1. Art and Diseño

God Loves Us
Just what do Christians look like?
What sets their lives apart?
We are all God’s children and He
They’re ordinary people
loves us, every one.
Who love God from the heart.
He freely and completely forgives
--D. De Haan
all that we have done,
People with a heart for God have a Asking only if we’re ready to follow
where He leads,
heart for people.
Content that in His wisdom He will
POEMS
answer all our needs.
A Gift of Love
--Helen Steiner Rice
Time is not measured by the years
that you live
But by the deeds that you do and the
joy that you give
And from birthday to birthday, the
good Lord above,
Bestows on His children the gift of
His love,
Asking us only to share it with
others
By treating all people not as strangers
but brothers.
And each day as it comes brings a
chance to each one
To live to the fullest, leaving nothing
undone
That would brighten the life or
lighten the load
Of some weary traveler lost on life’s
road.
So what does it matter how long we
may live
If as long as we live we unselfishly
give.
--Helen Steiner Rice
JESUS LOVES THE SENIORS
Jesus loves me, this I know,
Though my hair is white as snow.
Though my sight is growing dim,
Still He bids me trust in Him.
Chorus
Yes, Jesus loves me.
Yes, Jesus loves me.
Yes, Jesus loves me,
The Bible tells me so.
Though my steps are oh so slow,
With my hand in His I’ll go
On through life, let come what
may,
He’ll be there to lead the way.
When the nights are dark and long,
In my heart He puts a song.
Telling me in words so clear,
“Have no fear, for I am near.”
the
Christian
Magnifier
Volume 62
February 2015
Number 2
CONTENTS
Just A Little Sin . ................................................... 2
Ash Wednesday .................................................... 3
Savior, When In Dust To You ................................ 5
The Gift Of Love................................................... 6
Waste Not, Want Not............................................ 6
I L-O-V-E............................................................... 7
Heart Matters........................................................ 8
God’s Beloved Son................................................ 9
Another Gadget You Don’t Need........................ 10
Kingdom Kids...................................................... 11
Love Is................................................................. 12
Humor For Lexophiles......................................... 12
Love Gives........................................................... 13
Virus................................................................... 14
A Fragrance......................................................... 16
HeartPrints.......................................................... 16
Poems................................................................. 16
Jesus said, I am the light of the world.
Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness,
but will have the light of life.
John 8:12
Published by the Lutheran Braille Evangelism Association
A Magazine of Christian Literature published monthly by
the Lutheran Braille Evangelism Association
1740 Eugene St., White Bear Lake, MN 55110
Phone (651) 426-0469. • Email: [email protected]
Subscription Price — $8.00 per year
Single Issue — $1.00
Editor: Rev. Dennis A. Hawkinson, White Bear Lake, MN.
Lutheran Braille Evangelism Officers:
President: Matthew Dobbins, St. Paul, MN.
Vice President: Rev. Robert Preuss, St. Paul, MN.
Secretary: Herb Svendsen, Mahtomedi, MN.
Treasurer: Mrs. Bethany Muinch, Hugo, MN.
Other Board Members:
Mary Schintz, Minneapolis, MN; Rev. Mickey Dobbins,
Rev. Gary Olson, Rev. Roger Schwartz, St. Paul, MN;
Elaine Svendsen, Mahtomedi, MN; Kay Molstrom, Marlys
Stevens, Bruce Tilderquist, Cannon Falls, MN; Yvonne
Pilot, Inver Grove Heights, MN.
The Lutheran Braille Evangelism Association is an
independent non-profit organization which publishes
Christian materials for people with impaired vision.
JUST A LITTLE SIN
Surely you don’t commit BIG sins.
You don’t steal cars or kill people.
You pay your taxes and keep your
lawn tidy. So you nab a few grapes
from the supermarket produce
display. That’s no big deal, right?
Well, it is. You didn’t pay for them;
you stole them. And in God’s eyes,
a small sin is the same as a big sin,
resulting in separation from Him.
God is holy and sinless and cannot
abide any sin in His presence. The
Bible does not provide a convenient
list that ranks sins according to their
severity. In fact, it labels sins as sin
and states that ALL sin separates us
from God.
On one occasion during His
ministry, Jesus was asked a very
interesting question: “Of all the
commandments, which is the most
important?” (Mark 12:28) Jesus
replied, “The most important
commandment is this: . . . ‘You
must love the Lord your God with
all your heart, all your soul, all your
mind, and all your strength.’ The
second is equally important: ‘Love
your neighbor as yourself.’ No
other commandment is greater than
these.” (Mark 12:29-31)
Do you honestly love God with
that intensity every moment of every
day? Many of us will experience
hours or days when we hardly give
a second thought to God. And even
then, we fall far short of loving Him
with total and absolute devotion.
And we face similar challenges and
setbacks when it comes to loving
others.
In spite of our failures and
shortcomings, God still loves us and
longs for a loving response from
us. After the apostle Paul came to
faith, he sensed this marvelous love
of God - “who loved me and gave
Himself for me” (Galatians 2:20) - a
love that was demonstrated in the
ultimate price that Jesus Christ paid
when He suffered and died on the
cross.
Page Two
Dorcas. This woman was full of good
works and charitable deeds which
she did. But it happened in those days
that she became sick and died. When
they had washed her, they laid her
in an upper room. And since Lydda
was near Joppa, and the disciples had
heard that Peter was there, they sent
two men to him, imploring him not to
delay in coming to them. Then Peter
arose and went with them. When
he had come, they brought him to
the upper room. And all the widows
stood by him weeping, showing the
tunics and garments which Dorcas
had made while she was with them.
But Peter put them all out, and knelt
down and prayed. And turning to
the body he said, “Tabitha, arise.”
And she opened her eyes, and when
she saw Peter she sat up. Then he
gave her his hand and lifted her up;
and when he had called the saints
and widows, he presented her alive.
And it became known throughout
all Joppa, and many believed on the
Lord. So it was that he stayed many
days in Joppa with Simon, a tanner.
--Acts 9:36-43 (NKJV)
We leave fingerprints on doorknobs,
on books, on walls, on keyboards.
Each personís fingerprints are
unique, so we leave our identity
on everything we touch. Some
supermarkets are even testing a
technology that allows customers to
pay by fingerprint. Each customerís
unique print and bank account
number are kept on file so that the
only thing needed to pay a bill is a
scan of their finger.
A woman in the early church left
another kind of print, a “heartprint.”
Dorcas touched many peopleís lives
through her unique gift of sewing
and giving away garments. Sheís
described as “full of good works
and charitable deeds”. (Acts 9:36)
We too are to be “zealous for good
works”. (Titus 2:14) We each have
a unique heartprint that can touch
another.
An unknown author wrote this
prayer about encouraging others:
“O God, wherever I go today, help
me leave heartprints! Heartprints
of compassion, understanding, and
love. Heartprints of kindness and
genuine concern. May my heart
touch a lonely neighbor or runaway
daughter or anxious mother or even
an aged grandfather. Send me out
today to leave heartprints. And
if someone should say, ‘I felt your
touch,í may that one sense Your love
touching through me.”
Will you make this your prayer
today?
--Anne Cetas (Our Daily Bread)
Page Fifteen
we’ll keep our minds from becoming
unwitting hosts for unwanted
guests.
--Haddon W. Robinson
Heavenly Father, I’m often careless
with what I allow to enter my mind.
By Your Spirit, please help me to
guard my mind today. By Your grace,
keep me from situations that wage
war on my thought life. Amen.
Guard your thoughts as you would
your wallet.
“Blessed be His name for shining
upon so dark a heart as mine.”
--Oliver Cromwell
A FRAGRANCE
her sinfulness, and she embraced
Jesus’ forgiveness. The youth group
had given her a fragrance of God’s
love, and God opened her heart to
trust Him.
“If God so loved us, we ought to
love one another,” the apostle John
said. (1 John 4:11) That’s a love for
our brothers and sisters in Christ
as well as for those who don’t yet
know Him. Ray Stedman wrote, “As
God’s love shines into our hearts,
we become more open to others,
allowing the fragrance of love to
drift out and attract those around
us.” The youth group did that for
Katie.
God can spread the fragrance of
His love through us today.
Lord, I’m so thankful that because
You first loved me, I am able to love
others. Please spread the sweet
fragrance of Your love through me
to everyone I interact with today.
Amen.
--Anne Cetas (Our Daily Bread)
Katie nervously walked into the
church youth group party that Linda
had invited her to attend. She hadn’t
been to a church since she was a little
girl and didn’t know what to expect
at a Valentine dinner with mostly
strangers. But her heart started to
“You will find as you look back on
calm when she found valentines
your life that the moments that
at her plate that had been written
stand out above everything else are
for her from everyone there. They
the moments when you have done
had cards for each other too, but it
things in a spirit of love.”
touched Katie’s heart that they would
--Henry Drummond
think to do that for her, a visitor to
their group.
HEARTPRINTS
Katie felt so welcomed that she
accepted Linda’s invitation to a At Joppa there was a certain disciple
church service. There she heard named Tabitha, which is translated
about God’s love for her in spite of
Page Fourteen
forehead of an older member of the
congregation. He has been battling
cancer and is losing; it is doubtful
he will be here for ashes next year.
She marks a child, barely eighteen
months old. The child looks up with
sparkling, dark eyes. What does this
child know of ashes, of brokenness
and death? The pastor moves down
the altar rail. She marks the foreheads
of a couple who are trying to help
a son with drug problems. And so
it goes, down the altar rail. Ashes.
Dust. Struggles. Sighs. Death.
But on this night the ashes will not
have the last word. Echoing above
the ashes are the words of Joel, words
that ring through the Scriptures
from Genesis to Revelation: God
is “gracious and merciful, slow to
anger, and abounding in steadfast
love.” The pastor knows that is why
each worshiper has come, each and
every one, from the youngest to the
eldest.
Let us pray: Compassionate God, we
pray for all those who are struggling
“My soul is like a mirror in which in body, mind, or spirit this night.
the glory of God is reflected, but sin, Grant them a sense of Your peace,
however insignificant, covers the through Christ. Amen.
--Author Unknown
mirror with smoke.” --St. Theresa
When you realize and experience
the love of God for yourself, it’s likely
that it will be reflected in how you
treat others: “we love each other
because He loved us first.” (1 John
4:19)
Your sin is forgiven the moment
you admit your own unworthiness
and personally trust Jesus Christ,
who died for your sin, as your Savior
and Lord.
Do you sense your own need of
God, His pardon, and His peace?
Tell Him right now. He is willing and
eager to come to you with His love.
--Jim Kraus (Have A Good Day)
(Editor’s Note: In this month of
February our thoughts are drawn
to love. On February 18th we will
begin the season of Lent with the
observance of Ash Wednesday. As
ashes are traced in the sign of the cross
upon our foreheads let us remember
and be thankful for the greatest love
that has ever been showered upon
us - the love of God.)
“The dying Jesus is the evidence of
ASH WEDNESDAY
God’s anger toward sin; but the living
Jesus is the proof of God’s love and
“Remember you are dust, and to dust forgiveness.”
you shall return.” The pastor makes
--Eifert
the sign of the cross on the creased
Page Three
SAVIOR, WHEN
IN DUST TO YOU
Savior, when in dust to You low we
bow in homage due;
When, repentant, to the skies scarce
we lift our weeping eyes;
Oh, by all Your pains and woe
suffered once for us below,
Bending from Your throne on high,
hear our penitential cry!
By Your helpless infant years, by Your
life of want and tears,
By Your days of deep distress in the
savage wilderness,
By the dread, mysterious hour of the
insulting tempter’s pow’r,
Turn, oh, turn a fav’ring eye; hear
our penitential cry!
By Your hour of dire despair, by Your
agony of prayer,
By the cross, the nail, the thorn,
piercing spear, and torturing scorn,
By the gloom that veiled the skies
o’er the dreadful sacrifice,
Listen to our humble sigh; hear our
penitential cry!
By Your deep expiring groan, by the
sad sepulchral stone,
By the vault whose dark abode held
in vain the rising God,
Oh, from earth to heav’n restored,
mighty, reascended Lord,
Bending from Your throne on high,
hear our penitential cry!
Robert Grant wrote this hymn text
and first published it in The Christian
Observer magazine in November of
1815.
Grant was born in Bengal, India in
1779. He was educated at Magdalen
College in Oxford, England, and was
appointed to the British Parliament.
Later in life he was knighted upon
his becoming governor of Bombay,
India. One of Grant’s hobbies was
the writing of hymn texts and his
brother collected and published
them in 1839 as a memorial to him.
Robert Grant died in 1838.
Joseph Parry composed the tune
“Aberystwyth”, named after a Welsh
sea resort, to be used with a different
Welsh hymn, but was later paired
with Robert Grant’s text.
Parry was born in Wales in 1841. As
was common in that area, he worked
in the iron foundry by the age of ten.
In 1854 his family immigrated to
America and settled in the Danville,
PA area. Parry studied music and
completed a Bachelor of Music
degree at Cambridge, England. Most
of his career as a music educator,
composer and organist was spent in
Wales. His compositions included
oratorios, cantatas, operas, choral
and instrumental works, as well as
over 400 hymn tunes.
Joseph Parry died in 1903.
--Barbara Hawkinson
Page Four
cross where Christ gave Himself into
a ghastly death for you. Christ hung
on your cross. Can you imagine a
love that gives like that?
Even now, God loves. God gives.
There’s no thermometer, no yardstick
to gauge that kind of love. There’s no
tape measure long enough to wrap
around it. But in Jesus, God gives
His love to you. It’s personal. It’s
true. It’s yours. Believe it!
--Jane L. Fryar
(Loved Beyond Measure)
“A gift is freely given, and expects
no return, its reason is love. What
is first given is love; that is the first
gift. The Holy Ghost comes forth as
the substance of love, and Gift is His
proper name.”
--Thomas Aquinas
VIRUS
For though we walk in the flesh, we
do not war according to the flesh. For
the weapons of our warfare are not
carnal but mighty in God for pulling
down strongholds, casting down
arguments and every high thing that
exalts itself against the knowledge
of God, bringing every thought
into captivity to the obedience of
Christ, and being ready to punish all
disobedience when your obedience
is fulfilled.
2 Corinthians 10:3-6 (NKJV)
Some days my computer helps
me fly like an eagle. Other times, it
bogs me down like a hippopotamus.
On “eagle days” I’m grateful for
my computer. But there are those
“hippo days” when I rue the day I
bought one.
Recently I’ve had to contend with
a virus that invaded my computer.
What bothers me most is that viruses
are created maliciously.
Bright
people who live with a darkness
in their lives want to make other
people miserable. Whatís worse,
I permitted the virus to enter my
machine by opening what I thought
was an innocent e-mail.
Sin resembles a computer virus.
Satan wants to destroy Christians
by infecting their minds. But the
apostle Paul urged the believers at
Corinth to bring “every thought into
captivity to the obedience of Christ”.
(2 Corinthians 10:5)
Just as we let a virus into our
computers, we also let darkness into
our lives when we open ourselves
unthinkingly to the godless messages
that permeate our culture. We let
down our guard and hardly notice
the sin that infects our minds.
But by confessing our sin, reading
Godís Word, and praying, we build a
firewall, or barrier, to safeguard our
minds. With the help of the Spirit,
Page Thirteen
A chicken crossing the road is poultry
in motion.
If you don’t pay your exorcist you
can get repossessed.
Show me a piano falling down a mine
shaft and I’ll show you A-flat miner.
The guy who fell onto an upholstery
machine was fully recovered.
A grenade fell onto a kitchen floor in
France, resulted in Linoleum Blown
Apart.
A calendar’s days are numbered.
A lot of money is tainted: ‘Taint
yours, and ‘taint mine.
A boiled egg is hard to beat.
He had a photographic memory
which was never developed.
When you’ve seen one shopping
center, you’ve seen a mall.
When she saw her first strands of
gray hair, she thought she’d dye.
Bakers trade bread recipes on a
knead to know basis.
Acupuncture: a jab well done.
LOVE GIVES
Fran is six. On Saturday afternoon,
she could be playing with her friend
Monica. Instead, Fran is working and
working and working on a birthday
card for her grandma. I don’t have
to tell you, do I? Fran loves her
grandma very much.
Twila is struggling to stay awake at
work. She was up all night with her
infant son. He has the sniffles and
a fever. He couldn’t settle down.
So Twila stayed up, rocking, pacing,
comforting. I don’t have to tell
you, do I? Twila loves her son very
much.
You can’t hide love. You can’t keep
it a secret. Love gives, even when it
would be easier to walk away. God
knows, it would have been easier!
You see, not long after Creation,
God’s creatures made the world
He so loves a very unlovely place.
Our rebellion continues still today.
We ignore our Father, living as we
please. We resent His claims on our
loyalty and obedience. We trash the
planet He gave to be our home. We
nurse grudges and hone words into
weapons that wound.
But God still loved, and so, God
gave. He gave His Son, born here on
earth in the wee hours of that very
first Christmas morning.
The infant Jesus grew up and kept
on giving. He gave sight to the blind,
bread to the hungry, good news to
the poor in spirit, and forgiveness to
all, even His enemies.
Even then, God’s giving didn’t stop.
Instead, it climaxed on Calvary’s
Page Twelve
“We are made for the splendor
of celestial glory. If the Lord also
reserves for us a little honor on
earth, this is of no value at all and
perishes quickly if it is not of God.
If the Lord on the contrary, disposes
that the value of our life be entirely
hidden in Him it would be ridiculous
to look for anything else.”
--Pope John XXII
THE GIFT OF LOVE
Look to the cross, where God gives
you His gift of love, Jesus, who loves
you so much that He died for you.
“By this we know love, that He laid
down His life for us.” (1 John 3:16)
--Author Unknown
“Love spends his all, and still hath st
ore.”
--Bailey
WASTE NOT, WANT NOT
Every idea is worth considering.
Ah, love. Countless songs, movies, Most ideas are worthy of action.
and books have been written on the The most tragic waste is the waste
subject, with a million definitions.
of a good idea. I ask you now: Is
“Love one another as I have loved there some great idea in your life
you,” Jesus commanded. (John that you have still not dealt with
15:12) But it’s hard, Lord. It’s hard affirmatively?
to love when others offend, when
Everyone has within him some
a spouse hurts and abuses, when idea of something that he should
friends betray. Such actions crush have started but hasn’t. Maybe it’s
our desire to show love to one to quit smoking. Maybe it’s to lose
another, sometimes fatally. And at weight. Maybe it’s to get started on a
times, we use the lovelessness of physical fitness program. Maybe it’s
others as an excuse to withhold our to join a church. Maybe it’s to accept
love from those around us.
Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord.
Our greatest hope is that others will Maybe it’s to read the Bible, which
love us in spite of the hurts we cause. you may never have done. Maybe it’s
It is the deepest desire of the human to start a new business. Maybe it’s
heart to be loved unconditionally.
to go back to school. Maybe it’s to
Real honest to goodness pure love take a positive attitude toward your
is active. “God shows His love for marriage, discarding the negative
us in that while we were still sinners, attitude you’ve had far too long.
Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8) Maybe it’s to quit drinking. I don’t
Divine love sacrifices all, even one’s know what it is, but everyone, I have
life, for another. For us.
no doubt, has an idea of some area
See how the Father loves you! in which he should be taking some
Page Five
maybe Jessica.” He kept spelling.
No. It was: “J-E-S-U-S.” The pilot
was declaring love for Jesus for many
people to see.
A friend of mine often ends his
prayers with “I love You, Lord.” He
says, “I can’t help but say ‘I love
You’ after all He’s done for me.” In
Romans 6:1-11, the apostle Paul tells
us some of what Jesus has done for
us that deserves our love: He was
crucified, buried, and raised to life.
Because of that, those of us who
have put our faith in Jesus now have
new life, we no longer have to be
controlled by sin or fear of death, and
one day we too will be resurrected
“Strong beliefs win strong men, and to live with Him forever. Read and
meditate on these verses.
then make them stronger.”
No wonder we say, “I love You,
--Bagehot
Jesus!”
--Anne Cetas (Our Daily Bread)
I L-O-V-E
action for self-improvement.
Now, what will you do with that
idea? America is known for its waste.
We waste money, energy, gasoline,
fuel, time, clothing, and paper. But
nothing is as tragic as the waste of a
good idea! So, if there’s a good idea
in your mind right now, don’t waste
it!
Thank you, Lord, for the exciting
ideas you are waiting to send into
my thinking mind! I’d explode with
enthusiasm if I could think of all the
positive thoughts waiting to come out
of my God-inspired brain. Amen.
-- Dr. Robert H. Schuller
My husband and I were at a public
swimming pool when the people
around us started staring into the
sky. A small plane was emitting
smoke in the form of letters. As
we watched, the pilot spelled out
the letters: “I L-O-V-E.” People
began speculating: Maybe it was to
be a marriage proposal. Perhaps a
romantic man is standing nearby on
a balcony with his girlfriend and will
soon pop the Will-you-marry-me
question. We kept gazing upward.
“I L-O-V-E Y-O-U J-E.” I heard young
girls guessing: “I bet it will be Jen or
What shall we say then? Shall
we continue in sin that grace may
abound? Certainly not! How shall
we who died to sin live any longer in
it? Or do you not know that as many
of us as were baptized into Christ
Jesus were baptized into His death?
Therefore we were buried with Him
through baptism into death, that just
as Christ was raised from the dead by
the glory of the Father, even so we
also should walk in newness of life.
For if we have been united together
in the likeness of His death, certainly
Page Six
Himself to suffering to reveal the
divine heart.
The Spirit is Love’s breathing in the
world. It is Love’s life and energy
filling us and all things, allowing us
to speak and breathe the Word in
our time and place. This breathing
“Nothing in my hand I bring, simply draws everything into harmony with
the One who is Love.
to Thy Cross I cling.”
Love is. Love speaks. Love draws
--Toplady
everything home, back to God.
--Sue Gamelin
LOVE IS
(Christ In Our Home)
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ,
the love of God, and the communion “Love isn’t like a reservoir. You’ll
of the Holy Spirit be with you all. (2 never drain it dry. It’s much more
like a natural spring. The longer
Corinthians 13:13)
and the farther it flows, the stronger
We may find it hard to grasp the and the deeper and the clearer it
Trinitarian idea in this verse, but becomes.”
--Cantor
our experience tells us what we
need to know: Love is. Love speaks.
Love breathes and draws us home.
HUMOR FOR LEXOPHILES
Everything begins and ends in God,
(Lovers Of Words)
the inexhaustible source of all love
and all that is. Without beginning I wondered why the baseball was
or end, God is the great giver who is getting bigger. Then it hit me.
always turned toward us.
When the smog lifts in Los Angeles,
To say that God is love is to say U.C.L.A.
that God constantly pours out the
divine heart, constantly giving and Time flies like an arrow;
constantly hungering for the love fruit flies like a banana.
given to be returned, so that all might A backward poet writes inverse.
share in the beauty of divine life.
Christ is Love’s Word. He is the In a democracy it’s your vote that
voice of Love, speaking, acting, counts;
healing, blessing, and surrendering In feudalism it’s the Count that
votes.
“The Cross of Christ must be either
the darkest spot of all in the mystery
of existence or a searchlight by the
aid of which we may penetrate the
surrounding gloom.”
--Streeter
Page Eleven
school, and while traveling, so you
can always lift up your hand to His
commands and meditate on His
statutes.
The Bible is not simply a guide
for life, a collection of wise sayings
and wonderful stories. It is both the
meeting place and the instrument
that brings you and God together.
--Woodrow Kroll
(How to Find God in the Bible)
“The study of God’s Word, for the
purpose of discovering God’s will,
is the secret discipline which has
formed the greatest characters.”
--J.W. Alexander
KINGDOM KIDS
A few years ago I went to a church
service on the morning of Ash
Wednesday. The children from the
Christian school also went to this
worship service and my grandson
Eli was there with his kindergarten
class. Since it was Ash Wednesday,
everyone went up to the altar to
receive the sign of the cross upon
their foreheads made out of ashes
as a sign of being sorry for our sins
and a reminder that Jesus took away
those sins when He died upon the
cross.
The kindergarten class was the first
group to kneel at the altar. The pastor
blessed each child and then marked
each child with the sign of the cross.
It was a very big cross that made a
black mark on each forehead and it
was a new experience for some of
the children. As the kindergartners
went back to their seats, some of
them were brushing back their hair
and pointing to each other’s cross
on their foreheads. It was a big deal
and the sign of the cross made a big
impression on those children.
The cross of Christ is a big deal! At
baptism we were marked with the
sign of the cross upon our foreheads
with the baptismal water as a symbol
that our sins were washed away by
the death of Jesus upon the cross.
Even though we can’t see it, God
can. He looks at us and sees His Son
Jesus dying upon the cross. God sees
you and me as a forgiven member of
His holy family. Through the death
of Jesus upon the cross all believers
receive the forgiveness of their sins
and the gift of eternal life.
The kindergartners were excited
that day about the cross marked
with ashes upon their foreheads.
What a wonderful reminder that
we belong to God. We are marked
with the cross of Christ forever! We
are loved! We are forgiven! We are
God’s!
Let’s pray: Dear God, how I thank
You for Your wondrous love for me.
I am marked with the cross of Christ
and am Your child forever. Thank
You, Lord. Amen.
--Barbara
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we also shall be in the likeness of His
resurrection, knowing this, that our
old man was crucified with Him,
that the body of sin might be done
away with, that we should no longer
be slaves of sin. For he who has died
has been freed from sin. Now if we
died with Christ, we believe that we
shall also live with Him, knowing
that Christ, having been raised from
the dead, dies no more. Death no
longer has dominion over Him. For
the death that He died, He died to
sin once for all; but the life that He
lives, He lives to God. Likewise you
also, reckon yourselves to be dead
indeed to sin, but alive to God in
Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans 6:1-11 (NKJV)
“Be not afraid of life. Believe that
life is worth living, and your belief
will help create the fact.”
--James
HEART MATTERS
Green was a wonderful lady.
My Great Uncle Carl fought in
World War I. When I was a boy I
visited him and felt as if I were
touching history in the flesh. This
man who held my hand had been
in the trenches and fired a gun.
Until he died his physical presence
connected me to an otherwise faded
past.
Now there is no one left from that
war, or any war before it. Every last
survivor eventually died. And every
war from now on will have its last
survivor die.
I think of the unspeakable horrors
World War I unleashed. And now
those involved are all gone. Every
last person. It no longer matters what
side they were on in that senseless
conflict. Nor does it matter whether
they died on the battlefield or years
later in a nursing home. Now theyíre
all in eternity, for better or worse.
How they spend eternity has nothing
to do with which uniform they wore
but with what was in their hearts.
So many things seemed important
back then, just as so many things
seem important right now. But they
will all fade and give up their last
survivors.
If we can truly grasp this fact, what
would it do to us and the way we
face conflicts, whether as a nation
or in our own lives?
--Peter Lundell
The world’s last surviving veteran
of World War I died on February 4,
2012. Florence Green signed up
for the Womenís Royal Air Force in
1919 at age 17. Ironically she was
afraid of flying. She worked as an
Officerís Mess steward.
Before passing away at age 110,
she had been in a nursing home less
than three months. Previously she
lived at home with her daughter,
who was 90. By every account Mrs.
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“There is a God-created vacuum
in the heart of every man, which
cannot be satisfied by any created
thing, but only by God the Creator,
made known through Jesus Christ.”
---Blaise Pascal
GOD’S BELOVED SON
The account of the Transfiguration
is most intriguing. Our first inclination
is to see it as a demonstration of
God’s power and as vindication of
Jesus’ divinity. Like Peter, we feel
like saying, “It is good that we are
here.” (Mark 9:5) We would like to
perpetuate this glorious scene.
It is significant that the
Transfiguration lasted only a short
time. So also is Jesus’ command to
His disciples not to tell others about
the vision “until the Son of Man
had risen from the dead.”(v.9) This
indicates that Jesus’ Passion, which
follows, is far more important for us
than beholding His glory. As Luther
said, “It is not sufficient for anyone,
and it does him no good to recognize
God in His glory and majesty, unless
he recognizes Him in the humility
and shame of the cross.”
What happened on the Mount
of Transfiguration is important. It
reveals that Jesus is truly the Son of
God. What followed - the Son of
God going to Jerusalem to carry the
sin of the world and to suffer and die
for us - is where we find the source
of our salvation.
--Merlin D. Rehm
(Portals of Prayer)
And He said to them, “Assuredly,
I say to you that there are some
standing here who will not taste
death till they see the kingdom of
God present with power.” Now
after six days Jesus took Peter, James,
and John, and led them up on a
high mountain apart by themselves;
and He was transfigured before
them. His clothes became shining,
exceedingly white, like snow, such
as no launderer on earth can whiten
them. And Elijah appeared to them
with Moses, and they were talking
with Jesus. Then Peter answered
and said to Jesus, “Rabbi, it is good
for us to be here; and let us make
three tabernacles: one for You,
one for Moses, and one for Elijah”,
because he did not know what to
say, for they were greatly afraid. And
a cloud came and overshadowed
them; and a voice came out of the
cloud, saying, “This is My beloved
Son. Hear Him!” Suddenly, when A TRANSFIGURATION PRAYER
they had looked around, they saw
no one anymore, but only Jesus with
Glorious Lord, You revealed a bit of
themselves. (Mark 9:1-8)
Your glory to Moses on Mount Sinai
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and to Peter, James, and John on
the Mount of Transfiguration. Your
glory was reflected in their message.
Transform us that we may reflect
Your saving light to others who have
not yet seen the light. Guard and
keep us from the foot of the cross
to the foot of the throne, where we
shall see You face-to-face and share
in Your glory. Amen.
(Editor’s Note: The remembrance
of the Transfiguration of our Lord
is celebrated on the Sunday before
Ash Wednesday which, this year, is
February 15th.)
“The thoughts that come often
unsought, and, as it were, drop
into the mind, are commonly the
most valuable of any we have, and
therefore should be secured, because
they seldom return again.”
--Locker
ANOTHER GADGET
YOU DON’T NEED
Let Your mercies come also to me,
O LORD - Your salvation according
to Your word. So shall I have an
answer for him who reproaches me,
for I trust in Your word.
And take not the word of truth
utterly out of my mouth, for I have
hoped in Your ordinances. So shall
I keep Your law continually, forever
and ever.
And I will walk at liberty, for I seek
Your precepts. I will speak of Your
testimonies also before kings, and will
not be ashamed. And I will delight
myself in Your commandments,
which I love. My hands also I will lift
up to Your commandments, which
I love, and I will meditate on Your
statutes. Psalm 119:41-48 (NKJV)
Recently a Los Angeles street artist
pranked retail giant Best Buy. He
created empty boxes and snuck them
into stores. The boxes looked like an
official product with bar code, price,
and label. But a closer look showed
these words on the box: “Another
Gadget You Don’t Really Need.”
Discovering the prank, the stores
removed the boxes immediately, but
the media kept the story alive for
days.
We often spend a lot of money for
items whether we need them or not.
Some possessions assume great value
to us. Others we soon toss out. But
the one item everyone should value
above all else is the Word of God.
The Scottish Christians of earlier
days had a habit of never placing
any object on top of the Scripture.
They wanted their Bibles accessible,
visible, displayed for testimony’s
sake, and available for use at any
moment. Why not adopt the same
habit? Keep a Bible always within
an arm’s reach, at work, home,
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