Tag: purpose

Unto Us

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For to us a Child shall be born, to us a Son shall be given;
And the government shall be upon His shoulder,
And His name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

There shall be no end to the increase of His government and of peace,
[He shall rule] on the throne of David and over his kingdom,
To establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness
From that time forward and forevermore.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will accomplish this. Isaiah 9:6-7 Amp.

All of us have been held by God before He released us here, on planet earth. He knew us and loved us long before our parents did. Though He longs for us to be with Him in heaven, to once again hold us to His breast the way He did before He lent us to the world existing here, He does not want any of us a moment before our appointed time. He has plans, dreams, and purposes that He longs for us to fulfill with Him as He guides us along the way. He wills that none of us should perish, but that all of us will have eternal life and begin living it here.

I pray that, no matter our situations, we will reflect upon the wonder and beauty of Christmas. May we think kindly upon the Son gifted to us, the One who gave up a heavenly home to walk among us as a man and show us by example how to live a fulfilling, triumphant life here. May we ever put Jesus’ sacrifice before us and attempt to live up to His expectations in the strength He has given to us. I pronounce a blessing of peace over you and joyful anticipation for your future.

Hope you enjoy this as much as I have. May you have a very merry, miraculous Christmas!

Living a Worthwhile Life

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Have you ever asked a stupid question? Perhaps like me, you have heard, “There are no stupid questions.” I think I found one. A mother of one of our in-laws recently passed away. I called to offer condolences and ask if there was anything I could do. I heard myself asking, “Was this expected?” I’m sure you know what I mean; there are sudden, unexpected deaths and then there are the deaths that come on the heels of doctors’ prognosis. Interestingly enough, my in-law said, “Oh yeah, we’ve been expecting this for 30 years” (due to heart problems).

As I reflected on our brief conversation, I thought, How stupid of me to ask if it was expected. From the moment we are born we begin to die. No matter how good a life we live, no matter how long a life we live, if Jesus tarries, we’re all gonna die. In light of that, I can see why certain cultures weave a strand of mourning into the tapestry of life in the joyful event of birth. Being in this world, we will have trying times and death lies ahead.

As I was contemplating the difficult business of living and dying, I came up with the name of someone that made me smile, an example of a life that’s worth emulating: John Chapman. It is said that John Chapman, a.k.a. Johnny Appleseed, walked the countryside for nearly 50 years, creating nurseries for his precious seed that would grow into apple trees. I never noticed how many are scattered abroad until last fall when I saw trees heavily laden with the copious fruit everywhere we went. What a testament to this legendary man.  He is an example to us of finding something worth living for and doing it until our dying day. Could you imagine what life would be like if we lived our lives full of passion like he did? We don’t need platforms or stages to fulfill our purpose, we simply need to be faithful to cultivate the “seeds” God gave us and deposit them everywhere we go.

So how do we live a worthwhile life? We live like we’re going to die — because that’s what’s going to happen if Jesus tarries. Do I relish the thought of dying? No, not necessarily, but it’s gonna happen. I need to do what I can do: Live my best life in the here and now. Like Johnny Appleseed, I need to drop as many seeds and build as many nurseries as I can to grow and guard my purpose. Are you willing to do the same?

Join me today in living and loving life . . . and maybe eat an apple.