All Flop

Our toaster - I don't know about yours - has an interesting feature.

When it's not plugged in & you put in a slice of bread & push down the handle, it flops the bread right back atcha.

Unplugged, our toaster is all flop & no pop.

It won't toast without the power.

It won't even keep slices down.

Are you living with all flop & no pop?

What's your power supply?

Jesus declared, "All authority has been given to me," in Matthew 28:18.  Authority is the power to act.  He's got all of it.  He'll use it for you.  If you seek him.

Are you plugged in to Jesus?

• If you do not have a personal, saving relationship with Jesus, then click here to learn more.

• If you do know Jesus as Savior, then ask yourself if you are plugged into & relying on him.

And, leave a comment below, did you go try the flop/pop thing out on your toaster?  I wanna know.

Certain Conclusion

One of the great privileges & sacred trusts of being a pastor is being close to the brokenhearted.  Yes, a privilege, because Scripture says, "God is close to the brokenhearted."  Brokenhearted hurts.  That's one ugly compound word.  But your broken heart - in the hands of God - is good.

In the past two days I have heard two stories of God's amazing goodness to the brokenhearted in the face of enormous trials.  Two children given a new life through adoption.  One child growing where doctors thought no hope.

Three precious children.  One certain conclusion.  God can.

We will not always know why.  Or why not.  We will not always know when.  We will not always know how.

But we can know.  That as God chooses.  By His grace.  In His providence.  Through His power.  God can.

Press play below.  Rejoice in & be reminded of the certain conclusion.  God can.

Don't Cry

Not long after that, Jesus went to the village Nain. His disciples were with him, along with quite a large crowd. As they approached the village gate, they met a funeral procession—a woman's only son was being carried out for burial. And the mother was a widow. When Jesus saw her, his heart broke. He said to her, "Don't cry." Then he went over and touched the coffin. The pallbearers stopped. He said, "Young man, I tell you: Get up." The dead son sat up and began talking. Jesus presented him to his mother. They all realized they were in a place of holy mystery, that God was at work among them. They were quietly worshipful—and then noisily grateful, calling out among themselves, "God is back, looking to the needs of his people!" The news of Jesus spread all through the country.Luke 7:11-17, The Message
Don't cry.
You are already a widow.
You only son has just died.
You'll have no means of support in our society.
Yet, I tell you, Don't cry.
"Don't weep. Don't sob. Don't wail aloud," are more accurate translations & more accurate for this situation. Have you been there? Let your memory of the past or your imagination of the future take you there with that widow. Have you ever been so heartbroken? Too many questions? Few answers? Life smoldering about you? Stability banished? Uncertainty stalking? Weeping like breathing? Pain unbearable?Yet, Jesus. Yes, Jesus was there in Nain. God in flesh. And "his heart broke." Splanchnizomai (splanhk-nid-ZOH-my) in Greek from the root of "spleen" or "guts." Translated as, "compassion, heartbroken, take pity," or the like, it is used in the entire New Testament only 12 times. Other than in Luke 10:33 of the Good Samaritan, a parable of the character & actions of Christ followers, all 11 other mentions are of Jesus himself. Jesus was stirred up. He alone was heartbroken this way. Sick to his stomach. Moved with compassion. By suffering. By pain. Yes, Jesus. God in flesh.
My daughter skins her knee while playing. In her pain, she'll weep & wail loudly. My built in Daddy response is, "don't cry." I can hold her. I can clean & bandage her cut. I can comfort her. But my abilities stop there.
When Jesus says, "don't cry," he alone has the ability - the power - to change the very situation. He can heal. He can restore sight. He can raise. And, for the Widow of Nain's son, he did. As God willed, Jesus did. Jesus raised the dead man.
This doesn't mean God will remove all my pain, or heal me, or make everything in my life right whenever I ask. Jesus didn't heal everyone or raise all the dead he happened upon either. Those are questions of God's providence that I can't understand. He is God. I am not. Based on this Scripture I do understand:
God knows my pain.
He, the God of the entire universe, is moved with compassion for me.
God. Heartbroken over me.