Homeless Man or Angel?

 

 

Lina Johnson – cbn.com

“Happy birthday,” Martha said to my husband. She had been to the house earlier in the day and had learned it was his birthday. She told us that God had instructed her to give him an original painting that was her own work, but first she shared the beautiful poem she had written about a homeless man. When Martha had finished reading the moving poem, she turned the painting around for us to see. Everyone there gasped. The man in the painting, that she had painted years ago, was identical to the man we had just fed supper. She had left before he had arrived, and he was long gone before she came back.

How could she have painted this man years before we had even met him?

He was a kind man. We talked about the Lord and shared our spaghetti with him. I remember he commented that it was a little bland. I agreed and said, “We do the best we can with what we have. God is faithful to provide.” He asked me if I wanted some Italian herbs to add to the sauce next time and I agreed that would be nice. The conversation turned to other things and before I knew it, he had left.

Who was he? I may never know, but I wonder… Was he just a random homeless man or even an angel?

Keep on loving each other as brothers and sisters. Don’t forget to show hospitality to strangers, for some who have done this have entertained angels without realizing it! Hebrews 13:1-2

All I know is I had never seen him before nor after this event.

God is so faithful. Angel or man, God heard my conversation with him. Shortly after this happened, a friend who knew nothing of this story contacted me and said, “God put you on my heart and told me to clean out my freezer and give the meat to you. He also told me to give you my big container of Italian herbs and some other spices.”

I was astonished again that God cared about me so much to be in the details. He did not want me to just eat. He wanted me to enjoy what He provided!

He did not stop with just instructing us to eat; He also made it enjoyable.

Then God said, “Look! I have given you every seed-bearing plant throughout the earth and all the fruit trees for your food.” Genesis 1:29

God did not have to make it taste good. The very fact that we can enjoy what we eat is evidence of His love for us and for everyone. He wants us to share that love.

Hebrews 13 is full of instructions. It starts with loving others, then goes on to tell us how. What a blessing!

Romans 13:8-10 puts it this way:

Owe nothing to anyone—except for your obligation to love one another. If you love your neighbor, you will fulfill the requirements of God’s law. For the commandments say, “You must not commit adultery. You must not murder. You must not steal. You must not covet.” These—and other such commandments—are summed up in this one commandment: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Love does no wrong to others, so love fulfills the requirements of God’s law.

Prayer: Help us to love like You do. Help us to grow closer to You—and help us to appreciate all the little things You have done out of Your love for us. In Jesus’ name. Amen!

He Corrects Whom He Loves

 

Maribel Ixcajoc Arevalo – National Director – CBN Guatemalay

 When my mother was widowed with seven daughters to raise, her only option was to discipline and reprimand us when we did wrong.  She carried it out in such a way that the end result was women who fear God and do good. In those times, when I was still very young, that discipline seemed very painful (especially having lost my father). However, very early in life, I understood that we needed her correction and it was always for love.

We also feel pain when the Lord corrects us for our sins and we do not want to face the consequences of our actions. But it is necessary, and believe it or not, everything is for love and to be recognized and legitimized as children of God.

Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. For what children are not disciplined by their father? If you are not disciplined—and everyone undergoes discipline—then you are not legitimate, not true sons and daughters at all (Hebrews 12:7-8 NIV).

The Bible says in Romans 12:2 that we must renew our understanding to know the will of God: good, acceptable, and perfect. How then does one think that they can be renewed without being cleansed? How are you going to know the will of God for your life if you have not yet been purified, molded, and prepared for a new life of faith?

Let’s start from this point: God loves you and loves you just the way you are. You were created by Him in His image and likeness. To be used for His glory, you need that purification process, because there will always be areas in your life in which the Lord is working.

Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will have not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. All who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure (1 John 3:3).

Since the first day that God called me to serve Him at CBN Guatemala four years ago, I have experienced test after test, process after process, and correction after correction in a deep purification process. Although there has been no reprieve and I have experienced the most tribulation I’ve had in my lifetime, I want to share with you my personal and ministerial recommendations to help you face your purification process. Know and apply these four things:

1. God the Father loves you (see John 3:16).
2. Be thankful for the process, you are being turned into a better version of you (see James 1:12).
3. Be sensitive to the Holy Spirit, learn to be quiet and listen, even when it seems to take time. He is always speaking into your life (see Proverbs 8:32-34).
4. Pray without ceasing and ask for discernment to understand what God is doing (see John 10:27).

All of us in the CBN Guatemala office are encountering major difficulties. We recognize that we are going through a time of personal and ministerial growth as the body of Christ. The Lord has glorified Himself and blessed us to the fullest while we are being purified—so much so that we will not have enough life to thank Him for His favor. We’ve seen transformed lives and families, miracles of healing, provision, and restoration, among many other blessings happening in the lives of those we respond to as a ministry.

So, the next time you ask yourself, why me? I encourage you to fill yourself with joy and enthusiasm because your life will be changed by the love and mercy of God.

Though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So, when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world (1 Peter 1:7 NLT).

Let God’s Word Sink Deep Into Your Heart

 

Jennifer Scribner – cbn.com

I’ve heard God’s Word interpreted and described in so many ways. For instance, it is food for the soul, good fruit, a how-to manual, a guidebook, good seed, and a lamp unto our feet. Whatever name you give it, we must read, reflect on, and gain guidance from God’s Word every day.

All of us are called to be disciples of His Word. However, before we set out to speak and educate wherever and however God directs, we must first commit to learning, comprehending, and believing the truth of His Word.

“Son of man, let all my words sink deep into your own heart first. Listen to them carefully for yourself. Then go to your people in exile and say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says!’ Do this whether they listen to you or not” (Ezekiel 3:10-11).

I didn’t commit my life to the Lord and start reading the Bible until I was in my mid-20s. At first, reading the Bible was really intimidating. Initially, I was under the assumption that I had to read it all at once and commit it to memory. I was relieved to discover from my newfound Bible study friends that the Bible is best absorbed in small, manageable portions. If I wanted to truly comprehend God’s Word, I needed to take my time, not rush through it.

Since I started my journey as a Christian 23 years ago, I have devoted a significant amount of time to reading and studying the Bible every day. Ezekiel shared these words from God: “Let all my words sink deep into your own heart… Listen to them carefully…” and I have experienced the wisdom in doing that. Over the years, I have found great comfort and peace in His Word, and I have committed numerous passages and stories from the Bible to memory.

Because of this, I am better able to fulfill God’s calling on my life and share His love, grace, and truth with others. One of God’s many blessings to me is the desire to put pen to paper. It brings me great joy to use this gift to inspire others to strengthen their faith, become aware of God’s promises, and accept Jesus Christ as their personal Savior.

So, in obedience to God, I will continue reaching out to God’s children who are still in “exile,” distanced from Him and His truths, regardless of whether they listen or not. One simple gesture or prayer can lead a lost soul into God’s loving embrace!

Prayer: As we comb through Your Holy Word seeking Your truth and having Your words sink deep into our hearts, help us share Your truths and love with others, regardless of the outcome. Lead us, oh Lord our God. Amen.

A Test of Faith

  

 

 

 

Lorie Hartshorn - CBN. com

 

For many the word “test” brings anxiety. We have so many tests in our lives:  math, spelling, driver’s license, swimming, blood, medical … and each comes with a grade or pass/fail result. Either way, we want to pass the tests. The Bible talks a lot about tests, but it is usually regarding a test of our faith.

What does a test of faith look like? Well, it’s not usually a short quiz or a quick check-up, but an experience over a period of time, sometimes for many years. Essentially, a test of faith is continuing to believe even when we cannot see the outcome.

Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see (Hebrews 11:1 NIV).

Notice the two words, confidence and assurance. Even when we cannot see the outcome, we can have faith. This chapter goes on to give many examples of people who were commended for their faith—imperfect people who nevertheless demonstrated a deep trust in God. One person’s story that always amazes me is Joseph.

Joseph had a dream as a young boy that was from God. We can look back now and see that his dream was prophetic. He was greatly impacted by this dream as he shared it with his entire family. They were not too impressed with the dream because in it they were bowing down to Joseph! Perhaps he should have kept his dream to himself because it fueled the jealousy and hatred from his brothers toward him. Fast forward roughly 40 years later and we see the fulfillment of that dream as his brothers bow down before him, not realizing he had survived being sold into slavery and was now the second in command of all of Egypt.

Joseph’s story of trouble and testing throughout those years serves as an example of faith. Joseph continued to believe God and trust Him even when he was thrown into a pit and later into jail (guiltless of wrongdoing. Joseph passed the test of faith many times throughout his life. Did you notice in Hebrews that Joseph was commended for his faith not so much for what happened in his lifetime but for what would happen long after he was gone.

By faith Joseph, when his end was near, spoke about the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt and gave instructions concerning the burial of his bones (Hebrews 11:22).

Joseph had faith at the end of his life that God would eventually take His people from Egypt back to the land God had promised Abraham and his descendants. When He did, Joseph wanted the Israelites to take his bones with them so he could be buried back in his homeland.

God loves faith!  When we don’t see the big picture, He does, and He wants us to trust Him! I believe there will be many things in my life and yours that we may never know the outcome. But by faith we can live and die believing God is who He says He is and will do what He says He will do.

So, what are you facing today that requires faith? Are there health challenges, relationship struggles, financial or emotional strain? Put your faith in God and you’ll keep trusting, keep believing, and live expectantly because that’s what it means to pass the test of faith. And that’s courageous living.

Prayer of Commitment: Father, I place my confidence and faith in You, especially in times of difficulty. I ask for Your assurance and trust You with the outcome.

Great Is His Faithfulness

 

 

 

 

Sandi Baratha - CBN. Com.

 

The faithful love of the LORD never ends! His mercies never cease. Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning. I say to myself, “The LORD is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in him!” (Lamentations 3:22-24 NLT).

At the time Jeremiah wrote this book, he was seeing with his own eyes how the city of God, Jerusalem was destroyed by the armies of the Babylonian empire. The situation at that time was really very sad. Here are some quotes about the city of Jerusalem’s situation from the book of Lamentations:

Judah has been led away into captivity, oppressed with cruel slavery. She lives among foreign nations and has no place of rest. Her enemies have chased her down, and she has nowhere to turn (Lamentations 1:3).

I have cried until the tears no longer come; my heart is broken. My spirit is poured out in agony as I see the desperate plight of my people. Little children and tiny babies are fainting and dying in the streets (Lamentations 2:11).

They cry out to their mothers, “We need food and drink!” Their lives ebb away in the streets
like the life of a warrior wounded in battle. They gasp for life as they collapse in their mothers’ arms (Lamentations 2:12).

“O LORD, think about this! Should you treat your own people this way? Should mothers eat their own children, those they once bounced on their knees? Should priests and prophets be killed within the Lord’s Temple? (Lamentations 2:20).

A similar situation is happening in the country where I live and serve God. We are grieving every day at the destruction and brutality happening day in and day out. Many families are struggling to have food and shelter. Many young people have lost their physical freedom and hope for the future. Every day we are all going through so much grief!

One time I had the opportunity to visit a refugee camp and do interviews with them. There was a child who told me that he wanted to go home. He said, “I have lived in this camp for eight months, I want to go home but I have no home—my house and the houses of my friends were destroyed.” I cried hearing this. The joy has gone from us.

BUT, in the midst of this grief, Jeremiah remembers how great and good our Lord is; he wrote the faithful love of the LORD never ends! His mercies never cease. Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning.

I also want to believe this and say the same. I put my hope in Him alone, who is mighty and faithful to His people! Difficulties and challenges may come in our lives, but we have a God who is full of mercy. Let's put our hope in Him!

Taking His Word Personally

 

 

 

 

Brenda Williams -cbn.com

 

For years, I believed God’s Word would come to pass for others; but recently, the Lord convicted me of not taking it personally (as He intended). Can anyone relate? So, today, I declare that I believe every Scripture written in God’s Word and I take every promise and every “I will” of God personally.

Jesus paid a high penalty for our sins so we don’t have to—because we can’t and we were never meant to. Sometimes, I fall short in receiving God’s free gift of forgiveness. For me, this way of thinking began in childhood. Each day before Mother came home from work, my sister and I straightened up the house and got dinner started. Except one day, we had too much fun and made a major mess of everything. I don’t recall what we did but when she came home, Mother was speechless with shock and anger. Later, I spent weeks trying to smooth things out. And, that is the way it goes in many relationships. Something goes awry and we work to restore peace and harmony. This is only right and good; however, we tend to pass this mindset on to our relationship with God.

As a young Christian, I felt like I needed to do a lot of good deeds to make up for my wrongs—like paying penance to be forgiven. Not so with God.

In the Old Testament, the priests offered sacrifices to God for the forgiveness of sins. Hebrews 10:1-3 (abbreviated) says:

“For the law ... can never by the same sacrifices which they offer continually year by year, make perfect those who draw near ... in those sacrifices there is a reminder of sins year by year.”

The law shows us what behaviors God considers sins. The sacrifices didn’t remove the tendency to sin or the memory of sinful deeds. A pastor I know shared how the enemy kept reminding him of past sins. He responded by loudly thanking God that “I am forgiven and cleansed by Christ! I’m a new man!” When we struggle, we can submit it to the Lord and keep pressing in to Him. The old will be flushed out by the increase of the life of Christ within us. Until the Apostle Paul met Christ, he was a murderer who persecuted believers. In Christ, he became a transformed man who said “forget the things of the past.”  Paul went on to write one-half of the New Testament.

By receiving His forgiveness, we can also forgive ourselves. He’s given us grace so we can extend grace to ourselves. Let the Lord lift the burden of guilt from past wrongs. He forgot them and so should we. We ARE forgiven!  Friends, let’s resist the tendency to “make it up” to God for past failures. Going forward, let’s believe His Word and receive His forgiveness that removes all guilt!

"If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John1:9, emphasis mine).

Now I understand that when Jesus comes into our hearts and we choose to live for Him, Christ personally dwells inside us. He washes and cleanses us and gives us His nature. Wow. Now, this deserves a shout of Hallelujah!

Lord Jesus, Thank You for Your massive love. You paid the price for all our sins. We choose to receive Your forgiveness and cleansing. We choose to forgive ourselves and live free from guilt in the peace and freedom You died to give us.

Jesus, the Father’s Grand Finale

 

 

Rich Miller – Manager, cbn.com

For many, there was nothing like seeing fireworks as a child. If you grew up in the United States, that day was July 4 every year. Most of us have fond memories of the cookouts, the music, and getting together with family. Yet, what we looked forward to the most was the fireworks. The buildup and anticipation on that day was incredible.

My family and I used to watch the fireworks on a military base. The Air Force would host the grand celebration, complete with a concert from the renowned Armed Forces band. The food was good and time with family was fun, but that was just the beginning. The real fun began when it got dark. That’s when the fireworks would finally start booming.

They were mesmerizing when they lit up the night sky; as a child you were filled with awe. Nothing could compare to the grand finale. It was the moment we had all been waiting for—the culmination of the celebration, the ultimate ode to freedom. They always saved the biggest and best fireworks for last. You never wanted the culmination to end.

I see this on an infinitely larger scale when reading the book of Hebrews. To me, I see Jesus as proven to be the grand finale of the Old Covenant:

Nor did he enter heaven to offer himself again and again, the way the high priest enters the Most Holy Place every year with blood that is not his own. Otherwise Christ would have had to suffer many times since the creation of the world. But he has appeared once for all at the culmination of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself. (Hebrews 9:25-26 NIV, emphasis mine)

Jesus victoriously fulfilled the Old Covenant through His suffering. Unlike fireworks, what He endured was not beautiful. It was gruesome beyond imagination. His pure blood was shed to restore us to right relationship with our Father. Jesus is our High Priest who entered the heavenly tabernacle to offer His blood on our behalf.

The entire Old Covenant had been pointing towards His death and resurrection, the culmination of the ages. He who knew no sin became sin for us, in order to institute a New Covenant, the gift of His righteousness (2 Corinthians 5:21). Jesus is the firstborn from the dead and lives in us through His Spirit. We are endued with His resurrection power.

Like a good infomercial offering a product, I can hear the writer of Hebrews saying, “But wait, there’s more!” There is another culmination coming:

Just as people are destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him. (Hebrews 9:27-28, emphasis mine)

May you be reminded today of the victory you have through His finished work. He truly paid it all and we are forever free. He has promised to return, to appear a second time—another grand finale. If you’re impressed with fireworks here on earth, wait until you see Jesus appear in the clouds!