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last updated September 22, 1998
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BE A WITNESS
September 22, 1998
Acts 10:34-36 Then Peter began to speak, I now realize how true
it is that God does not show favoritism but accepts men from every nation
who fear him and do what is right. You know the message that God sent to
the people of Israel telling the good news of peace through Jesus Christ,
who is Lord of all.
Have you ever thought of the opportunities you have in your everyday
life to witness your faith?
I used to think that witnessing meant going up to perfect strangers
and being kind of preachy to them -- you know, quoting Bible verses
to rebut imagined arguments of why they didn't want me to talk to them
about my relationship with Jesus Christ. That's what I thought witnessing
was.
Then I read somewhere that more than half the unchurched people in
the United States said they would go to church if they were invited
by a friend. That I could do.
And I don't even have to ask snoopy questions like, "do you go to
church on Sunday?" In fact, I don't bring the subject up at all. They do.
Somehow, when people know that Quint and I head out the door every Sunday
to refresh ourselves with the excitement of hearing God's Word -- like
ending one week before beginning another -- they are not the least bit
reluctant to join us.
"We'll wait for you in the narthex," I say. "You can sit with us
if you like."
Sometimes, folks, just rolling out of the driveway on Sunday
morning is being a witness.
And it would be downright selfish of me not to share with others
the joy and excitement of praising Him with worship and song. I'm a witness.
But I never thought I could be.
I CAN TALK TO GOD
Dear Heavenly Father,
I don't ever know how I started doing this, but I thank you for
letting me be your witness.
I know this isn't Jerusalem, but I hear you speaking to me across
the ages of time when, in Acts 1:8, your voice said, And you will be my
witness in Jerusalem. I thank you for being a presence in our church.
And yes, we sit in the same pew every week. But you know that when you look
down from above and see us sitting there. Same spot. Every week.
Sometimes I think of all the people in oppressed countries who are
not allowed to practice their faith. I think of churches that are closed and
locked. Doors shut. What a horrible thought. All those songs that never get
sung. Do you suppose they hide and secretly read their Bibles? Would I be
as free-spirited about going to church if I had to pay a fine? Or worse, go
to prison for worshiping you? And what if I had to hide my Bible? What then?
I thank you that we can walk into church without fear of
recrimination or persecution.
I thank you for the friends in faith we have come to love deeply.
Friends who share our faith. Friends who share the joy of worship and praise. Friends who love you, as we do.
,br>I thank you for setting my heart on fire.
I thank you for letting me be your witness. I thank you for not
showing favoritism by picking someone else. Someone more able than I to
spread the good news about you.
I thank you, God. Everyday, I thank you.
LOVE LETTER FROM JESUS
How are you? I just had to send you this letter to tell you how
much I love you and care about you. I saw you yesterday as you were walking
with your friends. I waited all day, hoping you would walk and talk with me
too. As evening drew near, I gave you a sunset to close your day, and a cool
breeze to rest you. Then I waited, but you never came. O yes, it hurt me,
but I still love you because I am your friend.
I saw you fall asleep last night, and I longed to touch your brow,
so, I spilled moonlight upon your pillow and your face ... Again, I waited,
wanting to rush down so we could talk. I have so many gifts for you.
You woke up late this morning and rushed off for the day. My tears
were in the rain. Today you looked so sad; so alone. It makes my heart
ache because I understand how you can hurt so much. My friends let me down
too and hurt me many times.
But I love you.
I try to tell you in the quiet green grass. I whisper it in the
leaves and trees and breathe it into the color of the flowers. I shout it
to you in the mountains, streams, and give the birds love songs to sing. I
clothe you with warm sunshine and perfume the air. My love for you is
deeper than the oceans and bigger than the biggest want or need you could
ever have.
We will spend eternity together in heaven. I know, though, how hard
it is on earth. I really know, because I was there too, and I want to help
you. My Father wants to help you, too. He's that way, you know. Just call
to me and ask me -- talk to me. It is your decision ... I have chosen you,
and because of this, I will wait ...
Because I love you.
Your friend,
Jesus
tell me about HOPE
from the 25th Psalm
To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul;
in you I trust, O my God.
Do not let me be put to shame,
nor let me enemies triumph over me.
No one whose hope is in you
will ever be put to shame,
but they will be put to shame
who are treacherous without excuse.
Show me your ways, O Lord,
teach me your paths;
guide me in your truth and teach me,
for you are God, my Savior,
and my hope is in you all day long.
Remember, O Lord, your great mercy and love...
Remember not the sins of my youth
and my rebellious ways;
according to your love remember me,
for you are good, O Lord.
Good and upright is the Lord;
therefore he instructs sinners in his ways.
He guides the humble in what is right
and teaches them his way.
All the ways of the Lord are loving and faithful
for those who keep the demands of
his covenant...
The Lord confides in those who fear him;
he makes his covenant known to them...
Turn to me and be gracious to me,
for I am lonely and afflicted.
The troubles of my heart have multiplied;
free me from my anguish...
Guard my life and rescue me;
let me not be put to shame,
for I take refuge in you.
May integrity and uprightness protect me,
because my hope is in you.
HOPE IS THE ARCHITECT OF THE FUTURE
The psalmist speaks of hope as it is wrapped around his relationship
with God -- a relationship that is rich in the expectancy of God's mercy
and love.
Hope is like that. By its very definition, hope arouses a feeling of
expectation -- a confidence that something is going to happen. When we have
hopes, we have dreams. Hope paints our future with dreams. Paul tells us in
Romans 12:12 that we are to be joyful in hope, patient in affliction,
faithful in prayer.
HOPE ANCHORS OUR FAITH
Restoring people to this hopeful relationship with Jesus Christ
must come quickly when working with people who suffer deep anguish within
their soul -- who suffer from a haunting sense of hopelessness.
A person who has lost hope has also lost a sense of trust in the
goodness and joy of all the possibilities that the future brings. Again,
Paul prays in his letter to the Romans (15:13) for the God of hope to
fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may
overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. It is this hope
that the author of the Hebrews writes in 6:19 that we have this hope
as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure.
HOPE GIVES US STRENGTH
In Isaiah 40:28-21, we read Do you not know? Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He
will not grow tired or weary, adn his understanding no one can fathom. He
gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths
grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in
the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eages; they
will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.
HOPE FOCUSES OUR SPIRITUALITY
Our spiritual awakening comes when we realize that we need God's
presence in our lives. This awareness can be fleeting at first, but the
more we grow to accept that God is truly walking through life with us, each
step of the way, we enter into an intimate communion with Him.
In the beginning of this new relationship with God, we may only
open ourselves to Him in the tiniest way -- then we wonder if He's really
going to talk with us -- really going to answer our prayers. The more we
open ourselves to Him, the deeper our thoughts become. His nearness blooms
out of our quiet monologues. This is the beginning of a prayer life that
becomes continuous.
God needs only the smallest opening in our hearts to get His
message through. He knows our pain and sorry even before we tell Him.
Quietly and ever so earnestly, He is able to reshape our attitudes to give
us new understandings. We begin to look at everything differently. We can
then quiet down all the hurts that scream within us. We can then listen
to His answers that come to us in hushed whispers -- so quietly that we may
even think they are our thoughts. The miracle of His presence is
that it happens so subtly that we aren't even aware of the transformation.
We are then reminded of Paul's message in Galatians 2:20, I love, no not
I, but Christ lives in me.
I spend a great deal of time driving from one counseling site to
another where I see clients in different churches, but I've never minded
being behind the wheel so much because this is my prayer time. The
realization that God is my passenger came to me one day when a solution to
a problem came suddenly out of the blue -- and was followed just as quickly
with the realization that He really is here -- right now -- and has been
with me all this time. These are not my insights at all, but His! A
chill ran through me, quickening me to new spiritual life. I can tell you
that I now spend as much time listening to that quiet whisper coming from
deep within me. It's where God has taken up residence in my soul -- and it
fills me with joy and hope.
It can for you, too.
MORE BIBLE READINGS ABOUT HOPE
Job 13:15 -- Though he will slay me, yet will I hope
Psalms 33:17 -- A horse is a vain hope for deliverance
Psalms 42:5 -- put your hope in God
Psalms 62:5 -- my hope comes from him
Psalms 119:74 -- for I have put my hope in your word
Psalms 130:5 -- and in his word I put my hope
Proverbs 13:12 -- Hope deferred makes the heart sick
Jeremiah 29:11 -- plans to give you hope and a future
Romans 8:20 -- in hope that the creation itself will be
Romans 8:24 -- but hope that is seen is no hope at all
Romans 12:12 -- be joyful in hope, patient in affliction
Romans 15:13 -- May the God of hope fill you
1 Cor. 13:7 -- always hopes, always perseveres
Ephesians 2:12 -- without hope and without God
1 Thess. 1:3 -- and your endurance inspired by hope
1 Timothy 4:10 -- that we have put our hope
1 Timothy 6:17 -- but to put their hope in God
Hebrews 6:19 -- We have this hope as an anchor
Hebrews 11:1 -- faith is being sure of what we hope for
1 John 3:3 -- Everyone who has this hope
I invite you to follow these passages in their full text. I have
given you only the briefest of a glimpse or hint as to what the texts
offer you -- but you must get into the Word every day. Take the time, if
only for a few minutes. It will nourish your soul, anesthetize your pain,
and soothe the aches you may feel.
I will pray for you. If you have a prayer request, please email
me.
tell me about HOPE is from Tell Me... Tell Me... Tell Me...
by Jane Reinheimer, copyright 1994.
BE STILL AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD
Psalms 46:10 "Be still and know that I am God."
Haven't you wondered what exactly we're supposed to be doing in this sin-
infested, drug-dripping, violence-oozing creepy world that was originally
created to be mankind's paradise? Actually, I think about that a lot.
"Be still and know that I am God," the psalmist reminds us.
Be still? How? There's too much to do.
But I'm the one who's busied my life with people to see and places
to go. I have to take responsibility for all my busy-ness and the
way I've cluttered my calendar. I have to accept that there are times when
I'm too noisy, too un-still. I have to be quiet if I am to hear the
Lord speak to me -- not in the wind -- not in the earthquake -- not in the
fire -- but in the silence, when He comes to me in a still, small whisper.
This is when God tries to connect with me, to talk to me, when He waits
for me to listen to Him. Be still. Hush. Listen.
It takes time for me to quiet down. My head is too often too busy.
But I can't hear Him if I won't be quiet. It takes me about twenty minutes
to quiet down and get all the thoughts out of my head that seem to bombard
me when I want to be quiet. And then -- miracle of miracles, it happens.
He answers me!
The first time I heard Him answer me, it was the most awesome
experience. I had almost given up. I remember thinking that maybe He was
too busy that day. I had been quiet for what seemed an eternity. And then
His answer came to me. Yes, it was a quiet whisper from somewhere deep
inside myself. I connected with Him in a way I had never dreamed possible.
I heard the voice of God in my heart. I hope you find His answers to your
problems, too, in still, small whispers.
He has promised to do so. We need only to believe.
I CAN TALK TO GOD
My heavenly Father,
I am so glad that you continue your promise to always be with me.
Me, of all people!
I am most undeserving of your kindness, yet you continue to bless
me and those I love every day of our lives. I am amazed that I feel your
continued presence in every waking hour.
I pray, especially today, that you will reach across the noisy
clatter going through my head. I desperately need to hear you now.
I pray that others may hear you too. Help us all quiet down so that
we can hear you.
I know that some are anguished by fears and unfilled dreams. Some
of us have enormous problems that are tormenting us.
Give us quiet moments to be with you. Help us be quiet so that we
can hear your voice in the quiet stillness of our hearts.
Help us listen for your voice that tells us what we need to do --
what you want us to do. Amen.
from April 1998 issue of The Reinheimer Letter
Email: rein@starnetinc.com
