THE NEW EWE

"What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost, until he finds it? And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, 'Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!'"

Luke 15:4-6

October 21, 2020

LIFE IN THE FOLD:

One thing we have in our home connected to things of value, such as our freezers, tv, and computers are surge protectors. We also have some GFCI outlets, which contains a sensor that can sense a ground fault (which means any variation from the normal current), and it contains an internal switch, which shuts off the flow of electricity in the outlet if that should happen. This is a safeguard against overheating and possibly fire.

Should there be a lightening strike or short or other occurrences that should happen, these safety measures are in place in order to do everything we possibly can to protect our home and furnishings.

Recently, my hip was aching so I was sleeping downstairs on the couch. About the time I was drifting off to sleep, I had this thought that came to mind: "Jesus is our surge protector."

See, I learn and remember better from real life, every day examples that are relatable, so that is often how the Holy Spirit speaks to me.

The more I began thinking about this, the more I could see the relevance to the spiritual aspect of how true this truly is.

There are many scriptures that speak about hardships and trials that we will deal with while on earth.

"Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds....." (James 1:2)

"In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. (1 Peter 1:6)

"I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." (John 16:33)

"Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love Him." (James 1:12)

"And the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will Himself restore you and make you strong, firm, and steadfast." (1 Peter 5:10)

"Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when His glory is revealed." (1 Peter 4:12-13)

"But we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us." (Romans 5:3-5)

"Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?" (Romans 8:35)

"Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you." (James 4:7)

"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God." (2 Corinthians 1:3-4)

"So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand." (Isaiah 41:10)

We are not promised to be bubble-wrapped from hard times and trials while we journey through life. But from the above scriptures (and there are more!), we see that we are going to endure trials of every kind, suffering, trouble, hardship, persecution, famine, danger, and the devil bringing things against us. We can't think, "If I only have enough faith, then I can avoid all of those things!" Nowhere does scripture validate that type of thinking, so we are only setting ourselves up for disappointment and failure if that's our mindset. The Bible clearly says over and over again that trials, suffering, and hardships are going to happen; and nowhere does it specify that it's only for the faithless or disobedient. It will happen to every single one of us.

Not what we want to hear or go through, right!?! But when hardships and adverse circumstances happen, it seems to surprise us and we wonder, "Why me, Lord?"

Here's the promise! When we have committed lives to Jesus, He will always be like our surge protector. That doesn't mean that bad things won't happen, but it does mean that when they do, Jesus will be there as our safeguard. If we stay plugged into Him, then whatever happens cannot destroy or kill our faith. We will have confidence and peace that whatever the outcome, Jesus will always be there to keep us safe. Our bodies may suffer or we may experience loss, but our spirits cannot be destroyed and killed.

2 Corinthians 4:8-10 (NLT) says, "We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed. We are perplexed, but not driven to despair. We are hunted down, but never abandoned by God. We get knocked down, but we are not destroyed. Through suffering, our bodies continue to share in the death of Jesus so that the life of Jesus may also be seen in our bodies."

Staying consistently connected to Jesus, as our "surge protector" keeps us grounded spiritually and is that safety barrier between us and the world. When the devil comes to try to destroy us and brings storms and turmoil and strife, we are so grounded spiritually, that we cannot be damaged or destroyed.

We may be pressed, perplexed, hunted down, knocked down, and suffer. Yet we are not crushed, not driven to despair, not abandoned by God, not destroyed; and we share in the death of Jesus through those things that happen so that He may be seen in us. But that only happens when stay connected to Jesus!

But if we disconnect ourselves from Jesus when these trials and storms come, then we risk becoming damaged and destroyed spiritually. That is when bitterness, un-forgiveness, anger, fear and even blaming God begins to separate us from His love. We may even feel like we are strong enough to endure those hardships on our own, and don't need Jesus to be our protector. When we stop being grounded spiritually, then we are putting ourselves at risk of becoming damaged and even the possibility of eternal fire.

I encourage you today to stay plugged into Jesus, as your "surge protector". Stay grounded in Him, regardless of what happens or what trials or difficulties you may endure. He gives us the power to live a submissive life, so that we can resist the devil when he comes against us. Jesus promises to strengthen, help and uphold us. He promises to comfort us. God promises to pour His love into our hearts. He promises restoration. And we are promised a crown of life to all those who love God!

JON'S PERSPECTIVE:

Someone recently said that she couldn't bear to read some news because it was a strain on her faith.

Wow. If reading about someone else makes it hard to keep faith, I can't imagine how hard it will be when she experiences real testing.

Testing of our faith takes many different forms. For some, there is some temptation toward sin. That's one of the most obvious ways to turn from God. Our friends and family might be happy to help, but only if they know you need the help.

For some, it might be an attack against the church by people, media, or governments. This has been happening in many other countries. It happened in the days of the early Christian church. And in the great tribulation coming, it will happen even here. That is another obvious test of faith.

For others, it may be a constant frustration blocking our dreams, our desires, our hopes, and our needs. It could be the single person longing for a mate. Or it could be a hard worker who can never manage to get their bills paid. For some, it may be the loss of a loved-one. For some, it may be losing something else. This is a much more subtle form of testing. It is too often swept under the rug and ignored. When we go through this kind of testing, our friends and family might not think to step up and offer help. Don't be afraid to ask.

It can be easy to quote, "The Lord giveth, and the Lord taketh away." We can say that we aren't really losing something that belonged to us. But when we miss out on something, or lose something or someone dear, it hurts. It can hurt a lot. So, the test of our faith is whether we will continue to trust God or stop trusting Him. Do we keep faith, or lose it?

I would like to point out that that quote, "The Lord giveth, and the Lord taketh away", is taken a bit out of context from Job 1:21. Job was saying that he entered this life naked, and would leave it naked (his spirit, not his body). He was pointing out that nothing he had was really his from a spiritual viewpoint. They were only tied to his body which isn't eternal. From the rest of Job, it is clear that it was Satan, not God, who took everything from Job.

So, how do we truly have faith in God, and trust Him to take care of all our needs, but also experience true testing without losing that faith? Honestly, there is no simple answer. Ephesians 4:2 helps. "Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love." It takes a lot of humility to ask for help. And it takes gentleness to respond.

ON THE MENEWE:

Crockpot Chicken Fajita Soup

Place the chicken breasts in the bottom of the crockpot. Pour all other ingredients over the top, except the cheese. Stir. Cook on low for 4-6 hours, until chicken is tender. Remove chicken from crockpot and shred. Place back into crockpot, stir, then add the shredded cheese. Continue cooking until cheese is melted, about 15 minutes.

Serve with your favorite toppings: sour cream, green onions, fresh cilantro, diced avocado, tortilla strips

THIS, THAT AND THE OTHER:

My brother-in-law, Jimmy, passed away from a brain tumor a little over 8 years ago. I have many good memories of him, as well as some that bring a few laughs. Memories can be a great gift from God, to remind us of funny and precious moments with loved ones.

I moved in with Jimmy and Janie (my sister) in 2005. After a while, I saw that my car bumper was getting all these dents in it. I mentioned, "I can't figure out what is happening to my car!" Jimmy admitted that he kept forgetting that I was parked in their driveway or on the street in front of their house and was bumping into my vehicle with his. Of course, it was my fault for parking in those places! My sister and I have had many laughs about that over the years.

One time after moving in with them, another brother-in-law came to work on their heating and air. Janie and I had cooked dinner together. As we were eating, Jimmy told him, "You've got to try some of these baked beans. Janie makes THE BEST baked beans!" Janie and I started laughing, because I was the one who had made the baked beans.

THOUGHT TO PONDER:

Man's laws cannot make moral what God has declared immoral.

Even if a sin is legalized, it's still a sin in the eyes of God. -unknown

OUR HEARTFELT THANKS TO YOU:

We love you!

Loretta & Jon

http://www.graysheep.org