The veil

This Wednesday, we are praying for Jewish people everywhere who have not yet found Christ. You can probably think of a few people you know who fit this description. 2 Corinthians 3:14 reads "But their minds were made dull, for to this day the same veil remains when the old covenant is read. It has not been removed, because only in Christ is it taken away." We all know that Christ is the answer to the old testament prophecies. Yet these unsaved Jewish people still read the old testament and cannot see how Christ takes the veil away. They debate over Messiah… They look for signs such as the red calf… All the while working to keep the law in an attempt to earn their way to heaven. They know the rules but they don't really know the Rule Maker.

So let's pray that these people come to accept Christ as their savior. That the veil is lifted as they read passages like Psalm 22 and Isaiah 53. They already believe in God. Their hurdle is Christ. Let them come to know Him and to have a relationship with Him.

Have a great week and a great fast.
Your brother,
Bob

Fruits

A couple weeks ago, I opened our fridge to find that there was an odor starting to develop. Our fridge tends to make chaos look organized so it took quite some time to discover the source of the offending odor. The culprit in this particular case was a piece of an onion. I frequently use part of an onion when cooking and I'll put the rest in a baggie to use later. The problem is that I don't always remember there is an onion baggie in the fridge. In fact, at any given time, there is normally several onion baggies in the fridge. This particular onion looked like it may have been in the fridge since we moved here. But this message isn't about my bad memory…

Do you exude love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control? In other words, has the holy spirit taken up residence where your 'self' used to rule? If so, do you ever notice that your 'self' wants to move back in and (s)he doesn't want a room mate? What I'm getting at is - occasionally, I notice that my 'fridge' starts to develop an odor. It may be greed, lust, envy, jealousy, hatred, anxiety, discontentment, pride, etc. And unlike my real fridge, I'm not always too quick to tear things apart to find the source. In fact, I think my natural tendency is to do something akin to installing an odor eater… Covering up the symptoms instead of confronting them. Something like putting on the "everything's OK church face". Because the last thing I want is for someone else to notice the odor.

This Wednesday, let's pray that we pay attention to the fruit we're bearing. And when we notice that it's not the fruit He intended, that we are open and honest enough to search the 'fridge' in order to root out the problem. And that we feel comfortable enough with our brothers and sisters to let them help mind our 'fridge' and vice versa.

Have a great week and a great fast.
Your brother,
Bob

Our sphere

This Wednesday, we are each going to pray for our individual sphere of influence. This is the people we work with, the friends we have, our family members, our immediate neighbors. Anybody we see / interact with / relate to on a regular basis. For each of us, some people in this sphere of influence are already saved. For these we are praying that they continue to grow in Christ and that we are loving, caring brothers or sisters in Christ to them. The others in this sphere of influence are not yet saved. For these, we are praying that we share the gospel both in our talk and our walk. If we aren't walking in love and compassion, it's hard to talk credibly about Christ. I heard a pastor give the following reminder - "the number of people you can help is exactly the same as the number of people you can harm." So perhaps we can pray that our lives overflow with Christ - to the point that when people discover we are Christians, they decide they want some of that for themselves. Last, let's pray that each of our spheres continues to expand. Along the lines of Jabez' prayer in 1 Chronicles 4:10, we are praying that the Lord enlarge our territory.

Have a great week and a great fast.
Your brother,
Bob

Communication

We communicate all day long. Written, verbal, gestures, body language. We do it in-person as well as remotely. Some of it is casual conversation while some of it is intense business talk. Some of it expresses love while other conversation shows annoyance, agitation, and perhaps even hatred. Along the lines of our in-person conversation, it's estimated that 60% to 90% of what we communicate is non-verbal. This would be the gestures, the body language, the facial expression, and the tone of voice to name a few. Just think about the different ways you could interpret a phrase such as "that was a great shot". It could be a heartfelt appreciation from a team mate who really thought it was a great shot. It could be the sarcastic disappointment of a team mate because it wasn't such a great shot. It could be the jaded remark of an opponent who was just beaten by the shot - who really means "that was a lucky shot". You can see how tone can change the meaning.

This Wednesday, our topic is communication. The bible has a lot to say about this topic. Just look up words like "speak", "listen", and "tongue" to name a few. I'm sure we can all think of some relationships in our lives that could use better communication. Relationships that seem forced, fake, taken for granted, etc. A couple things to think about:

1. We normally have the listening and speaking backwards. In James 1:19, the bible says "…quick to listen, slow to speak…". Ask yourself which more accurately describes you: tend to actively listen or tend to wait to speak.
2. Even when we choose to not say anything, we are communicating. Let's commit to leaving this passive aggressive non-communication behind. It only leads to frustration, resentment, and all other kinds of things that you don't find on the fruits of the spirit list :)
3. Commit to honest communication. The kind of communication where both verbal and non-verbal communication matches up. Communication that isn't shrouded in deceit.

Have a great week and a great fast.
Your brother,
Bob