Dead Jesuses

By Peter Lundell –

I visited two churches in downtown Los Angeles. And they both had dead Jesuses.

One was the first church ever erected here, when L.A. was just a pueblo built by settlers from Mexico. At the back of the sanctuary lay a statue of Jesus dead in the tomb. He was white as a ghost, with plastic rays spiking out from his head, safe under a Plexiglas cover. People stood and worshipped him. I was not inspired.

The other church was a beautiful Italian Renaissance structure with an imposing Greek colonnade smacked on the front. Trees obscured the statues above the columns. Everything on the edifice was written in Latin, and the only English was a small historical plaque the city had stuck on it. People passed by without a glance. The building and grounds were well maintained, but the doors were locked and lacked any kind of handle. I peeked through the crack between the doors to see white marble floors, walls and altar—empty. Cold and bare, uninviting and irrelevant.

One church has an actual dead Jesus with worshippers who pay their respects as they would at a funeral. The other has no Jesus or anyone at all—a dead and gone congregation along with whatever Jesus they once worshipped. By the looks of the church edifice, they considered Jesus rich and respectable—like themselves.

If you worship Jesus, what kind of Jesus do you worship?

Is He respectable? He who was a rabble-rousing misfit.

Is He meek and mild? He who took on demons and a temple full of merchants.

Is He sophisticated? He who was homeless.

Is He absent most of the time? He who left the throne of heaven to walk in our midst.

Or is He beyond categorization?

And alive. Alive like a fire burning.

PRAYER: Jesus, take me, my whole life. I am Yours and You are mine. Keep me from deadness in how I see You and worship You. Burn Your Holy Spirit’s fire in me. I will in turn share it with others who need a living Jesus.

“If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me, and let the one who believes in me drink. Just as the scripture says, ‘From within him will flow rivers of living water.’ (Now he said this about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were going to receive, for the Spirit had not yet been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified)” (John 7:38–39, NET).

Today’s devotion is by Peter Lundell, author of Prayer Power. A rising new voice on connecting with God, he is a pastor, Bible college teacher and conference speaker. Visit him at www.PeterLundell.com for his inspirational “Connections” and free downloads of articles, parables, short stories and book chapters.

Your Perfect Creation

By Cheri Cowell –

A friend’s daughter came home from the doctor with a video sonogram of her first child. My friend was sharing her excitement of being able to “see” the little girl being formed in her daughter’s womb. I marveled at the idea that we could participate in this way with God’s greatest miracle: the creation of a baby. Even in the first trimester, the child’s genetic make-up is already determined. The Scriptures tell us that God is there in the “secret place” and has already written the child’s days in His book. Our God is so amazing.

Every artist is said to leave a part of his or her heart in every creation. Likewise, God’s character is in the creation of every person. When you or I criticize any part of His most precious creation, I can imagine His heartache. He is the Great Creator God and He considers you His finest creation. Think about how complex your inner being is, and how perfectly your body works: heart, lungs, blood, brain, and limbs. He is an amazing God!

PRAYER: I praise You for knitting me together in my Mother’s womb, and being there with me in that secret place. Thank You, Lord, for creating me as a perfect reflection of Your character. Help me see myself as You do—Your perfect creation.

“I will praise Thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are Thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well. My substance was not hid from Thee, when I was made in secret, and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in Thy book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them” (Psalm 139:14-16, KJV).

Today’s devotion is by Cheri Cowell, who writes and speaks on topics of Christian discipleship. In addition to her books and articles, you can learn about her speaking ministry and sign up to receive her daily devotional www.CheriCowell.com

The Connection Between Praise and Forgiveness

By Bruce Hebel –

Helping someone find freedom through forgiveness involves helping them to give praise. The connection between praise and forgiveness may be the classic question, “Which comes first, the chicken or the egg?” Does forgiveness bring praise or does praise bring forgiveness? I found that when people reflect on how much God has forgiven them, they are much more eager to forgive others. God’s forgiveness brings praise from us and motivates us to forgive others.

When someone violates us or wounds us, in pride we often say, “I would never do that.” Yet the truth remains that we are all capable of sin at any level. A good buddy of mine says that he has broken all of the 10 Commandments, either in thought or in action. According to the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew, that is true of all of us. Let’s face it—we have all messed up. We all blow it from time to time. The great news is that God loves us anyway and has forgiven us.

If you can help someone redirect their focus from the offense against them to God’s graciousness toward them, you will see a dramatic reduction in their emotions against the person who has offended them. I have found an effective tool in helping move people from complaint to praise. When someone shares with me a complaint against someone else, I ask a series of simple questions. The conversation goes something like this:

“What did he do?”
“He lied to me.”
“That must really hurt. I hate it when someone lies to me.”
““It makes me so angry.”
“I can see that. Have you ever lied to someone?”
“Whaaat?”
“Have you ever lied?”
“Well, … yes … I have.”
“How did you want to be treated when you lied? We all make mistakes, don’t we? Aren’t you glad that God is gracious to us when we do things like this? Why don’t we praise  Him for His grace toward us?”

It is amazing how transformational that type of conversation can be for someone who is hurting. Praise puts everything in proper perspective and produces a humility that opens the door for forgiveness. God expects forgiven people to forgive others. It helps when we remember how much we have been forgiven!

AUTHOR QUOTE: “God expects forgiven people to forgive others.”

“Therefore I tell you, her sins, which were many, are forgiven, thus she loved much; but the one who is forgiven little loves little” (Luke 7:47 NET).

Today’s devotional is by Bruce Hebel, Forgiving Forward Seminar Speaker, President of ReGenerating Life Ministries, and Adjunct Professor at Carver Bible College. He is a graduate of Dallas Theological Seminary and has served in ministry for over 35 years.

The Heavens Declare

By James Pence –

Years ago, when I served as pastor of a small church, I occasionally did a Q&A on Sunday evenings. The congregation affectionately called it “Stump the Pastor.” It kept me on my toes, because the people always came with what they thought were unsolvable theological questions. Read more

Heavenly Discussion

By Donna McCrary and Sherri Holbert –

Have you ever looked into the sky, thrown up your hands and said, “God, where are you? I’m overloaded! I can’t think straight! I don’t know what to do. Why don’t you help me with this situation? I CAN’T HEAR YOU!” This was me a few years ago. Read more

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