Insurance Policy

"When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire, you shall not be burned; and the flame shall not consume you."  Isaiah 43:2

Every couple of years, I shop around for insurance.  I find insurance to be this necessary evil.  Paying each quarter, just so that I have "coverage" should something happen.  Whether it is car insurance, home, renters, or even life insurance, it just seems that we pay and pay - waiting for something catastrophic to happen.  When the casualty happens, I'm sure we are always happy that we have insurance to help us to get through those difficult times.

Many years ago, I was very grateful that we had medical insurance.  If I were to add up all the bills associated with surgeries, chemo treatments, radiation treatments and medicine, it would have been overwhelming.  Yet, we had insurance to greatly assist.  Insurance isn't "free", but it is with us when we need it.

There is an insurance that WE have NOT paid for, but the payment has been made for us!  Jesus came to Earth to be our insurance policy - to always be there for us when things take a difficult turn.  Whether it is raging waters or flames of fire, as shared in our verse for today, we need not worry.  Jesus is with us!  He came to Earth, taught us how to live our lives and paid the steepest price for our insurance - His Own Life!  

Jesus did this for one sole reason - because He loves us.  By taking on our sins, dying on the cross, and rising from the tomb, he paid a price far greater than our monthly insurance payment.  He gave his life for you and me!  Because of that, we have the assurance that He is with us each and every day.  When the day is steeped in joy and happiness or when the day is filled with trials and tribulations, Jesus is there with us.  He helps us get through those difficult times. 

Although I may not be thrilled to write the check, I am VERY grateful for the insurance I have when I need it.  Yet, the insurance I am MOST grateful for is the insurance Jesus paid for me so that I may be with Him in paradise one day.  That is an insurance I hope to never take for granted. 

Dearest Jesus, thank you for being my insurance policy for salvation.  By you paying the greatest price, I know that you are with me in difficult times.  I also know that I have the greatest insurance payment waiting for me - an eternity with you.  May I provide thanks to you each and every day for all you have given for me.  In your gracious name I pray.  Amen!

Bigger than Big

"The Lord detests lying lips, but he delights in people who are trustworthy."

Proverbs 12:22

"I can do this," he said.  Yes, it started off as simple as that.  We always wanted to have a deck, but time and kids and resources and, . . . well, we had other priorities.  When we decided that this was "our year" to do this, the roof needed to be replaced and the furnace went.   Having a contractor take this on was not in the cards.  That's when Juan shared that he could do this.  No, he has never built a deck before, but that didn't stop him take on other projects with much success.

We decided we wanted it to be "comfortably big".  16 x 18 sounded like a good size.  Then we got a little greedy - let's go bigger.  We decided upon 20 x 30.  Yes, that was it.  We put the stakes in the ground.  It didn't look too big - just the right size.  The planning, the digging holes, the cement, the frame - weeks of work has taken place to get to this weekend - the laying of the floor.

We started, and continued, and continued and continued.  It is bigger than big.  We past "comfortably big" about 1/2 way through!  We are grateful that we have a big backyard that can take on this deck.  It made me think of other projects that I've started that were "big" projects that kept getting bigger.  It also reminded me of small things in my life that got bigger without me trying so hard.

My mind immediately went to some of the "white lies" I might have told in my life.  You know, the ones where you didn't want to hurt some one's feelings or didn't want to share the "whole truth", so you told a "little lie".  There certainly have been times when those little lies grew to be bigger than big - more than I'd like to count.  They are like this deck, keep going on and on and on until I realize that they take more work than one would realize.

That's why this passage for today is so fitting.  God knows when we lie - even the "little" lies.  Even the smallest of lies can get bigger than big.  Our Lord prefers us to be truthful and honest.  It's not always popular and it can be hurtful if we don't approach things in the correct manner.  Yet, the truth will always be delightful in God's eyes - and that's where I want to be bigger than big.  I want my God to think of me and delight in me in a BIG way.  How about you?  

As for our deck - it may be bigger than big - but my husband's hard work will be rewarded when we are able to relax with family on our deck - comfortably big!!  

Dearest God, help me to always keep the truth on my lips.  May I be reminded on times before when I spoke "white lies" that turned bigger than big.  I know you delight when I share the truth - and I am always wanting for you to delight in me.  Help me to stay on your path always.  Amen!

Compassionate Father

"As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him."

Psalm 103:13

I have many blessings in my life.  One of the greatest has been to have an earthly father who gave so much of himself for his family.  We rarely appreciate activities as they happen - especially as a teenager and especially with a parent.  As I look back over that time, and the years that followed, I reminisce about a man who brought such faith and prayer into his life, and imparted it on our lives.

Daddy didn't claim to memorize Bible verses or be able to quote Scripture.  Yet, he knew Jesus and his faith in Him was crystal clear.  Daddy's actions, his humbleness, his joy and his smile helped me to know every day that Jesus was in his heart.  He had compassion for family, friends, and strangers. Near the end of his life, when people would visit him in the hospital, it was all about sharing his faith with others - even if it was a simple, "God Bless".

Fast forward a few years and I have watched the man that I married become an incredible father as well.  I listen as he is the first call our children make when they need help (especially something mechanical), even though they are all adults.  I watch as he supports their decisions with additional strength.  Most importantly, my heart grows large as I hear him ask God to keep them safe.  He texts them all every day to wish them a good day and is excited when they text back.  Again, my husband may not quote Scripture, but he lives out Jesus' love to our family every day, with his actions, his humbleness, his joy, his smile and his compassion.

Our Heavenly Father yearns to have us close to him, just as earthly fathers yearn to have their children close to them.  The examples God has given in words and deeds to help our earthly fathers be good dads is an inspiration to all.  Yet, one of the greatest gifts we can receive from our earthly fathers and our Heavenly Father is compassion.  When we are suffering, our fathers are there for us.  They comfort us and walk with us through times of trial.  Some of us may not have had fathers who were there for us.  Some may have since lost our fathers to go to paradise.  There is no need to worry when struggles surround us.

Jesus is there for us - walking right beside us as our fathers have done.  He provides strength through the Holy Spirit, love and open arms to fall into, and our ability to talk to Him through prayer, always knowing He is listening.  My friends, if our fathers are no longer with us on earth, don't lose heart.  Jesus has ALWAYS been there to be the father we need - to love us unconditionally and support us through every trial.  What peace we have knowing the Lord's compassion is with us every day.

Oh Jesus, thank you for always being our father, even when our father on earth has gone away.  Help us to be reminded of that when times are tough or we feel alone.  May we turn to you in prayer, having full faith that you are listening and loving us.  Thank you - Heavenly Father.  Amen! 

Spotty Windshield

"Blessed is the one whose sin the Lord will never count against them."  Romans 4:8

It was my own fault!  I had waited and waited until I couldn't take it anymore.  The windshield on my car was difficult.  How so?  Yes, it had its fair share of nicks and dings in it.  Yet, that wasn't the only problem.  There were little specks in the glass.  It had been like that for a VERY long time and I thought I was getting used to it - for a VERY long time.  That wasn't the case.

As I discussed this with my husband, he shared,  "It's time, Susan", As it is in most cases, he was right.  I made the call, the gentleman met me int he parking lot at work and within minutes, I had a new windshield.  I was almost giddy leaving the parking lot.  I could actually SEE out of my windshield.  As with most things, we don't know how bad it was until we get a new one and that was certainly the case here.  As I was driving home that evening, I couldn't believe the difference.  I felt like I was driving a brand new car.  My thoughts went to a different scenario, though, and this I pondered for some time.

I thought about Jesus looking down on me.  If he looks at me through his "windshield", he will see many things, mostly nicks and chips of my soul where sin had seeped in.  If Jesus looked hard enough, he would definitely see me through my "bad" windshield.  It was difficult to see the beautiful world on the outside because of the specks I had in my windshield.  The same is with Jesus.  The view Jesus can get of me is spotted with sin - times when I did what I shouldn't and other times when I didn't do what I should have.  Jesus has no problem looking into my damaged "windshield", better known as my soul.

Yet, Jesus doesn't see that old windshield filled with sin.  He sees me through the new windshield, clean as can be.  No chips, no nicks, no sin.  All he sees is the creature that he created and that he loves.  He doesn't see the sin that my soul feels.  He sees my heart where he lives.  That is all he sees.  How very grateful I am that I have a God that loves me so much to die on a cross for all my nasty sins.  How very grateful I am that I have a God that took away all my nicks and chips of sin so that I can live a life that will one day result with me seeing him in paradise.  How grateful I am that I have a God that sees me clearly and doesn't shun away by what he "could" see.  He chooses to focus on what he created.  

The next time you look through your windshield, make sure it is clean.  When you drive that car with the clean windshield and see all the beauty around you - remember that this is how Jesus sees you.  Clear as can be and with such beauty.  

"Dearest Jesus, we thank you for only looking at us through a "clear windshield" to the beauty and goodness we hold.  You choose not to look at our dings and chips of sin, but died on the cross so our "dings" of sin would be taken away.  Thank you for the salvation you brought to us.  In your gracious name we pray.  Amen."

Valuing a Strong Foundation

He will be the sure foundation for your times, a rich store of salvation and wisdom and knowledge; the fear of the Lord is the key to this treasure."  Isaiah 33:6  (NIV)

We are building a deck.   That's incorrect, my husband is building the deck.  I was thinking, put in a few boards, add some stairs, we're good.  Again, incorrect.  I have watched these last few weekends as my husband has painstakingly measured, remeasured, leveled, dug holes, mixed cement, filled holes, added joists and brackets and other items - ensuring all the way that every step was measured and leveled to perfection.  It's all in the foundation!  P.S. - The picture is not our deck = was having trouble downloading the picture of our deck foundation, but it's close.

As I watched him work so hard, it gently reminded me of the many things in life where foundation is so very valuable.  Think about our day to day jobs.  Regardless of what we do and where we do it, having foundational knowledge helps us to bring value to our organizations and to our co-workers.  Being able to rely on this knowledge during our ever-changing work environments provides reassurance that we possess the skills necessary to get the work done.

I continued my thoughts past the workforce and into my relationships, in particular, my marriage.  We all know that relationships continue to evolve and change as we go through life.  Yet, the foundation that we build our relationships on needs to be stable as we walk through that change.  When my husband and I got married, our foundation was built on God's grace and forgiveness.  We vowed to show each other this grace and forgiveness as long as we were married.  We have had to turn to that grace throughout our time together and consider this to be a foundation that has brought us much value.

Foundation is what we build on.  Whether we are building skills and competencies for work, love and forgiveness in relationships, or a solid deck for enjoyment, having a strong foundation provides us the opportunity to build and grow.  It also provides us the necessary grounding to weather difficult times.  Whether it is actual turbulent weather, difficult times at work or a strained relationship, falling back into our foundation brings comfort.

The greatest foundation we can bring to our lives is a strong faith in our Jesus.  By holding tight to His grace and mercy we are able to fall into Jesus' arms during difficult times.  Knowing that Jesus is there to walk beside us and comfort us - that's a rock we can stand on.  Knowing that we have a place in Heaven is a truth that grounds us in hope.  Knowing that Jesus loves us so much that He died on the cross for our salvation is a love that can save us.  Having Jesus as our foundation brings us peace.  How do we build on that foundation?  Through our daily walk with Him - in prayer, praise, and study.  Through it all, He will always be our truest foundation.  There is no greater value than Jesus' grace.  I ask that you reflect upon what you consider to be your foundation this week, and I pray that within those values is Jesus!

Heavenly Father, thank you for being my foundation.  By building my life on you, I know the truest of love and grace.  The value I receive by knowing that you are my rock brings me heavenly peace.  I ask that others place you as their foundation so they may also see your value in their lives.  In your gracious name I pray.  Amen!