"This is the day"

This is the day the Lord has made.
Let us rejoice and be happy today!

Psalm 118:24 ERV

Today is the day that the Lord has made. Yesterday is gone, tomorrow isn't here. God gave us this day. This is the day we have at our disposal. What will we do with it? Will we rejoice and be happy or will we mope about and wait for tomorrow to rejoice and be happy?

What if you don't wake up tomorrow? What if the one's you love have to go on without you tomorrow? How do you want to be remembered? As someone who rejoiced in every day the Lord gave them or as one that always thought tomorrow would be a better day to rejoice?

Today is the present, let's treat it as a gift and rejoice as it opens before our eyes. Every circumstance we find ourselves in is where God wants us to be today. Let's live in the moment! We that have Christ ought to be the happiest people on the planet. Let's share our joy with someone else today.

Let's let our light shine as Jesus said: “In the same way, you should be a light for other people. Live so that they will see the good things you do and praise your Father in heaven.” Matthew 5:16 ERV

Today is the day we have to serve our Lord, let's show our rejoicing in that by do something good for someone else so that God will be praised.

© 2014 Leo J. Woodman

Starting 3/17/14 I will cease to publish on this blog. You can continue to following me at: www.leowoodman.com 

"Identity"

“For you are a people holy to the LORD your God. The LORD your God has chosen you to be a people for his treasured possession, out of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth. Deuteronomy 7:6 ESV

But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. 1 Peter 2:9 ESV

In both the Old and New Covenants God gives his people an identity. They are his chosen people. God’s people are his possession, they belong to him. He has delivered them for his purposes. He has taken them out of a world of insignificance and given them significance. He has given them a sense of purpose and belonging.

Everyone in the world wants to feel the same way that God’s people do, but they don’t necessarily want to submit to God in order to feel that way. When people are given a sense of identity and purpose they can achieve incredible things. Unfortunately not all of those incredible things are good things.

Another term we can consider is fellowship. To fellowship with someone is to share things in common and to identify with one another. Fellowship comes in as many forms as there are people. Some fellowships are called Fraternities, Sororities, Clubs, organizations, churches and even gangs. When one joins one of these fellowships they obtain an identity. They are no longer alone, without a sense of belonging they have found a place of comfort and security. Identity is something we all crave.

Today there are many social and cultural groups in the world that are growing exponentially because as a group they are gaining prominence in the public eye. Some of these groups go to the extreme of ostracizing  other groups because they disagree with their ideals. In a time of tolerance it is truly amazing how intolerant some can be. Tolerance is taught today so that every group or individual can find their identity and take pride in that identity.

While identity is healthy, it can be taken to the extreme. I will look at identity in greater detail in future posts. Meanwhile, let’s consider our identity as Christians. Do we identify with Christ in a healthy way or in the extreme?

© 2014 Leo J. Woodman

"Give Your Self to Your Marriage"

Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her,

Ephesians 5:25 ESV

Paul teaches men to give themselves up for their wives. He use Jesus as the example of how much a man should love his wife. He should be willing to die for her both literally and figuratively. He must be willing to do what is necessary to enter into the covenant relationship of marriage and hold up his end of the agreement.

Jesus showed his love for his bride, the church by dying for her. He left all that he had known with his father, came to earth to do what was necessary to join himself to his bride.

Many men believe if they are providing financially for their wife, they are doing everything they need to, to be pleasing in God’s sight. But there is far more to it than that. God want us to give ourselves to the relationship. He wants us to be fully invested intellectually, physically, emotionally and spiritually in the marriage covenant. If we look at Jesus sacrifice for his bride, the church we will see that he was , is and always will be fully invested in his covenant with his bride.

Jesus knew intellectually that he had to die for his bride. He physically had to give himself up to be crucified for her. He was emotionally  invested when he prayed to his Father in the garden. He was spiritually committed when he accepted the cup of wrath due us, when he suffered for our sins. He followed through on all that he had to do to bless His bride with everlasting love, safety and care.

So husbands, today let’s look to Jesus for the example of what it means to establish the covenant of marriage and to maintain it. Let’s give ourselves up for our wives as Jesus gave himself up for his bride. Then we will be pleasing in God’s sight.

© 2014 leo J. Woodman

"Newness of life"

Romans 6:4 (ESV) 4 We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.

I was thinking about my new brother and sister in Christ that were baptized into Christ in the past month or so. It really struck me that they now walk in newness of life. Their past is forgiven and forgotten by our Heavenly Father. They literally have new lives.

What is newness of life? The old life is gone and new one has begun. It's no longer walking in the world, but walking in the light. It is a spiritual resurrection from the deadness of sin. It is being set free from the old life and embracing the new.

Whether we were baptized into Christ yesterday or however many years ago let us always remember that the life we have now is new. We are no longer subject to the old ways, we can and must walk in newness of life. We as adopted children must now obey our Heavenly Father , not the father of lies.

So today, lets remember whose we are and live for him.

2/14/14

"Remember your creator"

Remember also your Creator in the days of your youth, before the evil days come and the years draw near of which you will say, "I have no pleasure in them"; Ecclesiastes 12:1 ESV

This verse is a reminder to turn to The Lord when you are young, before life slips away from you. 

We are all under the delusion that we have a tomorrow and that we will turn to The Lord then. As James said; our life is but a mist. We are not here long and before we know it our time is up.

We are not guaranteed a tomorrow, all we have is today. So today is the day to remember our creator and turn to him. Whether we have obeyed the gospel or we haven't yet, today is the day to repent of the disobedience in our lives and follow his ways.

So today, lets remember our creator before time goes by and all is lost.

2/12/14 Leo J. Woodman

"God is with you"

Joshua 1:9 (ESV) 9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go."

What great comfort in this verse. When we server our God, wherever we are he is right there with us. There are many times in life that he calls us to places we just don't want to go. We tend to be content with where we are and not interested in change. Yet, to be faithful to him we must go.

Today he may call us to go somewhere we have great trepidation about. But, we don't need to fear, when we get there he will be there. Not only will he be there, his people will be there too. Think about what Jesus told Paul;  Acts 18:9,10 (ESV) 9 And the Lord said to Paul one night in a vision, "Do not be afraid, but go on speaking and do not be silent, 10 for I am with you, and no one will attack you to harm you, for I have many in this city who are my people."

Whether The Lord calls us to a new city or a new situation in our lives we will not be alone. If he calls us somewhere that's where we need to go because he has work for us to do.

So today, lets go where he calls and do as he asks.

2/10/14 Leo J. Woodman

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