Influence

I was checking the pockets of a dirty pair of jeans making sure nothing was left in them before they were washed when suddenly the Lord reminded me of the time I left a paper napkin unnoticed in a shirt pocket. Well, the shirt was a part of a full washing machine load of clothes that went through the complete washing cycle. As my wife began to gather the clothes from the washer to put into the dryer, she noticed tiny specks of paper everywhere! Those little bits of paper were literally attached to every piece of clothing in that load. There seemed to be tiny specks of paper in places you would never imagine. As I was reflecting on that event, The Lord whispered to me that our influence was far reaching just like those tiny napkin pieces. In fact, He said just like the ripples of waves created when a rock hits the water spreads out in all directions, our influence behaves in the same manner. Now, here's the question. What kind of influence are you? Positive or negative? Godly or ungodly? Can people see the love of God which is spread abroad in your heart? Does your life demonstrate integrity, honor and truth? How about the fruit of the Spirit such as love Joy peace…? Always remember that we are a living and walking billboard that advertisers and demonstrates our influence everywhere we go. A smile or a kind and encouraging word could be all that someone needs to completely turn their life aroun. Yes, our influence is powerful and only God knows how far reaching it really is. Much love… John

My Orange Adventure

I really like oranges. I eat one almost every day. My favorite is the navel orange because it has thick skin and is easy to peel. The other day at about 2 o'clock in the afternoon, as I was beginning to peel my delicious orange, I experienced a powerful encounter with the Lord. I could hear His voice. No, it wasn't a booming voice coming from the sky, but a gentle voice coming from deep inside me. And He shared an awesome truth with me that I will share with you. He said that just as He created our physical bodies, He also created a special plan for us which He placed inside us before we were formed in our mothers womb. And He said He gave us the ability to dream and the desire to fulfill our dreams. Now, here's where the orange comes in. He asked me if I had ever bitten into an orange without first peeling it. I laughed and said that I remembered doing that once, but it was so bitter that I immediately spit it out. So, He said, you can see how the bitter tasting skin and membrane must be removed before you can enjoy the wonderful fruit of the orange. Yes sir, I said.  Then He said, many of us are like that orange. As we live life, we allow the negativity of this world, bad experiences, unforgiveness, bad doctor reports, stress, strife and many other things form a bitter skin around our dreams and God's plan for our life. As a result, we set our dreams aside and take a different path than the one the Lord has made for us. He said this is not His will for us. He came that we may have an abundant overflowing life. To get back on track and fufill His plan for us and have our dreams come true we most cast all our cares and every weight that holds us down upon Him because He truly cares for us. These items are just like the bitter skin of the orange. They distract us and hide the wonder God has in store for us. Well, that's it. The entire experience lasted probably not more than a minute or two. During this experience I could sense God's hurting heart for us because He has made a way– – made all of the provisions, and He wants us to walk in them. Our Lord Jesus has made the ultimate sacrifice on the cross that paved the way for our success. And remember, the path of the righteous grows brighter and brighter every day. Amen!  Bless the Lord! PS. Thank you Lord for the orange.

No Barking Dog

All of a sudden I was awake! I looked at the digital clock on the chest-of-drawers... 2;04AM. What woke me I pondered? I listened – – – no barking dog. I lay real still and listen again – – – no rain or thunder. What?? And then I knew, I felt His presence. The warmth of the Holy Spirit engulfed me. "Hello Holy Spirit", I whispered. I felt His acknowledgment and I knew He wanted to fellowship with me. I lay there in the sweet stillness of the moment. We talked about God's love for me and my loved ones and His desire to bless and protect us. He told me how Father God is moved by my every prayer for my children and grandchildren and others. He told me that God wanted me to cast all my care on Him because he cares for me. He told me to pay special attention to the events going on throughout the world today. He also told me He would teach me about the glory of God and the wonder of His grace. We fellowshipped for a little longer and I felt such a deep overwhelming peace. He told me to go back to sleep and that He would always be there because He never slept nor slumbered. Wow, what an amazing God we have who loves us more than we can ever imagine.

Don't Rush off

While sitting on my front porch one afternoon enjoying a cup of hot coffee, I was startled when a UPS truck came to a screeching halt in front of my neighbor's house. I watched in amazement as the driver leaped from his truck with package in hand and literally ran to my neighbor's front door; quickly leaving the package he dashed back to his truck and sped away.  I took a sip of coffee and began to ponder what I had just witnessed when suddenly I heard the gentle whispe of the Holy Spirit. "Speed is important to UPS", He said,"but not when it comes to spending time with me". In John 15 Jesus said he wants us to be friends with him instead of servants. Friends enjoy spending time together talking and fellowshipping. Most of the time we rush in to our "quiet time", throw a to-do List at God and rush out. Well, I agree, he has told us to bring our petitions to him, so, doing that is OK. But, what he would rather have from us is a time of close fellowship as friends. Remember, in the Garden with Adam and Eve God enjoyed walking and fellowshipping with them during the cool of the day. And guess what, God has not changed. He is the same yesterday, today and forever. More than ever he wants to be our friend, counselor and Savior.

• So, the next time you enter into a time of intimate fellowship with the Lord forget about your length of stay. Just feed off His presence and leave the speed with the UPS driver.
•    May the blessings of the Lord fall upon you.

LIFO

This is an abbreviation for an accounting term,"Last in first out". I want to comment on an area that is very critical for us to understand which, in turn, will help to ensure a blessed and fulfilled life. It is very simple, yet so very profound. Early this morning as I took a sip of hot coffee, I thought, "wow, this is good coffee". Yes, it was coffee, not buttermilk, or orange juice, or anything else, just coffee. The reason it was coffee is because that's what I put in the cup. Also, during my devotion time this morning I listened to a Sandi Patty CD. The only music recorded on that CD was of Sandi, not Elvis or Johnny Cash, just Sandi because it was a Sandi Patty CD. In each of these (the Cup and the CD) I got out of them what was put in them. Well, you might say, "John, you're so silly everybody knows that". Yes, that's true – – commonsense you might say. Jesus certainly knew it was true because he said, "out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks". In other words, what we fill our mind and thoughts with the most is what is going to come out first. If we are constantly talking doubt, fear, negative and unbelief, well, that's what we are filling our "cup and CD" with. Whereas, if we concentrate on and speak God's promises and meditate on the power of His Word, Our "cup" will contain those thoughts. Knowing and understanding this is so vitally important because should a crisis arise in our life, the first thing out of our mouth is what is in your heart the most. Know this: Proverbs 18:21."Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof". Much love…