Doctor’s estimate that about 40 percent of children go through some kind of growth pains. Parents often don’t know what to do. They will often rub their child’s arms and legs to help sooth them the best they can.
There is no clear answer on what causes growing pains. Some say it’s caused by bone growth. Others believe it might be discomfort caused by climbing or running throughout the day.
For the child of God, they too may have to face growing pains. In Psalm 139:23-24 it says, “23Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.24 See if there is any offensive way in me and lead me in the way everlasting.”
The Psalmist cries out to God and says, Lord please take a good hard look at me. Look deeply into my heart and see where I am lacking. And Lord, if you find anything wrong within me, test me. Wait, did I read that right? Did he say, “test me”?
I don’t know about you, but I’m not into asking God to send me trials. Are you? Isn’t there another way? I’m afraid not, to become mature in Christ we must grow up. We must experience growing pains. Paul said when I was a child, I reasoned like a child, but when I became a man, I put away childish ways. How bad do you want to become like Christ? Enough to ask God to look deep inside your heart, and to adjust as needed?
I wish I could say this is my prayer for every day of my life. But it scares me. I want to surrender, but then I read the story about Job and it scares me even more. Yes, I know in the end Job wins. But it’s the getting to the end that scares me. So how do we do it, I think we must become like Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane. Lord, please remove this cup from me, but if there is no other way, then your will be done not mine.
Lord, hear my prayer. Please lead me in your everlasting way. Examine me and fix me so that I will grow up in Christ Jesus. Lord, I know you know what I need best, and I fully trust in you. And this is Jesse Walker with the Glenwood Church of Christ.
In Colossians 3:13 Christians are told “Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.”
Forgiveness is neither easy nor clear-cut, as many of us have found out when we are deeply hurt. I have experienced murder in my family. It is hard thing to forgive the person who took the life of your loved one. I have been abandoned by some, laughed at by others and sold short by others. Many of you have experienced the same or worse.
Why does God command that we forgive others. If you know anything about God, it’s for our benefit. God only wants the best for you and me. I believe one reason is, because without forgiveness you can never be fully free. Hatred is of the devil. So, you will either choose to serve the devil or your heavenly father. The bible is clear, no man can serve two masters.
If you allow anger to build up inside of you, your enemy the devil has won. Your anger will turn to hatred, and as a result, all of humanity loses. The way a society goes will be determined largely by the grace it offers.
Forgiveness is the required step to a grace filled life. Does this mean we forget. No. Does this mean what they did was ok. Absolutely not. Does this mean we should seek their release from prison. No.
In his book The Prisoner and the Bomb, Laurens van der Post recounts the misery of his wartime experiences in a Japanese prison camp in Java. He writes, “The only hope for the future lay in an all-embracing attitude of forgiveness of the peoples who had been our enemies. Forgiveness, my prison experience had taught me, was not mere religious sentimentality; it was as fundamental a law of the human spirit as the law of gravity. If one broke the law of gravity one broke one’s neck; if one broke this law of forgiveness, one inflicted a mortal wound on one’s spirit and became once again a member of the chain-gang of mere cause and effect from which life has labored so long and painfully to escape.”
Why is our society so full of anger, and hatred? Why do we seem so divided? Could a large part of it be due to the lack of our willingness to forgive. Forgiveness does not come to us easily. We must work at it. It is a choice we must learn to make as painful as it can be. We have to see the necessity of it for the greater good of society. A society that doesn’t practice grace is a society that is doomed to fail. If the church wants to make an impact on the world, it must learn to practice forgiveness. How many of our churches have split over refusal to forgive. Where did that practice come from? I can surely say it did not come from God. For he commanded us to forgive. His Son dying words from the cross were “Father Forgive them”.
Will you take a step today to practice a grace filled life. A life of forgiveness. Ask God today to help you forgive. Lord, please forgive me when I allow anger and bitterness to fill my heart when I refuse to forgive someone who has hurt me. Teach me Lord to forgive as you have forgiven me.
Have you ever wondered why God’s first question to Adam after he sinned, wasn’t “What have you done now”? Or “Why can’t you stay out of trouble?” Or maybe something like, “I hate you; I never want to see you again.” Isn’t that sometimes how we respond when were angry?
But God’s first words to Adam were, “Where are you”. Do you believe God didn’t know where Adam was? I’m certain God knew exactly where Adam was. What God was indicating is, come here Adam. I’m looking for you. I want to talk to you. God was restoring a broken relationship.
God did a very similar thing with the second recorded sin in the bible when Cain killed his brother Abel. God said to Cain, “Where is Abel your brother”. In James 1:15 we read, “Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.” Like Adam and Cain, they first desired something. For Adam it was the fruit of the tree. For Cain it was jealousy of his brothers offering being accepted while his was rejected. The result of both their sins was spiritual death. This is true of all sin. For in Isaiah 59:2 it says, “But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear.” Can you hear from Isiah’s words how sin destroys our relationship with God. Words like separation, removed from His presence (face) and that God will not respond (will not hear). Friend this is a broken relationship that must be restored in order to function as it was designed.
This is why God came to Adam and said, “Where are you”, let’s restore our broken relationship. Let’s remove the separation.
In Mark 12:30-31 we learn that the greatest commandment according to Jesus is to love God with all your heart, and that the second is much like it to love others like yourself. Then Jesus sums up his teaching, and says, there are no greater commandments than these.
The kingdom of God is not made up of rules. Nor is God seeking a bunch of rule keepers. Is obedience important. Absolutely. Jesus said, those who love me will keep my commandments. But loving Jesus, and doing good, is not rule keeping. It’s evidence of a loving relationship.
God is asking you and me today, “Where are you”? I pray today you will take time to mediate on this very important question, “Where are you?” And this is Jesse Walker with the Glenwood Church of Christ.
How do we (mortal humanity) obtain Intimacy with an all-powerful God? I surely do not have the definitive answer. But for me, it helps to see Christ as my father. I know how a father loves his children. Especially since I am a dad. I know how much I love my children. How I would do anything for them. And how it hurts when they rebel.
God is not a force. He is a person. Jesus the Son of God in John 14:8-10 when asked by Phillip to show them the Father replied, Philip if you have seen me, you have seen the Father. Do you not know that I am in the Father and He is in me. Jesus also said in John 5:19, I can only do what the Father is doing. In a true sense, what Jesus was saying is that me and my Father are a mirror image. In John chapter 7, when Jesus saw Mary and the Jews weeping over the death of Mary’s brother Lazarus, he groaned in the spirit and was troubled. And then in verse 35, it says “Jesus Wept”. How can mortal man cause an Almighty God to weep? To be grieved in the spirit, and to be troubled. Because He cares. He desires the best for us, and he wants to be with us.
Then in 1 John 4:29, we learn that God loved us before we ever loved him. It’s as if he walked into the orphanage and picked me out as the best kid. I know he picked us all. But it’s personal, God picked me, and he picked you. He is your father and my father.
God is not seeking religiosity. What he is seeking is a relationship. The entire reason God created man was to be with him. To commune with him. God came looking for Adam. And he is looking for you as well. As unfathomable it is to me, God loves us and wants to be with us. He picked us to be on his team when others did not want us. It makes no earthly sense. We are full of flaws and wrinkles. Yet God loved us when we were unlovable. Will you join me today and thank God for selecting you to be a part of His family. I pray you will. And this is Jesse Walker with the Glenwood, Church of Christ.
How well do you make plans? I’m not very good at it. I like to think I’m spontaneous. Which means, I’m not good at making a schedule and sticking to it. That’s something I need to work on.
But I know someone who is great at making plans. Do you know who that is? If you said God, you’re correct. Did you know the bible says that God planned to save the world through his son Jesus Christ before he whispered a world into creation. In Ephesians 1:4-5 it says, “4 For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love 5 he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—”
This plan was carried out in Galatians 4:4 where we read that when the time had arrived God sent his Son to be born of a woman and to redeem his fallen creation. Make no mistake about it, it wasn’t an accident. It wasn’t just a good guess. It was a well thought out, well-executed plan that was in the works before the beginning of time.
Why did God send his Son? In one word “love”. God before the beginning of time, choose to provide all who believe in Him a way back to Him through His Son Jesus Christ. This love was on full display on the cross when the Lamb of God carried away the sins of the world. God redeemed us (bought us back). There was no partial payment made. No loan taken out. He paid the bill in full. And he paid it with the blood of his Son, and 1 Corinthians 6:20 says, “God paid a great price for you and me.”
By sending Jesus, He showed, that there is no Caucasian, no gender, no race, or ethnicity, no rich or poor, no educated or uneducated, no protestant, no country greater than the next. Neither Jew or Gentile, neither slave or free, neither male nor female, we are all one in Christ Jesus. He speaks to the shady lady at the well, he works with the stinky fishermen, with the lowly IRS agents (tax collectors), and he healed the lame and the blind.
Lord you are holy. We will praise your name forever. Help us to remember your steadfast love never ceases, your mercies never end, help us to see how they are renewed every morning. For you are faithful. And this is Jesse Walker with the Glenwood Church of Christ.
Many years ago, Jesus was asked, what is the greatest commandment. To which he replied, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.” Mark 12:30.
The Greek word for love that Jesus used is well known in the verb form of AGAPE. It is a love that is based upon choice. The child of God is to freely choose to love God and to love others. They are to delight in God’s holiness. And that love is to spread outward to others. Christians are to seek the best for others. Which means, we must be able to see the best in them.
We are living in times that can make this incredibly challenging. With the growth of social media and the usage of smart phones. Did you know in a study done in 2021, that 46% of American’s reported that they spend 5-6 hours a day on their phones. And for most it’s not just playing Candy Crush. Do you realize, for many that’s more time than they spend with their significant other. They hold their phone more than they hold their spouse. They talk to their phone more than they do their mate. Can you see where that is a problem?
As more and more Christians spend long hours online, they are easily caught up in today’s political wars. It would do Christians good to remember what the 9th Commandment says in Exodus 20:16: “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.” When you log online, and say something about others, are you spreading gossip? Can you be sure when you click the “like” button that it’s a true statement? When you share it, are you sharing the truth? Or is it partial truth? Is it just a little white lie? Is that okay with you? I urge you to be incredibly careful. Ask yourself honestly, how much of the news do you know to be true. I mean you heard it yourself, you seen it yourself. Were you present when what your posting, re-posting, sharing, commenting on, was said or done? Here’s an eye opener for you, (not really) you probably already know this, or should know this, all news agencies/outlets are formed to make money. Here’s a fact you should know too, controversial news makes more money. Controversial news posted online gets more clicks. Sells more adds. You get the picture. You’re not going to stand before God and say, but Fox news said, ABC news said. Jesus is going to say, I said do not commit slander. Next time you go to send out that email, to retweet that comment, you might want to listen to the word of God. “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.”
But Lord when did I commit slander. When was I a false witness. When you reposted that article without researching thoroughly the facts. When you posted that nasty tweet about some politician you disagree with. When you sent out that email trail to all your friends making fun of someone’s disability. The rest of the story in Deuteronomy 19, is let it be done unto you about what you were hoping was done to the other person. In other words, may others tell stories about you. May they try and tear down your reputation. May they make fun of you. May you be stalked and sought out because of what your tongue so loosely spoke, or fingers so easily typed. Ouch!
What do you think God will do to those who are spreading misinformation? Is he going to wink at our failures? Is he going to give us a pass because we were so compassionate about our side of the story? Be careful, the Apostle Paul was full of conviction when he was having Christians killed. His conscience was clean. But he was dead wrong. And if he hadn’t met God, and repented of his sins, he would be rotting in hell.
But Jesus, what is the greatest commandment. “Love”. You mean it hasn’t changed in 2023. Come on Jesus, surely you know our times are different. These are drastic times that call for drastic actions. Yes, my child, you are correct. You should love even more. You should care even deeper. And remember, the greatest of these is love.
If you haven’t heard it yet today, may I be the first, I love you as a child of God is to love. I care about you. I want the best for you. Why? Because I love God, and he has told me to love my neighbor. How can I say no to that? Reminds me of Joseph in Genesis 39:9, “My master (meaning her husband) has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?” The next time you’re tempted to spread that loosely typed article or make that ugly comment, ask yourself, is this done out of love? If not, how can you do such a thing and sin against God. And this is Jesse Walker with the Glenwood Church of Christ.
In John 9, the Lord gave sight to a man born blind. A staggering feat! Changed the guy’s life in more ways than one. But the miracle was worked on a Sabbath. As in John 5, the Jewish leaders used that to condemn Jesus for His work of healing mercy. Back to John 9: the same bunch called the now-sighted man into the principal’s office and raked him over the coals. Later, they confronted his parents with the situation. Mom and dad were so afraid of the Pharisees that they refused to come to their own son’s defense. Why were people so afraid of the Jewish leaders? The answer is that those guys were not safe to be around. (This is the background for Jesus’ analogy in John 10 of shepherds, hired hands, and sheep. Notice the stark contrast between Jesus and the religious hierarchy of those times. Why did the lost and broken and bleeding turn to him and not to them? Why did they come to Him with their issues and questions and children? It was because He proved Himself to be a safe place for them. He did not exploit or hurt them. Is not Matthew 11:28-30 about that?)
In the Acts 10 account of Cornelius and Peter, we see that Peter was not safe for a pagan to be around. Notwithstanding the fruitfulness of his preaching in Jerusalem (Acts 2), his Jewishness bled over into how he handled the gospel. It took the direct intervention of God to persuade the apostle, for the gospel’s sake, to look at some things differently. Don’t be too hard on Peter. He was just being true to his roots and conditioning. Thanks to the gracious intervention of the Lord, Peter ultimately was God’s instrument for bringing an entire family to Christ.
In a safe church, relationships are more important than “being right”.
Some people are not safe to be around. In their presence, people are made worse not better, weaker not stronger. They hurt people more than help them. That is true of life. Sadly, it also can be true of a church congregation. Say what? Yes, it is so. Some churches just are not safe places for either members or guests. On the other hand, there are those in which people are blessed and built up and equipped and empowered to joyfully serve both God and man. (And, yes, I know we have hammered the need to be a “scriptural church,” a point not to be argued. But, in our zeal to be “scriptural” have we ceased to be safe? Have we made it okay to hurt or hammer people in the name of “truth?”) That aside, what would you consider to be marks of a safe church? Here is what I have on it at this time:
Relationships. In a safe church, relationships are more important than “being right” – Romans 14:19. (Indeed, Ephesians 4:4-6 itemizes some essential truths which bring us together in Christ. But 4:1-3 gives us what will keep us together!) The church in Rome was becoming unsafe due to infighting and spats about nonessential matters. Know this: if we insist upon making every conviction or practice a test of fidelity to Christ, then unity in Christ will continue to elude us. The apostle lifts up the cross as the great peacekeeper in the great house of God. In the cross there is peace and safety in the presence of both God and man. The church should be a “no fire zone” in which brethren feel safe to work through their ideas without fear of being labeled and branded. My brother is my brother because we both belong to the same Christ. That relationship ought to be honored in all circumstances. Matter of fact, how can I really be right if I am treating my brother wrongly? What matters most to me: the positions I hold or the people I behold? In a safe church, relationships are more important than “being right.”
We previously noted that abortion is wrong because of the painful and long-term PSYCHOLOGICAL effect it can have upon the woman involved. With that in mind, consider the issue of GUILT. Guilt has a normal and healthy function within the human heart. (We are speaking of actual guilt, in contrast to false guilt feelings – another very important thing to understand, but not here.) A rightly functioning conscience will blow the whistle when violated. Sometimes conscience will prevent one from aborting.
But too often, that is not the case.
Consider the person who made such a drastic choice, and continues to live with guilt and remorse because of it. There may have been no guilt during the actual event, but now there has been time to think, regret, grieve. The pain and permanence of that decision hover overhead like a dark cloud. Nobody mentioned the emotional overload that can follow. What can be said or done about that?
The most important thing to know is that one can be FORGIVEN. The apostle Paul assures that all transgressions (sins) are forgiven in Christ – Colossians 2:13. It has been said that, if Jesus’ death on the cross did not cleanse all sin, then it did not cleanse one sin. Think on that. And that includes the “unforgivable.” The need for forgiveness is very real in every human heart. The certainty of forgiveness is equally real. Nothing addresses guilt and self-hate as does the amazing grace of God in Christ. If I turn my wrong turns over to Him, He will forgive me and help me to forgive myself.
Being forgiven is not the same as being healed…I won’t FEEL forgiven but I still AM forgiven.
That brings up the second aspect of psychological abortion-recovery. Being forgiven is not the same as being healed. I may have trouble forgiving myself! Sin has consequences. King David of the Bible committed grievous sinS, and thought the whole episode to be a done deal. But the harvest he reaped was very bitter for a very long time. He buried four sons because of those sinful choices! The 32nd Psalm reveals David’s anguish of heart and loss of health during the time he refused to come to terms with his wrongfulness. Post-abortion emotional suffering can have the same effects or worse.
The good news is that the king came to terms with his wrongness toward both God and man – Psalms 32 & 51. And, the even better news is that the Lord fully forgave David and later used him mightily in His kingdom plans. After dying 1,o00 times because of his short-sighted decisions, David found life again in the God of beginning-again!
Where the wandering and painful path of my grieving intersects the Interstate of God’s forgiveness, healing begins. And it does so from the outside in! That is, emotional healing starts with knowing the eternal forgiving love of God for me – I John 4:10. As I lay claim to (believe) that, emotional healing begins on the inside of me. Now, it may take time. Relapses into doubt and regret may occur. I won’t FEEL forgiven but I still AM forgiven. The feeling will follow the fact, as railroad cars follow the engine.
These words are no bandaid. The post-abortion bleeding heart needs a tourniquet. In all this about one of the heart’s most wearisome burdens, I thought it critical to spotlight a very present hope for those who hurt over the past. If this is you or someone you can perhaps help, memorize the truth of Psalm 103:12: “As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us.”
Following Sunday’s talk about unborn life, a couple of you inquired about my skipping the slide enumerating the many aspects of abortion’s wrongness. Keep in mind that we are talking about the legalized extermination of 60,000,000+ unborn lives! People! Think about the myriad of ways that kind of destruction can affect a participant, or, for that matter, an entire culture. (By comparison, we are rightly horrified and nauseated by the slaughter of 4-6 million innocent Jews by Nazi Germany. Now, you and I are discussing 60 million+ abortions to this point in the U.S., and the slaughter of 46 million EVERY YEAR throughout the world!)
Under the following heading, I outline some of the ways in which abortion on demand is so very wrong. (Of course, that, labeling a thing as “wrong” is automatically a red flag in our times.) Well, Jesus warned us to expect that and more – John 3:19,20. See what you think.
Abortion on demand is WRONG:
Theologically – because it militates against the very power and purpose of God Who is the Creator and Giver of every life. It is wrong in how it treats the God Who is doing the making and shaping work of Psalm 139. Abortion is theologically wrong.
We are talking about the legalized extermination of 60,000,000+ unborn lives!
Morally – because it jettisons both Scripture and good conscience in exchange for a quick fix. “Moral” relates to “right and wrong.” But we increasingly don’t care about that – Isaiah 5:20. We just want a quick fix for our temporary problem. Its all about ME: my situation, dilemma, family embarrassment, financial circumstance, ambitions, MY LIFE, on and on. Situation ethics always makes it about how I FEEL, not what is right and wrong. Hey, have I ever wondered how abortion FEELS to that little unborn one? The very fact of life-taking is enough for God to judge us. Add to that the suffering and pain inflicted upon the defenseless. How can we THINK of it, much less go through with it? Google “fetal pain,” and, along with that, view the results of various abortion procedures. Do that for yourself. Quick fix, my eye! Why, we give more dignity and protection to sea turtle eggs! Abortion is morally wrong.
Psychologically – because it can trigger immense emotional trauma within the lives of those who have made the choice. Abortion is not just a physical thing, such as sneezing. There is an EMOTIONAL side to it. In the nation of Finland, suicide occurs three times as often among women who have aborted. What do you make of that? And, look into post-abortion depression. With that, look at post traumatic stress syndrome and notice the similarity in effects. Did you know that those who have had abortions are more likely to be under psychiatric treatment, experience adverse personality changes, admit to usage of alcohol or tranquilizers, and have greater social isolation? And does it not break your heart when a woman still sobs every year when the “birthday” of her aborted child rolls around? This is a side effect which Planned Parenthood and abortionists (and most public school “family life” curricula) dare not mention. Why not? Abortion is psychologically wrong.
“Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me; bless His holy name…and forget none of His benefits.” Psalm 103:1-2
This time of the year reminds us of a word – thanksgiving, or the giving of thanks. What a wonderful word, idea, and thing to do. We have been so blessed, been given so much; more than we deserve and actually, for many of us, more than we need.
How blessed we are to live in a place where we fret more about our choices than we do with our wants.
There will probably be a lot of leftovers this next week. But how blessed we are to live in a place where we fret more about our choices than we do with our wants.
However; more importantly, are those blessings that are not physical, but are spiritual in nature. One of the great Psalms is 103. Notice the words that David uses to describe His blessings and benefits. “He pardons, heals, redeems, crowns, satisfies, renews, removes, and performs. He is compassionate, gracious, slow to anger, abounding in lovingkindness, merciful, and understands.” WOW!!!!
No wonder David starts out and finishes by saying, “Bless the Lord, O my soul.” So, what is it that you were fretting about? In another scripture, David said, “Fretting, only leads to evildoing.”
