Peace

LET THE OINTMENT POUR FORTH

Standard

OINTMENT

SONG: LET THE OINTMENT POUR FORTH

When a woman who had lived a sinful life in that town learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee’s house, she brought an alabaster jar of perfume, and as she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them.When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is—that she is a sinner.”Jesus answered him, “Simon, I have something to tell you…I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair.You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet. You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet. Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven—
for she loved much.”
Luke 7: 35-47

Over sixteen years ago now (my how time flies!), just after a divorce from my husband of twenty years, I was going through a very difficult time. I didn’t feel like going to church or even doing much praying. But I knew I had to keep holding on to the things of God for that was the only thing that would sustain me. And although I felt like the picture of the little kitten that is barely holding on to a rope with one paw, I WAS holding on!

So in lieu of going to church on Sunday morning, I tuned the TV to a Christian station. A well-known pastor was teaching on this passage from Matthew about the unnamed woman who anointed Jesus with expensive perfume. She, too, was broken and contrite. She knew that Jesus was her only hope for salvation and she refused to let anything or anyone stop her from reaching Him. She was met with criticism and disdain, but only from those who didn’t matter. Her eyes were fixed on Jesus. Then her confidence in His unfailing compassion was greatly rewarded, for He said to her, “Your sins are forgiven. Your faith has saved you; go in peace.” Not only so, but in the same account in another one of the gospels, Jesus said wherever the gospel is preached, the story of this woman would be told as a memorial to her.

This message of hope in the midst of dogged despondency was just what I needed to hear. The Lord immediately gave me a song. A portion of it is as follows:

You have a vase of ointment…it’s right there at your hand, But you have to reach inside you to find it once again;
Then you have to break it open and you have to pour it out, But there’s deliverance and there’s freedom as its fragrance drifts about.

Jesus is waiting for you to break through your pain and pour out the fragrance of your praise on Him, so that He can say, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”

I DON’T HAVE A CARE IN THE WORLD

Standard

CAST YOUR CARE

Casting the whole of your care [all your anxieties,
all your worries, all your concerns, once and for all] on Him,
for He cares for you affectionately and cares about you watchfully.
I Peter 5:7 Amplified

SONG: I DON’T HAVE A CARE

Are you worried about something today?  You may say, “I’m not really worried, just a little concerned.” Do you know that God cares about everything you care about?  Yes, He does . . . because He cares about you.  I love the way this verse puts it in the Amplified Bible.  (The Amplified Bible is just a version that amplifies or defines the words so that we can understand them better.)  Care is defined as anxiety, worry or concern.  That pretty much covers it all doesn’t it? It goes on to say that we can cast or throw all of those cares on the Lord, because not only does He watch over us in a protective way, but He also has a deep affection for us as His children.  He wants the very best for us. “Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.” (Psalm 37:4) “Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.” (Luke 12:32) The Father’s kingdom consists of ALL good things… health, wealth, joy, peace… anything you need.

It always helps me to understand our relationship with the Heavenly Father by comparing it to the relationship we have with our own children.  Do you care about everything that touches the lives of your children?  Of course you do!  Then why would you think our Heavenly Father would feel any differently?  “He who did not spare even his own Son, but gave him up on behalf of us all — is it possible that, having given us his Son, he would not give us everything else too?” (Romans 8:32 Complete Jewish Bible) Not only does He care, but He wants to help us if we just bring our cares to Him and leave them there.  How many times have you said to your child, “Don’t worry, I’ll take care of it.”  Does that child worry about it anymore?  No, because Daddy said he would take care of it. Today your Heavenly Father is saying, “Child, give it to me.  I’ll take care of it.” Usually the problem is that we want control. We want to try to figure it out ourselves first and then when we fall flat on our face or have exhausted all our resources, give it to God. It’s like my three year old grand-daughter saying, “I can do it myself, Meme!” Wouldn’t it be so much better to save ourselves all of the anguish and self-imposed worry, and give it to God the Father in the first place?

For some reason, society has taught us that if we care about something, we have an absolute obligation to worry about it. That mentality is passed down from generation to generation even among church-going people. It is a slap in our Father’s face and a life filled with agony for us, for this world is filled with opportunities to worry. Haven’t you seen people that you actually envy for their carefree attitude? I have. It is my greatest desire to live a life of complete rest in Jesus, trusting Him in every situation…knowing that He loved me so much that He gave His life for me and the Father loved me so much that He sent His only Son to die. What greater love…what greater care…what greater peace exists? Let’s make this our confession today:

Father, I cast all my care [all my anxieties,
all my worries, all my concerns, once and for all] on You,
for You care for me affectionately
and care about me watchfully.
I rest in Your love for me.

ARE YOU IN STRESS OR REST?

Standard

GIRL, DOVE, REST

Find rest, O my soul, in God alone;
my hope comes from him.
Psalm 62:5

It seems that one of the definitions of our times is restlessness. I heard the other day that most adults now days have the attention span of one second less than a goldfish. I don’t think I’ll ever forget that! That statement hit me right between the eyes!

Many people are hurrying here and scurrying there and when they arrive, they immediately have to leave for somewhere else. Sound familiar? I’ve often had the discussion with friends about why most of us are so forgetful now days…even young people. And the inescapable conclusion is always that we have too much stress in our lives…too many things on our mind or…as the old country saying goes, “Too many irons in the fire!

I find that most of the time I can’t just sit quietly and do nothing. I have to be doing something to occupy my mind, as if it wasn’t cluttered enough! I’ve been asking the Lord to help me to break this pattern of being so uptight about everything. And I find that most of the stress I have is self-imposed. For example, that car in front of me isn’t going to go any faster no matter how frustrated I get! Then I get to work and someone has parked in two spaces, so I have to find a parking place much farther up causing me to be late for work (once again)! The needle on the stress-o-meter is rising! When I get to work, I sit down and reach for my favorite pen. Someone has walked off with it. Why can’t people just leave my stuff alone! I just started my day and my stress meter is already at the half-way point! I’m exaggerating somewhat, but you get the point. You may be thinking, “That is such trivial stuff. Why would anyone get bent out of shape by those things?” Because we get into a pattern of restlessness and it causes every little thing to be blown out of proportion.

I’ll tell you what really started me thinking about all of this. I was headed home one day after work, a few years ago. I was tired and didn’t particularly feel good, so I was intent on getting home as quickly as possible. I was breezing through the north part of the city trying to make the traffic lights. I went through the first one on caution. Okay, I’m safe there. If these people would just get out of my way! Then I went through the other one on caution, too, but it must have changed to red before I got through because in a few moments I saw blue lights flashing behind me. Oh, dear…you know that feeling…somewhere between panic and hysteria! The officer who stopped me was very nice, but at the same time very firm. In spite of all my pleading, I ended up with a ticket for running a red light. That incident started me doing some serious introspection. I realized that I needed God’s help to break this pattern of anxiety (lack of rest) in my life. It was an expensive lesson, but one that I have not yet forgotten.

Stress does not just wreak havoc on our circumstances, but on our physical and spiritual well-being as well. In our society today, it takes some real effort to maintain peace. But if we keep our eyes on the Peacemaker, it is not impossible. And the benefits of living in rest far outweigh the effort necessary to obtain it.

Peace I leave with you; My [own] peace I now give and bequeath to you.
Not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. [Stop allowing yourselves to be agitated and disturbed; and do not permit yourselves to be fearful and intimidated and cowardly and unsettled.]

John 14:27 (AMP)