“Hugs Brothers and Sisters”

“Then one of the synagogue leaders, named Jairus, came, and when he saw Jesus, he fell at his feet. He pleaded earnestly with him, “My little daughter is dying. Please come and put your hands on her so that she will be healed and live.” Mark 5:22-23

There are times in our lives when the stress of living makes life almost unbearable. Emotional healing is something that every person needs, to one degree or another, for we have all been wounded emotionally. Concentration becomes impossible. Our minds are constantly active, and relaxation just isn’t possible. It’s at times like this that Jesus can bring to us the Quieting touch or Hug from a friend, during times of emotional battle;that takes away the fever that irritates our lives and brings peace in its place.  How many moments in our lives do we need that same reassuring touch or hug from the Lord, as well as from a Christian brother or sister. How often do we need to hear those words “Don’t be afraid?” Spoken with the confidence, heartfelt love and assurance that the disciples heard on that wonderful Transfiguration day. So, what does that touch/hug mean to you?

Think about how many different kinds of touches or hugs there are. There’s some that’s not so nice, such as hitting, pinching or poking. A (pure) warm hug, polite formal hug, unwanted one-armed hug, hug for a buddy, the comfortable sugar bear hugs, one of my favorites, the squeeze hug and finally the comfortable sleepy, affectionate Christ like, with Jesus on my mind hug which comes from the heart! Why do people hit, pinch, poke or squeeze during these emotional destroyers? How can a person flounder to the surface of this cultural wave and find emotional healing? Humm?

You see there is no quick and easy path to emotional healing. Some will say that all we need to do is accept Jesus, forgive and we will be suddenly healed of our woes—emotional and otherwise (great truth). The fact remains, however, that we are flesh-bound creatures. Jesus said, “The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak” (Matthew 26:41) the apostle Paul battled with the flesh and spoke of how it stubbornly resisted the desires of his will and mind to follow God (Romans 7:18-25).  

Then there’s loving touch. Sometimes for me when someone is sad I don’t know what to say, usually just putting your hand on that person’s arm and pray is enough. Mentally right now, (pray) put your hand on a brother or sister in need, pray for them. Yet for many Christians it can be a challenge to humble one’s self in daily prayer. For those who have been walking with the Lord for many years, daily prayer may become stale and lacking in proper conviction or reverence. Whether one is a new believer or an established one, prayer should always be considered as THE best way to speak to God for a loved one or a close friend. Daily prayer with God is daily fellowship with our heavenly Father. 

It is truly amazing that God would want to have fellowship with us at all. In fact, the psalmist asks, “What is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him?” (Psalm 8:4). Daily prayer is a good way to understand this incredible truth and the marvelous privilege God has given us, and it helps the person feel better. But if you really love someone, what else can you do? Let’s respond with a hug. That’s right- a hug! Give a child of God a big hug (with a phone call or maybe a card).

Simple words to let people know how we feel about them. These are the kind of Touches / Hugs that are ways of talking without words. The scripture above (Mark 5:22-23) the dad in this story knew if Jesus touched his little girl, she would get better. And you know what? This dad was right! When Jesus touched the girl, she got well and sat up. Jesus healed with his touch.

We may not be able to heal with our touch or hug, but we can make people feel better by giving them a quieting hug or a pat on the back. When we use touch like Jesus did, people will know how much we care for them, when you have time during your center of time give a gift of “HelpsMoment”, give your relatives or sister’s and brother’s in Christ a big hug. Let them know with your touch of love for them that you care. You see along with the word when translated “helps” means literally “to relieve, comfort, participate in, and/or support.” Those with the gift of helps are those who can aid or render assistance to others with compassion and grace. Send them a daily “Brotherly e-mail Hug”.

Praise God that He knows us so well. He knows all our needs and challenges and has given the gift of helps through hugs/touches to special individuals who can come alongside others in mercy, grace, and love. These precious saints can lift the heart by helping carry a variety of burdens that we cannot, and should not, carry alone. Jesus Christ can help us find emotional healing. His Spirit is a Spirit of kindness, selflessness, truth, and trustworthiness, and He finds joy in producing such qualities in us (Galatians 5:22-23: 1 John 3:19-24 When we are indwelt with His Spirit, He can and will delight to turn us around and make us the kind of people who can care and be faithful by others as we (hug/touch their hearts), resulting in better relationships all around (John 7:38). 

May God glorify His name in our lives as we believe in Him enough to come to Him often in imploring touches/hugs for others through prayer.

God Bless You and This Ministry!

Moving Day

Lately, have you ever discerned about hurt caused by the “silent killer” within the church 'people' I call them alligators. The difference is we don’t expect God’s people to behave like those without Christ in their lives. You see the one place almost everyone agrees should be safe, accepting, forgiving, and free from conflict and aches. Yet in most churches at least some elements of strife, conflict, and hatred creep in and tarnish that ideal.

“Just because you miss doing some thing or change that effects your unbroken worship well-being, doesn’t mean you need it back in your life. Missing is just a part of Moving On, praying about it and doing Ubuntu Life!” Meaning, what is your quality of being, based on a God centered Life!

Jesus said, “Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God. And trust in me” John 14:1

God-centered people are not self-centered. God-centered people pay less attention to the applause of this world, because their motivation is the anticipation of hearing the words “Well done!” when this life is over (see Matthew 25:21,23). Their focus is on becoming more like Jesus rather than acquiring fame and fortune for themselves. A. W. Tozer wrote that “the goal of every Christian should be to live in a state of unbroken worship,” and the God-centered (or Christ-centered) person finds this a delightful goal.

How many of you have ever moved on? How did you feel when you moved? There’s a lot of work involved in moving. First, you have to get boxes. Then you take all of the stuff out of your room(traditions) and put it into the boxes. Then you notice some of the stuff, family pictures especially, loving memories of family matriarch’s and patriarchs. They were the ones who wrapped themselves into family “sweet chocolates” confidence building, ideas about uniting us, and devotions of get-togethers, as I remember. They expanded my mind with wisdom and encouraged me to this day. They were the ones who cared? Now it has been painted upon! Does that make you grasp at being more “prayerful” for its homecoming?

You see those Family devotional reunions, “from my perspective” are based off of the blessing of James 1:25: “Whoever [church family included!] looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do.” Find compelling meaning to “Love On” maybe with action!

Then a dawning,” I am aging/growing old in my ways” now who’s the “Patriarch” dealing with change now! Is that you also? As you reflex,” having to mark the boxes. And soon a huge truck pulls up in front of the place of worship. Some strange men walk in and begin moving your boxes out. And you wonder if you’ll ever see or be aware of those emotional pictures again as we deal with the transformation of a hurtful experience.”

How do we keep unkind experiences from moving their destruction into our souls? For me I look at the book of wisdom from the Bible “guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life” (Proverbs 4:23). We guard our hearts by carefully choosing our thoughts, feelings, attitudes, and actions. Guard your heart by refusing to dwell on what happened, refusing to focus on the people who hurt you, and refusing to belabor the weaknesses of the church. Giving up bitterness takes humility, but “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble” (James 4:6; Proverbs 3:34).

When the truck is loaded, you look around your old room of ways. And it’s empty. It’s sad. But the saddest part is when your ‘everyone’ say goodbye to you or even they say to you, “I did not think you were like that” judging you with out discernment. What other times have you felt sad? My spiritual responds are in regards to God’s answer to a prayer. You see expect the unexpected. Most of the greatest gifts and deepest joys that God gives us come wrapped in painful change boxes.

“For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it”. Hebrew 12:11

When you feel sad about parting ways with that family unit of change, what do you do? Jesus also felt sad. Jesus knew he would be leaving his friends when he said in John 14:1 “Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God. And trust in me.” Again, the best thing to do is to talk to Jesus about your sadness. Then tell others how you feel. There’s nothing wrong with feeling sad. The thrust of this reflection from Ecclesiastes on growing old about modification, meaning in life, is fulfilled in our God-given purpose, and our purpose is only fulfilled when we take advantage of our God-given portion in Christ, God’s promised Savior. 

You see before I “moved on” I thought the fleshly family was the most important building block to human society, and as such, it should be nurtured and protected, how wrong I was. But the most important thing is the new creation that God is making in Christ, which is comprised of a spiritual family, the Church, made up of all people who call upon the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior. This is a family drawn "from every nation, tribe, people and language" (Revelation 7:9) and the defining characteristic of this spiritual family is love for one another: "A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another" (John 13:34-35). 

You see the only casualty of war , for me, is that caring agape Love based on the parable of the Sheep and Goats, In which God’s people will love others. Good works will result from our relationship to the Shepherd. Followers of Christ will treat others with kindness, serving them as if they were serving Christ Himself. The unregenerate live in the opposite manner. While “goats” can indeed perform acts of kindness and charity, their hearts are not right with God, and their actions are not for the right purpose – to honor and worship God.

So, the next time you refocus is on “moving on”, or saying goodbye to someone, the church or your mood is sad, tell God about it. Talk to a friend or someone in your family. Don’t blame God for how His children behave. Don’t abandon the church, either. There are many more dedicated, grace-filled, loving, and forgiving people than not in most churches. Seek them out. Spend time with them find another ministry within that body to support with your gifts. Then remember what Jesus says to trust in him when you feel sad. We move from earthly centered to God-centered by having a real encounter with the Holy Spirit, who transforms and renews our minds (Romans 12:2). When we realize that nothing else matters and we are willing to let go of whatever is necessary to have more of Him, we are on the way to living in joyful abandon to the things of God.

Remember, the church is God’s idea, and He protects it faithfully even though He is sometimes pained by its behavior (see Revelation 2-3). 

God Bless You and This Ministry!

Special Folks-homies

“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God”, Ephesians 2:8

“Special Delivery” Poem

Sometimes there are difficulties in the side road

That can leave you feeling low and not special

You don’t know how to move self-assured

Every so often, there are curves you want to select

But the way gets hard to trace

This Juncture, pondering, how did you procure 

But don’t you give up, Let Jesus work on You!

Until you see How God 

Is ordering your steps 

As You Leap into your season of Faith 

Forever

Dancing with Jesus like no one is watching

Choose Love, “J-e-s-u-s” My Lord!

“So, you should know that the true children of Abraham are those who have faith”. Galatians 3:7

The main point of the Apostle’s Paul’s argument in the present passage is the superiority of faith over the Law. He has, however, also in view the mysterious consequences of that superiority. Unlike the Law, faith is open to all Gentiles as well as Jews; not according to the flesh, but according to the promise; and, consequently, that they are justified in the same way that he was. Abraham was justified by faith, and so are they. To confirm this, Paul acquaints us to the promise made to Abraham 

(Gen 12:3),In thee shall all nations be blessed.

This is a time to honor special people. Let’s see. People who are having birthdays are special. If you are having a birthday this week, this month or even this year, you are special! Let’s give everyone a special trophy, milk toast smile, a like sticker and a round of applause; as I lead the applause, I reflect on “Lil Hercules” a.k.a. “Eddie Klump Jr “from the “Nutty Professor” clapping and saying, “Hercules, Hercules” you are special, as we clap.

Did you know this is Chaos Never Dies Day? This day takes the stance that the perfect, quiet moment we’re all striving for and anticipating doesn’t- and likely never will exist, and that we should make the most of now, chaos-and all, and embrace the moment. Anyone wearing a Chaos shirt is special. You get a sticker and a round of applause,” Hercules, Hercules”. Are You Ready? Continue this Journey through Love

To honor someone is to value him highly or bestow value upon him. The Bible exhorts us to express honor and esteem toward certain people: our parents, the aged, and those in authority (Ephesians 6:2; Leviticus 19:32; Romans 13:1. But we must understand that all authority and honor belong to God alone (1Chronicles 29:11; 1 Timothy 1:17; Revelation 5:13)Though He can delegate His authority to others, it still belongs to Him (Ephesians 4:11-12).  

Honor as taught in the Scriptures is far different from the type of honor sought after by the world. Honor and awards are heaped upon those with wealth, political clout, worldly power, and celebrity status. Those who thrive on this world’s fleeting honor and stature are unmindful that “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble” 1 Peter 5:5.

Well, that’s it. I guess some of you are special and some of you aren’t so special, right? How will you respond?

Paul use to have that problem in his church. Some people said they were special because they were children of Abraham. They thought God loved them more than other people. But Paul said, “So you should know that the true children of Abraham are those who have faith. “That means all people who love and trust God are special.

God has given each of your special gifts. But what makes all of us special is that Jesus loves us. That means each one of you is very, very special. That’s why each one of you should have a sugar bear sticker, so from the bottom of my heart, I give you a hug with a smile that is God Honoring. 

We are to honor God in our recognition that the gift of life eternal and the very salvation of our souls come through Jesus Christ and Him alone (John 11:25). Knowing this, we give honor and obeisance to our Savior through our humble adoration and obedience to His will (1 John 2:6. As such, He will honor us when He seats us on His throne in heaven (Revelation 3:21).  

Jesus, we Love You. Oh, how we love you! “Give me my flowers as I yet live! No regrets.”

God Bless You and This Ministry!