Last days burn out

November 19, 2023November 19, 2023 carriedinthecrossLeave a comment

Last days wear out is something no one talks about.

I would like to start this Devotional with the releasing statement that I am not one the great people who study in depth and know great and terrible things involving the end. However, if we believe the Bible (which we do) and read it fully we will know that all the days after Jesus ascended are the last days. So we are in them even if we are or are not fully in the book of Revelation yet.
What I want to speak of is last days wear out.
The Bible says:

‭‭2 Timothy‬ ‭3:1‭-‬5‬ ‭NIV‬‬
[1] But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. [2] People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, [3] without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, [4] treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— [5] having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people.

And it says:

‭‭2 Peter‬ ‭3:3‬ ‭NIV‬‬
[3] Above all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires.
There are many more but we will stay with these for today. The last days for those living in sin will look a big party with no rules or rulers. But for those us who belong to Jesus, we can see the truth. What about those of us who long for righteousness? Those who tread carefully on the narrow path? We see all around us and try and remain pure, untainted and faithful, but as the final days of the end draw closer and closer things are getting worse. The world is dying and we can see it and for many of us it’s frightening and tiring. We feel like we are fighting against so much every day. We have lost friends and connections with loved ones and we wonder if we are doing the right thing. But God.
God warned us that this would be what these days would look like, He’s not surprised by any of it. Is He sad? Probably. Is He angry? Probably. But Is He surprised? No. He is still in control.
‭‭15] Bear in mind that our Lord’s patience means salvation, just as our dear brother Paul also wrote you with the wisdom that God gave him. [16] He writes the same way in all his letters, speaking in them of these matters. His letters contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the other Scriptures, to their own destruction. [17] Therefore, dear friends, since you have been forewarned, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of the lawless and fall from your secure position. [18] But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen.

We are called to stay on guard and to help our fellow Christians do the same. But it does wear us out. I am worn out. My friends talk and I hear how worn out they are. Being a true Christian in these sad and heartbreaking days is hard work. We pray harder and more often. It seems like the list of needs keeps growing. Evil is standing in the center of everything and is reaching its fingertips towards the church and all we want to do is scream or cry. But God is holding us. He is keeping us together and waiting until His time is right for His second coming and in that we have hope. The wars, politics, lies and deceit are banging around in our heads and Jesus is saying, “just be still. You are here for my chosen purpose. I am always with you.”
So maybe some days we need to take a break and rest and disconnect from social media, TV, and the radio just so we can become realigned with what matters and what is true. Then let us stand up and say:
[20] He who testifies to these things says, “Yes, I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus. [21] The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God’s people. Amen. Revelation 22:20- 21

Christianity · Devotional · dreams do come true · encouragement · free · guidance · Jesus · power of God · Prayer · searching

The shepherd

November 9, 2023 carriedinthecrossLeave a comment

The shepherd

What is the role of the shepherd in the pasture? He’s the whole purpose. He’s the one who wants the sheep and calls the sheep and cares for the sheep. But not just the sheep. He cares for the collies and the lamas too. He knows each animal in the field and knows how each one needs to be cared for. He also knows which sheep is hurting, which is afraid, which is prone to run away, which gets lost easily. He knows each sheep by name. He sits in the cold, the rain, the dark, the blazing sunlight, the icy snow and he watches over His flock.
God is the great shepherd. Psalms 23.
God knows each of us, He knows our names and He knows our minds, our hearts, our strengths and our weaknesses. He knows who needs a shoulder to cry in or who needs a healing hug. He knows who needs a hand to hold and who needs a gentle poke from the staff. Rain or shine He us always there. Night or day He is with you. He knows you and how to take care of you, not just as one of the flock, but as (insert your name here). He doesn’t say “it’s okay number 33687.” He says “it’s okay Lynne. It’s okay John. It’s okay Max.” Because we are special to Him as individuals.
Some of us are sheep
Some are lamas
Some are collies
But there is only one true shepherd and I thank God for shepherding me.

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Collies

November 7, 2023 carriedinthecrossLeave a comment

Collies

Yesterday we talked about the role of the lama, in the field and in the church, today we will talk about the role of the dog.
What is the dog’s job in the sheep pasture? They keep the sheep in line. Without a dog to herd them the sheep will scatter and wander off when moving from field to field. When it’s time to go from summer pasture to winter it can be a fairly long walk, depending on where you plan for your animals to graze. Without the dog strays will get lost and lambs can go astray. The dog knows the sound of the shepherd’s whistle. He knows what to do when someone falls away from the group, and he will fight any animal that comes against his flock. The dog isn’t always our favorite person in the church. He or she is the one who gently points out the places we are falling short from the commands of the shepherd. But he is also the person who will show up to the house of the recovering addict because she didn’t come lunch like she usually does. He’s the one who will go into the bar to find the sheep who has turned to something harmful to escape his problems. He’s the one who will sit up all night with the person struggling with depression who just can’t take another day. She’s the one who bakes a casserole for a friend who needs help to get by. She’s the person who cries in her prayer closet for the sheep who wouldn’t come home. And she’s the one the world doesn’t want to mess with in regards to her flock, because she’s the one who will go down fighting.
The dog isn’t always loved in the church because he or she can look like someone who is critical or judgemental at times. But the dog is the one who will fight for you against yourself when you become your own worst enemy.
For those of us who are the dog of the church, let’s not be hard on ourselves when we get scolded by the sheep for only listening to the shepherd, it’s His voice we should follow anyway. And next time one of the dog’s points something out to you, pray about it and see if it is something God wants you to fix instead of getting angry.
God bless the dogs of the church.

Tomorrow we will cover the sheep and then lastly, we will move to the shepherd.

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Hey there little red. Who have you been listening to?

October 29, 2023 carriedinthecrossLeave a comment

Hey there little Red. Who have you been listening to?

Imagine how that story would have gone if Riding Hood had listened to the wolf. She would have been a lovely dinner for a hungry wolf family and the story would have been shorter and without space for all the sad remakes.
We too are walking through the woods, we don’t really know where we are going or if it’s going to stop being dark. What we do know is that there is an enemy waiting for us. Prowling. If we listen to what he says we will be dinner. The wolf says stuff like, “everyone is doing it.” “It’s legal now.” “It won’t hurt anyone.” “God loves me despite my flaws.”
The wolf isn’t stupid. He takes things that sound good and use them to twist the truth. Lots of things that are legal are that way because they are fine, but some are legal because the law makers gave into pressure, or chose to lower the law’s standards to make extra money. Sometimes when everyone is doing something it’s a good idea, like brushing your teeth or eating less salt. But lots of stuff everyone does is simply people living according to the flesh and not God’s word. It won’t hurt anyone is a good policy, unless it will hurt you and you haven’t considered that a worthy concern.
God does love you despite your flaws. But it doesn’t stop there. God want you to leave your sins behind and follow Him.
See? Twisting. The wolf is always twisting the truth. He speaks softly in your ear and tells you half truths that pull you off the path and lead you to his den. Sometimes he even infiltrates grandma’s house, (the church, your small group, your friends, your family) and gets to you that way.
You have to not listen to the wolf to get back home safely. Going into the woods is mandatory. Going off the path is optional. Listen to the word of God. As one of my favorite preachers once said, “get to know God so well that when the devil comes to tell you lies, God’s voice blocks him out.”
Take God’s hand and stay on the path. Beware the false words of the preditor and trust the Truth of God.

( disclaimer: I do not believe actual wolves are evil. They are wild animals and need respect but should not be killed or trapped due to fear. Use sense and caution when dealing with all wild animals.)

Christianity · Devotional · guidance · holy spirit · Jesus · Love · power of God · Prayer · searching

Don’t take sides?

October 23, 2023 carriedinthecrossLeave a comment

Don’t take sides?

We see it so often. “Christians don’t take sides, we love everyone.” After that it feels like taking a side means you don’t love both sets of people and that is not true. You have to take a side on many things. Being pro-life does not mean you hate the women who have had abortions, it means that you acknowledge unborn babies as lives that should not be taken, you also know that many of these women did not see the other options as possible and you know that they are broken. Being opposed to the killing of babies does not mean you hate the mothers who choose this, though you hate the action. Being against living in sexual sin (of any kind) does not mean you hate those who are, it means that you are against the sin. The fact is, we all must choose a side in all things. Either we choose the side of Jesus or we choose the side of the world. We can not live as though we are part of the world, or worse, as though we are indifferent to the wrongs that are happening in it. We must take a stand. We need also to pray for people on all sides. We need to pray for our own people and for those who oppose us, and sometimes that feels like it sucks, but once you start doing that it helps you to see past your own thoughts and feelings to God’s. He wants people to live the way He planned it, He also knows that we will go astray, that’s why He is said to patient, because instead of slaying us for our sinful ways He gives is time to see that we are wrong so we can come to Him. He isn’t wishy-washy about sin. What He says is wrong is wrong period, no discussion, but He also says that He will welcome you back as a prodigal, He also says that He will graft you into the vine, He also calls Himself your Father so you know how much He loves you and that He will always forgive you when you come to Him and repent. We must side with Jesus or else we aren’t Christians, but doing that in love can be so hard, we need to pray and trust Him and ask Him to help us take His side with His motives and not ours.

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He is the breath

October 15, 2023October 15, 2023 carriedinthecrossLeave a comment

He is the breath

He is the breath inside my lungs, I am just the breather.
I am simply using what He has given me to get through each day. We make everything about us. We make music meant to worship Jesus about our carnal relationships, we make our bodies meant to honor Him a temple of worldly pleasures, we make our minds that were meant to serve Him a battleground against Him. We don’t even acknowledge that God gave us all these things. That they are gifts from Him.
He is the breath inside our lungs, we simply use what He has given us.
Like CS Lewis said when speaking of God. He said, ‘we are like children, who ask their Father for money to go and buy Him a gift. And like the good Father He is, He always rejoices when we give our lives back to Him.’ -Mere Christianity (rough quote from my memory. I recommend reading the book for he says it so much better than I have here)
When we give our lives to Jesus, we are simply giving back to Him what always was His. We think we belong to ourselves, but we belonged to Him first.
He is everything that is important about us. Do we make Him our desire? Do remember to prioritize Him? He prioritizes us. We are His desire. We are nothing but hollow human shells without Him filling us with life. He is our redeemer. Let Him redeem you.

Christianity · Devotional · guidance · Jesus · power of God · searching · The Bible

Jesus can see past the door to your true motives

October 10, 2023 carriedinthecross1 Comment

“Jesus only looked at the blood on the door, not at who was inside.”….. really?
People think God didn’t know who was inside? Yes the blood on the door in Exodus is used as symbolic for the blood of Christ on us, but it’s not the same situation. Read the whole book, understand what was happening, then come up with your slogan. Yes the blood of Jesus covers our sins, but we can’t be purposely living a filthy and sinful life and expect that Jesus will let all that go because we accepted Him once. Jesus warns many times of living a life that will cause His Spirit to leave you and cause you to fall short of Heaven. He knows who you are. He isn’t blinded by the blood He gave so generously that He has missed the fact that you misuse it as an excuse to sin. If you keep your evil ways you never truly accepted Jesus and if you need a slogan that makes it easy for you to keep on with your lifestyle the way it is and still claim to be a Christian then you’ve missed the point. This post is not a rant. Just a warning. It’s too easy to over look the hard stuff in the Bible and simply take things people have twisted to fit our sin and fly it like a banner. We need to get to know Jesus personally and to want to please Him by living lives worthy of Him. If not then we’ve missed it. We are missing it. Following Jesus is more than saying words at church and then going on like nothing changed. We need to change and to serve Him.

Christianity · Devotional · encouragement · free · guidance · Jesus · Love · power of God · Prayer · searching · still fighting · thanksgiving · The Bible · True Joy

The Shepherds humility

October 1, 2023October 1, 2023 carriedinthecrossLeave a comment

This weekend was my last weekend for camping before winter comes. My dog and I took our first day at our camp spot to go hiking. The fall colors were beautiful and we went for a long hike down the trails. At the end of the trail we had chosen we ended up in a farmer’s field. He had just finished taking off all of his wheat and the sharp unbending stocks stood in our way. My dog is a Jack Russell, so he’s not very tall. The stocks were too high for him so I had to pick him up and carry him. We have been hiking for a really long time or else I would have turned us around and taken us back the way we had come. But the road lay ahead of us just beyond the field so I picked my dog up and carried him in my arms. He’s not a very light Jack Russell. He was too heavy to carry in my arms the whole way so I placed him up on my shoulders, like shepherds do with sheep. In doing this I realized a couple of things. We often see images of Jesus carrying lambs (representing us) on His shoulders as He traverses a rocky or dangerous area. He is always carrying the lamb on His shoulders, because that’s what shepherds do. When I placed my Jack Russell, who’s considerably lighter than a lamb, up on my shoulders it caused my body to bend forward in a position of bowing humility toward the terrain that I was navigating. Holding his little feet on either side of my neck and having him trust that I wouldn’t let him fall all seemed to he symbolic of the way Jesus carries us. And of the way He carried the cross. He humbled Himself. We hear people say that all the time but do we really acknowledge what it means. He humbled Himself. Bowing is often a sign of respect or humility. I see Jesus bowed under the weight of the cross on His back and shoulders, like He would have carried the lamb in the images we see. When Jesus placed the cross on His back, He was carrying us every one of us. Every person, every name that would ever exist was attached to that cross, when He sacrificed Himself for our sins. And like the images we see of Him carrying the little lamb on His shoulders, He had to bow forward. To put a sacrifice of humility on someone who didn’t ever need to be humbled, God didn’t need to humble Himself, if anyone had the right to not be humble, it’s the guy who created the whole world. But He still chose to humble Himself for us, in dying on the cross, in carrying the cross, in carrying us He had to bow forward to take the strain and the weight of our sins upon Himself as He carries us forward toward the end goal. We can’t do it on our own, we just don’t have it in us. We can try and we will fail, but He will never fail. Like I said earlier we have to trust Him, as He places us on His shoulders, to never drop us. But He won’t, He’s God, He loves us. And He buys Himself forward to take our weight on to Him, because that’s just who He is.
Happy October 1

Christianity · Devotional · dreams do come true · Jesus · Love · power of God · Prayer · searching · True Joy

Signs of love

September 25, 2023 carriedinthecrossLeave a comment

Signs of love

We all talk about signs of life. I even have a favorite album by that title. But do we discuss the signs of love? As I have been staying in our trailer during these fading months of warm weather, I have had the same picture to look at every morning. It’s a photo of the design a puffer fish makes when he is trying to attract a mate. The male fish will dig his body into the soft sand of the sea floor and score into it many intricate lines until he has made a picture he is proud of, then the female fish sees the picture done just for her and goes to him. It’s his sign of love.
God also leaves signs of love for us. Flowers. Butterflies. Seashells. Sunsets. Extras.
Sherlock Holmes once said: “Flowers show me that God is good. We need food and air and water to survive, but flowers are an extra.”
God shows His love for us in the extras that we take for granted each day. So many feel like God doesn’t love them, simply because they don’t know how to look for the signs of His love. In the big miracles yes, but also in the psithurism as the wind tickles the trees, also in the soft sand beneath your feet, also in the smile of a loved one, the twitch of a bunny’s nose, the wag of an old dog’s tail. Look for the extras. The signs that God loves you enough to do things to make you smile, things that you don’t even give Him credit for. Next time you smell a flower or gaze at a sunset remember, that’s an extra and it shows that God loves you.

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Let all idols fall

September 14, 2023 carriedinthecrossLeave a comment

When the ark of the Lord had been in Philistine territory seven months, the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners and said, “What shall we do with the ark of the Lord? Tell us how we should send it back to its place.” They answered, “If you return the ark of the god of Israel, do not send it back to him without a gift; by all means send a guilt offering to him. Then you will be healed, and you will know why his hand has not been lifted from you.”
1 Samuel 6:1‭-‬3 NIV

I love this. It scares me too, we often forget just how powerful our God is. I love that God’s enemies thought they had won. They paraded around and celebrated defeating Isreal and taking the Arc of the Covenant. They mocked God by placing His Arc next to the false idol of their god, thinking it was greater than the God of Israel. Then came day 2. God struck them with plague after plague and set death and sickness on every city His Arc was brought to. He showed His enemies His power until they repented of their actions and sent His Arc back to His people, alone with a guilt offering, so basically an apology. God decimated those who mocked Him. I love this because it’s cool. I also love it because it reminds us that we don’t have to fight in our power against the enemies of God who are also our enemies. God will fight for us, through us and for Himself. He destroys evil with the flick of a hand. We simply need to wait and know He can do it. Somedays it feels like God will never slay Goliath, Somedays it feels like the lions will eat their fill and the furnace will burn us up. Somedays it feels like the light will never win. But He does win! He has won! The cross declared it. God is the Victor over the devil and all evil. The devil keeps fighting even though he knows he’s lost because he wants every soul he can get to break God’s heart. But God has defeated him. He has thrown down the devil’s idols before and will do it again. We simply need to trust and be patient in His timing.