fellowship

Posted on December 8, 2016 by Dana

“Who being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to His own advantage; rather, He made Himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to death – even death on a cross!” (Philippians 2:6-8)

As God became flesh and walked the earth, He faced the same challenges, temptations, and trials that we do. How did He do it? If the secrets of Jesus’ life on earth were rooted in fellowship with His Father and constant dependence on Him, it would be good to find ways to live in like manner.

Jesus always looked to the Father, “who is greater than I,” knowing God was His life. As the Son kept His eyes on the Father, so we are to keep our eyes on Jesus, who is infinitely greater than us… and who is our life. “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the Author and Perfecter of our faith…” (Hebrews 12:2) “When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.” (Colossians 3:4)

If our eyes are on Jesus, we stay in focus. When our eyes are elsewhere, priorities get confused and life becomes complicated. Jesus lived a life that was uncomplicated. He looked to the Father, listened to what He said, and did what He was told. Is it possible each day for us to look to Jesus, listen to what He says, and do what He tells us?

For Jesus, fellowship with the Father also included walking in the Spirit. At His baptism, the Spirit of God descended on Jesus like a dove and the Father proclaimed: “You are My Son, whom I love; with You I am well pleased.” (Luke 3:22) As Jesus followed the Spirit’s lead, He pleased His Father by genuinely loving others.

We are also loved by the Father and He has given us the Holy Spirit as our Helper and Counselor. “Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.” (Galatians 5:25) The Holy Spirit will show us how to love others and the Father will receive much glory.

Paul wrote: “The one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will receive eternal life.” (Galatians 6:8) Jesus said: “Now this is eternal life: that they may know You, the only true and living God, and Jesus Christ, whom You have sent.” (John 17:3) Knowing the Father, Son, and Spirit… keeping our eyes fixed on the Savior… walking in the Spirit… living in fellowship with God… this is true life.

“And our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son, Jesus Christ.” I John 1:3

“The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” Galatians 5:22

“I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” John 10:10

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living

Posted on December 1, 2016 by Dana

Each child of God should ask the question: “How am I to live for Christ in this world?” ‘Time in history’ and ‘location on earth’ have presented different challenges to those who love Jesus. A Christian who lived in Berlin, Germany in the 1930’s had to decide how to react to a ‘fuehrer’ who eventually made it clear he intended to kill every Jew on earth. Discerning the will of God in the midst of crisis is not always simple.

In 2008, a fourteen-year-old boy named Zaid was walking near his house in Mosul, Iraq. Three men confronted him and asked if he was a Christian. Zaid answered ‘yes’ and was shot and killed on the street. Zaid’s parents have not only lost a son but their home and all their possessions to ISIS. Eight years later they still trust Jesus in their war-torn country. Such trials face many of our brothers and sisters in certain nations, but we must also decide what it means to live for Christ in our world.

As we look to the Savior, we can be encouraged. While His goal was always the Father’s will, He had different seasons of life. “Didn’t you know I had to be about My Father’s business?” twelve-year-old Jesus asked His parents after they found Him in the Temple. But for the next eighteen years, we have no record of what exactly that meant. We assume Jesus lived as a carpenter in Nazareth, working hard and treating people as He wanted to be treated.

After His baptism, Jesus found Himself in a hostile world. The devil confronted Him in the wilderness and made it clear that God’s will would be opposed. As Jesus taught, healed, and loved the lost, He faced persecution from those who did not recognize the Messiah. So how did Jesus know what to do? How did He know what to say? How did He know how to live in a crazy world? The secret for Jesus is the secret for us: He lived in fellowship with the Father.

Day-to-day fellowship with the Father is the way the child of God successfully lives in this world. Whichever our generation, wherever we are on the earth, whatever dilemma arises, God is not confused… or surprised. We can ask what He thinks: “How would You handle this situation?” Then: “Lord, please give me the grace, strength, and courage to trust and obey.”

“I do nothing on my own but speak just what the Father has taught Me. The One who sent Me is with Me; He has not left Me alone, for I always do what pleases Him.” John 8:28-29

“For I have come down from heaven not to do My will but to do the will of Him who sent Me. And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that I shall lose none of all those He has given Me, but raise them up at the last day.” John 6:38-39

“Righteous Father, though the world does not know You, I know You, and they know You have sent Me. I have made You known to them and will continue to make You known in order that the love You have for Me may be in them and that I Myself may be in them.” John 17:25-26

(Zaid’s story is found in the December 2016 issue of The Voice of the Martyrs newsletter, p 9)

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thanksgiving

Posted on November 17, 2016 by Dana

This will be the last writing of the month since next week is Thanksgiving. We look forward to gathering with family at my parents’ house in Chattanooga. My mom and dad always help make Thanksgiving my favorite holiday of the year.

owenWhen Taylor was a little boy, Susan’s mom bought him a Cabbage Patch doll named Owen. Susan dad’s name was Robert Owen Taylor and he was known as Owen growing up in Alabama. Susan found the doll in the attic in time for Kinsey and Jordan to visit this past weekend. Two ‘Baby Owens’ brought a smile to our faces and reminded us of many reasons to be thankful.

We can be thankful for those who are no longer with us but whose lives still influence ours profoundly. We can be thankful for those who have only recently come into this world, with the hopeful expectation of a wonderful future in God’s plan. And we can be thankful for all those God has placed in our lives to love and encourage.

karlynAs we give thanks for our precious relationships, we can easily understand why Jesus told such parables as the Prodigal Son to reveal the love of the Father. Such love naturally produces thanksgiving for what is most important. The older brother did not comprehend his father’s emotions or actions. In response to his objections, the father said: “Son, all I have is yours… I love you too! But I have to celebrate the homecoming of your brother! He’s alive and back where he should be!!”

May we grow to love like the Father. And may we not forget to express such love in real ways.

Happy Thanksgiving!

“But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.” Luke 15:20

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participate

Posted on November 10, 2016 by Dana

IMG_0833Emma sent me this picture with the caption: ‘Anxiously awaiting a fish.’ I replied: ‘Like father, like son.’

As sons and daughters of God, we are invited to participate in the Father’s great purposes. As friends of Jesus, we have the privilege of adopting His priorities and entering His life and work.

Sometimes this may mean waiting with our Father… or watching with our Friend. Jesus asked his three closest friends to pray with Him as He entered His agony in the Garden of Gethsemane. Three times the disciples fell asleep. “Could you not keep watch one hour?” (see Mark 14:37-38)

Peter, James, and John wanted to be loyal friends, but they could not endure that night. “The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak,” Jesus said. Having perhaps set a record for sleeping in church in my younger years, I know their feeling, but what about now?

The disciples matured to a far stronger place after Jesus ascended and they would agree the Holy Spirit gave them the power. We have been given the Holy Spirit, but do we ask what our Friend is thinking?

The Holy Spirit wants us to have ‘the mind of Christ.’ Is His top priority a national election? Or a championship baseball game? Or an important financial decision? Perhaps our Father is concentrating on a ‘fish’ who is about to enter His Kingdom. Perhaps our Friend’s pressing concern is a group of believers suffering for His Name. Will not the ‘mind of Christ’ produce a radically different outlook than the thinking of the world?

Several years ago, an American lady named Kimberly entered an effort to rescue children in South Sudan, the newest nation on earth. This past summer, civil war broke out and thousands of precious children have been in the danger zone.

Romano is a Sudanese brother who has committed to do all he can to house, feed, and educate 300 orphans in one of the most dangerous locations. A few days ago, an armed segment of one of the warring factions threatened Romano, accusing him of being a spy. Appealing for food the ministry had already purchased, Romano was told: “If you say any more, then we will not be held responsible for any deaths which may occur at an attack upon your place. It will be your fault.”

Romano sent a message through his American friend Kimberly: “Will you ask all who know about us to pray through the weekend?” Such pleas lead to opportunities for friends of Jesus to participate with our Savior. “Holy Spirit, let us be attuned.”

“These are the things God has revealed to us by His Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. For who knows a person’s thoughts except their own spirit within them? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. What we have received is not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand what God has freely given us… The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit. The person with the Spirit makes judgments about all things, but such a person is not subject to merely human judgments, for, ‘Who has known the mind of the Lord so as to instruct Him?’ But we have the mind of Christ.”
I Corinthians 2: 10-16

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friendship

Posted on November 3, 2016 by Dana

If there is one Person you can count on to be the greatest Friend in the world, it is Jesus the Son of God. This Friend is devoid of selfishness; He is always kind; He is quick to forgive; He never holds a grudge or keeps record of a wrong. If you are ever in a bind, this Friend knows just what to do, and if required, He would give His life to save yours.

Anyone who really knows this Friend agrees there is no greater. In fact, all who know Him understand what a great privilege it is to be called His friend. The problem is that those of us who do know Him often fall short on our side of the friendship. Jesus asked Peter three times if he loved Him and though Peter surely remembered he had denied Jesus a few days earlier, he was hurt by the question. (see John 21) ‘Do you love Me?’ is a question Jesus continues to ask His disciples.

We sing “What a Friend we have in Jesus…”, but do we reflect on what kind of friend we are to Him? There have been occasions when I failed to speak up for a friend when I had the chance. I felt terrible after the fact, knowing the opportunity could not be regained. The hesitancy usually revolved around the knowledge that if I supported a friend someone else disregarded, I might be disregarded too.

Jesus does not need me to come to His rescue; He is perfectly able to take care of Himself. He is ‘King of kings and Lord of lords,’ but this King has called ‘insignificant me’ His friend. So shouldn’t I be willing to stand with Him no matter what? If the whole world disregards me because I love Him, should it matter? A good friend thinks: “I don’t care what anyone else says, thinks, or does… this friendship means the world to me.”

Granted, our human friends can disappoint us, make terrible errors, and possess alarming flaws. (This is what Jesus can say about me.) But the Friend who has chosen us possesses no weaknesses, always tells the truth, and never fails. He has endured uncountable insults, false accusations, and betrayals… yet He does not strike back or take revenge. Jesus desires we be His friends forever.

“My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. You are My friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from My Father, I have made known to you.”
John 15:12-15

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