A Portion For the Son

 A Portion For The Son

“Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong …”

Isaiah 53:12a, KJV

Wednesday’s post, My Portion, highlighted the inheritance every follower of Christ has as a result of the Lord’s suffering the death all people are doomed to receive apart from him.

In the song, How Great The Father’s Love For Us, written by Stuart Townsend, the writer poses the question of why the Father would want a wretch for his treasure. Another line, wonders why we wretches should receive gain from the Son’s reward. What we gain equals our portion, our inheritance. But what about Jesus Christ, the Son of God, what is his reward, his portion for the agony he experienced?

First the price Jesus paid: It goes beyond anything we can imagine and began with his becoming like us. Stop for a moment. God the Son, holy, full of grace and glory, the creator of all things seen and unseen. He doesn’t stop being God but steps out of his glorious existence into the flesh and blood of a man. Paul writes it like this about Jesus our Lord—

“Who, being in the form of God,

thought it not robbery to be equal with God:

But made himself of no reputation,

and took upon him the form of a servant,

and was made in the likeness of men:

And being found in fashion as a man,

he humbled himself,

and became obedient unto death,

even the death of the cross.”

Philippians 2:6-8, KJV

When we examine David’s and Isaiah’s writings, we find these descriptions in Psalm 22 and Isaiah 53 of the price the Savior paid—

Forsaken, poured out like water,

all my bones out of joint, heart is like wax;

it is melted in the midst of my bowels,

strength … dried up, my tongue cleaveth to my jaws;

brought me into the dust of death …

deliver my soul, save me

So marred more than any man,

despised, rejected, man of sorrows,

acquainted with grief, wounded for our transgressions,

bruised for our iniquities, chastisement of our peace,

with his stripes we are healed,

laid on him the iniquity of us all, oppressed, afflicted,

brought as a lamb to the slaughter,

cut off out of the land of the living,

for … transgression … stricken

All of this to gain an inheritance—a kingdom. But what is a kingdom with out people? We are the inheritance, his portion.

“He shall see of the travail of his soul,

and shall be satisfied:

by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many;

for he shall bear their iniquities …

Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him,

and given him a name which is above every name:

That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth:

And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father …

After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number,

of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues,

stood before the throne, and before the Lamb,

clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands;

And cried with a loud voice, saying,

SALVATION TO OUR GOD WHICH SITTETH UPON THE THRONE,

AND UNTO THE LAMB …

And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying,

THE KINGDOMS OF THIS WORLD ARE BECOME

THE KINGDOMS OF OUR LORD, AND OF HIS CHRIST;

AND HE SHALL REIGN FOR EVER AND EVER.”

Isaiah 53:11; Philippians 4:11; Revelation 7: 9-10; 11:15, KJV

With the onset of Lent, we are reminded of the season that’s upon us. We will hear familiar scriptures and celebrate other traditions along the way to keep our minds and hearts focused on why we celebrate. I, unashamedly, ask you to consider using my novel, The Nazarene’s Price, as an addition to your traditions leading up to the Passion week. It is fictional, set in the days of Christ. It is one man’s search for the truth concerning death, life, and the Nazarene. At the end of the book there is a series of questions for personal reflection or to be used with a group. You may want to invite an unsaved friend or neighbor to join you, using The Nazarene’s Price as a witnessing tool. Be creative.

You can order a copy from Amazon or Barnes and Noble—currently at a reduced price but I am not sure for how long. In the search bar, type the title and my name, Donna K. Stearns. Once you’ve finished the book, please consider leaving a review with Amazon, Goodreads, & Bookbub. Thank you.

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What activities/traditions do you practice to celebrate the upcoming Easter season?

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My Portion

My Portion

“Thou art my portion, O LORD:

I have said that I would keep thy words.”

Psalm 119:57, KJV

What does this scripture mean when saying, the Lord is my portion?

Two little boys sit side by side on the front porch steps of their country home. One has a ball cap sitting skewed on his blonde hair and freckles dot his pug nose. But who notices with those blue eyes as big as the moon outlined with dark eyelashes any grown woman would envy? He watches his older brother—not much older but just enough to be considered wise by the younger.

The older brother holds a chocolate candy bar in his grubby hands. He tears off the wrapper and breaks the candy bar into two unequal pieces. Since older brother broke the bar, younger brother chooses first. Of course he chooses the biggest piece.

Just as the younger brother aims the shared piece of yummy goodness for his mouth, the older brother yells, “Stop. These pieces aren’t even.”  The younger brother hands the older his piece.

The older looks at the two, bites off the offending length of the longer piece, holds the two together, and smiles. “There, now they are even.”

Both boys received a portion of the sweet chocolate candy bar with a creamy inside. But when God’s word says he is my portion, I am the recipient of him—all of him. He doesn’t give me a part of his love, a part of his forgiveness, or a part of his Spirit —

“But according as his divine power

hath given unto us all things

that pertain unto life and godliness,

through the knowledge of him that hath called us

to glory and virtue;

Whereby are given unto us exceeding

great and precious promises:

that by these

ye might be partakers of the divine nature,

having escaped  the corruption that is in the world through lust.”

2 Peter 1:3-4, KJV

Our portion, our inheritance, our reward is the Lord God himself through the Spirit of Christ in us.

“But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit,

if so be that

the Spirit of God dwell in you.

Now, if any man have not the Spirit of Christ,

he is none of his …

I am crucified with Christ:

nevertheless I live;

yet not I,

but Christ liveth in me:

and the life which I now live in the flesh

I live by the faith of the Son of God,

who loved me,

and gave himself for me.”

Romans 8:9-10, Galatians 2:20, KJV

An inheritance, our portion, cannot be received without a death. Christ died our death to give those who trust in his word the privilege to say, “Thou art my portion, O LORD …”  We can only say that as we identify ourselves with the crucifixion of Christ. I died on the cross with Christ. But here I am, because it is now Christ who lives in me by faith. For God is my portion—not a portion of the whole, but the whole portion—and he fills each one with the his whole goodness.

Can you say, the Lord is your portion? What does that mean for you?

The Writer’s Heart: Excellence

The Writer’s Heart: Excellence

Image courtesy of Pixabay

“Hear;

for I will speak of excellent things;

and the opening of my lips shall be right things.”

Proverbs 8:6, KJV

Why do people buy Christian books? Many I’ve talked with, say it’s because of what’s not in them, rather than what is in them. Readers trust Christian books to be free—

• of crude language, including cursing;
• of explicit sex scenes,
• and a secular world view to solve problems.

Our readers trust us to speak of excellent things. Shouldn’t they also expect our writing to be excellent?

Three authors spoke to me through a book and a podcast concerned with mediocrity in Christian writing. Bodie & Brock Thoene in their book, Writer to Writer, reminds the Christian author of our employer. As much as we need our publishers and editors, we are first servants of the Lord and should be—

“With good will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men;”

Ephesians 6:7, KJV

Cecil Murphey, in his podcast course, “Beyond Mediocrity,” with Christian Writer’s Institute, echoes the Thoene’s sentiments and seeks the goal of excellence in writing. Mr. Murphey’s personal goal—is to write a manuscript ready for the first edit without any editing needing done. That would be an editor’s dream come true. It’s a worthy and lofty goal for all of us—one we should strive for.

Reaching the goal begins with dedicating our work to the Lord in excellence and to—

“Commit thy works unto the LORD,

and thy thoughts shall be established.”

Proverbs 16:3, KJV

For the Christian author we have no excuse not to do our best. If we believe we have been called to write, the Lord put the calling in our heart. The Lord fails in nothing he sets out to do, and has promised to take our thoughts, our plans and establish them. He will see they become all they are meant to be for his glory. That does not mean we throw something together and wait for God to make them excellent. Trusting in the Lord in this way does mean we do all we can to make what we write excellent—for he is worthy of nothing less. Then we trust him with the outcome.

If we want excellence in our work, first commit the work to the Lord, and keep learn all we can to improve our best by taking advantage of—

• online writing courses,
• writer’s conferences,
• a Christian writing group in our area or online,
• the expertise of our editors,
• remembering who our Employer is,
• prayer,
• of the task we’ve been given for his glory.

What are your writing plans for today? Where would you like your writing plans to take you in the next five years? Ten years?

We don’t know the future. It’s important to reach for excellence now, and keep reaching until our best becomes excellent. So, if the Lord has put a pen in your hand, take it and do what He’s given you to do.

“And whatsoever ye do in word or deed,

do all in the name of the Lord Jesus,

giving thanks to God and the Father by him.”

Colossians 3:17, KJV

Our Lord is excellent. Our work needs to bear his image. Our best becomes better, and the Lord establishes where it goes, who it reaches, and it’s final success. Let’s commit our work to him in prayer and see where he takes us. The journey is exciting.

When the World Presses In (2)-Getting the Wrinkles Out

“This is my comfort in my affliction:

for thy word hath quickened me.”

Psalm 119:50, KJV

My granddaughter brought my great-grandbaby by for a visit. Being only five weeks old, smiles are appearing more often but she, also, has inherited her daddy’s scowl. As I worked to coax a smile from her, I explained more wrinkles will adorn her smooth silky baby skin than smiles.

Age brings worries, tension, and troubles into our lives and wrinkles multiply. The world presses wrinkles into our spirit more than our flesh if we allow it. The Spirit of God washes away the worries, our haunting past, all that’s not of him, and gets the wrinkles out. We would not know the power of the Lord in our lives if we never experienced the cleansing and the heat of the iron.

“Beloved think it not strange

concerning the fiery trial which is to try you,

as thou some strange thing happened unto you:

But rejoice,

inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings;

that, when his glory shall be revealed,

ye may be glad also with exceeding joy.

If ye be reproached for the name of Christ,

happy are ye;

for the spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you:

on their part he is evil spoken of,

but on your part he is glorified.”

1Peter 4:12-14, KJV

Apostle Peter knew about fiery trials, as did Apostle Paul. The world pressed more wrinkles into their flesh than what covers a Shar Pei puppy. But the wrinkles didn’t mar their spirit. Both considered the persecutions and trials a source of coming to know Christ through sharing his sufferings. Paul wrote—

“But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ …

I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung,

that I may win Christ … And be found in him …

That I may know him and the power of his resurrection,

and the fellowship of his sufferings,

being made conformable unto his death;

If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead.”

(From Philippians 3: 7-11, KJV)

Paul’s past represented a pharisaical rising star. He possessed the heritage, the recognition of Jewish elite, a misplaced zeal, a spotless reputation according to the law. All that changed when he met the Lord Jesus on the road to Damascus. What he had before was of no more importance than what a donkey dumps on the path behind him.

Paul’s greatest desire consisted of knowing Christ. His desire should be ours. To know Christ means—

• to experience him in our lives;
• to experience his resurrection power which takes us from physical and eternal death to abundant life, and eternal life. That is the power of the resurrection of Christ in us.
• Along this road in the resurrection power, knowing Christ involves experiencing his suffering for sin—not for the remission of sin, but for the suffering of sin’s influence in this world.
• We will experience Christ’s death. Before hanging on the cross the human aspect of Jesus, his flesh needed to die to self.

In Christ’s anguish before his trial and march to the cross, Jesus laid aside his flesh’s desire to not drink the cup of suffering held in his hands. Instead, he picked up his cross and obeyed the Father, taking our sin—giving us his righteousness.

Jesus showed us by his life, death, and resurrection how to know him after telling us—

“If any man will come after me,

let him deny himself,

and take up his cross,

and follow me.

For whosoever will save his life shall lose it:

and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.”

Matthew 16:24b, KJV

Our wrinkles find cleansing in the blood of Christ. They are ironed out as we share in his cross. We don’t welcome suffering or persecution, but we shouldn’t shrink from it when it comes. Christ is our strength.

We can rejoice in suffering, because it reveals the power of Christ in us, giving us a platform to share the Gospel of our Lord—a platform where wrinkles are ironed out and spirits are renewed without spot or blemish, like the flesh of a newborn baby.

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What wrinkles do you need the blood of Christ applied to?

When the World Presses In

When the World Presses In

picture courtesy of Pintrest

“This is my comfort in my affliction:

for thy word hath quickened me.”

Psalm 119: 50

Affliction—a crushing weight pressing against the body and/or spirit of a person from the outside in. The picture that comes to mind is that of ironing clothes. My cowboy nephew, in his younger days, rode bulls in rodeos (or should I say attempted to ride bulls?). I will leave any comments to be made about the wisdom of this sport to you.

Before sitting atop one of the maniacal animals in the chute, before arriving at the rodeo arena, the cowboy would iron his jeans to precision. He pressed the iron to them until every wrinkle screamed in retreat. Then he would take the point of the iron and press in a crease down each leg so sharp it could cut a finger. He conformed that pair of jeans to the image he desired—the crease held through what little time he fought to stay on the bull and through being thrown off. Dust and dirt covered the denims, but through it all, they could still stand whether the cowboy was in them or not.

Jesus knows all about affliction. A cross weighed his body and spirit down as the hatred and sin of the world fell on his shoulders. Before being broken for our need and facing the greatest crushing pressure of his earthly life, Jesus warned his disciples—

“Remember the word that I said unto you,

The servant is not greater than his lord.

If they have persecuted me,

they will also persecute you;

if they have kept my saying,

they will keep your’s also.

But all these things will they do unto you for my name’s sake,

because they know not him that sent me.”

John 15: 20-21, KJV

Jesus’s warning comes to us today, not to frighten but to prepare us. While living in a world system that hates our Lord, we can expect to be objects of hatred, as well. The world system means it for the destruction of the Father’s kingdom. We are called to endure the affliction the world hurls against us—to love our enemies and pray for them. Remember when we return hatred for hatred we have joined the enemy’s ranks.

The Apostle Paul teaches us about suffering for Christ’s sake and enduring it with rejoicing.

*“We are troubled on every side”—Paul knew trouble wherever he went from both Jews and Gentiles.

“We are perplexed”—He was without a way out(this was his circumstance, all looked lost). “but not in despair.” The truth: Paul still had hope.

“Persecuted,”—The circumstance: His enemies pressed him beyond measure. “but not forsaken:” The truth: Paul had the Lord for his strength. He wasn’t alone.

“cast down,”—The circumstance: Paul suffered near-death beatings. “but not destroyed;” The truth: His body was broken, but his spirit could not be destroyed for Christ dwelt in him.

The circumstances: Paul’s numerous afflictions—“delivered unto death for Jesus’ sake,
The truth: Served a purpose—“that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh.”

Paul’s intimate knowledge of God enabled him to endure and rejoice.

The sure hope: “Knowing that he which raised up the Lord Jesus shall raise up us also by Jesus, and shall present us with you.

The purpose: For all things are for your sakes, that the abundant grace might through the thanksgiving of many redound to the glory of God.”

The truth:

For which cause we faint not;

but though our outward man perish,

yet the inward man is renewed day by day.

For our light affliction, which is but for a moment,

worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory;

While we look not at the things which are seen,

but at the things which are not seen:

for the things which are seen are temporal;

but the things which are not seen are eternal.”

2 Corinthians 4:14-18, KJV

Reading these scriptures gives us understanding of how Paul, even when pressed down, could endure with thanksgiving and joy. He looked not at the things seen, his circumstances. But Paul chose to look at the truth of God’s word and found comfort.

Our circumstances are the same as Paul’s—temporary. Paul’s hope is our hope—eternal hope of glory. Look to the truth of God’s word and find comfort.

What circumstance weighs heavy on your soul? What truth will you remember to find comfort?

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*From 2 Corinthians 4: 8-11, KJV

The Writer’s Heart: Balancing Life

The Writer’s Heart: Balancing Life

“For me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.”

Philippians 1:21, KJV

The Christian life is supposed to be the life of Christ lived through us. He is our strength, our motive, our example of a life surrendered to the heavenly Father. Anything the Father gave  the Son to speak and do, he did, always keeping his purpose in view—

“For the Son of man is come

to seek and to save that which was lost.”

Luke 19:10, KJV

Jesus Christ did this through showing us the glory of the Father, through his teaching, his miracles, his obedience, and his completing the work given him to do. When life threatened his purpose,

those opposing him, those seeking him only for his miracles, the death of his forerunner, and his own unjust trial and death,

none of these things kept him from finishing the work the Father gave him—

“I have glorified thee on the earth:

I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do.”

John 17:4, KJV

Jesus’s work is now our work. We are called to glorify the Father in the work he has given us. Our work doesn’t include saving people from their sin—Jesus accomplished that work on the cross for all who will believe.  How we accomplish glorifying the Father differs from person to person.

As authors, our Father has called us to glorify him in our writing. But how do we balance that work when life threatens to detour our work? When we get a desperate call in the middle of the night robbing us of much needed sleep and sets us up for letting worry rob us of peace? Or the doctors issue a bad diagnosis? Family needs help? Other works, good works, call for our attention?

I have tried to set a schedule to handle the work that is mine to do. Schedules don’t know what the day will bring. If we see these changes as interruptions, they will lead to frustration. If our work of writing and our other responsibilities are seen as a work the Lord has given us, he will give us the strength and time to accomplish what is needed for the day. Every day has twenty-four hours. How we use those hours is our choice.

There are two choices. We give ourselves to the work or to the people the Lord directs us to minister to for that time. The motto of Youth Serving Christ, my husband and I led for twenty-five years, continues to be, Encouraging Youth to Serve Christ By Serving Others. The physical work needs done, but the real work is found in encouraging the people.

Balancing the trials and circumstances of life with our writing isn’t easy. It’s my biggest challenge as an author. I want to write—to finish my second novel, to go to conferences, and market my current book. I’m learning to—

1. Set a schedule and hold to it as much as in me lies
2. Check your schedule. Is it too full? What can be cut?
3. Learning to begin my day by asking my heavenly Father to order what comes to me
4. Take my opportunities of quiet when and for how long they come
5. To be satisfied the work will get done if I persevere
6. Keep looking to the goals: make my writing the best it can be to encourage my readers, glorify the Father, and rejoice in how he provides all I need for the work he has given me.

If we live our life in Christ, we can end each day satisfied we have followed Christ’s example and finished the work our Father has given us. We can rejoice with thanksgiving, not grumble with frustration.

How do you handle the needed interruptions that come your way when writing? Notice I said needed interruptions—some are not needed and can be ignored. The challenge? Choosing which is which.

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Please be patient with me as I try to answer your comments and links. Life has been a bit unbalanced this past week but I hope to visit your sites soon.

According To His Word, Hope

According To His Word: Hope

“So shall I have wherewith to answer him that reproacheth me:

for I trust in thy word.

And take not the word of truth utterly out of my mouth;

for I have hoped in thy judgments.”

Psalm 119:42-43, KJV

“How do you know the Bible is true? I’ve heard inconsistencies exist in it. Is that true? If it is, how can you believe any of it?” The challenge spewed from his mouth, daring me to answer.

The Lord, true to his word, gave me answer that day through my personal testimony of the mercy and salvation God had given me through the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. My witness included the eternal hope the Lord’s salvation brought to my heart. The Lord made clear the hope he brings to believers when, as a young Christian, Peter’s words challenged me to know why I had hope.

 “But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts:

and be ready always to give an answer to every man

that asketh you a reason of the hope

that is in you

with meekness and fear;”

1 Peter 3:15, KJV

In order to answer others with meekness(gentleness, NIV) and fear(respect, NIV), we must remember, the Lord has sanctified, or set us apart from the world to be his own possession. He saved us for two purposes, our salvation, and for setting us apart from the world’s way of living to live and speak the gospel to others. Sanctification is the process of salvation bringing us to completion—both a work of God in us. One of the motives of sanctification comes as we learn what our hope is and how to walk in it.

As a new believer, the cross of Christ spelled out hope for me. In reality, the cross freed me from sin’s punishment and power. I didn’t understand forgiveness of sin alone didn’t provide the reality of the hope for everlasting life. Hope is birthed at the cross, but comes in its fullness with the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

“And if Christ be not raised,

your faith is vain;

ye are yet in your sins.

Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished.

If in this life only we have hope in Christ,

we are of all men most miserable.”

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“But now is Christ risen from the dead … “

1 Corinthians 15:17-19, KJV; 1Corinthians 15:20a, KJV

Our eternal hope is found in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. He is alive. Because Christ lives, we live now and forever.

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,

which according to his abundant mercy

hath begotten us again unto a lively hope

by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,

To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled,

and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you,

Who are kept by the power of God

through faith unto salvation,

ready to be revealed in the last time.

Where in ye greatly rejoice …”

1 Peter 1:3-6a, KJV

Faith is the substance of things hoped for, but faith is only as reliable as its substance. The only substance to withstand the trials of life and continue in hope is found in the faith of our heavenly Father. Without faith in God, hope vanishes. It is futile.

“But without faith it is impossible to please him:

for he that cometh to God

must believe that he is,

and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.”

Hebrews 11:6, KJV

God is the answer to life. He is the word of truth. He is our hope of today and all eternity. He is our reward.

Giving the Lord first place in our heart and seeking his truth, He is our answer to those seeking hope.

“Happy is he that hath the God of Jacob for his help,

whose hope is in the LORD his God:

Which made heaven, and earth, the sea, and all that therein is:

which keepeth truth for ever …

The LORD shall reign for ever, even thy God, O Zion,

unto all generations.

Praise ye the LORD.”

Psalm 146:5-6, 10, KJV

I don’t know if my challenger found hope or not. My hope for him is found in the Lord that pursues us with his love—until we no longer have breath. When you need a dose of hope, where do you turn?

According To His Word

According to Thy Word

“Let thy mercies come also unto me, O LORD, even thy salvation,

according to thy word.”

Psalm 119:41, KJV

The son of man stood bound before his judge—one unable to discern the living Word standing before him, the Son of God, the King of kings. Pilate asked Jesus if he was a king. Jesus answered with—

“Thou sayest that I am a king. To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world,

that I should bear witness unto the truth.

Every one that is of the truth heareth my voice.” John 18:36, KJV

Pilate replied, “What is truth?”

People continue to ask that question today. Like Pilate, the world searches for truth, but they are blind to the truth standing before them.

• Multitudes don’t believe it,
• twist it,
• fear to proclaim it,
• and walk away from it.

John, the apostle, wrote Jesus’s words stating, “Thy word is truth.”

Jesus, the living Word of God, said, “I am … the truth.” Not only did he make these statements, he lived the truth. He is truth.

When the psalmist asked the Lord to send his mercies and his salvation, according to his word, those same mercies he asked for, gave birth to hope. In his loving kindness, the Lord’s salvation has come to us. The truth has found it’s way into our hearts.

God’s grace lavishes us with his mercies—

payment for our sin debt,

cleansing from the sins of the past,

strength to live in victory over sin,

and eternal life.

• According to his word, and his word is truth,

“It is of the LORD’S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.

They are new every morning:

great is thy faithfulness.

The LORD is my portion, saith my soul:

therefore will I hope in Him.” Lamentations 3:22-24, KJV

• According to his word and his word is truth,

“FOR WHOSOEVER SHALL CALL UPON THE NAME OF THE LORD SHALL BE SAVED.” Romans 10:13, KJV

• According to his word, and his word is truth,

“Beloved, now are we the sons of God and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear,we shall be like him;

for we shall see him as he is.

And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.” 1 John 3:2-3, KJV

• According to his word, and his word is truth,

“Being confident of this very thing,

that he which hath began a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.” Philippians 1:6, KJV

• According to his word, and his word is truth,

“In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.

And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself,

that where I am, there ye may be also …

I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.” John 14:2-3, Matthew 28:20b, KJV

Truth does not have to be believed—it remains the truth. Truth can’t be twisted—for then it is no longer the truth. Fearing to speak the truth—will not prevent it from be revealed. Walking away from the truth—will not bring freedom but captivity.

• According to his word, and his word is truth,

“If ye continue in my word then are ye my disciples indeed;

And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” John 8:31b-32, KJV

If you, like Pilate, have asked, “What is truth?”,  according to his word, and his word is truth, Jesus is the truth. Know him and you will know truth. Truth never changes. Truth endures forever.

“The grass withereth,

the flower fadeth:

but the word of our God shall stand for ever …

O give thanks unto the LORD;

for he is good:

for his mercy endureth for ever.”

Isaiah 40:8; Psalm 136:1, KJV

With his mercies come salvation.

The Writer’s Heart: Words For the Heart

The Writer’s Heart: Words

“And the LORD said unto Moses,

Write thou these words:

for after the tenor of these words

I have made a covenant with thee and with Israel.”

Exodus 34:27, KJV

What do you do when you are at a loss for the right word/s?  Pick up a thesaurus? A dictionary? Ask a collegue? Pray? All of the aforementioned? It’s a problem writer’s face and must conquer to reach publication.

Moses didn’t have that problem. He had the best writing coach a person could have—the Living Word. The author of words told Moses exactly what to write. Since Moses lacked pen and paper, a typewriter, or computer, he wrote the Lord’s words of the covenant on stone. By the way, it took him forty days and nights, not stopping to eat or drink, to complete the task. That’s dedication.

Personally, I have trouble giving four uninterrupted hours to writing, and I have paper, pen, and a computer at my disposal. 

What Moses wrote, the Lord had first written on stone tablets. Moses destroyed the first tablets when he came down the mountain and saw the sin of the people. The second tablets have been lost to us. What the Lord directed Moses and thirty-nine others to write on papyrus, eventually was transcribed onto paper. Papyrus and paper are easily destroyed and decay.

Today, we use pens, paper, typewriters, and computers to write our words. These we have at our disposal—there is no chipping away at stone. But what’s written on these can soon be lost, accidentally deleted, or destroyed with a toss to the wastebasket or the stroke of a key.

We write in hope to encourage, entertain, and edify the lives of our readers. Even when we’ve prayed and used the tools available is there a guarantee our words will accomplish the goal? Only as those words enter the heart of the readers.

The Lord tells us his written words provided external direction. Some received the instruction but many more did not. The word needed to enter the heart. What’s written on the heart is eternal—never to be destroyed.

“But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel;

After those days, saith the LORD,

I will put my law in their inward parts,

and write it in their hearts,

and will be their God, and they shall be my people.”

Jeremiah 31:33, KJV

If the Lord is not a part of our writing team,

we cannot hope to reach the heart of the readers. That’s his work.

With God as our coach through his written word

and the Holy Spirit in us,

the Christian writer’s work reflects the heart of God.

From God’s heart he writes his message in our heart. From our heart, as we write, the message passes on to the hearts the Lord has prepared to receive it.

Our words will never make it into the Bible, but the Lord will use our work to put the Bible into the hearts of our readers. He promises—

“Therefore, my beloved brethren,

be ye stedfast, unmoveable,

always abounding in the work of the Lord,

forasmuch as ye know

that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.”

1 Corinthians 15:58, KJV

Our part in this partnership with the Lord:

• Pray.
• Choose words carefully.
• Use the tools we have available.
• Persevere,
• and write as if writing for the Lord.
• Our labor will not be in vain.

Our words will bring forth fruit/results that bring glory to the Father—the work will not be in vain—and we don’t have to climb a mountain to talk with the Lord.

With The Whole Heart

The Whole Hearted Life

“Give me understanding, and I shall keep thy law; yea,

I shall observe it with my whole heart.”

Psalm 119:34, KJV

The law kept with the whole heart not only obeys it, but does so, believing the worth of the law.

• The whole heart genuinely trusts the one making the law.
• A heart wholly devoted to the Lord rests in peace.
• Anything less than the whole results in uncertainty and eventually falters.

“And if a house be divided against itself,

that house cannot stand”—

nor can a heart.

(Scripture from Mark 3:25, KJV; The last four words are my thought.)

A divided heart is motivated by half an effort, half a conviction, and half the passion. It  ends in an empty result.

• A work done half-heartedly … Is a work not done.
• A word spoken half-heartedly … Should remain unspoken.
• A half-hearted love … is no love at all.

The Lord commands and deserves our whole hearted service.

“Now therefore fear the LORD,

and serve him in sincerity and in truth:

and put away the gods which your fathers

served on the other side of the flood, and in Egypt;

and serve ye the LORD.

And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD,

choose you this day whom ye will serve,

whether the gods which your fathers served  …

but as for me and my house,

we will serve the LORD.”

Joshua 24:14, 15, KJV

The whole heart serves the Lord—

• in sincerity and in truth;
• and the Lord alone, no others.
• He fills the heart with all that fills his heart;
• with a committed choice.

When Joshua presented Israel with the two choices, the people vowed to serve the Lord and him alone. But when they watched their neighbors, their hearts became divided. They spoke before searching their hearts. They spoke out of emotion not a heart wholly given to the Lord. Joshua told them as much. (See Joshua 24:14-28)

The whole hearted servant of the Lord speaks from the heart not just the lips.

“Be not rash with thy mouth,

and let not thine heart be hasty to utter any thing before God:

for God is in heaven, and thou upon earth:

therefore let thy words be few…

Better is it that thou shouldest not vow,

than that thou shouldest vow and not pay …

THIS PEOPLE DRAWETH NIGH UNTO ME WITH THEIR MOUTH,

AND HONOURETH ME WITH THEIR LIPS;

BUT THEIR HEART IS FAR FROM ME.”  

Ecclesiastes 5:2,5;Matthew 15:8, KJV

The Lord does not accept a half-hearted work, a half-hearted commitment, nor a half-hearted love. We are:

• to offer our— “bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.” Romans 12:1b, KJV
• to heed Jesus’s words— “THOU SHALT LOVE THE LORD THY GOD WITH ALL THY HEART, AND WITH ALL THY SOUL, AND WITH ALL THY MIND.” Matthew 22:37, KJV

Salvation, justification, sanctification, glorification is a whole hearted work of the living Word of God born our of his whole hearted love for us.

“We love him, because he first loved us.”

1 John 4:19, KJV

It’s time to praise the Lord with our sacrifice of praise offered from a heart wholly devoted to him in love.

“I will praise thee, O LORD,

with my whole heart;

I will shew forth all thy marvellous works.

I will be glad and rejoice in thee:

I will sing praise to thy name, O thou most High.”

Psalm 9: 1-2, KJV

 There really is no half a heart. Let’s make our choice—all or nothing. Which will it be?