“And he has committed us to the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us” 2 Corinthians 5:19-20

We were invited to a dinner party where the ambassador from a South East Asian country was the special guest. As you can well imagine, it is an honor for a person to be chosen to represent their country in another land. She was an effective ambassador.

During the evening she told us about her country – the beauty, the history, the people. She told us what they imported and what they exported. It was a very thorough overview. And when the dinner came to a close, she warmly invited us to come visit her country.

On the way home, my husband and I discussed the close comparison of what Christians are called to be – Christ’s ambassadors – and what she had been commissioned to be – the ambassador for her country. Meeting with her was a reminder of our calling. All Christians represent the Kingdom of God. This world is not our home.

We are here for one thing:

To tell others everything we know about our King and the heavenly home we are going to. We are to invite them to come to the Kingdom of God.

Do you ever feel inadequate representing King Jesus? We all do. We can’t do it in our own strength. But God has provided the Holy Spirit who will provide the words and the boldness. Just before His ascension Jesus said,
“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses…” Acts 1:8.

Do you want to experience the power to be His witness? I encourage you to ask God to fill you with His Holy Spirit. http://www.thoughts-about-god.com/biblestudies/spiritfilledlife.htm

We are Christ’s ambassadors! What an honor He has bestowed upon us. Together let’s make people aware that we represent the Kingdom of God. And don’t chicken out when it’s time to invite them to come visit God’s Kingdom.

Father, thank You for granting us the privilege of being Your subjects to represent You here on earth. We have to admit, Lord, (please forgive us) that sometimes we get so busy with life that we forget why we are here. Sometimes we are downright cowardly. Fill us with Your Holy Spirit, so we will be bold and loving in order to represent you effectively. Amen.

You can comment on this devotional online at:
http://thoughts-about-god.com/blog/2010/07/30/kk_christs-ambassadors/

You may be packing your bags and heading out on vacation to the beach or the mountains for one last summer get-away. As you travel and even if you are staying in your own backyard, be intentional to see, hear, smell, taste, and sense the ways that God makes himself known through creation.

Listen with your spirit to Romans 1:19-20. “For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made…”

God has plainly made himself known in creation. Be blessed with gratitude for beauty around you, for the strength it offers, for the peace it brings. Appreciate creation as never before. Be blessed to hear creation sing of your Father’s love. Be sensitive to alignment of his creation with him. Be blessed to welcome and appreciate the identity, the purpose, and the product of land. Be blessed with empathy for land that is out of alignment with God’s purposes because of man’s misuse.

Be blessed in that place in your essence that loves the sea, that can hear the heartbeat of creation as the tides ebb and flow, as the sun rises and sets, as the stars dance at night in the expanse of the dark sky, as birds swoop and dive, as fish jump, as the sun shimmers on the water, and in the smell of the air. Be blessed to watch a wild thunderstorm with flashes of lightning lighting up the sky better than a fireworks show. Be blessed to feel the wind and lift your face to the rain to let it caress your face. Be blessed to say, “Something in this electrified air calls forth deep unto deep inside me.”

Be blessed in that place in your inner being that leaps at the sight of majestic mountains, that soars in response to their peaks, that hears them breathe and sigh as the wind blows across them, that tunes in to the music the water sings as it falls over rocks in keys of music that no man can create. Bless the birds, to affirm their glory in their Creator. Celebrate their place in his creation as their birdsong praises him on your land or in your neighborhood according to his righteous intention.

Be blessed in the name of the Most High over all the earth (Psalm. 97:9).

You can comment on this devotional online at:
http://thoughts-about-god.com/blog/2010/07/28/sg_enjoy-gods-purposes/

“Blessed are..” (the unlikely ones) Read: Matthew 6

Fighting an uphill battle. Going against the grain.  His days are numbered
Such phrases are usually uttered with stooped shoulders, deflated sighs and faces of resignation and yet “for the Christ follower” they can be shouts of triumph. Jesus’ own words the “blessed ones” of Matthew 6speak of the incongruity of the Christian life:

The poverty stricken will live like kings
Weepers will know the comfort of deity
The unnoticed faithful will bask in riches
Starving souls will dine with royalty
Mocked mercy-givers will be applauded by God
The shameful majority seem to win, but the pure will gaze on holiness
War makers are rewarded now, but peacemakers will dance innocently with joy
Bound, tortured, shamed, limping unknown Christians will reign freely forever

We read that “Because (Jesus) never lost sight of where He was headed” that exhilarating finish in and with God. “He could put up with anything along the way: cross, shame, whatever”. Hebrews 12:2, (the Message). That same hope is available to us as we “fix our eyes on Jesus” in the midst of stresses of daily life.  What seems like upside down living results in right side up joy.

You can comment on this devotional online at:
http://thoughts-about-god.com/blog/2010/07/27/me_upside-down-life/

Sooner or later, everyone will be beat up, battered, bruised, and burned out by the dailies of life. Good news! God is Lord of all of your life. List every need and emotion that you are feeling, no matter how small they seem. After you have acknowledged all your emotions and needs, go through the names of God until you find the expression of His character that meets each need. For every need, there is a corresponding attribute of God. Affirm that God is still God, no matter how you feel. Have a praise party, not a pity-party, for your loving Father is a big God. He is able to do much more than you need or can think or ask.

He is the I AM for our needs

He is Abba Father when we need fathering.
He is acceptance when we feel unwanted.
He is adequacy for our inadequacy.
He is all-sufficient in our hardest situations.
He is the Amen, the true witness when we are tempted to lie.
He is the Answer for our uncertainty and questions.
He is the Author of faith for our unbelief or doubt.

He is the Bread of life for our spiritual hunger.
He is the Bright Morning Star for the darkness in the valley of the shadow.
He is broken and spilled out for us when we’ve been used.
He is the Burden-bearer when we are heavy laden.
He is before all things when we’re surprised.

He is cleansing for our defilement and shame.
He is closer than a brother when we are lonely.
He is our Comforter who wipes away tears in our grief’s and sorrows.

He is our Defender when we are under attack.
He is our Deliverer from our bondage or captivity.
He is our Door-opener when it looks like there’s no way out.

He is our Sure Foundation, our solid rock when we’re shaking and insecure.
He is our Faithful Friend when friends fail us.
He is Fullness when we’re empty.

He is the God of details when we’re frustrated.
He is the God of love when we feel unloved and need a hug.
He is the God who is there when we feel alone or abandoned.
He is our Guide and the Way when we’re confused and need direction.
He is grace when we’re too hard on ourselves or others.

He is our Healer for woundedness, rejection, and sickness.
He is Hope when we despair, are discouraged, and want to quit.
He is Humility for our pride.

He is Joy when we are depressed.
He is our Keeper and Protector when we are vulnerable.
He is the Lifter of our heads when we feel oppressed and weighed down.
He is long-suffering, slow to anger when we have blown it again.

He is Mercy for criticism and unkindness.
He is Mighty God, our strength for our weakness or temptation.
He is Never-failing, the same when we are fickle and faithless.
He is Overcoming victory for defeat and depression.

He is the Plumb Line to stand against the world’s situational ethics.
He is the Prince of peace when we are stressed, worried, and confused.
He is the Provider for every financial need.
He is the Quieter of the storm for afflictions without and struggles within.

He is Reconciliation for breaches in relationships.
He is Rest when we’re tired and can’t go on.
He is the Restorer of our souls when we’re bruised and beaten down.
He is the Reviver, living water when we are depleted, barren, thirsty.

He is Satisfaction when we’ve tried everything and come up empty.
He is the Song, our praise when we’re joyless and heavy of heart.
He is the Spirit of the Lord  when we need to be set free.
He is our Strength when we’re weak.

He is Trinity unity for mending separation.
He is Truth when we’ve been lied to.
He is True Riches when we’re tempted to covet the world’s wealth.
He is Vengeance when we are angry and wronged.
He is Wisdom for our hard choices.

This is merely a beginning. Make your own list as a personal affirmation that God is your Need-meeter. He is the Most High God who reigns over all. To whom else would we go? He alone is the Word of eternal life.

You can comment on this devotional online at:
http://thoughts-about-god.com/blog/2010/07/23/sg_for-our-every-need/

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“There is no fear in love, but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love” 1 John 4:18 ( KJV).

“If I could hear Christ praying for me in the next room,” declared Robert Murray McCheyne, “I would not fear a million enemies. Yet distance makes no difference. He is praying for me: ‘He ever liveth to make intercession.’”

Is there some fear in your life over which you do not have victory? Whether it is great or small, you can gain victory over that fear through claiming, by faith, God’s supernatural love for yourself and for others, for “perfect love casts out fear.”

That promise makes it imperative that you and I claim God’s agape, the supernatural love described in 1 Corinthians 13, love for God, for our neighbors, for ourselves and for our enemies – for all men. As we do this, we can begin to practice that perfect love, showing it to our families and to friends and neighbors.

No fear is too small for Christ to handle, and certainly none is too large. Remember, “God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind” 2 Timothy 1:7, (KJV). If fear does not come from God, then we must reject that spirit of fear as coming from the enemy of men’s souls.

Fear of the future is a large fear for many people, but sometimes the seemingly small fears – of crowds, of heights, whatever – can cause more distress than greater fears. It is in these instances that God demonstrates His faithfulness to fill our hearts with His love and to cast out fear.

Faith is the most effective foe of fear, and “faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.”

Bible Reading: 2 Timothy 1:6-12

TODAY’S ACTION POINT: Today I will recognize any kind of fear in my life for what it is: an attempt of the enemy to sabotage my effectiveness as a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ. By faith I will claim God’s supernatural love for myself and others, and thereby gain victory over fear. As I pray for myself, I shall pray for others also who experience the same devastating results of fear.

You can comment on this devotional online at:
http://thoughts-about-god.com/blog/2010/07/20/bb_no-more-fears
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