Mother

 

Gene Markland, cbn.com

Mother.  Just the name evokes a flood of thoughts and memories. Childhood memories of a loving hand to bandage a skinned knee, and a magical kiss upon that bandage that made the pain fade away. The big smile and wild applause from the third row in the audience of a second-grade school play, acknowledging my dramatic interpretation of a tree, a tree that spoke not a word. The bedtime stories and prayers where I learned that the Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.

Sometimes I look at her bloodstained Bible, which she took with her to dialysis treatments in her latter days. There she shared her faith and testimony with the other patients, being a blessing in her time of sickness. Though she is with the Lord, her life and love remain in my heart.

Mother.  I am doubly blessed that my child has the best one, a Mother whose child is the center of her world. She’s a Mother who loves, teaches, corrects shares, prays, plays, and focuses herself completely on the health, welfare, and happiness of her child. She’s a Mother who cries every year on the first day of school after we put our daughter on the school bus. So to cheer her up and get her mind off of it, I take her to breakfast at IHOP. It’s hard to cry in your pancakes.  She’s a role model our daughter will be hard-pressed to duplicate, though I know she will.

Mother.  There are many wonderful Mothers in all our lives and though we honor them every year, it seems inadequate considering what they really deserve.

Mother. There once was a Mother so unique, so precious, that our heavenly Father chose her to be the Mother of His only begotten Son. She was so trusted that even though she was young, inexperienced, and poor, she was chosen to Mother our Lord Jesus. Difficult circumstances were her lot in life, and yet through unspeakable adversity, such as the death threat against her son by the King, she poured herself into her son, who became the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords.

It makes one wonder, what part of His determination; compassion, patience, longsuffering, and love came from her influence on Him. We assume that He received all of His attributes from His heavenly Father because He is the Son of God. But He is also the Son of man, so we must not forget to honor His Mother for being used of God the Father to instill many of those attributes.

Mother. She’s the one who pushed Jesus into His public ministry by making Him do His first public miracle. John 2:1-11 describes how He wasn’t prepared to turn the water into wine because He said that His time had not yet come.

“This miraculous sign at Cana in Galilee was the first time Jesus revealed his glory. And his disciples believed in him” (John 2:11 NLT).

Like us, He experienced that wonderful force of nature, a Mama who knows best!

He acknowledged her and provided for her even during His torture on the cross.

“When Jesus saw his mother standing there beside the disciple he loved, he said to her, “Dear woman, here is your son.” And he said to this disciple, “Here is your mother.” And from then on this disciple took her into his home” (John 19:26-27 NLT).

Their love and Devotion for each other didn’t end there. As she prayed with the others in the upper room on the day of Pentecost, He filled her with the Holy Spirit, and their relationship continues to this day. She is an example to Mothers, as He is an example to Sons and daughters.

Mother.  Love her. Cherish her. Honor her. She deserves it!

Defining Moments

 

Cheryl Crofoot Knapp, cbn.com

“Why am I here? Why can’t I be dead?” Mom’s words spoken through a filter of mid-stage Alzheimer’s horrified me. How could our nightly phone call take such a terrifying turn?

I already lost my dad to Alzheimer’s. The reality of my mom’s battle with the same disease with the same terminal outcome socked me in the gut. It was a defining moment in our relationship, and I didn’t like it. As her daughter and caregiver, our relationship became defined by a disease that would take her away from me.

Two years later, an Emergency Room doctor needed me to instruct whether he was to resuscitate my mom. How could I be prepared to do that? I prayed for months that Jesus wouldn’t let her suffer anymore. But as I begged the doctor to let my mom go, I didn’t expect the horrid tumult inside of me which challenged the core of my faith.  Was she really going to a better place?

A nurse escorted me to her after her heart labored through its final beat. I struggled to breathe. But I stood beside my beautiful Mom, kissed her lips, held her hand, praised, cried, and said goodbye as my tears drenched her hospital gown.

Amos 9:11 says,

“I will repair its broken walls and restore its ruins— and will rebuild it as it used to be.” (NIV)

My mom was no longer broken by Alzheimer’s. My best friend of 58 years was being restored. But I was separated from her, and my life felt broken. I questioned, Is God for real? Is Heaven for real?

Defining moments interrupt and change the direction of our life’s compass. One unexpected defining moment for me was when I recognized the need for Jesus and understood that Jesus knocked at the door of my life, waiting for me to invite Him in (Revelation 3:14). When I opened the door and let Him come in, I was radically changed from the inside out. Jesus filled the spiritual hole in my heart, and my sins were released.

My mom had opened the door for Jesus too. Because of that, I often told Mom, “When Jesus comes for you, it’s okay to go home.”

It was one thing to know she believed in Jesus, but telling the doctor to let her die was an unexpected defining moment that challenged my belief in Heaven. I thought about the thief on the cross who was told, “Today you will be with me in paradise” (Luke 23:43 NIV), and the Lord’s Prayer which Mom and I prayed together every night that says, “Your will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven” (Matthew 6:10 NIV).

Is God for real? Is Heaven for real? Yes.

Twenty minutes after Mom died, I felt her index finger twitch and saw a white spark shoot up from her fingertip that sent a surge of static electricity through mine. No wires connected her to any machine. Moments later, the room felt empty. I silently praised my Creator for His faithfulness in defining moments.

Was the twitch when Mom reached for Jesus? Was the electrical surge when her spirit left her body for Heaven? Was I touched by the Holy Spirit during the release of my mom’s spirit? Did God give me a glimpse of Heaven?

Defining moments brought me to a belief that God and Heaven are for real. God doesn’t have to give me defining moments, but He offers them as His love gifts.  If I dare to believe in His eternal love, and trust that His kingdom come and His will be done, He will show me grace in His presence. Why? Because He loves, He promises, and because He can. Just as God restored the House of David, He restores me into spiritual eternity. And I believe God’s Spirit escorts His children personally into His glory.

What Are You Doing Here?

 

 

Gene Markland, cbn.com

Once there was a minister who was lonely, depressed and feeling defeated in his life and ministry. One night in his despair, he found himself in a bar on the seedy side of town. With his head bowed low in shame, he walked across the dimly lit room and took a seat at the bar. He sat staring into his drink, a drink he had never had before, and pondered his life and his failures.

Suddenly, a man sitting two seats to his right, a man who had obviously been drinking heavily, turned to him, looked at him with piercing eyes and said, “What are you doing here?”

The minister was shocked and thought to himself, “Do I know this man? Does he know me? All the while the man stared at him with those piercing eyes awaiting an answer. An answer he already knew. This minister did not belong there.

Immediately, he rose from the bar stool and left the building. As he sat behind the wheel of his car he thought to himself, “Lord, what has brought me to this low point in my life?” It was as if the Lord had spoken through that man.

As he pulled out of the parking lot he asked for forgiveness. In his beaten and defeated condition, he went back to his home, to his family, and to his ministry. Ashamed of himself, he put one foot in front of the other, and went through the motions, feeling unworthy yet determined to try again. The Lord restored him and he continued his ministry.

There was a man in the Bible, a prophet named  Elijah, who also reached a point in his life when he felt defeated and wanted to give up.

“Elijah was afraid and fled for his life. He went to Beersheba, a town in Judah, and he left his servant there. Then he went on alone into the wilderness, traveling all day. He sat down under a solitary broom tree and prayed that he might die. ‘I have had enough, Lord,’ he said. ‘Take my life, for I am no better than my ancestors who have already died.’” 1 Kings 19:3-4 (NLT)

“But the Lord said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”

Elijah replied, “I have zealously served the Lord God Almighty. But the people of Israel have broken their covenant with you, torn down your altars, and killed every one of your prophets. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me, too.” 1 Kings 19:9-10 (NLT)

Even the great prophet Elijah reached a point in his life when he felt so defeated that he just wanted to die. The Lord asked him again “What are you doing here Elijah?” Then he was given instructions on what to do next.

There may be a time in your life when you were brought low, a time that only you and the Lord know about. Do not let that define you. Do not let that set your course for a lifetime of defeat. Instead, put one foot in front of the other — and though you feel unworthy, determine in your heart to try again. The Lord will hold you up with his strong right arm. He will set your course and make straight your path. Defeat will humble a person, but with the help of the Lord, there is hope, restoration, and a victorious future.

A Triumphant Mom

 

Janet Perez Eckles, cbn.com

I sat on the edge of the bed, wrinkled tissue in hand. “Why me?”

I had asked that question with every tick tock of the clock during sleepless nights.

At 31, a hereditary retinal disease robbed my eyesight completely. It pulled a dark curtain of devastation and sorrow into my life and erased any hope I had of being a productive mom to my three, five, and seven-year-old sons.

One day, as self-pity was visiting again, a close friend called.

“Just checking on you,” she said. “How are you doing?”

I wasn’t doing. My life looked dark in every way and the tasks of a blind mom were too much for me.

“Okay, I guess,” I lied.

Then she said something profound. Something that opened the eyes of my heart and changed everything.

“If you think about it,” she said, “your kids are really God’s children. He is their Father and He’s in charge of all big and small things.”

I wiped my tears, inhaled a deep sigh, and let that truth sink into my heart. It brought the encouragement I needed to sweep away those “poor-me” notions, and sparked a renewed passion to care for my sons.

Now with a brighter outlook and a sweet love for my role as their mom, I compiled my own list of what makes a “good” mom:

• A Mom who knows mistakes will be corrected in the hands of a loving God.
• A Mom who goes to sleep at night with dishes still in the sink, but a bedtime story in her kid’s heart.
• A Mom who knows perfection will happen on the other side of heaven.
• A Mom who sees her kid’s weaknesses and still smiles at his strengths.
• A Mom who places guilt in the garbage disposal of life.
• A Mom who leaves fingerprints on the glass door to place an imprint of love in her kid’s heart.
• A Mom who looks in the mirror and smiles because she is molding one of the leaders of tomorrow.
• A Mom who picks shoes off the floor, thankful her kids can walk.
• A Mom who listens to endless chatter, thankful her kids can talk.
• A Mom who’s signed a partnership with God.
• A Mom who stirs this sweetener in the coffee cup of her heart: “I can do all things through the Christ who strengthens me.” (Philippians 4:13)

And while she drops exhausted in bed at the end of the day, truth shines through: It’s not the items checked off on the to-do list, accomplishments managed, the applause never heard or the help always needed; but it’s the certainty that echoes in her heart, that her true greatness is in the Father’s eyes, her sorrows are in His heart and her triumphs are in His plans.

Please Hang in There

 

Brad Henry, cbn.com

“Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift each of you like wheat. But I have pleaded in prayer for you, Simon, that your faith should not fail. So when you have repented and turned to me again, strengthen your brothers.” Luke 22:31-32 (NLT)

If Jesus said to me, “Brad, Brad, Satan has asked to sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail.” I would be thinking, “Jesus, I don’t want to be sifted. Stop Satan from this sifting stuff. I have been sifted too many times already.” Jesus makes no offer to help; only that Simon’s faith may not fail and then when he has turned back he can strengthen his brothers.

Many of us have been beaten up by the world and the schemes of the devil. We have been beaten up so much that we can start believing lies that we aren’t good enough, that we have to pass more tests – that we will never get past the next test because we have failed this one so many times. The Lord impressed this thought upon me:

“It isn’t about passing the test; it is about staying in the faith whether you have passed the test or not.”

We beat ourselves up when we fail. We look lustfully at a person and beat ourselves up the rest of the day and make everyone else miserable. We can’t stop an addiction and we think God will never forgive us, so we give up trying. Our kids aren’t turning out as we planned and we think that we have done something wrong. We keep being passed over for a promotion and we feel that we are not faithful enough in Gods eyes to get the blessing to move forward.

STOP! Jesus could stop all the chaos in your life right now, but here is why He will not: Jesus loves you. He loves you enough to allow you to be refined. We can only be refined when trials come. It isn’t if we fail, it is when. It isn’t just one time, but thousands of times we fail. We have some weird notion that we need to be perfect to enter the kingdom of heaven.

“For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard.” Romans 3:23 NLT

We will sin until God calls us home. The most important statement that Jesus says to Simon (Peter) is, “That your faith may not fail.”

Are you getting close to giving up on this Christianity thing? Are things not turning out as you have planned? Satan wants you to give up. We are not on this earth for long. PLEASE hang in there. God loves you and desires that your faith will not waiver even though your circumstances may tell a different story.

Just remember your circumstances do not dictate the way you are living your Christian life. You may be failing in every category, but that doesn’t mean that God will not reveal to you something miraculous out of the pain and defeat. Believe in Jesus who desires that you find strength in the storms of life so that your faith will be refined. Don’t let the evil one give you a lifeline to an easy way out. That lifeline may seem an ea’sy way out now, but you will regret it. Just keep hanging on everyone. Jesus WILL save YOU.

 

Armor ‘n Enemies

 

By Shawn McEvoy, crosswalk.com

Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints. Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel. – Ephesians 6:13-19

Six pieces of armor. Five primarily defensive, one primarily offensive. And yet…

Have you ever used the chest-bumper of righteousness on someone? How about the head-butter of salvation? The bludgeoner of faith? The shin-kicker of readiness or the gut-puncher of holiness?

Even the sword of the spirit has its proper purpose: to fight our enemies. Which are?

Other Christians? Unbelievers? Mean people?

While we humans can be so hard on each other, no. One verse earlier, Paul tells us what we’re fighting:

Our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil (v. 12).

Quite convicting, really. Not only do I clearly go into many days without getting completely dressed, even when I do, I’m mis-using my equipment, fighting in the dark, swinging blindly, or wounding with friendly fire.

I don’t know about you, but for me, the elemental Bible verses I first learned as a youth (like today’s verse) are the ones I need to continually reconsider, because they’re the ones I tend to just believe without acting upon.

When times come – like these days we’re in now – where there is fierce political thought and lines being drawn and opinions spouted as truth, including the opinion that there is no truth – it’s just so easy to get drawn in before we remember to put on our armor or be trained in using it. When that happens, we tend to view our enemies as each other, and forget or deny that the war is still spiritual. And therefore more serious, more wearying, not less.

It’s All in the Preparation

 

Candy Arrington, cbn.com

“There are many rooms in my Father’s house. If this were not true, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you.” John 14:2 (NIrV)

Recently, our son married the girl of his dreams. As I watched him exchange vows with this lovely young woman, I thought of all the preparation that occurred to get them to this day. Not just preparation for the wedding, but all that had been poured into their lives prior to this moment — training, teaching, encouraging, correcting, consoling, and mentoring — all to get them to this point of becoming a new family.

The Bible is filled with references to preparation. For the Jews, the sixth day of the week was called preparation day. King David made extensive preparations for the construction of the temple, even though he knew it wouldn’t be built in his lifetime. (1 Chronicles 22:5) Esther, raised by her uncle, Mordecai, prepared for a year to be presented to the king. When the time came for her to risk her life to save her people, her uncle reminded her that her position and purpose were all part of God’s plan. (Esther 4:14) Paul likened spiritual growth to the preparation and perseverance involved in training for athletic competitions. And John the Baptist prepared the way for Jesus. (Luke 1:76)

Days before Jesus was crucified, a woman anointed his head with perfume, an act which he referred to as preparation for his burial. Jesus sent his disciples to make preparations for the Passover meal, The Last Supper.

When Jesus began his ministry, he came to that point after years of preparation. Even though he knew his purpose on earth long before his ministry began, he still went through periods of growth, development, and learning, patiently awaiting the fulfillment of his mission.

Jesus’ whole life was preparation for the cross. Learning the Law as a young boy, the training and physical skill in his father’s carpenter shop, and those times of quiet communion, apart from others, in the early morning hours with his father, all were preparation for the fulfillment of God’s plan for the redemption of mankind. If Jesus hadn’t had this preparation, would he have walked out of the Garden of Gethsemane and away from the cross instead of submitting to the Father’s will? Although he knew what was ahead, Jesus was obedient, sealing our pardon and our eternity.

Often, we’re in a hurry to implement our plans and reach our goals. But if we’re not careful, we’ll miss the joys and lessons that result from what is happening in our lives right now, or miss assignments God has for us. Conversely, we sometimes dread the next season of our lives because we allow anxiety and fear to rule rather than resting with patient trust and confidence in God’s provision and care.

“Those who make themselves clean from all those evil things, will be used for special purposes, because they are dedicated and useful to their Master, ready to be used for every good deed.” 2 Timothy 2:21 (GNT)

Not much in our lives happens successfully without some form of preparation. Sometimes, like King David, we’re involved in preparation for which we never see the end result. But the best, and most beneficial preparation, is the time we spend alone with our Father, listening, learning, growing, and preparing for the next step and our usefulness in God’s plan.