, I cut away all the damaged tissue in between. I then undermine the edges, so they can be stretched back into position.

When I’ve finished excising the torn and jagged edges, quite often the wound is larger than it was initially, but stitch-by-stitch, knot-by-knot, I slowly draw the wound closed. What was once a jagged tear is now a thin line. Within about a year, the scar will be hardly noticeable.

Our lives are filled with open wounds. Broken relationships, disappointed hopes, our foolish mistakes, have left us broken and bleeding, with ugly gaps in our soul. The torn and jagged edges of our hearts seem beyond repair.

But the great physician will not leave us that way. With the delicate skill of a surgeon, He uses His Word, like a scalpel to trim back the tattered edges of our lives, cutting away the damage done by sin, penetrating “even to the dividing of soul and spirit, joints and marrow.” Hebrews 4:12 NIV

As we read the Bible, He reveals to us “the thoughts and attitudes of the heart,” showing us what needs to go and what can stay. He undermines our false conceptions and beliefs, so the edges of our souls can be stretched back into alignment with His will.

Even the finest plastic surgeon leaves a scar, but when our Heavenly Father is done no trace of sin will be left behind. We will have “become a new person. The old life is gone. New life has begun.” (2 Corinthians 5:17 NLT)

Today, come to the Great Physician. Show Him your wounds, lay bare your soul, open to Him the jagged edges of your broken heart. Open His Word and let Him start repairing the damage done by sin. Let Him cut and probe, removing all that separates you from Him.

His healing touch will do more than repair your heart. It will transform your soul, so that one day, when you look in the mirror, you will not see your scars. You will only see Him.

Sometimes in my job I have to cause pain in order to heal. If a finger has been dislocated, I use a painful injection to numb it, so I can successfully reduce the dislocation. I may have to gag you with a cotton swab to find out if you have strep throat.

An orthopedist sometimes has to re-break a bone, which has healed wrong, in order to get it back in proper position. A surgeon may have to remove your leg to save your life.

Sometimes a parent has to discipline a child, so they will learn a lesson and sometimes that means the child may not want to sit down for a while.

God sometimes has to do the same for us. God “…disciplines those he loves, as a father the son he delights in.” Proverbs 3:12. Sometimes we have to be broken before we can heal. We must be emptied before we can be filled.

This is an inconvenient truth. We want to think of God as a loving Father, and He is, but like any loving parent, God knows, in order for us to grow, sometimes a little discipline is needed.

As Hebrews 12:11 says, “No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful.” However, the very thing which causes so much pain “…produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.”

I don’t know what kind of trials and disappointments you are going through right now. I don’t know what is causing you pain, but whatever it is, I know God is allowing it to happen for a reason.  He sees something in you worth developing and He’s ready to pull out all the stops to help you grow, even if that means you have to endure a little discomfort along the way.

So, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” James 1:2-4

Hang in there, my friend. God is at work. He delights in you, “as a father the son”, but sometimes love hurts. However, I promise you this – it will be worth it all in the end!

God bless and have a wonderful day!