PEARLS AND PROMISES

This begins a year-long series on birthstones and how they remind me of Jesus. Since I’m cross-posting with my geologist friend, Chris Vonada (www.ChrisVonada.com),  I figured the topic of gemstones would be a terrific match.

But when I sat down to write this very first post, I realized I’m beginning with the one month of the year whose birth “stone”—the pearl—isn’t a stone at all.

Still, throughout history, society has considered pearls to be rare, beautiful and valuable.  And they remind me of Jesus.

The Gospel

In scripture, pearls are symbols of the priceless Gospel. Matthew 13:45-46 compares the Gospel to pearls of great value:

“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.”

Jesus’ parable reminds us that our salvation through Him, is priceless and deepening our faith and relationship with Him, should be our number one priority.

Protection

Pearls also remind me of Jesus because of how they’re made. Pearls are the oyster’s way of protecting itself from a harsh and painful grain of sand. It does so by laying down calcium carbonate in concentric rings.

Similarly, Jesus protects us from harsh and painful things in life—if we but lean on Him. In fact, just like an oyster, God can create layers of soothing protection from the irritants of life. Those layers become our ever-deeper faith; a faith that is beautiful, rare and valuable. So valuable that we should do everything we can to own it; because it results in our being part of God’s kingdom of heaven.

And we know what the gates of heaven are made of.

The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each gate made of a single pearl. The great street of the city was of gold, as pure as transparent glass. (Revelation 21:21)

June’s birthstone can’t be found in any underground mine on earth. Pearls are created by living creatures; much like the foundation of our faith is based on trust in a living God.

Pearls require no faceting or polishing to reveal their natural beauty. Just like our faith in Jesus requires nothing but to believe—and then trust and obey. That’s a beautiful thing.

Happy birthday to everyone born in June.

PRAYER: Thank you, Jesus for showing us your truth in the parables you spoke so long ago. Thank you for your good news. Please remind us each day of the Gospel’s incomparable value and help us find new ways to make it a deeper part of our lives. Amen.

WHAT ABOUT YOU? In what way do you see characteristics of Jesus in a pearl?

Don't forget to follow my friend, Chris at www.ChrisVonada.com 

EVANGELIZE?

This month the Christian Writers are sharing thoughts about the theme “nurture” in honor of Mother’s Day. Please click on their links to the right on the appropriate days.

I’ve chosen to talk about evangelism—in order to nurture other believers in their ability to nurture nonbelievers to accept Christ. This is a revised post from www.WeUsed2BU.com 

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I used to break into a cold sweat when thinking about “The Great Commission” where Jesus told his disciples to go out into the world and evangelize.

Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” (Matthew 28:19-20)

Me? Evangelize? Who was I to teach the Gospel? Yet, how could I not do something to encourage the salvation of people I loved?

I knew evangelism was an important responsibility. I just didn’t know how to do it. I was afraid to fail God. After all, souls were at stake. Eternal lives were in the balance.

I love reading the Bible. But ask me to debate theology and my lips lock up. I simply feel incapable to the task.

Then one day, verses started popping out, reminding me that God is the one who pursues people’s hearts. It’s my job to share the Gospel—but other people’s salvation doesn’t rest on anything I do.

It’s Jesus who stands at the door and knocks. If someone opens the door, it’s Jesus who comes in. (Revelation 3:20)

Jesus. Not me. Whew!

Sometimes God provides the perfect words and the debating skills to reach others. If that’s you—then debate away. Let God work through you to show the truth of Jesus to others.

But if God doesn’t provide you with oratorical eloquence (huh?), there are still things we can do. Sharing the Gospel means sharing the good news. And good news is always better when it is personal. Personal good news can be shared with more enthusiasm, feeling and meaning when it is told from personal experience—when it’s my good news. Or your good news.

In the courtroom, a testimony is a statement in support of fact. In Christianity, a testimony is a declaration of faith, supported by statements of fact. The facts of your life.

God doesn’t demand we prove the truth of the Gospel. That’s His job. We only have to share what it means to us; what it has done for us. What Jesus has done in our lives or in the lives of people we know.

That’s a testimony of faith. And it is more powerful when it is personal, spoken from a heart filled with gentleness, compassion and sincerity.

Jesus desires that none be lost, but it is not up to you to guarantee that. You may not be the one to lead a person to Jesus. Perhaps your testimony will be the first time or the only time the person hears the Gospel. Or perhaps your testimony will be the 22^nd time. Or the time that finally makes the person ready to open his heart to God’s knocking.

Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me. (Revelation 3:20)

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, please give me the words to share my testimony with others and please also give me the courage to share it boldly. Amen.

WHAT ABOUT YOU? Do you have a personal testimony? If not, I’ll be sharing some ideas toward the end of the month on how to create one.

STANDING FIRM

Today’s post is the fourth in a series about putting on the full armor of God (Ephesians 6:14).

Stand firm then…with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.

 

Roman warriors didn’t wear boots. Rather, they wore studded sandals like these replicas and then protected their lower legs with metal or leather greaves. Later, soldiers adopted boots as part of their armor.

Most Bible versions don’t mention a type of footwear in Ephesians. But many people refer to this portion of God’s armor as the “shoes of peace” or the “boots of peace.”

Stand firm then…

Paul reminds us that when we put on the armor of God, we are to stand. Not lounge comfortably, wearing our fuzzy slippers. We are to stand.

You gals who have taken a step onto ice, wearing 4” heels know the peril of simply standing. You guys wearing new dress shoes and stepping onto wet linoleum know the peril of simply standing. It’s hard to stand firm if you’re wearing the wrong shoes.

 

…with your feet fitted

We’ll be able to stand and move better if our footwear fits. Without proper fitting shoes, our feet blister. Too small and we limp. Too big and we trip.

Just like our faith. Too little and we limp along. Too much of ourselves thinking we know it all and we're likely to trip.

Without securing our properly-fitting shoes, we are not ready to stand. Much less are we ready to go where He sends us. 

…with the readiness

God can do all things in heaven and on earth. But lots of times, He uses us to get things done. With the Holy Spirit living in us, God is right there directing our actions. We can be God’s hands and feet in this world, accomplishing His purpose; fulfilling His plans.

If we are to be His feet, then, we should be ready to go where He sends us. Part of being ready is putting on our boots. Boots that are fitted to our feet with readiness. 

…that comes from the gospel of peace. 

Paul reminds us that we are to wear the “boots of peace.” Jesus is the Prince of Peace.” Therefore we should live a life like Jesus did.

But Jesus wasn’t always peaceful. He stood up for what was right and was ready—whip in hand—to make other people pay attention.

The United Nations sends out soldiers and calls them a “Peacekeeping Force.” Our police are referred to as “Officers of the Peace.” Sometimes peace is something we have to fight for. Or march toward. Or stand up for. All that peacekeeping requires us to put on the boots of peace, fitted for us by God.

And in addition to being peace keepers,we are also to be peace makers. One of Jesus’ beatitudes was: Blessed are the peace makers for they shall be called Sons of God. As a child of God, I like that.

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One day, we get to slide into them golden slippers and walk all over God’s heaven.

Now those are boots of peace!

Meanwhile, wearing our boots of readiness from the gospel, we can first stand firm and then run Paul’s race with Jesus.

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, please put your armor on us. Please fit our feet with the gospel of peace so that we can stand firm and be ready to go where you send us, protected by your armor. Amen.

WHAT ABOUT YOU? Did your mamma wear combat boots? Do you?

TREASURE HUNTING

Welcome to "Freelance Friday." On Fridays we'll chat about whatever. It might be a devotional. It might be about writing. It might be about kids. Or it might be about...hmmm. Stay tuned and find out.

I delight in small shiny objects.

When I go clothes shopping, I walk into the store, scope out the racks of colored fabric hanging in neat rows. If one sparkles at me, I head straight for it, like a cat pouncing on a bug.

Those of you who know me, understand that I never actually wear sparkly clothing. Nope, solid colored, button-up shirts with collars and simple slacks for me. But the clothing that attracts me glitters. Always.

I get my glitter fix with jewelry. Maybe that's the secret reason why I don't wear glittery clothing. You don’t want to overdo things, too much, right? Let the clothing be the backdrop for the jewels. Yeah, now that's classy.

It's all about the jewelry for me. And there’s a theological reason for that.

Huh?

I believe that when God created earth, His plan was to fill it with beauty. And He did. Mountains, plains, oceans, lakes, rivers, creeks, ponds and puddles. The cloud-filled sky, whether blue or gray. The grass, trees, flowers, critters. It's all a reflection of the beauty that is God.

But when God was all done covering the earth's surface with beauty that reflected Him, it still waned in comparison to His glory. Since He still had so much of His glorious beauty left, He hid some deep inside the earth.

Over time, as mankind digs deep into God's rich soil, underneath the beauty at the surface of our earth, through all the wiggly worms, the gnarly roots and crumbly dirt, we find sparkling, glittering treasures. We dig them up, dust them off and hold them up to the light, exclaiming, "beautiful!" And we call them "precious."

We name those treasures gold, silver, platinum, copper. Diamond, sapphire, emerald, ruby. They are precious to us. And they are a reflection of God's glorious, excessive beauty.

 
Yes, this is Carol's theology. But remember Jesus' parable of the man who found a treasure in the ground? He covered it back up. Then he sold everything he owned and bought the land so the treasure could be his. The treasure in Jesus’ parable was the Gospel, the priceless good news of our salvation through Christ.

Carol's parable has two meanings and I admit they aren’t as important as Jesus’. But here they are.

First these hidden treasures show how we can seek God's glory in everything around us. It is everywhere for us to see if only we take the time to look. It is in nature, it is people, it is in God’s Word.  When we find it, it is a sparkling, glittering, precious delight. And it is worth the seeking.

Secondly, these hidden treasures reflect how God has placed a sparkling, precious delight inside each of us. It is up to us, with God’s help, to dig through the dirt, past the worms and the roots and find it. This treasure is our desire to know and love Him. He placed that desire deep inside each of us.

When we recognize our need to love Him, we can let Him dust this treasure off and hold it up to the light. Our internal treasure, our faith in Christ, is a delight to Him and a sparkling light shining God's glory to the world.

It is worth the digging.

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, thank you for your glory and for the reminders of your beauty around us. Please work in us so that we are a delight to you. Help us seek your treasure above all else. Amen.

WHAT ABOUT YOU? What treasures in your life do you see as God's sparkling delights?