Archive for Jesus
In Search of the Perfect Gift
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It’s Christmas time. Time to buy gifts for those I love. So I’ve been thinking about gifts and gift-giving. I am thinking about those on my list and wishing to find the perfect gift for them.
As I think back over my years, a few “perfect” gifts stand out in my mind. I remember the year my parents gave me a birthstone ring shaped like a heart with the word love on it.
I think of one year when Eddie and I were living in Mississippi. There was a big snow and ice was on the roads, but I so wanted to go home for Christmas. That classic old song Home for Christmas haunted me. “I’ll be home for Christmas, you can count on me…” We drove from Mississippi back to north Alabama on a sheet of ice, but I had to be home! Now that was a gift of love from my husband. Needless to say, we were much younger then and maybe not as wise, but I got home for Christmas!
I remember the year my husband hid a beautiful ring in a pair of gloves. I was so discouraged over getting a pair of gloves and trying not to show it. I put the gloves aside for I had gotten more than one pair that year. Eddie kept insisting I try them on. In truth, I didn’t want to take the tags off to try them on because I was planning on taking them back asap. When I finally consented and place my hands in the gloves, there was my ring inside the ring finger of the gloves.
Why Peter?
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Those familiar with the New Testament often refer to Peter as the disciple who opened his mouth to change feet. We think of Peter denying Jesus. Peter, the one who said what we all would like to say, “Jesus, how many times do I really have to forgive this person before I can say ‘That’s it. I have fulfilled my quota. I don’t have to forgive you anymore.’” Peter, who told Jesus,“You’ll never wash MY feet!” Sounds ridiculous now, but how would you have felt at that moment? We think of Peter cutting off Malchus’ ear. We think of his rash statement to Jesus, “I’ll never deny you!”
The first time we are introduced to Peter is when his brother Andrew brings him to Jesus. Immediately Jesus looks at Peter and begins to tell Peter about himself. Jesus said, “You are Simon, the son of Jonah, but you will be called Cephas.” Ever wonder what it felt like to be inside Peter’s skin at that moment? His brother, Andrew, told him that they had found the Messiah, the One they had lived all their lives learning about; the One who would rescue the Jewish nation; the One who would fulfill the prophesies. Perhaps Peter is skeptical at that first moment but also hopeful. Could this man be the One? And Peter begins his experiences with Jesus with an identity encounter. Jesus basically says, “Peter, I know you, and I know who you will become. You are going to change.”
In the Face of Shame
Posted by: | CommentsHave you ever felt ashamed of something you did? Have you ever been embarrassed to look people in the eyes?
On Sunday I began to ponder the effects of shame. I was praying for a beautiful young woman whom I had not seen in a couple of years. The last time I saw her, she asked for prayer because of her marital situation. I had counseled with her, prayed with her and had given her a book as a resource. And here she was again, having a hard time looking into my eyes. The longer I spoke with her, the more obvious it was that she was very ashamed. I knew something of her story. An abusive husband whom she just literally caught in the act of being unfaithful. Not a new story with her. As she cried to me for help, she said, “I don’t want to leave him.” My heart was heavy for her. How I wished I could have taken her troubles away! I wished I could have made her marriage whole. But deep within, I knew that aside from a work of the Spirit of God, things were not going to change in this marriage. She was going to continue to be beaten and betrayed. If she continued to be a prisoner of her shame, she was never going to take the steps she needed to in order to experience acceptance and freedom.
The Perfect Gift
Posted by: | CommentsFrom my heart’s perspective, one of the most beautiful stories recorded in scripture is the story of the woman in Luke 7. We Christians are familiar with it and often read over the depth of the story. Can we pause today and look in a new way?
Jesus is at a Pharisee’s house where he has gone to eat dinner. The Pharisees were very religious – self-righteously so. Jesus sits down to eat and a woman “who was a sinner” came. Now we understand that in Bible times, women were devalued, sort of sub-important people. So here comes a woman into a men’s gathering (picture the men’s monthly meeting at your church). She is “an especially wicked sinner” according to the Amplified Version of the Bible. Other versions say she was “a woman of the town”; “a harlot”; “a notorious sinner; a social outcast, devoted to sin.”
This would probably offend most of us. It certainly offended the Pharisee who concluded that Jesus must not be a prophet as he had previously thought, for if Jesus were a prophet, he’d know this woman was a slut.
This woman brought in an expensive alabaster flask of perfumed oil and standing BEHIND him WEEPING, she began to wash his feet with her tears, and wiped his feet with the hair of her head; she kissed his feet and anointed them with the fragrant oil. What a scene!
You can be pretty sure that the oil she used was purchased by money she made as a harlot.
Looks Like Jesus to Me
Posted by: | CommentsOne of the most fascinating looks into the heart of God is a look into Jesus on the cross. Today I am not thinking of what happened spiritually, although that is completely and fully worthy of our thoughts. Today I am thinking of what happened in the realm of Jesus’ earthly relationships.
Believing that Jesus was 100% God and 100% human is one of the great mysteries of the church. Maybe you think that is an overstatement. Certainly we “believe” it mentally, but practically, I feel that oftentimes we have difficulty accepting this truth. We can get the 100% God part, but the 100% human part is incomprehensible to us. Yet it is a cornerstone of our faith.
Can we look at Jesus’ last days from his human perspective for a moment – imagining the emotional inner world of Jesus – feeling the highs and lows of a roller coaster of experiences? Can you allow yourself to step into his humanness or is it too sacrilegious for you? Let’s take a look – with our hearts – imagining what his heart experienced emotionally and then I want to say something about relationships.
…Jesus teaches the people and ministers in the miraculous realm, receiving direction from His Father (I only do what I see the Father doing)
…He prophesies of his own death and torture
…Jesus experiences the cheers and praise of the people as he enters
…His authority is questioned
