Wednesday, July 27, 2022

Don't Miss The Moments

 YouTube Channel Video Devo

https://youtu.be/hIwiY8xwMEE


“Don’t Miss The Moments”
Luke 10:41-42 NLT
But the Lord said to her, “My dear Martha, you are worried and upset over all these details! There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her.”

Anytime I’m at home or out and about somewhere and I see a sunset, I know I have to get to a good place to view it quickly because there is very limited time to take in the moment. You can’t wait very long and still expect to see the majestic display of God’s glory! Sunsets are one of the most beautiful types of scenery ever! If you don’t act quickly, you miss it. The glow of the sky as the sun is just setting is one of the most beautiful sights ever!

Just like these limited time moments with sunsets, there are so many other moments in life that we must act fast and take in because they don’t last long. I think about the moments I have at home with my daughters or when we’re out and about. There are times when they want to share something with me and I find myself wrapped up in something else and I tell them to hang on for a bit. Instead of dropping whatever it is I’m doing (which is usually not as important!), I continue on and I end up missing the moment with them. The excitement wanes a bit and my heart breaks because I know I have missed yet another moment.

I often think about the story of Mary and Martha when Jesus comes to visit. It’s one of my most favorite stories because it shares a powerful message. (As I was typing this, my youngest daughter walked in the room and wanted to share a moment with me in showing me something. I actually paid attention!) Martha is all bent out of shape because her sister is taking time to chill and take in the moment with Jesus. While Martha is flipping out, Mary just takes the moment in and chills for a bit.

This is a fascinating story because it’s powerful in sharing a simple concept, but one that many of us fail to live up to. We get so busy with so many things and we fail to take the time to stop and smell the roses. We forget what’s often really important. Taking care of life stuff is vital, but we have to make time for moments that pop up. We have people around us that need us and these limited moments are important to take in.

We all need to be a little less like Martha and more like Mary to take in precious moments that won’t last. Just like the sunsets that don’t last long, take in the precious moments you have with people you love. Chores and other duties will always be there, but sometimes we just have to stop and take in these moments that are truly a gift from God.

Don’t miss these moments!

Wednesday, July 20, 2022

Show And Tell

 YouTube Channel Video Devo 

https://youtu.be/wNZgcNrjD5A


“Show And Tell”

1 John 4:9 NLT

God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him.

 

Do any of you remember having “show and tell” in school when growing up?  I remember how excited I was to bring something from home to show off to my class and explain the uniqueness of whatever it was.  Many of us probably recall special times when we brought something that was of value and showed it off to our classmates.  We were proud and excited to share our treasure, whatever it might have been.

 

Through the years, I think of the numerous times that I’ve been really excited and proud of something I made or did and wanted to share it with others.  There’s just something about showing and telling other people about a completely project or treasured item that we get excited about.  Sometimes, we go to great lengths to show others cool things we think are neat and are proud of.  We take time to tidy up and present the project we’ve completed or item we just purchased and show it off to family and friends. 

 

It’s great and fun to show off things we are proud of to others.  It’s exciting to see their reaction and hear their responses about what they think.  While thinking about this, I cannot help but think if we are always this excited and even more to show and tell others about God when we have opportunities to do so?  Think about how much God loved us so much that He sent Jesus to die for us.  That’s the great act of show and tell ever!  Nothing could compare to that! 

 

I have to wonder how excited and anxious we actually are to share with others what God has done for us.  Do we carry an excitement with us at all times ready to tell and show others what God has done and continues to do in our lives?  Are we anxious and excited to share His love and what He can do for others when we get into conversations?  Do we look forward to showing and telling others of the wonderful things He has done in our lives that only He can do?

 

I hope that our desire to show and tell others about God’s love far outweighs anything else we may get excited about in our lives.  Unfortunately, all too often, this is not the case and we get more excited about other things of the world rather than God.  It isn’t wrong to get excited about different things in life, but when that excitement outweighs our excitement to share God’s love more than anything else, then we have a problem.

 

Are we ready and excited for show and tell about all that God has done for us for others to see and hear?

Tuesday, July 12, 2022

We Need Wise Company

YouTube Channel Video Devo “We Need Wise Company”

“We Need Wise Company”

Proverbs 13:20 NLT

Walk with the wise and become wise; associate with fools and get into trouble.

I remember numerous times while growing up how my parents warned me about not hanging out with people who would influence me in wrong ways.  As a kid, you often want to be accepted and noticed by others so badly and are willing to go to great lengths to be liked.

I am very grateful for my parent’s advice and guidance to help me through choosing good friends that would encourage me rather than get me into trouble.  That didn’t always keep me from trying to make friends with people who were troublemakers, but I learned through the years that I needed to be wise in who I hung out with. 

Wanting to be accepted and liked isn’t just for kids or teens, it’s for adults as well.  We so often want to surround ourselves with people who will accept us and like us.  There’s nothing at all wrong with wanting to be accepted and liked.  Who wouldn’t want that, right??  However, we have to be very careful in what company we surround ourselves with.  This proverb is very clear that if we walk with the wise and surround ourselves with wise people, then we ourselves will become wiser and learn great things.  However, if we associate with fools who are troublemakers, we will be influenced and find ourselves falling into temptations to be troublemakers as well.

Just as our parents warned us to not get into trouble by hanging out with people of bad influence, God wants us to be wise in who we surround ourselves with.  We definitely need to make choices to be around those people who will mentor, encourage and help us become better people.  Through experiences and connections, we can learn better to surround ourselves with people who truly care about us and want us to become better people.  We definitely don’t want to surround ourselves with people who just like us when we do want they want us to do.

Walk with the wise and become wiser, but walk with fools and we get into trouble.  Trouble can bring some nasty consequences that could last a lifetime.  But, walking with wise people will bring great experiences to last a lifetime. 

We all need wise company.  Question is do we seek wise company out?