Jesus Has Prepared a Place for Us

John 14:3

And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.

Jesus has gone before us to prepare a place for us. I like this! I even yearn for this! Do you? I did a funeral once and the family and friends were holding onto the hope that they would see their loved one again!

Jesus was speaking to His disciples and He made them a promise. This promise – I believe – is good for all of His followers – His disciples – His church. It is good for all who turn from their sin and turn to Jesus for forgiveness. Jesus often prayed for us and for our walk with Him.

I have days when I yearn for the place He has prepared for me in heaven – not that I don’t enjoy the place I have here and now – but I often think of the place He has prepared for me in heaven. I mean – life is good – but heaven is so much better than anything we could and do have here.

The New Year – 2023 – Is A Coming

Matthew 18:2-4

² He called a little child and had him stand among them. ³ And he said: I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. ⁴ Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

Christmas 2022 is behind us. We are entering a New Year in a few days. Some will stay up to see the old year leave and the new year arrive. Some will have friends over to enjoy the change of years. Some will head to New York City or other places to join larger groups of people to celebrate the coming of a New Year. Some will go to sleep as if nothing will be different or change.

Change is the key word. The hope that a New Year will be better than the year just completed. Social Media is filled with people hoping for a better 2023. That we can get a fresh start and make changes in our lives. If we change nothing and still expect a different result – well – you know what they say about that saying.

Have we ever read and wondered what Jesus meant by these words from Matthew’s gospel? When Jesus says – I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven – what is it about a little child that is so significant?

What is it about little children that we should emulate in order to follow Jesus? Little children are open and honest. Little children hope and dream. Little children – unless they have faced abuse or lived in oppressive situations – have faith in the possible – they even believe in the impossible. Little children are ever ready to forgive and can bounce back from almost anything.

I Long for You!

Psalm 63:1

You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you, in a dry and parched land where there is no water.

I long for you. I remember while dating my wife – I could hardly think of much else. I longed to be with her and to talk with her. We once talked all night on the phone (not sure her dad or mom ever found out). I had to go to work the next day – but – it didn’t matter. I longed to talk with her.

I long for you. We dated and we decided to get married. It was a short dating period – because we were older and knew what we were looking for in a life partner. Forty-two years later – we are still together and making life memories. Our children are too. Six children (counting their spouses) and seven grands – making dreams come true.

Have You Ever Felt Helpless?

Psalm 121:2

My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.

Have you ever felt helpless? Without any hope of improvement in your current condition? I know that Pastor Walter has to feel this way at times. As he battles a number of illnesses – and waits patiently (most of the time) for a kidney healing or transplant. On top of this and other ailments – he contradicted COVID and had to deal with not seeing his girls for a period of time. Yet – he knows where his hope comes from – his help comes from the Lord – the Maker of heaven and earth.

Have you ever been in a place where your finances seemed impossible to overcome? I mean – you were in debt beyond your ability to pay your bills. Maybe some of it was your fault – maybe some of it was beyond your control – but none-the-less – you had bills that seemed to have no end – and they even compounded as the days and months went on. I know of some folks who have debt and pay the very minimum each month (like on credit cards) and yet the interest and the continued use compounds the debt even further. Again – some can be lack of planning or budgeting – but some can be the circumstances of life. Where can we seek help? Our help can come from the Lord – the Maker of heaven and earth. God can help us – even when the troubles are of our own making.

The Lord Willing

James 4:15

Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.”

Many of us make plans. I’m a planner – I keep a calendar. I think ahead to the days – weeks – months and even years ahead of me. My wife is more of a handle it as it comes. That doesn’t mean she doesn’t plan things – but she is not as detailed as I am. For instance – if I asked her to go to dinner on Friday night – she might respond we’ll see how the week goes and what comes up.

Yet – we plan vacations – even a year in advance – mainly because we must secure the location before someone else gets it. We’ve already paid 50% of next summer’s vacation – in order to secure the location.

We make plans – at different degrees and levels – all the time. We plan to be at work on time each day – yet traffic and the kids getting sick – can throw a monkey wrench into our best plans. We also don’t know when something will impact us – like not sleeping well or waking with a pain in our body we didn’t have when we went to bed.