This week, the East coast of the states will be experiencing record high temperatures. Health experts will recommend that people living there should drink lots of water to replace what they lose trying to stay cool through perspiration. Yes, that is excellent advice for our physical health and well being. The human body is about 60% water in adult males and 55% in adult females. Lean muscle tissue contains about 75% water by weight. Blood contains almost 70% water, body fat contains 10% water and bone has about 22% water.
Many of the water products on the shelf are using the word “life” in their marketing of the water. Nestle suggests that their purified water is “Pure Life.” When I see this printed on a bottle of water, I’m reminded of the truth of the matter. The Bible tells us that there is one source that provides us true life – Jesus, the Living Water.
“Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb.” Revelation 22:1
“If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.” “Sir,” the woman said, “you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water? Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did also his sons and his flocks and herds?”Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” John 4:10-14
After I have been working in the yard on a hot day, I’ll typically go to the refrigerator and grab a bottle of water to quench my physical thirst and to replace the water I’ve lost through sweating. Drinking pure water is probably the best way to satisfy the need to rehydrate physically. But what about satisfying spiritual needs?
Sometimes we try to meet our inner spiritual thirst through external means that do not satisfy like food, alcohol, drugs, gambling, or other forms of unhealthy or addictive behaviors. These earthly things will not truly satisfy the need that God has given each of us for a Savior. Only Jesus can satisfy this need.
“He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.‘” Jesus in John 7:38
Questions to Reflect On
Do you have a deep inner thirst that has not yet been quenched?
Are you daily drawing on Jesus as your Source of Living Water?
As I prepare to talk to a group of women this Sunday at a church near Charlotte, and review my notes that I’ll use and the key points that I’ll likely make, I’m reminded again of the essence of the Christian faith.
It’s about a close relationship with God, through his son Jesus and living by the power of the Holy Spirit. It’s not about “religion.” It’s about knowing and remaining connected to God in an intimate way.
Jesus tells his disciples in John 15:5 ….
“I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.”
This verse tells us that we cannot live the kind of fruit-bearing life that he wants us to live unless we are closely connected to Jesus. Yes, we must also humble ourselves before God, submit to and follow his ways, and believe that what the Bible says is truth.
When we make a habit of living life according to the principles God outlines for us in his Holy Bible, we are promised that we’ll have an abundant life. We may not be free of disease, we will in all likelihood experience really tough life circumstances, but amidst it all we can enjoy deep inner peace, inner spiritual strength, joy, love and contentment. Oh yes, and we can be assured of living eternally in a wonderful heaven!
The more closely we stay connected to Jesus, the better we’ll understand our unique purpose in life and the greater difference we’ll make for his Kingdom and the body of Christ.
What blessings God has for us…. if we will put our faith in him, trust him, obey his truths for living found in the Bible and walk our life in close relationship with him.
These are some of the key points I hope to remind the audience of this Sunday. As I review my notes, read the related scriptures that I intend to emphasize and pray for God to guide me, I’m reminded of the great and powerful love he has for me and for you.
Life is good… when you know God in an intimate way!
Questions to Reflect On
Are you living in a close relationship with God, spending alone time with him on most days?
Are you regularly reading the Bible to learn how he wants you to live?
Over the last week I have enjoyed watching the Tour de France and Lance Armstrong’s return to the sport after a three year break. The competition has been terrific. One reason I enjoy watching the Tour is because of the beautiful mountainous locations of some of the daily rides or stages. This is a map of the route.
Today and the next few days, the riders will be traversing over the Swiss Alps, a gorgeous part of Europe. I was stationed in southern Germany for one of my Army assignments and we lived about 45 minutes north of Innsbruck in the foothills of the Austrian Alps. My last day of skiing in Europe was on a Swiss mountainside so I can appreciate that the scenery in that area of the world is breathtaking. It’s easily the prettiest place I have ever been. Read more of this article »
I was hungry for lunch and immediately thought of having a grilled-cheese sandwich with a slice of tomato. Not a store-bought tasteless tomato but a juicy, sweet, home-grown one.
Without hesitation, I walked outside to where I’m growing two tomato plants. One is a grape-shaped cherry tomato and the other is a larger Big Boy brand. They’ve been ripe for a little over two weeks now and I’ve already enjoyed a few dozen cherry tomatoes.
Tomatoes are rich in vitamin C and A and the anti-oxidant lycopene. They are my favorite fruit during the summer. Yes, botanically, a tomato is the ovary, together with its seeds, of a flowering plant – therefore it is a fruit.
As I was rinsing off the tomato I picked and preparing to cut it, the thought came to me quickly that as a tomato is a very healthy fruit to eat, as a person stays closely connected to Jesus, he/she will exhibit much fruit in their life. (See John 15:5) Paul explains this to us in Galatians 5:22-23 – the fruits of the spirit are love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.
Then the thought came into my mind that Jesus is the path to perfect fruit. The more we stay connected to Him and partake of Him, the more fruitful our life will be… and it probably will be healthier. When our lives are rooted in Jesus, then we will bear these kinds of fruit. That’s what the Bible says. And any physician will tell you that a life that exhibits the fruits of the spirit mentioned in Galatians is likely to be healthier than a life absent of such fruits.
Points to Ponder
So, on this second day of Summer, are you incorporating healthy fruits and vegetables into your daily diet? You can get some pretty healthy fruits and veggies at your local market.
More importantly, how are you nourishing your spirit so that your life will exhibit the kind of fruit that Paul mentions in Galatians? Are you remaining close to Jesus? Do you know Him in a personal way?
Last week I was in Casper, Wyoming helping a friend conduct fitness standards testing for the city’s Police Department. I’d driven through Wyoming before but never spent any time in the state.
It so happens that this area is home to some of the best trout fishing in the United States, if not the world! The North Platte River runs right through Casper. I love to fish but don’t do it too often. I did not take any of my fishing gear on the trip because I did not know if I’d have enough free time to get out on the river.. and I was unsure of where to fish.
By good fortune, one of the police officers we tested during the first day there is not only an avid fisherman but a fishing guide sponsored by Orvis, a leading manufacture of fly fishing gear. Jeremy was gracious enough to loan me his gear – flies, waders and a rod. Read more of this article »
It’s Friday, May 8th, 2009 and I’m suggesting that on Fridays, Twitterers share the love of God and Jesus using the #FaithFriday hashtag.
#FollowFriday
If you use Twitter much at all, you’ll know that four months ago Micah Baldwin came up with the idea that twitterers might promote someone to follow. According to Micah, “The idea is to think of interesting people you already follow and recommend them to others.” The idea caught on quickly and you can see the impact at this link.
The #FaithFriday Concept
I’m suggesting that followers of Christ use a similar strategy to love on others and to share the gospel on Fridays….. and that we call it FaithFriday and that we use the hashtag #FaithFriday.
I’d encourage you to use your imagination… link to a good site or a blog entry, an article, share an affirmation, a scripture… anything that shares the love of Christ with others and that brings glory to God.
There are millions of people in the world who are hurting, in pain, stressed to the max and lost. They have no idea where they will spend eternity after they die. They have no peace or joy. On Fridays, we can use Twitter very intentionally to share the truth about our Savior and how people can find and experience the true Source of love, peace and joy.
A Few Scriptures to Share:
“For God so loved the world that He gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” Jesus in John 3:16
“I have come that they might have life and life to the full.” Jesus in John 10:10
” Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.” Matthew 4:19
Customized Tiny URLs to Use in Your Tweets
I have created a few customized “shortened” URLs with links to these respective URLs that you might consider copying and pasting into your tweets:
http://tr.im/FaithFriday – to this blog post to help you share it with others so they can understand the concept.
http://tiny.cc/GodLovesYou - to The Message version of the verse John 3:16.
http://tiny.cc/GODisLOVE – to the verses in 1 John 4:7-12 that reminds us that God is love.
http://tiny.cc/FollowJesus - to the verses in Matthew 4:18-20 where Jesus invites His disciples to follow Him.
http://tr.im/YFaithFriday – to Psalm 96:1-4 that reminds us to praise God and share the Good News with others.
If you create another helpful and unique “short” URL using Tinyurl.com or Tr.im or another url-shortener for use on FaithFriday, I encourage you to send it along to me and I’ll post it here.
Imagine running for over 2 and 1/2 hours in a competitive race and coming in second – one second behind the winner. That’s what happened in the running of the 2009 Boston Marathon in the women’s division.
Salina Kosgei won the race in 2:32:16. The second place finisher was Dire Tune. American Kara Goucher was third. In the men’s race, Deriba Merga won in 2:08:42. An American, Ryan Hall placed third – the best American finish in many years.
I hope that in the running of the most important race of your life – your spiritual race – that you are not doubting whether or not you will win a prize at the end of the race.
Hebrews 12:1-4 encourages us to run our race of faith – from start to finish – with our eyes set on Jesus. If we do that… run our race of life with Jesus, then we are assured of receiving the prize of eternal life. 2 Timothy 4:7-8 tells us that we will receive a crown of righteousness and that Jesus will present it to us. This award – this prize – is available to each person that eagerly awaits Jesus to return because they know that upon that day, they will enter into heaven with Him – and they will win their race. In this race, all who believe in Jesus will receive the best prize – eternal life!
Are you running the race of life with Jesus? I hope so. This is certainly one race that you don’t want to finish second in.
I hope that you enjoyed a wonderful Easter weekend and day!
I often read Oswald Chambers’ My Utmost for His Highest devotional. His material is very thought provoking and usually causes me to think deeply about the spiritual implications to what he’s writing about. Today I reviewed some of his daily devotionals for April in which he covered aspects of Jesus’ death and resurrection.
We are made whole if we confess with our mouth that Jesus is Lord and we believe in our heart that God raised Him from the dead. (Romans 10:9)
This is God’s promise in the Bible. We who believe in Jesus, and in what the Bible says about who He is and what He did, will be saved. We will have eternal life.
Jesus also wants us to have an abundant life on this earth. He tells us this in John 10:10. The way we can live life to the fullest is to surrender our “self” nature to God’s Holy Spirit who lives in us. The more we surrender to Him, the more we will enjoy the ‘fruits’ mentioned in Galatians 5:22-23 – love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.
I hope that you are enjoying the full life that Jesus wants you to experience.
Yes, Jesus died a gruesome death on a cross for you and for me. He also is risen and because of this, we can have life. 1 Corinthians 15:20-22
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This week, the East coast of the states will be experiencing record high temperatures. Health experts will recommend that people living there should drink lots of water to replace what they lose trying to stay cool through perspiration. Yes, that is excellent advice for our physical health and well being. The human body is about 60% water in adult males and 55% in adult females. Lean muscle tissue contains about 75% water by weight. Blood contains almost 70% water, body fat contains 10% water and bone has about 22% water.
After I have been working in the yard on a hot day, I’ll typically go to the refrigerator and grab a bottle of water to quench my physical thirst and to replace the water I’ve lost through sweating. Drinking pure water is probably the best way to satisfy the need to rehydrate physically. But what about satisfying spiritual needs?
As I prepare to talk to a group of women 
Over the last week I have enjoyed watching the 
I was hungry for lunch and immediately thought of having a grilled-cheese sandwich with a slice of tomato. Not a store-bought tasteless tomato but a juicy, sweet, home-grown one.
