(December 6, 2022) Carol Round reflects on Christmastime…
Paul gave us all good advice in 1 Corinthians 16:14 – ‘Do everything in love.’
One of the things I love about this time of the year is the music, including the hymns and the contemporary versions of those songs. It’s interesting to read the stories of the songwriters and what inspired the lyrics they wrote.
Love Came Down at Christmas is one of my favourite hymns. Written by Christina Georgina Rossetti in 1885, the lyrics capture the essence of Christmas in one word – love.
One of the most well-known scriptures on love is John 3:16 – ‘For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.’
The essence of Christmas In his book titled Christmas Gifts That Won’t Break, author James W. Moore, writes, ‘Well, of course, the essence of Christmas is love. God’s incredible love for us, expressed when He sent His only Son into the world to save us. “Love Came Down at Christmas”– that’s how the hymn writer puts it. That’s the answer to our question. Whenever and wherever we receive God’s sacrificial love, whenever and wherever God’s love is accepted and shared, Christmas comes once again.’
Moore explains it this way. ‘When we, like the shepherds, fall down in awe, wonder and commitment before the manger of God’s love, there is Christmas! When, like the three wise men, give our best to the Master, there is Christmas! When we, like Mary and Joseph, trust and obey God and try our best to do God’s will, there is Christmas.’
(November 30, 2022) Hope Flinchbaugh shares an end-of-month thought from her recommended meditation book below…
‘I will stand upon my watch, and set me upon the tower, and will watch to see what he will say unto me, and what I shall answer when I am reproved.
And the Lord answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it’ (Habakkuk 2:1-2KJV).
Have you heard speak to you this month? Did you write down what He said?
You know, it’s possible that God is showing you things that are not just for you, but for other people. I want to encourage you to read over your drawings photos, and writings from this month.
Has God renewed your strength as waited on Him?
Have you heard His voice?
Did you experience, ‘Be still, and know that I am God’ (Psalm 46:10)?
More importantly, is there anything that God has told you to do? Did you obey Him? Obedience is the thrill of His heart and the greatest evidence of our love for Him.
I encourage you to take time to reflect on what God has shown you and finish this month watching and waiting before the Lord one more time.
Jump-start prayer: Lord, I come to the garden alone. Here I am, watching and waiting at the womb of the dawn. What is on your heart today?
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Hope Flinchbaugh, editor-in-chief of Hope Editors, a special team helping publishers and authors, has written three historical fiction novels and two nonfiction books. Hope’s love for children is evident in her delightful Baby Babbles series… available from Amazon Author Page or International Orders Here.
I Come to the Garden Alone… Jesus is waiting – come and talk to Him, is Hope’s inspiring daily devotions booklet. Hope’s Amazon Author Page. Link: OnlinerConnect@gmail.com ____________________________________________
(November 23, 2022) Mama Lava shares from her heart… about heavy hearts!
Hello, my precious readers, how are you going today?
Me? Okay… but I can recall sometime back feeling heavyhearted. I think I encountered too many little things without taking the time to process them with the Lord. And it occurs to me that I might not be the only one and maybe we can encourage each other to work through our little things before they grow any more burdensome.
When something big happens, most of us know we need to stop and pray and proceed with care. When it is a little thing, it doesn’t seem as necessary.
But… too many little things can end up weighing more than a big thing and we end up with a heavy heart.
What are these little things? What kind of little things are we talking about? Any small grievance or irritation can hang around if we don’t deal with it.
Think about a grain of sand, or a kernel of rice. They are so small and insignificant that carrying them takes no effort. But when they pile up they are heavy!
Here’s a few examples from a beach trip that my husband, Michael, and I enjoyed some time back. It was a wonderful time… except for a handful of little things. They would hardly be noticeable, except that they were added to an already heavy pile I had growing in my heart!
(November 15, 2022) Richard Winter suggests we reflect on some numbers…
Numbers? Why numbers, you wonder? Well, numbers come up in life in general, don’t they? –
Grades at school.
Dollars in the bank.
Your FICO score.
KPL in your car.
Your age.
Numbers are even important to us in our relationships. Relationships with people and institutions; who loves us, cares for us; who we can rely on and trust; how many really ‘follow’ us on Facebook, Instagram, and such.
In reflecting about numbers, think also of these ones – the world population is now about8 billion and is still growing year by year. Of this number, sadly not even 10% are saved, Bible-believing Christians!
Andamong those millions of true Christians, here’s another sad reflection… the varying degrees of intimacy and closeness with the Lord!
The number of Christians who have failed to develop an intimate relationship with their Lord, read their Bibles, know and trust God’s word, and to reach out to unsaved friends, neighbours and contacts sharing their testimony and the gospel is shameful!
(November 10, 2022) Carol Round reflects on Psalm 46:8-10…
‘Attention, all! See the marvels of God! He plants flowers and trees all over the earth . . .”Step out of the traffic! Take a long, loving look at me, your High God . . . above everything”’ – challenges the Message version.
Traffic in the community where I live continues to grow. When one of the many trains travelling here daily passes through, traffic comes to a halt. Complaints abound because we experience two different railroad lines interrupting our daily lives.
However, I’ve let go of the need to complain about those interruptions. I leave early enough for appointments, and I always have a book in my car to read. Exploring the scenery and noticing the people around me also makes the train seem to pass by faster. If I see a homeless person, I pray. I also pray for the individuals in the car next to me, especially if they appear impatient.
(October 29, 2022) Hope Flinchbaugh, reflecting on Nehemiah’s commission from God, shares challenges in respect of ‘A Leader’s Response to Opposition’(Part 2).
Like all leaders, Nehemiah faced opposition – but he did not cower!
As he and his friends (men and women) are making mortar, finding usable stones, they were reproached by their enemies, non-Jewish local governors…
Nehemiah 2:19 tells us of their challenge – ‘But when Sanballat the Horonite, Tobiah the Ammonite official, and Geshamthe Arab heard of it, they laughed at us and despised us, and said, “What is this thing that you are doing? Will you rebel against the king?”
Verse 20 tells of Nehemiah’s bold response – ‘So I answered them, and said to them, “The God of heaven Himself will prosper us; therefore we His servants will arise and build, but you have no heritage or right or memorial in Jerusalem.”’
Expect opposition When you begin to build where no one’s built before or you rebuild what was torn down by an enemy, you can expect some opposition. Somebody somewhere is going to say to your face or behind your back, ‘I am very displeased that you have come here to seek the welfare of these people.’
(October 22, 2022) Neil Brightbard shares about feeling helpless…
Whenever we consider the sovereignty of God, we acknowledge God’s complete authority, His supreme rulership over everything.
He is sovereign over not only this world but the whole universe! Sovereignty of God means there are no limits to His rule. He is Almighty God! Take our troubled world for example, and everything that happens in it. We can feel helpless and frustrated, but He is never! He is God!
And whereas we can feel at a loss at times, He is never!
Jeremiahdeclared, ‘Ah, Sovereign Lord, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too hard for you’ (Jeremiah 32:17).
Paulwrote about Jesus in 1 Timothy 6:15NASB, ‘He who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords.’
Still… the sovereignty of God can be a difficult subject to share about for two reasons.
1. God cannot be fully explained to the satisfaction of our curious mind! 2.We cannot ‘see’ God.
(October 10, 2022) Mama Lava shares from her heart about something we all need to accept…
Last week, I read a headline about accepting life as it is, especially when it isn’t what you expected. Since then, I’ve found myself thinking back to many things I’ve wanted, and for which I fervently prayed, that never came to be.
And my reaction has been – ‘Thank God that He doesn’t give us everything we ask for!’
Something I asked for… I roller skated all around my neighbourhood as a kid and I have a memory etched deeply into my mind. I was 11 or 12 and on my roller skates in the street in front of my parent’s house. And I was in love. It was puppy love, but at the time, I didn’t know the difference.
There was a boy. He was new to my world, popular, and intriguing. I wanted to be his girl.
(September 24, 2022) Hope Flinchbaugh, sharing more insights on Nehemiah’s commission from God, now reminds us of ‘A Leader’s Response to Opposition’ (Part 1).
Nehemiah was called by God to rebuild and restore Jerusalem. He had the king’s permission and visas to pass through all the territories on the way. He even had a letter from the king that gave him permission to order a supply of the best lumber for the rebuilding – (all paid in full!).
On his way to Jerusalem, two men tried to stop Nehemiah.
Resistance In Nehemiah 2:9-10NKJV we read, ‘Then I went to the governors in the region beyond the River, and gave them the king’s letters. Now the king had sent captains of the army and horsemen with me. When Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite official heard of it, they were deeply disturbed that a man had come to seek the well-being of the children of Israel.’
Verse eleven says that Nehemiah made it to Jerusalem despite the resistance of Sanballat and Tobiah and he stayed three days.
Interestingly, he didn’t tell anyone in Jerusalem why he was there. Imagine being this important in the kingdom and embarking on this amazing prophetic journey and yet not letting everyone know the importance of your mission when you arrive!
Nehemiah was definitely working for heaven, not seeking permission from people. His responses to opposition?
Response 1 –Trusting God Verse 12NASB tells that ‘… I arose in the night, I and a few men with me. I did not tell anyone what my God was putting into my mind to do for Jerusalem and there was no animal with me except the animal on which I was riding.’
Nehemiah didn’t blow a trumpet – he wielded a flashlight.
He only took a few trusted men with him – and scouted out the land.
He went out at night without fanfare – but with the presence of God.
We might wonder why he so casually points out that there was no other animals along with them. Think about it. Sanballat and Tobiah, his opposers, couldn’t have been that far away. Nehemiah was keeping things as quiet as possible that night, avoiding any unwanted noise, until he had seen for himself the damage of the Jerusalem walls, what he was up against.
Well, that’s like you or I writing, ‘I went out to check out an old, abandoned building in the ghettoes of Los Angeles in the middle of the night, but I didn’t bring the police, my wallet, or my cell phone! I don’t have an escape route planned, I just need to get out there and see what God says to me.’
Nehemiah was determined not only to be unobserved, but that he would do some observing! And, in seeing what lay ahead of him… hear from heaven regarding his challenge and commission!
‘The officials did not know where I had gone or what I was doing, because as yet I had said nothing to the Jews or the priests or nobles or officials or any others who would be doing the work’ (Nehemiah 2:16).
Response 2 – Choosing the right moment! We don’t know if Nehemiah reported his mission to the men who were with him that very night or if he waited until morning. But while inspecting the walls that night, he knew what they didn’t know – the king had given him permission to rebuild.
Imagine holding that secret! But there are times we must hold such a secret until the moment that God releases us to explain our purpose and bid others to join us. Finally, that moment came.
Nehemiah records: ‘Then I said to them, “You see the bad situation we are in, that Jerusalem is desolate and its gates burned by fire. Come, let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem so that we will no longer be a reproach.” I told them how the hand of my God had been favorable to me and also about the king’s words which he had spoken to me. Then they said, “Let us arise and build.” So they put their hands to the good work’ (Nehemiah 2:17-18NASB).
Response 3 –Refusing to cower And so Nehemiah dives in! He and his friends are making mortar, finding new stones and recovering old ones, some of them burned and not usable. Even then, his enemies immediately reproach him!
‘But when Sanballat the Horonite, Tobiah the Ammonite official, and Geshem the Arab heard of it, they laughed at us and despised us, and said, “What is this thing that you are doing? Will you rebel against the king?” So I answered them, and said to them, “The God of heaven Himself will prosper us; therefore we His servants will arise and build, but you have no heritage or right or memorial in Jerusalem’ (Nehemiah 2:19-20).
When faced with opposition, Nehemiah did not cower. He did not explain that he carried visas, he had the king’s lumber, and he definitely had the king’s favour.
Response 4 – Knowing your authority In fact, Nehemiah didn’t even mention King Artaxerxes! The first statement he made was that he was there under the authority of God Himself! Boldly he declared, ‘The God of heaven Himself will prosper us, therefore we His servants will arise and build.’
Can you sense the confident tone of his voice here? You too can be confident in building your ‘Jerusalem wall’ if you really know that God Himself is your covering, your source, your authority!
My friend, whatever God has called you to do, go fearlessly and do it under the authority of God. You may have permission from a committee or from a king, and you will have opposition – but ultimatelyyour authority comes from heaven. Hallelujah!
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Hope Flinchbaugh, editor-in-chief of Hope Editors, a special team helping publishers and authors, has written three historical fiction novels and two nonfiction books. Hope’s love for children is evident in her delightful Baby Babbles series… available from Amazon Author Page or International Orders Here.
I Come to the Garden Alone… Jesus is waiting – come and talk to Him, is Hope’s inspiring daily devotions booklet. Hope’s Amazon Author Page. Link: OnlinerConnect@gmail.com ____________________________________________
Queen Elizabeth based her entire life, and her extraordinary 70-year reign, on Jesus, the Jew, the rock and guide of her long reign. Yet though she has travelled the world more than most, she never set foot in Israel, the land which gave birth to the Christian faith she so devoutly followed.
Every year at Christmas, in a broadcast to the nation watched by millions worldwide, the Sovereign shared her personal Christian faith as key to all she does.
Some years ago, for example, she quoted a verse from the Christina Rossetti and Gustav Holst carol, In the Bleak Midwinter: ‘What can I give Him, poor as I am, If I were a shepherd, I would bring a lamb, If I were a wise man, I would do my part, Yet what I can I give Him, give my heart.’
Connecting with You! 