BLIZZARDS OF BLESSING CAN COME ANY TIME OF YEAR

God in His love and mercy sends blizzards of blessing our way every day. We need only look for them. Can you see them? Let’s not anything cloud our vision of His blessings.

Eternal Perspectives   by Sally Bair

Blizzards of blessing

Outside my window are two aspen trees that recently turned bright yellow. The wind brought about a blizzard of their golden leaves. The ground beneath was piled high with sunshine gold.

As we northerners know, winter blizzards are also accompanied by high winds. Beauty is present in them, and they bring blessings by insulating the land, killing warm-air germs, covering seeds and replenishing moisture for future growth.

Whether God covers the earth with snow or with autumn leaves, His blizzards of blessing are meant to show us His favor and approval. The Word of God contains dozens of examples of His blessing. When God had Moses teach the Israelites His law, He included a long list of blessings on obedience, such as future children, good weather and good crops, and safety from enemies.

The list of blessings is followed by a list of curses for disobedience from which they suffered repeatedly. They forgot to be grateful for God’s blessings and turned away from Him. But God in His merciful patience kept wooing them back, blessing them whenever they repented.

The New Testament also tells of people who received God’s favor, starting with Jesus. “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!” (Mark 11:9) His followers shouted those words as Jesus rode into town on a humble donkey. Mary, Jesus’ mother, also was called blessed, as were those who believed in Him after His ascension. “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” (John 20:29)

 The Bible’s famous Beatitudes in Matthew, chapter 5, list several ways we receive God’s blizzards of blessing. We’re favored when we have a humble spirit and are meek, when we hunger and thirst for God’s righteousness and are merciful to others, when we cause peace rather than discord and when we are willing to be persecuted for His sake.

God’s blessings come in many forms. He favors us with incredible peace of mind and joy, His wisdom and strength when needed and the gift of salvation. A popular discipline is to keep a gratitude list. As we form the daily habit of meditating on His gifts and thanking Him for them, we find our lives becoming richer and freer from negative thoughts. Gratitude brings us good physical, emotional and spiritual health, which is a blessing indeed.

Thank You, Lord, for your unending blessings that fall on us like a blizzard of golden leaves. Cause us to always remember to thank You and to pass on Your blessings to others. In Jesus’ name, amen.

POWER OUTAGES BRING MANY QUESTIONS

We don’t like having the power go off. We become so used to having our electric lights and gadgets that when an outage happens, we wonder what we should do. Not so with the Lord. We can tap into His power any time, any place, and depend on its constancy. Praise God!

Eternal Perspectives   by Sally Bair

We experienced a minor power outage recently. When the electricity fails it always causes us to think. Can we find our flashlight? Are the batteries still fresh? Do we need to transfer our frozen foods elsewhere? What made the outage happen? How long will it last?

In more drastic situations, such as from bad storms or earthquakes, we’re forced to find power elsewhere. As much as we’d like to believe that we can depend on our electrical systems at all times, we cannot. All types of manmade power fail. Candles burn out, batteries die, generators fail. And so do our strength, energy and courage.

God’s power never diminishes. He used it when He created the universe and He used it to raise His Son Jesus from the dead. He uses it daily in the miracles we see in nature and in humankind.

His power also is seen in the transformation of people who choose to follow Christ. “He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.” (Colossians 1:13-14)

God’s power within us does not stop when we accept Him as our Savior and Lord through faith. Paul attested to that in one of his letters. He admitted that nothing he did for Christ came from his own strength. “And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.” (1 Corinthians 2:4-5)

We also cannot claim lasting or dependable power in ourselves no matter what we do or say. Without Christ and God’s Spirit, we are as weak as a burning candle. Our self-proclaimed “light” may seem bright but will come to nothing as surely as our household electricity does during a power outage.

Jesus said He is the Light of the world and as His followers we are too. Our light must come directly from Him. No matter our circumstance, when we allow it, His light of power will shine through us. “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” (2 Timothy 1:7)

Thank You, Lord, for Your everlasting power and the power You allow us to use on Your behalf. Cause us to use it wisely and consistently for Your glory. In Jesus’ name, amen.           

LET'S BE SHINING STARS FOR JESUS

His brightness far exceeds that of the stars above and that of our own making. No matter how accomplished, how talented, how popular, or how rich, we can’t begin to outshine Jesus. He is the only light that matters and He wants us to reflect His light. Let’s do it!

Eternal Perspectives   by Sally Bair

Stars

The myriad of stars we see on a clear night away from the world’s distracting lights is a sight to remember. One fall night I slept outside our tent, entranced by the heaven’s display of stars, and of meteorites which we call shooting stars. I learned that stars, once they’ve shined in their brilliance, burn out. Like candles, they expend themselves.

The Bible tells us that God sent a brilliant, shining star to direct the wise men to Jesus’ stable. Once they arrived, the special star might have had no more significance, so could have burned out, although its origin and purpose remain an astronomical mystery.

The Bible contains many other references to shining lights. For instance, we are told, metaphorically, to be like shining lights. “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:16) Does that mean we should burn out like a star or candle after we’ve prayed for someone? Or shared the Gospel with a stranger? Or advised a friend against an illegal and immoral act?

The Old Testament book of Esther tells of a Jewish woman, whose name means Star, who sacrificed herself for the sake of her people. She chose to be willing to give up her life to do what was right for the sake of others. As a result, her life became a light that could have been extinguished through death, burned out like a candle, but it shone like a great star that will never burn out. The Jewish people still celebrate her heroism.

Esther, as one who shared the throne with the king of Persia, could have chosen to hold onto her high position at the expense of her people. We too have a choice. If we choose to live for the sake of being selfishly comfortable, we may find ourselves dwelling in darkness. But if we are willing to give up our lives for the sake of others—as Esther did and as Jesus did—we will become as great as a shining star that never burns out.

Jesus said, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.” (John 8:12) We can make the choice of living as a sacrifice for His purpose, knowing He will light the way for us.

Lord, as we sacrifice ourselves for Your sake and the sake of others, keep our lights from flickering and burning out. In Jesus’ name, amen.

WINDOW WASHING IS NECESSARY FOR A CLEAR VISION OF GOD

We can’t see beyond the smudges of our lives until we cleanse ourselves, like in window cleaning. Only then will we see His truth, His wonderful attributes and gifts.

Eternal Perspectives   by Sally Bair

Window washing

I live near a dirt path traveled by frequent ATVs. As a result, dust blows into my apartment and coats everything in sight, including the windows. Greasy smudges and even bird spatterings add to the problem of clouded window panes.

Window washing isn’t my favorite activity. But I’m always amazed how much better my view is after I’ve finished the chore. There’s nothing better than clean windows. I should wash them more often.

Spiritual dirt and grime sometimes tend to cloud my vision of God and His love, too. Perhaps you can relate to such a problem. And it can become a problem if we allow it. Cloudiness can appear in the form of distractions. We all face many of them.

Or we may have a bad attitude. When we choose to grumble and complain about people, places or things, we shut out the clear light of God’s love and blessings. Grumbling is what got the Israelites in trouble over and over as they hiked through the wilderness. It kept them from seeing the path God had chosen for them. It clouded their memory of the miracles He had performed the day before. They became so used to their smudged sight that they didn’t realize they couldn’t see God’s love and provision.

Jesus berated the Pharisees for not keeping their hearts clean. “Now you Pharisees make the outside of the cup and dish clean, but your inward part is full of greed and wickedness. Foolish ones! Did not He who made the outside make the inside also? But rather give alms of such things as you have; then indeed all things are clean to you.” (Luke 11:39-41

Paul also admonishes his readers to keep themselves clean. “… Let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.” (2 Corinthians 7:1) The point of cleansing is to dedicate ourselves to Christ and live in His righteousness. The Bible repeats the command to walk in the light of God’s Spirit. We can’t be righteous (right with God) when we live as if we’re dirty windows—cloudy to those who look upon us.

Lord, thank You for the clarity of Your light and for Your Word which is a lamp onto our feet. Forgive us the times we’ve allowed the cares of this world and the bad attitudes of our hearts to cloud Your perfect love. Cause us to clean our hearts for Your sake and for the sake of others who need to see You through us. In Jesus’ name, amen.