Your First 5 Minutes With God

The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? (Jeremiah 17:9) Meditation Have you ever wanted something so badly, you convinced yourself it was okay to do anything you had to do to get it? I could tell myself very convincing lies to justify whatever I had to do to get something I wanted. When I wanted something so badly, I would steal to get it, I’d tell myself the ones I was stealing from were rich and wouldn’t miss what I was taking. I would lie to myself and say I would do some good deed later to balance out what I had done wrong. Though, I seldom ever even tried to balance those scales. I usually had some ready-made excuses for why I couldn’t do anything to bring equilibrium to the good vs bad things I would do. Since I didn’t believe there wasn’t any real consequence for my actions if I didn’t get caught, I didn’t see any reason to try to make up for my dishonesty. My failures at morality and integrity in dealing with people on a ...

Now, this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles [unsaved] do, in the futility of their minds. They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart.  (Ephesians 4.17-18) Meditation I used to live in the darkness of my own creation. I lived in a self-centered world where I did whatever I thought would bring me happiness. Whatever that was, happiness was never the result, at least not lasting happiness. My understanding of the world was limited by my selfishness and a secular worldview of what was making everyone else happy. My struggles to find happiness were fruitless because I rarely considered anyone else or their needs in my search. I am a Gentile but I have been lifted from that darkness and saved by the blood of Jesus. I have been set apart by God and grafted in as an heir of Abraham. The way I live is supposed to be noticeably differen...

“He must become greater; I must become less.” (John 3:30) Meditation It’s human nature to be competitive with others. We want, at the very least, to be on an even keel with everyone else; even God. After all, that’s why we’re in the mess we’re in right now. Satan convinced Adam and Eve they could be “like the Most High God.” In other words, they wanted to be gods themselves, just like we do. As a young adult, I decided I could be the god of my life. I thought I was in control of my situation and no one was going to rule over me. Some people don’t want to be gods, then create the god that best suits what they want a god to be like. The gods they create think their sins don’t matter, which allows them to go on living however they want. No one likes to feel guilty about sin, so their god doesn’t judge them. They make statements like, “The Jesus I was taught about wouldn’t send me to hell for doing that.” When anyone says something like that, they are no longer worshiping the ...

I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it. And even now you are not yet ready, for you are still of the flesh. For while there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not of the flesh and behaving only in a human way? (1 Corinthians 3:2-3) Meditation The truth of scripture is not always understood the first or even the tenth time I read it. Not all things I read are supposed to be figured out without a great deal of deep contemplation. God wants me to meditate on some of the more difficult to comprehend passages. When I was a small child in Sunday School, I memorized John 3:16, along with many other scriptures. I wasn’t presented with all the graphic details of Jesus’ torture and death at that time, as I wasn’t ready for any of that. I was taught how to sing, “Jesus Loves Me,” and I memorized and sang the song with glee. I wasn’t ready for a more complex song with a much deeper message, like “Amazing Grace.” My growth from the babe in Christ to the...

Therefore, he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them. (Hebrews 7.25) Meditation I, like everyone else, have sinned. Much of my adult life was spent in open rebellion against God. My sins were worse than the sins of some people and not as bad as others. The punishment for any sin is death. In other words, complete separation from God forever. When I finally submitted to God, by giving my life to Jesus, I was given a pardon from having to bear the punishment of eternity in hell. I could not have earned absolution from my sins, nor do I deserve it. There was nothing I could do to warrant his mercy and grace. It does matter to him what I did, my sins are forgiven and forgotten by the Father. There is nothing else I can do to be saved. I cannot turn myself around and become good enough to stand in the presence of God. I cannot wash myself enough to clean off the filth of my iniquities. No matter how ...

Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction. (2 Timothy 4:2) Meditation I used to think it was only the pastors job to preach the Word of God. I’m not a preacher, so it didn’t occur to me to share the gospel. However, this verse does not say, “Preachers, preach the word.” Whether you realize it or not, we are all ministers of the gospel. We have been charged with the awesome task of telling everyone about Jesus and why he went to the cross. When Jesus gave the “Great Commission,” to make disciples of all nations; he wasn’t just talking to his own disciples. He was speaking to every one of us. There is no other mission or calling more important than that for us. Even if we go to church every Sunday, but do nothing else, we’re not in the game; we’re just spectators. Jesus doesn’t want fans, he wants followers. Whether we’re in church or somewhere else, we’re responsible t...

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’  (Matthew 7:21-23) Meditation On the day of reckoning there will be those who think they’ve done enough to earn their place in heaven. They will say, when I was doing something good and helpful to someone, I was doing God’s work. However, too late they will learn, it’s not what you do outwardly, to be seen by other people, that pays the price for your salvation. Good deeds will never save you. It’s what Jesus did on the cross that saves you, and what you hold in your heart that counts to God. Good deeds, even hard work for the church, doesn’t measure up to a tiny drop of the blood of Ch...

And God said, “Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: the livestock, the creatures that move along the ground, and the wild animals, each according to its kind.” And it was so. God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. (Genesis 1:24-25) Meditation “And it was so.” Those are four very small words with a huge impact. It doesn’t say, “And it was so – over millions of years.” No, it happened right then, everything from amoebas to dinosaurs…on Day 6 of the creation week. That same day God created Adam and a short while later, but still the 6 th day, he created Eve. He created us in his image, making us the crowning glory of his creation. When God created Adam, he gave him dominion over the Garden and everything in it. In other words, we were put here on earth to protect and wisely mana...

For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So, they are without excuse. (Romans 1:20) Meditation Atheistic secular scientists and educators today have turned their backs on God and all he has created, preferring instead the human created Theory of Evolution. They believe all the wonders of this vast universe came into existence from nothing. Everything is here by chance, including all of us. However, the order and complexity of the universe cannot be explained rationally by a series of cosmic accidents. For instance, what holds our Milky Way Galaxy, and every other galaxy in the universe, together? Why haven’t all the stars in those spinning galaxies been flung off into empty space billions of years ago? Gravity is not the answer. It’s far too weak a force to explain that. So, instead of turning to the true and supernatural explanation, secular ...

But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. (1 Corinthians 15:20-22) Meditation Because Adam fell into sin, and I am a descendant of Adam, I have the same sin nature, which is a tendency to sin; we all do. I was born with the sin nature, inherited from Adam, but I don’t have to let it control my life forever. I am not blaming Adam for what I do today, any more than I can blame Satan. My sins are all on me, no one else is responsible. Satan may have tricked Adam and Eve, but all he really did was to expose their desire to be like God. In other words, be equal to God. Because of that sin, their punishment was death. That’s the same punishment we will all have to bear without Christ. Not a peaceful rest in the grave, or the blissfulness of heaven, but an eternity of punishmen...

“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.” (John 10:11) Meditation I haven’t had a lot of experience with sheep. I worked on a couple of farms that had a few sheep but not enough that they needed a shepherd. The one thing that I do know about sheep is they are pretty dumb. They will get themselves in some not so good, even dangerous, predicaments just for a morsel of grass. There have been times in my life when I’ve been as dumb as a sheep. I would put myself in some stupid, even dangerous, situations just because I was looking for a good time. I would get drunk or high and drive my car or swim in river rapids just above a waterfall. The only reason I or anyone else does idiotic things like that is because we are trying to escape the reality of our own unhappiness. I thought true happiness was going to be found right here, in this life, but I was wrong. This verse is a reference to a time many of us don’t understand. It’s a time ...

For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. (Matthew 6:14) Meditation Holding a grudge against someone creates a prison of our own making, where we are the only prisoner.  I used to be an inmate in a prison made by my unforgiveness. The bars weren’t made of iron but they were strong enough to hold me captive. When someone trespassed against me, I would try to put them in my jail cell of hatred and resentment. I thought I was the jailer, but I was actually the prisoner. I didn’t realize it was me behind that prison door. I wanted to settle a score but I never got any satisfaction. For one thing, the people who wronged me almost never apologized. As much as I justifiably deserved an admission of guilt and regret, my debtors rarely agreed. Quite often, they didn’t even behave as if they’d done anything requiring an apology. They couldn’t have cared less that their actions hurt me so deeply. Many are so unaware of their actions t...

If you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved. (Romans 10:9-10) Meditation I used to get hung up on what it takes to be saved. I thought there were things I was supposed to get right in my life first, before Christ would accept me. There were times when I was made to feel that way by other believers, but it’s not true. It wasn’t anything purposeful or exclusionary on their parts. They were just as deluded as I was, but their legalistic views and practices drove me away from God, instead of attracting me to him. I read this scripture as a preteen kid and believed it back then, but after becoming a teenager, I decided it wasn’t cool to believe. My disbelief wasn’t because these verses weren’t true, but because I thought the sinful life, I was leading was more fun...

For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother's womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well. (Psalm 139:13-14) Meditation A baby in the womb is not just a clump of cells. That baby is being put together while in the womb by the fingers of God. I have welcomed four of my own children and seven grandchildren into this world. I would say my grandson, the most recent, is the most beautiful baby I’ve ever seen, but I say that about every baby. God has given him to his parents to love and protect from the moment of conception until he becomes a self-sufficient adult. The word fetus means, little one or baby. Today, many use the word fetus, so they don’t have to say the word baby, and admit there is a living child in the womb. The only way a pregnancy can end is either by a miscarriage, the birth of a baby, or by killing the baby in an abortion. The people who say they don’t have an o...

Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. (Romans 12:15) Meditation I love experiencing the joyful times of life. Of course, I’m talking about times spent with my biological family as well as my Church family. Those are the times I look forward to most. There are new births or weddings to celebrate, anniversaries and birthdays to honor. It’s a time when we can all gather together to celebrate our joy with each other. There are also times when we can rejoice with co-workers on a promotion or some other joyful time in their lives. There are many reasons people will have blissful things to rejoice over. God wants us to share these joyous times every chance we get because the times of great sadness will inevitably come also. It’s more important for us to come together at those times than any other. It is God’s compassion we share with each other in those sorrowful times. The Lord is always there with us in our times of rejoicing and weeping. He rejoices with us...

Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ. (Colossians 3:23-24) Meditation Before I was saved, I used to work very hard but I wasn’t doing it for God’s glory. I was doing my best for more money, or to make myself look good, or become invaluable to my employer. I thought my skills came from my own scholarship and labors. I would brag at having such a strong work record I seldom ever had to go to a job interview. I would be hired on my resume alone. I didn’t give credit to the Lord for my abilities. Had Jesus not saved me, my only reward for all that hard work and time away from family would have been money. Jesus gives us unsurpassed joy and since we spend so much of our time in the workplace, we can have the most impact on those who have no hope. It doesn’t matter if I clean restrooms, sit at a desk tapping away at a computer or I’m the boss si...