Even a mask can't hide your smile

   One of the problems with wearing a mask during the pandemic is that it gets hard to recognize people.

But in case you haven’t noticed it, those who know you, still recognize you, even though you wear your mask. How is that? They can see your eyes!

   The old-timers say that our eyes are the windows to the soul. An artist who paints a picture takes great pains to capture the eyes because they reveal who we are and what we think.

   A person whose smile is hidden behind a mask still can bring joy to another person because the muscles that make us smile are tied to the ones that make our eyes crinkle. We can watch the crinkle around a person's eyes and tell that he is smiling with his lips that are hidden behind a mask.

   It’s kind of hard to hide joy and happiness. Even if a mask covers our faces our eyes tell the story.

   Proverbs 17:22 A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.

   Even a mask can’t hide your smiling face. It shows the world the joy you have in your soul!

Blessed in our mess

     Often we are frustrated with the mess we have made of our lives. That's when we feel like Jacob whose life was really a mess.

Because of the stolen blessing, he and his brother were at odds. In fact, his brother threatened to kill him the next time he saw him.

    He worked seven years to get the woman he loved and then discovered that he had to marry her sister too and work seven more years. After 21 years, he had 12 sons by two wives. He was blessed but he was in a mess.

    He returned home but had to face his angry brother.

    In that mess, he wrestled with God until he received a final blessing that changed his name from Jacob to Israel.

    Even in his difficulties, frustration, and self-created mess, he was blessed

That should give us all a little encouragement. Let's praise God for helping in this mess we created for ourselves. It's not his fault that we mess up. We're glad that he won't leave us.

Psalm 37:27 Let those who delight in my righteousness shout for joy and be glad and say evermore, “Great is the Lord, who delights in the welfare of his servant!”

As you look back over the day, remember that even though we are frustrated by our circumstances, God is still blessing us every day.

Hungry for the word? God's got all you can eat!

 True believers can't go long without developing a hunger for the Word of God. 

 We long to be in his presence. We yearn for the songs of faith and hope. 

We long to hear the prayers and to feel the security and inspiration of the preached word.

  There are many church members who can belong to a church and be absent from worship, bible study, and learning situations, for long periods of times. 

  They are like the man who complained that the preacher at his church only has two subjects. "Every time I come to church he always preaching on the same thing. It's either the birth of Christ or the resurrection of Christ, it's time for him to get something new!" 

  Psalm 63:1 You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you,

in a dry and parched land where there is no water.

  There is something on the inside of true believers that pushes us to want to hear a word from God. We want to read the Word of God, worship in public, watch on television, and listen to tapes. We want to hear a word from the Lord! 

  If you are hungry for the word of God, he’ll give you all you can eat

It's a big deal to have the keys to the house!

We give our children the keys to our homes;  but we know everything is Copestetic when they give us the key to theirs.

One of the symbols of maturity in youth is the day that parents trust their children with a key to the house. Until that time, parents did not have confidence that their children could be trusted come and go in a responsible.

The child who had the key had access.

We feel welcomed to the treasures of heaven because Christ has given us the key. We feel we have access anytime.

Consider the young man who had gone away from home to start his own family. He bought himself a new home, car and lived rather lavishly. One day his parents received a letter in the mail. The letter contained a ring of keys and a note. Curious, the parents read the note which said: "Dear Mom and Dad. Please find enclosed the key to my new car, key to my home burglar alarm code, the combination to my safe. Anything I have, please feel free to use or borrow. You gave me full access to your treasures; I give you full access to mine." 

At the bottom of the note was a P.S.: "By the way I still have the key to your front door...just in case!"  The parents felt welcomed to their son's home. He also felt welcome to return home anytime.

Romans 15:7 Therefore receive one another, just as Christ also received [a]us, to the glory of God.

To show us how much he loves us, Christ has given us the keys to the kingdom, and faith unlocks the door.

A $10,000 shoe is worth nothing on Holy Ground

We wear some expensive shoes today, but they are of no value on holy ground.

The most expensive shoe brands have price tags that make your head turn, such as the Jimmy Choo Icons that sell for $3,785 a pair.

 

The Gucci leather boot is a meager $3,750 a pair.

The Lui Vuitton Manhatten men’s shoe sells for $10,000 a pair or the Stuart Weitzman Rita Hayward heels that sell for $3 million a pair.

If you really want to think rich, you can buy a pair of Harry Winston ruby slippers that contain 460 ruby pieces and 50 carats of diamonds. It tops the market at $3.1 million a pair.

So you thought your Nike, Adidas, and Red Bottoms were the in thing? You better get a bigger limit on your credit card.

No matter how much we pay for our shoes, clothes, or hairstyles, when we stand before God, we must humble ourselves before him. When we come before him, he’s not impressed with how much we paid for our shoes; after all, he holds the wealth of the world in his hands. He’s looking for hearts of gold, not shoes worth their weight in gold.

Exodus 3:5 says, "...draw not nigh hither; put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.

The price tag on our shoes or clothing might impress our friends, but what impresses God is our willingness to obey him.

Only a pure heart should stand before him on Holy Ground.

Over in the corner, your high price shoes lie right next to my dollar store knocks.

We are the same before God.

Can you pass the faith test?

 Our faith in God is maintained by what we know about him. Can you pass the test?

If you are surrounded by enemies, will the Lord leave you to defend yourself?

If you have done more wrong things than you have good things, will God leave you to fend for yourself?

If you are old and feeble and can’t serve as you once did, will the Lord dump you for a younger model?

Is there a certain time of day that you must pray?

Do you need to be on your knees to pray to God?

Well, let's check-up. Your answer to every question should have been “NO.”

God will never leave true believers by themselves or abandon them because they are old. You can call on him any time of day, and you don’t have to be on your knees!

Congratulations! It’s good to know Jesus. It’s also good for him to know you.

 Deuteronomy 31:8 And the Lord, he it is that doth go before thee; he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed.

The Lord is always near to you; he will never leave you or forsake the faithful.

You passed the test.

Good for you.

Thank God for the blood

    It's good to know that we are protected, saved, and strengthened by the blood of Christ.

God recognizes that true saints have put themselves under the protection of Christ. We are identified by the presence of the blood of Christ covering our lives. 

   Just as God told Israel, “When I see the blood, I will pass over you;" he says the same to us.

   When I see the blood, I’ll take your unsettled spirit and give you comfort.

   When I see the blood, I’ll take your defeat and give you the victory!

   When I see the blood, I’ll take your bowed down head and lift it up high!

   When I see the blood, I’ll take your spiritual blindness and help you see your way!

   There are some things in this world that we cannot attain without the blood.

   The songwriter asked the question, “What can wash away my sins?” Then he answered what every born-again Christian already knows, its “Nothing but the blood

of Jesus!” What can make me whole again? Nothing but the blood of Jesus! Oh precious is the flow that makes me white as snow, nothing but the blood of Jesus!"

    When you’ve been washed in the blood, you can sing with new meaning, “I know it was the blood. I know it was the blood that saved me.”

    1 Peter 1:19 explains how we can be saved, protected, and provided for all simultaneously. It says,  “But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: 

    Thank God for the blood.

In tough situations, pray your way out!

If you find yourself in a tough situation, our first step should be to pray for a way out.

That’s different from looking for a way out. When we look for a way out, we are trying to find the way out ourselves. When we pray, we ask God to show us the way out.

 When we pray, we talk to God and tell him the sincere desires of our hearts. When we pray, we pour out our souls to him. We empty our spirit and prostrate ourselves before Him.

 When we pray, God hears us and responds to our prayer requests. God's only requirement of us is that we abide in him and that his words abide in us. 

 Before talking to God about our troubles, we must humble ourselves before him and repent for our sins. We repent because we dare not ask God for blessings while we are practicing sinners. Second, we ask God to show us His and submit ourselves to Him.

 In humility, we pray, without ceasing, not that our troubles would end but that His will should be done. Praying for the will of God to be done opens doors for us. When doors open, we can find a way out. 

 Psalm 40:17 17 But as for me, I am poor and needy; may the Lord think of me. You are my help and my deliverer; you are my God, do not delay.

 It does not matter how we came to be in a situation; what matters is how we get out. The first step is to pray your way out. 

Don't know what you want? We do!

 Many people have no idea what they want in life, but Christians do.

Some have tried some of everything  trying to find happiness, and now after many years of trial and error, are no closer than they were at the beginning

There are people that want big houses because they somehow felt that a big house meant having a happy home. Homes and houses are not the same. Some want the house, but they are not willing to do what it takes to have a happy home.

The prodigal son was at home with a family that loved him. There was a roof over his head and food on the table yet he didn't want what he had. He wanted something else and went into the far country where he wasted his life only to realize that what he really wanted was back home.

 Many today are searching, chasing rainbows, and looking for four-leaf clovers. They don’t know what they want.

 We should examine ourselves and ask, what is it that I really want?

 Often what we want is freely available in the hands of God, we can get it if we run to him instead of away from him.

  If you are searching read Lamentations 3:40. Let us search and try our ways, and turn again to the LORD.

  The faithful should be secure in the Lord's promise. He has promised us eternal life; that's what we really want. 

Seniors, its' a wonderful life, enjoy it!

 We all cherish our youth, but most of the wisdom we acquired didn’t come when we were young, it came after we’ve packed in a few years.

In youth, we do stupid things. In our senior years, we are a little wiser.

Among us, there are many who live to the magic number of 70 years, called out threescore and ten. But there are many who get the benefit of bonus years and they live to 80 and beyond.

What do you do when you turn 80? Well, Moses didn’t begin his journey as the spokesman for Israel’s deliberation until he was 80. Queen Elizabeth of England is 95 and never misses a step. 

If you have a reasonable portion of health and strength, it's good to enjoy your golden years.

Psalm 90:10 As for the days of our life, they contain seventy years, Or if due to strength, eighty years, Yet their pride is but labor and sorrow; For soon it is gone and we fly away.

Before they fly away, seniors are enjoying themselves cooking, talking with family, keeping house and some even travel.

It’s a wonderful life, enjoy every day!

We give God thanks for everything, even the toilet paper.

 We give God thanks for everything, even the toilet paper

During the height of the COVID Pandemic in 2020, there was a general feeling of panic because many homes experienced quarantines and were locked in for 14 days.

Nearly every household began to stock up on supplies because no one knew if they would contract the virus and would face a mandatory lockdown. Food pantries were stocked with freezable meats and vegetables, various cuts of meat, snacks, sodas, and hundreds of bottles of water.

However, no one expected there to be run on toilet paper and paper towels? Who would have thought that people in stores would wait outside of Walmart in long lines to purchase bottles of Lysol and rolls of toilet tissue?

Those who successfully secured paper products were happy and gave each other high fives because they had secured the paper products their homes needed.

During the Pandemic, we learned to give God thanks for something we took for granted, good old four-play toilet paper.

Many ran out of stores shouting with joysaying, “Thank you Jesus,” I’ve been blessed.

Psalm 9:1 I will give thanks to you, LORD, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonderful deeds.

So while you thank God for your car, house, clothes, and reasonable health and strength, don’t forget the toilet paper.

They knew us before we were born, God did, too!

 Growing up, it was kinda weird when an older person told us, “I knew you before you knew yourself.” They were not the only ones who could say that, God could say that, too.

We depend on our parents, grandparents, aunts, and uncles to tell us about our life before we took our first breath. We don’t remember the nine months we spent in the womb. It’s a blank.

Researchers say we don’t remember much about ourselves before we were three years old. If we do they are the big things or scary things. Even then, our memory about it is foggy.

Older family members started watching us as take shape. They saw our tendencies and traits. They saw it before we did.

As we grew older the old folks in our families started comparing our physical traits, talents, and quirks to others in the family. Pretty soon, it became obvious that we had the stuff to be teachers, architects, football players, leaders or followers. 

They saw it before we did and started nudging us to develop our potential.  We that happens the dance lessons, karate classes, piano lessons, music lessons and a variety of other lessons begin.

God knows us, too. Even more than our parents or our grandparents, he knew us before we knew ourselves. In the womb, he gave us gifts, talents, and skills. Many of us have them, but it seems that everyone recognizes it but us.

Jeremiah 1:5 says, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you before you were born I set you apart..”

Before we were born God equipped us for our lifework. He gave us talents, gifts, and certain traits to accomplish that.

The old folks in your family knew it when we were crawling around on your knees. 

If we don’t know it by now, we can find out when you talk to God on our knees.

Hell ain't cool, but heaven is!

When I was about 11 I had a large collection of comic books, but when I saw the book about Hell, it wasn’t funny.

Collecting and trading comic books was fascinating to me. I had all of the comics: Superman, Superboy, Dick Tracy, Bat Man, and all of the rest. 

I even have a collection of the Classics in Comics such as Ivanhoe, Romeo and Juliet, and McBeth. In pictures, I came to understand great ideas and often lost myself in the comic book world of Mickey Mouse, Daffy Duck, and Mighty Mouse.

The old folks called comics, funny books. And they were funny until I came upon a set of comic books about Dante’s Inferno. In these comic pictures depicted ungodly people being tossed into hell fire. That was a nightmare. I didn’t like that picture and soon got rid of that book. I figured If I didn’t see it, I wouldn’t think about it. And the place would go away.

In Sunday school, I learned about heaven, but then I also learned that the unrighteous will be condemned to hell. I decided that I wanted to learn more about heaven and how to get there. I wanted to be sure my name was on the list of those going to heaven.

Revelation 20:15 says, "And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire."

Hell won’t be a good place. It certainly won’t be cool.

I bought the funny book that showed me pictures about hell, but it sure wasn’t funny.

I found it better to dream about going to heaven.

 I found heaven in a book too, it’s called the Bible.

God doesn't have email, prayer is faster

We reach people today by mail, phone or social chat sites. God doesn’t have an email, how do you reach him?

Email is the accepted method of communication today. There was a time that people sent letters, but mostly business-related items or matters that are very important or sent by snail mail. These might include government agencies such as the IRS, the Social Security Administration, or The Veterans administration. Sale papers still come in the mail, too.

Today, everyone wants your email address. If you don’t do email then they want your cell phone number so they can send you a text. Even doctor appointments are being conducted over the phone, so they need your FaceTime address.

If you don’t want to be contacted, all you have to do is cancel your phone, kill your internet, email, and Cablevision. Most likely you will then be pretty hard to find.

There are times when we want to get a message to God, but he doesn’t have an email, twitter or a cellphone number. How do we get a message to God? What’s his number? That’s where Jesus comes in. We pray our prayers to God in Jesus’ name. He delivers each and every one. 

God doesn’t have email, the only way to get him a message is to pray, in Jesus’ name. It’ll get there on time.

John 14:6: Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.”

When you pray in Jesus’ name you’re praying to the whole Godhead at the same time. Instead of 911, you are calling 1-1-1

One for the father, one for the son, and one for Holy Ghost.

Try it, before you finish speaking the words in faith, you'll get a direct connection and your message is delivered on time every time.

Before you plan tomorrow, check with God

In the past folks made promises, but conditioned them on whether not the promises were within the will of God.

We heard the old times say things such as “You can count on me, if the wills it.”

Or some would say, “If the Lord say the same and the creek don’t rise.”

There was a lot of wisdom in those old sayings because they acknowledged that we don’t control tomorrow, but God does.

For country folks, the possibility of flash floods, without notice, was always on their mind. No promise could be kept if the waters of the creek overflowed and washed out the roads and caused floods.

We make plans for tomorrow and next year, but all of our plans are contingent upon the will of God who controls the entire world. So the Bible teaches us not to make concrete promises but to always condition them on whether God’s plans and our plans are going in the same direction.

James 4:14-15 says, “Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away. For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that."

Every day of our lives is in the hand of God.

Any plans we make are tentative, they depend on what God has on schedule for tomorrow.

We don’t know what he plans for us, but whatever it is, he’s got us covered.

Whatever you plan for tomorrow, put it in God’s hand and resolve to do it, “If the Lord says the same, and the creek don’t rise.”

Forget the wishbone, ask God instead

Wishbones are supposed to bring good luck, but those who trust God never lose out.

A tradition began many years ago with the Pilgrims. After they had eaten the Thanksgiving turkey they took the turkey's wishbone, dried it out and the next day two people would each make a wish and pull on each end of the bone. Whoever got the bigger part of the bone was said to get the "lucky break" and their wish would come true.

Over the years people have pulled on goose bones, duck bones, and even chicken bones trying to find good luck. We wish upon a star, look for four-leaf clovers, put horseshoes over our doors, and everything else we can think of in an effort to get the luck we seek.

Christians don’t trust luck, we live by faith. We believe that what God has for us, we will receive. In addition, if we have needs, we ask God to provide for them according to his will. If what we ask is in his will, we will receive at the appropriate time.

John 15:7 says, “If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.”

So, getting the longest part of the wishbone might be fun, but don’t count on it.

Nothing beats a sincere prayer to the father who can open doors for us, regardless to which end of the wishbone we get.

You are already rich, you just don't know it!

 Many people spend their lives trying to get rich, those who know the Lord are already rich.

People who have experienced poverty often dream of a time when they don’t have to worry about paying the rent, lights, water, or gas. We yearn to seek the time when car notes, house notes, and loans are a thing of the past.

That’s an admirable goal because beyond that, with the exception of health issues and unplanned circumstances, living is easier.

Some, however, don’t dream of living comfortably; they dream of being rich. Not just fifty rich. They don’t want a golden bathtub and toilet, the most expensive car in the world, and jewelry the size of marbles. They don’t want one house to live in they also want three or four others to play in. Planes, Yachts, servants, and money to throw away are the substance of their dreams.

The Bible warns believers about seeking riches. If that becomes our life’s goal it can consume our thinking, mess up our sleep, ruin our marriages and attract more haters than we care to mention. More than that, it tends to lead us away from God who wants to be first in our lives.

1 Timothy 6:9 Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction.

If you have a place to lay your head, reasonable health, and strength, a family that loves you and access to the splendor of heaven...

You are already rich; you just don't know it!

Being ashamed of God is not cool!

Many people are ashamed to talk about God; that's not cool.

Today it’s not a popular thing to talk about God, or being blessed in the workplace. It seems that the workplace, especially corporate America wants you to keep your beliefs about God to yourself.

Those who look too religious, or keep a Bible on their desks, probably won’t get fired, but there is a good chance they may not be promoted or invited to the company party.

People of faith are tolerated but rarely appreciated, so some believers don’t talk much about God unless they are around other church people. It’s not cool to speak of Godly things at school, or on the job so many just keep quiet. It’s just not cool to be born again, or filled with the spirit, or to constantly talk about being blessed.

Ashamed, so believers keep their faith to themselves. They refuse to witness because they don’t want to be snubbed.

In God’s eyesight, that’s not cool!

Luke 9:26 says, “For whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words, of him shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he shall come in his own glory, and in his Father's, and of the holy angels.

All the people who laugh at you for talking about God or living by faith act differently whenever there is a death, mass shooting, earthquake or serious trouble.

When that happens, everybody looks for that co-worker they know who prays or has a connection with God.

That’s why you should live the Christian life in front of your co-workers, you don’t have preach them, your life will do that for you.

Be ashamed of who you were before you found the Lord

Don’t be ashamed of who you are with the Lord.

If your friends have a problem with your faith, they are the ones with the problem.

We want a thumbs up from God!

Crowds may applaud you and chant your name, but it’s what God thinks that counts.

The Christian life has taught us to measure the praise we get from people and receive it only in proportion to how well it might be received by God. 

A young man was taught to play the violin by a master teacher who emphasized technique, phrasing, and feel as part of every performance. As the young man performed in his first public recital, his teacher sat in the audience. He played his heart out. The audience sat on the edges of their seats. 

When he completed his performance, the audience rose to its feet and gave him several ovations, applauds, and praise. The young violinist scanned the audience frantically looking for his teacher. He heard the cheers of the crowd but their ovations and praise were deaf to his ears. He ignored their praise and scanned the crowd until he found his teacher. When he made eye contact, his teacher gave him a thumbs up and mouthed the words “Bravo.”

The praise of the master teacher is all that mattered.

Many Christians do great works in the name of the Lord. We help the needy, feed the hungry, and champion the causes of the less fortunate. Sometimes we are praised in the media and other places, but the praise we really seek is from the master. We want to please him through our service and that’s enough.

1 Thessalonians 2:4 says, "On the contrary, we speak as those approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel. We are not trying to please people but God, who tests our hearts."

The praise of men is fleeting. The praise of God is everlasting.

What want to hear is, “Well done, my good and faithful servant!”

Bravo!