Newness of Life

“Now when Jesus was in Bethany, in the house of Simon the leper, there came unto him a woman having an alabaster box of very precious ointment, and poured it on his head, as he sat at meat. But when the disciples saw it, they had indignation, saying “To what purpose is this waste?” For this ointment might have been sold for much, and given to the poor. When Jesus understood it, he said unto them, “Why trouble ye the woman? For she hath wrought a good work upon me…for in that she hath poured this ointment on my body, she did it for my burial.” Matthew 26: 6-12 Like me, do you long to do as Jesus did, and “work the works” of God? I do, but I often get just a little overwhelmed with all that this implies. I was feeling this way this morning and discussing it with the Lord when I ran across this awesome scripture. In it I saw that He will lead me each and every day. My only task is to remain closely connected to Him. To truly work the works of God, all I must do is abide and obey with...

Lately I am compelled to blog each insight, no matter how small. I don't know what this is about, but I am going to do it as much as possible. Perhaps logging my journal here is fire insurance in case something wipes out my journals-which are much more detailed of course. I originally began studying the Ephesians prayer where Paul asks for the Christians to have power to grasp the glorious mysteries contained in Jesus Christ. This too has become my daily prayer. Particularly the Spirit of Might, because I need a power greater than myself to live this life. Might in the Greek means "valiant, warrior, chief..." In God's grace and wisdom, He has endued believers with the Spirit of Might in our inner man. Reading these words sends a reverberation through my spirit-man like a deep, bass drum. When I feel this deep shaking at a particular truth, it feels as if the Lord is beckoning me to come and explore a truth more deeply. My study of the word "might" someho...

In  Luke 4:18-27, Jesus tries to do a little outreach in his hometown of Nazareth. It's safe to say there was no "standing O", or demands for an encore. Reading the passage, you can imagine a flutter rippling through the crowd as the people whispered from ear to ear, "Isn't this Joseph's son?" Throats are cleared in embarrassment. Nervous glances are shared. Didn't we see him running through the streets in his diapers? Now he is claiming to be the Messiah spoken of in Isaiah? Seriously? Because of this, he could not do many miracles because of their unbelief. Jesus, ever mining the heart for any glint of faith's gold, rebukes them for their unbelief.  He wants them to have so much more. To illustrate how their unbelief is robbing them, he pauses and gives a little history lesson. Elijah was a prophet who also was unable to perform any miracles in Israel. To work a miracle, he had to travel to...

Have you ever been in a situation where you had an "aha" moment, a moment in which things became clear- and it changed everything?  Jesus said,  "You will know the truth, and the truth will make you free."  If we do not have the truth, what do we have? While Jesus referred to himself as the Truth, he also made mention, (not honorable), of an enemy in whom there is no truth. This enemy's name is Satan, meaning Destroyer   - and he destroys with his lies. The Destroyer has many titles, none of which are overly flattering.  Jesus called him the Deceiver, a Liar, and the Father of Lies, among other things. He made it crystal clear that if Satan's lips are moving, you can bet he is lying. While people may lie for a variety of reasons, Satan's lies have one singular purpose: to steal and to destroy. This truth is made clear when Jesus contrasts their personal mission statements in Joh...