A Wee Bit of Evidence - Shirley S. Tye

I wish I could give convincing proof of God’s existence to a non-believer. Just slap it on the table and say; “There it is!” But anything I say or point to can easily be rejected. Look at the vast universe, consider the complexity of the human body, see the amazing things of nature, or witness the miraculous healings people have received. Oh, yes, the wonderful stars – they’re interesting; the human body – well, we can almost duplicate it, remember we’ve done some cloning; healings – those are just a few coincidences. Well, then look at me. Look at my life. Look close.

And how can I explain Jesus? He is a close dear friend yet divine. It’s awe inspiring to walk with the King and refer to Him as friend. He’s my Lord and Saviour. I was on my way to eternal torment in hell, when I called on Jesus and He set me on a new path; the path home. He saved me from that torment. I’m grateful. I didn’t see hell yet I knew it wasn’t the place for me. I haven’t seen heaven either but since Jesus came into my life I know it is home for me. And this new path isn’t easy yet I’d rather travel it than the one I was on before. Look at me. Look at my life. Look close.

Some people have looked at me and have seen something different in me. I know because they’ve told me that there’s something different. They may not have recognized what the difference is but they saw it. Praise the Lord! There’s the evidence! Jesus in me! How awesome is that!

I like the saying; “I believe in the sun even when it isn’t shining.” The sun may be hidden by the clouds but it’s still there. I know that to be true because of airplane flights I have taken. One minute we’re on the ground under grey threatening clouds and the next we’re flying high above the clouds enjoying the sunshine. Amazing! God is here. Jesus is here. We may not see them or feel them or hear them but they are here. I know that in my heart. I feel it in my heart. Look at me. Look at my life. No, I’m not perfect. But if you look close, you’ll see a wee bit of evidence. You’ll see Jesus.

Are You A Grateful Receiver? -- Vivia Oliver

How many times has someone complimented you on how nice your dress looked or a similar, you look nice today? You blushed and remarked that you got that dress at the Sally Ann. Why do we always apologize for a compliment? Is it that hard to just smile and say thank you?

When we stop and analyze our reactions to praise or a gift, we are often less than receptive and often not really thankful. This is a put down to the person who gave the gift or compliment. We are insulting their generosity when we don’t accept graciously and thankfully.

Do we also insult God when we don’t easily accept his free gift of salvation and forgiveness of sins? Do we mock Christ’s death on the cross when we think we have to “work out our salvation”? We don’t seem to appreciate the tremendous gift of eternal life like we should. What a great and marvelous life God has offered us free of charge. We certainly don’t deserve this gift by our past record, we deserve the death sentence that is assigned us on the outside of his kingdom.

 “In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves.” Ephesians 1:5, 6 NIV

This reflects how very poor we are at being gracious receivers. And we need to gratefully receive Christ’s salvation. We need to accept the free salvation of Christ or we won’t receive it. We are very proud to give to others and repeat God’s promise that it is more blessed to give than to receive, but in order for us to give, someone has to receive. For instance if we won the lottery wouldn’t we be thankful, and graciously accept the cheque? Wouldn’t we be very thankful and very gracious in our acceptance speech?

Acts 20:35 –“we must help the weak-the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘it is more blessed to give than to receive’.” Acts 20:35 NIV

When we receive a great gift, don’t we feel obligated to take it gratefully and thankfully? Also if our employer gives us a healthy bonus or raise, don’t we feel the obligation to keep on doing a good job or maybe do a better job in the future? We should feel obligated and eternally grateful to God for the greatest gift of all times. A gracious, grateful attitude should lead us to follow God in the path that He has chosen for us. We need to walk worthy of our calling.

"However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me-the task of testifying to the gospel of God’s grace.”  Acts 20:24 NIV

God has a plan and purpose for our lives; he made us for a reason, so we should gratefully go in the direction he has laid out for us. If we stop to think about what a fabulous gift salvation is, we should be willing to follow God to the ends of the earth and back again.

Allowing God to Redeem Our Writing – Ramona Heikel

As writers, we brainstorm, draft, edit, ask for feedback, take courses, attend conferences, follow talented writers online, work harder and practice, practice, practice. All of this is intended to make us the best writers we can be.

As Christians, we are well aware of our limitations. We are human beings who fail and sin, and we can get on the trying-harder track in our quest to be better. But, especially at this time of year so close to Easter, we realize that we are incapable of making ourselves good in our own strength, wisdom and willpower. So we trust our Redeemer, Christ Jesus, to transform our hearts and lives by his power.

This month, if we’ve never done so before, maybe we can make a point to ask the Lord to redeem our writing. Or perhaps we can remind ourselves (and God) of a prior commitment to submit our writing skills and success to the one who can infuse divine power and influence into what we write.

Beloved Christian fiction author Francine Rivers is my hero in this aspect of relinquishing her writing to God. (I know, I’ve mentioned her before, but I just can’t seem to shake her!) I first discovered a book of hers in the endless racks of romance novels at the public library in 1992. It wasn’t labeled as a novel of faith or published by a Christian publisher, but the description on the back cover led me to believe it was written from a Christian perspective. That book moved me so deeply that I tried to find other novels she’d written, and it was easy because she’d written 13 of them (which sold roughly 3 million copies!).

But none of the older books could compare in Biblical truths to her latest, and some of them were actually too harsh for my liking. I soon found out why. As I read in an article in the May/June 1995 issue of Today’s Christian Woman, Francine Rivers became a Christian in 1986 and soon after, she stopped writing. She didn’t want to stop writing, but for four years nothing that she wrote worked or made sense. During that time, though, God did a wonderful work in her marriage and she grew to know Him through studying his Word.

While her Bible study group was delving into the book of Hosea, she realized that she wanted to write about the kind of love that could make a prostitute want to change her ways—God’s kind of redeeming love. That became the title of her first novel written as a follower of Jesus, and Redeeming Love was that first novel of hers that I “happened upon” at the library (published by Bantam, re-published later by Multnomah).

Ever since I read about that four year gap in her writing, I’ve been fascinated by the idea that God could—and would decide to—temporarily remove a writer’s skill and success for his own purposes. I so admire how she submitted herself to whatever He was doing during that time. She may have wondered if she would ever write again. How would that feel? But the Lord wanted her to write his words, and when she eventually started writing again, he gave her great success as he used her books for eternal purposes.

My prayer is that we all will experience the Lord’s redeeming power, see His words in our manuscripts and recognize his fingerprints on our lives.

Posted by Ramona
www.happilywriting.com

Real Books? - Glynis Belec

I love books. I really am in touch with the way the tides are turning with regard to reading technology, and realize that the eBook is creeping into the marketplace and becoming the way to go.

However I love real books. I have hundreds, maybe thousands of books in my house. I started wondering why I love real books so much. 

Why do I love books for self, gifts, sharing?

1. A book is easy to wrap.

2. New books smell nice and feel crisp and inviting.

3. You don't have to buy batteries for a book.

4. You don't have to plug a book in to recharge.

5. For under $25 you can travel around the world - or anywhere else you choose.

6. If you splash or spill water on a real book you won’t short circuit anything.

7. A bookshelf is a window into the soul.

8. If you are an author, you can sign the book.

9. People will appreciate your thoughtfulness.

10. Books last.

Neil Gaiman, comic writer and novelist, when asked why books make great gifts said, "Books make great gifts because they have whole worlds inside them, and it's much cheaper to buy somebody a book than it is to buy them the whole world!"

That is so true. Walk into a bookstore - Christian or otherwise - and look around. Spell-binding journeys and exhilarating adventures abound. Prepare to be whisked off with reckless abandon to faraway lands and exotic locations. Journey back in time to the days of Jesus or travel to the future and experience life in a different galaxy, planet or realm. Tread on pathways where the noble and valiant stood sword to sword or step inside the palace and mingle with the courtiers and vie for the favour of the king.

A book can take a person to a place of hope, unveil the unknown and offer comfort and direction, love and support. What better way to escape the tyranny of the urgent than to tuck yourself in your favourite chair and nestle in with a novel? Sign me up!

Probably one of my favourite parts of the book store is the children's section. I love children's books. And I love reading to children. To me, there is nothing more rewarding than seeing a child rapt as I relay the perils of the porcupine or the emotional roller coaster of Wilbur and Charlotte. Books for children with delightful pictures make great gifts that last. I had a poster on my wall once that said, "Reading is like a young pup - it grows with you." Give a child a book and you give them an opportunity to grow in wisdom and imagination.

My biggest reason for loving real books so much is my Bible. I've had it since I became a believer in 1986.  Sure it is tattered and torn in some spots. But it is my faith journey and my scribblings and highlighted passages and the 'tucked between the pages' treasures are drenched with memories and meaning. It all tells a story - God's story. I have depended on that blessed Book for a very long time now. I see it as my communication with God. No texting. No recharging. No malfunction. Just a real book with real content about my real Lord and Saviour, Jesus. 

As I look forward to celebrating the resurrection of Jesus this coming Easter season, I will keep my lovely, aged, well-worn Bible close. I will seek solace and encouragement as I tenderly turn the pages.  I will look at the tattered page and broken spine of my well loved Bible and remember how Jesus was beaten and his body broken for me. I will think upon these things and clutch the Word of God close to my heart...

   

One day I will buy another Bible. Perhaps a gift to myself? When I do, I know it will have real pages, a true bookish aroma and definitely it will have no plug for recharging!