From Sin to Forgiveness

In my three Christian fiction series—Titus Ray Thrillers, Mylas Grey Mysteries, and Silas McKay Suspense—each of my protagonists is at a different place in his spiritual journey.

However, of the three, Titus Ray, a covert operative, has the most difficulty forgiving others for past mistakes.

Titus was brought to faith in Christ through the influence of an Iranian Christian couple in Tehran who hid him in their home for three months while he was on the run from the secret police.

Even though Titus grew up in “Christian” America, he knew nothing about Christianity. He came from a family who never attended church, who never mentioned God—except in a swear word—and who never went inside a church unless it was to attend a funeral.

Thus, it wasn’t surprising that Titus didn’t know how to live out his faith when he became a believer and returned to the States to resume his career at the CIA. However, he remembered the Iranian Christians read their Bible every day, so he purchased his first Bible and began reading the gospel of John.

From reading his Bible and being mentored by more mature believers, he gradually figured out how to control his volatile temper, and how to recognize the difference between deceiving others as part of his profession and doing so willfully to further his own agenda.

By far, the most difficult part of his Christian walk so far has been learning to forgive others—from his alcoholic father to other operatives who made foolish decisions that cost people their lives—but his journey toward real and lasting forgiveness only began when he heard these words from Ephesians 5:32: “And be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.”

Jesus himself showed us the example when he was in the throes of agony on the cross and cried out, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.”  Luke 23:34.

Titus realized he was to forgive others even as he had been forgiven, for no one had ever wronged him as much as the Son of God had been wronged.

A lesson from a fictional character to real believers.

Let’s Talk Happiness

It’s been a cold, rainy week in Oklahoma. Not much sunshine. I’m not a person who gets depressed, and I really like some rainy days every now and then, but I’ve been longing for sunshine for two days now. People seem to be happier when the sun is shining.

As I thought about what makes people happy, I came across a devotional that references mankind’s universal search for happiness.

In the article, a book by C. S. Lewis called Mere Christianity is referenced. Here are two quotes from it that I believe give clarity and substance to the idea of happiness.

“All that we call human history–money, poverty, ambition, war, prostitution, classes, empires, slavery–is the long terrible story of man trying to find something other than God which will make him happy.”

“God designed the human machine to run on Himself. He Himself is the fuel our spirits were designed to burn, or the food our spirits were designed to feed on. There is no other. That is why it is just no good asking God to make us happy in our own way without bothering about religion. God cannot give us a happiness and peace apart from Himself, because it is not there. There is no such thing.” –C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity.

A bright cloudless day can’t really make a person happy. Only God can do that.

Turn your face toward the Son. Bask in the warmth and happiness of His Light today.

“You make known to me the path of life, in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” Psalm 16:11.

Fifteen Minutes Earlier

Whenever I come to the last day of a year, I always remember something that happened to me almost fifty years ago. That memory is triggered because at the end of every year, I finish reading all 66 books of the Bible.

Once I finish, I always record it in the front of the Bible I’ve been using for that year. Not surprisingly, I’ve gone through several Bibles in those fifty years.

Even though I write down each time I’ve read it through, I don’t do so to show I’ve met some goal. I do it to remind myself that I’ve kept my commitment to the Lord to spend the first fifteen minutes of every morning with Him.

In reality, I usually spend an hour reading the Bible and praying before I start my day, but when I first made this commitment, I only agreed to do it for fifteen minutes.

I made this promise as I was convalescing at my parents’ house while recovering from gallbladder surgery. That’s when I came across a little booklet in my mother’s collection of books that was entitled “Time Alone With God.”

Even though I would often read my Bible, it was sporadic and not a daily practice. However, this author challenged me to set my alarm fifteen minutes early and spend that time reading the Bible, using a plan included in the booklet that would mean I would read the Bible through in a year.

The author promised that if I would make this commitment, the Lord would meet me in the pages of His Word every morning, and I would come to know Him in a more intimate way.

There was a commitment page I could sign, along with the location of where I planned to have my “Time Alone With God.” Once I signed it, I noticed that below my signature, it said something like, “Remember this commitment, because the Lord will always be here waiting for you, whether you honor your promise or not.”

From that day forward, I’ve always set my alarm to get up in plenty of time to keep my commitment—despite obligations with my family and a work scheduled—and I’m convinced that having that time with the Lord has brought Him glory and honor and transformed my life into one of joy, peace, happiness, and contentment.

Tomorrow, January 1st (or a day of your choosing),you have the opportunity to experience this for yourself. I urge you to do so, and here’s a link where you can find a daily Bible reading plan to help you on your way.

Find a Daily Bible Reading Plan here.

He Came! Yes, He Did!!

A hush
A rustling
A stirring

A head
A push
A cry

A miracle
A birth
A life

A love
A light
A death

A time
A choice
A future

“For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” Luke 2:11

Looking For Something?

As the Christmas holidays get near, I often go to a store “looking for something” to give as a present, without really having something specific in mind. I just know I’ll recognize it as something the person might like or need.

When I was reading through the gospel of John recently, I noticed that God is also “looking.” John 4:23 says, “But the time is coming—indeed it’s here now—when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. The Father is looking for those who will worship him that way.”

So God is “looking” or “seeking,” as some translations say, for people to worship Him.

There’s no doubt God deserves to be worshiped.

Throughout the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, we are presented with reasons to worship Him—for what He has made, for what He has done, for who He is, for His attributes—so it’s not surprising in Revelation 4:11 that we find worshipers in heaven declaring a beautiful summary of why we should worship Him. “Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created.”

But what about now? Jesus said God was seeking people to worship him as we go about our earthly lives. He’s looking for true worshipers, those who give him honor and glory in their spirit as well as in their lives. As He’s seeking, will he find you?

What is God Thinking?

I love looking at NASA’s Hubble image of the day, and I subscribe to several daily news feeds which send me announcements about the latest space and astronomy happenings.

I’m drawn to the heavens because I’m able to see the incredible beauty of God’s handiwork there. “The heavens declare the glory of God and the sky above declares his handiwork.” Psalm 19:1.

Scientists tell us when we look at the heavens above our heads, even with the most powerful of telescopes, we’re only able to see a minuscule portion of the universe. Human beings can never fully grasp the vastness of the world our Creator has made all in order to display His glory.

I believe God intended it to be that way.

God created an incomprehensible universe because He is incomprehensible. The immense heavens reflect an immense God, giving us, at best, only the barest pinhole glimpses of a God of unlimited power.

Someone has suggested perhaps the Universe is just ONE of God’s thoughts. How mind-blowing is that?

Trying to comprehend the power behind a Being who can create the Universe is impossible for a finite human creature. It’s just as impossible to understand the grace of God in making provision through His Son for human beings to live with Him in His Universe forever and to enjoy a personal relationship with him.

Psalm 8:3-4 “When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him?”

What to know more about the possibility of a personal relationship with God? Watch the video below.

What Difference Does It Make?

All of us have a story. It may be  your parenting story, your pregnancy story, your career story, or the story of your life. A story I’ve always enjoyed hearing is the story of someone’s salvation—all the details surrounding how a person came to faith in Christ.

When we lived in Indiana in the late 1980’s, the editor of our denomination’s weekly state paper, The Indiana Baptist, asked me to do a weekly column on a different individual each week and emphasize the details of their conversion experience. I decided to call the column “A Story To Tell.”

My husband’s job at that time was in Baptist missions, and we traveled to a different church in Indiana every week. We usually arrived at the church at least an hour before he was to preach, so I had time to seek out a friendly man or woman, get their permission to record our conversation, and then ask them to tell me their salvation experience. After the interview, I would write down our conversation in a story format.

While all the stories culminated when the person became a born-again Christian, each convert’s circumstances were unique. However, after several months of writing salvation stories,  the common thread I saw in each person’s experience was the way God used a friend, a neighbor, a relative, or even a stranger to draw the unsaved person to Christ.

An example of this was the young man who had not been brought up in the church, knew nothing of the Lord and was planning on becoming  a professional golfer. One evening, when he was about to enter a nightclub to enjoy several hours of partying, he noticed a group of people carrying picket signs. They were protesting what was going on inside the establishment.  One of the signs read “The wages of sin is death.”

For weeks the young man was haunted by these words, but he had no idea what they meant. However,  after he followed his girlfriend’s suggestion to talk to a pastor, he was led to the Lord, and his life was forever transformed.

I’m sure the man who had picketed the nightclub that night carrying a sign with the words from Romans 6:23 written on it, never realized his small gesture eventually made an eternal difference in someone’s life.

What difference will you make in someone’s salvation story?

Hold on! Just wait.

God’s Waiting Room is a familiar place to all praying believers. Those who petition the Father for answers, for relief, for deliverance, for guidance, for comfort, often find such requests are not answered immediately. That’s why God designed His Waiting Room.

If the waiting goes on for months, even years, God’s Waiting Room can become a place of discontentment, anger, frustration, and sometimes, unbelief.

Like most of you, I’ve had lots of experience waiting. So what have I learned from it?

I’ve learned waiting on God doesn’t have to be unbearable as long as I follow some basic principles.

1. Don’t wait alone. Waiting is always easier if it’s shared with someone, even if it’s only virtual sharing.

2. Find something to do while waiting. Occupying body, mind, and spirit makes the waiting easier. If possible, find something you can do to help someone else while you’re waiting.

3. Encourage others as you wait. Empathy for others who may be going through similar circumstances lightens your burden and blesses your  soul.

4. Recognize God has a sovereign purpose in the length of your wait. Waiting is no different from anything else in your life—God is working all things for His Glory and your benefit no matter what it is.

Those willing to wait on God are given a special promise. It’s found in Isaiah 64:4: “No eye has seen a God like you, who works for those who wait for him.”

While you’re in God’s Waiting Room, He’s out there working for you.

Keep on waiting.

I assure you, it will definitely be worth the wait.

Hold on!!

He Died for Dirt

I love the way David describes how God treats His children in Psalm 103. David says He “satisfies your desires with good things.”(Psalm 103:5).

Later on in this Psalm, David writes, “He remembers we are but dust,” and he writes this in connection with the compassion of God.  “As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him; for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are but dust.” (Psalm 103:13-14).

God created human beings out of a common substance, a substance of little worth, just a handful of dirt. Inside this dirt-formed vessel, He placed an image of Himself. When that happened, something of little value became something of infinite value—a living human being. Every human being born after Adam reflects this God-likeness.

Even though we bear His likeness, we are still just dirt, and He remembers this. He knows our frailties, our weaknesses, our dirt, and because of this, He has compassion on us. The Psalmist says, “He crowns you with love and compassion.” (Psalm 103:4).

Even though we’re made of dirt, we have a regal bearing because, as God’s children, we wear the crown of His compassion and love. That’s why David begins and ends this Psalm with these words. “Praise the Lord, my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name.” (Psalm 103:22).

To Know Him is to Fear Him

Be afraid. Be very afraid. Being afraid of God seems foreign to those of us who sing of His blessings, who trust Him with our eternal soul, and who pray daily to Him for guidance, for help, for comfort.

Yet, one can’t read the Bible without encountering the oft-repeated admonition to “fear the Lord.” Throughout the Old Testament, there are numerous examples of God’s children receiving a blessing because they fear God. Also, because of fearing God, they do what He commands them to do. (Genesis 42:18; Exodus 1:17; Exodus 18:21)

Fear of God  is not just an Old Testament concept. Jesus said in Matthew 10:28, “Don’t be afraid of those who want to kill your body; they cannot touch your soul. Fear only God, who can destroy both soul and body in hell.”

Nevertheless, there are times in my life when I’ve struggled with the concept of what it means to fear God. Yet, I’ve come to realize that having a fear of God gives us a more realistic view of God’s holiness and His power.

Fearing God doesn’t mean we cower in His presence—like a dog who knows he’s displeased his master—nor does it mean we run and hide instead of joyfully approaching Him. Instead, we embrace the fear of God because we recognize His characteristics—His all-powerful wrath toward sin, His unending sovereignty, and His unapproachable holiness—are an accurate understanding of who God really is.

The  fearfulness of God is a reality, even if we don’t like it very much.

Having a true picture of God is the beginning of wisdom. Proverbs 9:10: “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.”

We should fear God. We should  be in awe of His wrath and His judgment. Yet, at the same time, we should have peace, knowing He is shielding us from wrath, sheltering us in His arms forever.