Time

Eternal God created time, the frame in which we live.
The beats of our hearts, and all good He will give
Are in that frame for now.
Creator and Sustainer,
Always good to His creation,
Even when we do not perceive the good in a given situation.
Time is, until eternity.
Bless God for this time;
Trust His faithfulness,
His lovingkindness,
His inscrutable wisdom.
Trust in and lean on,
The unchanging One
Whose promise is,
"I will never leave you or forsake you;
I will be with you even to the end of the age,"
For after the end of the age,
Eternity begins and lasts
And we will be in His presence then,
Time without end,
Amen.

Just for Today, Lord

Just for today, Lord.
Wrap me in Your arms,
Calm my heart
From all alarms.
Grant me words of wisdom
Whoever I speak to--
Words suitable to the situation;
Words of grace such as
You place in my heart and mind;
Words of Your Word.
Just for today, Lord,
Because only You know
If there is any more than
Today for me.

Ephesians 4:29: "Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as if good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear."

A Temporary Perfection

Recently I spoke with someone regarding vision improvement from cataract surgery. They said, yes, that had been their experience until they developed glaucoma.

So cataract surgery can provide a temporary perfection.

Maybe it is similar to the process of sanctification. We grow in grace only to discover that we need to grow in more grace. We have overcome in one area only to discover to our dismay that there are many more areas of vulnerability or weakness.

We have to continue to call on the Lord to cleanse us and to strengthen us and to help us be all we need to be until that glorious day Paul writes about in 1 Corinthians 15, when the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal immortality.

We experience what we read in 2 Corinthians 3:18: "But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit."

We anticipate what we read in 1 John 3:2: "Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is."

A Renewed Perspective on Suffering

In his first letter, Peter writes:  "And after you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you. To Him be dominion forever and ever. Amen" (5:10-11; NAS).

What was going on when Peter penned these words? Believers were being persecuted and were in need of encouragement. Suffering is a recurring theme in this letter. And the Lord inspired Peter to write these words, not only to sustain the first recipients of this letter, but generations following, including us.

Let's look at the opening:

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are protected by the power of God though faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time" (1 Peter 1:3-5).

Before Peter takes us to the matter of suffering, he directs our thoughts heavenward, to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, His great mercy, a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, our reserved inheritance, our protection by the power of God through faith for a sure salvation.

Contemplating these great truths should guard our hearts and minds for what comes next.

"In this you greatly rejoice, even though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been distressed by various trials, so that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which is perishable, even tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ" (1:6-7).

"Even though now for a little while, if necessary"--we so often do not see the necessity of our trials, but God does.

Peter's words remind me of what James wrote: "Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing" (James 1:2-4).

We are often short-sighted and fail to realize the benefits of our God-designed trials, even when these are spelled out for us in passages such as these.

Who doesn't want more spiritual endurance? Only trials develop that.

Who doesn't want to hear "well done" from the Lord? Only testing will result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

This is again what we need to remember and embrace: "And after you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you. To Him be dominion forever and ever. Amen" (1 Peter 5:10-11; NAS).

Our suffering is, in the perspective of eternity, "for a little while." Christ's own will be perfected, confirmed, strengthened, and established by the God of all grace Himself.

And we respond with Peter: "To Him be dominion forever and ever. Amen."

Thinking about Seasons

Thinking about seasons, and I have my reasons.

Spring with all its birds and buds and bugs only hides the fallen trees, dead foliage, and dilapidated buildings.

Spring hides dead and dying things, makes fall and summer and winter not bad. But that has been had.

Spring's greens only make the rest more obvious.

So spring illuminates--highlights--the inevitable winter.

This applies not only to seasons we see, this applies to you and to me.

We are aging, moving through the seasons of our lives.

Spring of youth, summer of maturing, fall of maturity, winter of the years, pass and passing bring us to these:

"Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day. For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things that are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal" (2 Corinthians 4:16-18; NAS).

"Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth. For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory" (Colossians 3:1-4; NAS).

"Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is. And everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure" (1 John 3:2-3; NAS).