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

June 26, 2024

LIFE IN THE FOLD

Luke 8:17 says, "All that is secret will eventually be brought into the open, and everything that is concealed will be brought to light and made known to all."

Jon and I planted a garden this year, and it looks really pretty. We finally got a squash big enough to pick and were so excited! I could imagine how delicious that squash was going to taste. I went out and picked it a couple days ago, and to my distress, it had a white worm in it. The top had looked perfect when I had picked it up. It wasn't until I was able to see it up closely that what was hidden on the underside was revealed. Upon examination, I could see that there were, also, little holes around the stem where the worm had apparently burrowed in and started eating.

It was so disappointing that our ripe squash had to be thrown away. Upon research, it seems as if these worms have likely invaded the entire squash plant and will ruin the entire crop. We couldn't see any evidence of this happening, until it was too late to do anything about it.

Jesus is teaching in Luke chapter 6 and gives the example of a tree and its fruit. In verse 45, He says, "A good person produces good things from the treasury of a good heart, and an evil person produces evil things from the treasury of an evil heart. What you say flows from what is in your heart."

Sometimes a person may feel as if they are good at hiding sin and no one knows about it; but there will come a time when what's in their heart will be revealed. It may be hate or unforgiveness that they think they have hidden; but that will, also, be revealed at some point. It will eat away at their soul. Perhaps they look good on the outside and everyone thinks all is well. But then something happens and that hidden "worm" that has been eating away on their insides will be seen.

Not all things are what they appear to be. Something may look pretty, but it can bring about harm.

A couple months ago, we planted lettuce, spinach, kale, and collard in a raised garden bed. They were all growing and looked great. We saw these pretty white moths flying around and they would light upon the plants. It took a while for me to realize that those pretty little moths were eating holes in the leaves of my plants! We had to put netting over the top of the garden box to offer some protection. The moths were still able to get inside through the holes of the netting, but it was more difficult for them and we began to have less damage on our plants.

I was telling my sister about that and she said that last year she had a small garden planted and they thought, "Oh look at those pretty white moths!" It took them a while to realize that they were eating their plants.

Satan can disguise himself to look like something that is pretty and harmless. We may be drawn to whatever he is offering and not realize that what looks appealing on the outside actually will eat away at our spirit and can cause great harm. If we allow those things to remain in our life, then they will eventually draw us away from God and cause spiritual destruction.

We need to make sure that we are hiding the right things in our life, so we can resist the attempts of Satan to cause us harm and destruction.

Psalms 119:11 says, "I have hidden Your Word in my heart, that I might not sin against You."

When we read the Word of God and keep it within our heart, it strengthens us spiritually and makes us able to withstand against the tricks of the devil. We also need to keep the armor of God firmly in place, at all times. (Ephesians 6:10-18)

It would be beneficial to us all if we would take inventory of our life, from time to time, and see what we are hiding inside. Is it something that will eat away at us and cause harm and destruction; or is it something that will draw us closer to God and build us up and mature us spiritually? When we find things that need to be gotten rid of, repent and ask God to remove it, then allow Him to do so. Keep only those beneficial things hidden in our heart!

JON'S PERSPECTIVE:

Many years ago, I had a friend who made a habit of hiding himself. He built up a facade to show people instead. But to make it even worse (and much harder on himself), he had different facades for different people. I suspect he did it more as a challenge to see how much he could get away with it. One time in particular, he, I, and one other friend were visiting about traveling to Europe. I don't remember exactly how the conversation went, but he mentioned having gone to Mexico, a Caribbean country, or Canada (not sure which), but that's as far as he had ever been. "But I've always wanted to go to Europe..." his girlfriend walked in at this point "... again. I've been a few times, hitchhiking across Italy and parts of France. I think I'd appreciate it more now." The other friend and I looked at each other and shook our heads. Later, we talked and confirmed that we had both caught the 180 turn. He had done it so quickly, it almost seemed rehearsed. It seemed incredibly easy to him. We had already suspected he was phony before that, but then it was fully confirmed. We never played poker with him.

There are cases where people get away with telling one person one thing, and telling another the opposite. But we can't do that with God. He hears us in both conversations. So every time we do a 180, He sees it clearly. Whatever we do in secret, He sees. In fact, whatever we do in our hearts or innermost thoughts, He knows.

So let your innermost thoughts be about Him, and about positive, good, praiseworthy things.

May we all find deception difficult and uncomfortable. And may we all be lousy at poker.

ON THE MENEWE:

Greens

(I got this recipe from my nephew's wife, who got it from a co-worker)

Place smoked turkey legs in a large pot, with just enough water to cover them. Dice a whole onion and add to the pot. Season according to your taste: I used cajun seasoning, garlic powder, and either a chicken bullion cube or powdered bullion. Cover the pot and boil until meat falls off the bone. Add more water to the pot, as needed.

Remove the smoked turkey legs from the pot and remove the meat from the bones and return the meat to the pot.

Wash your greens really well and remove from stems. Rip or cut them into bite-sized pieces (or a little larger). You can use either collard greens or mustard greens. Add your greens to the pot. Cover and cook until greens are tender. Taste the broth and add more seasoning, if needed.

THIS, THAT AND THE OTHER:

Recently, my sister was watching her 6-year old granddaughter for a couple days while her parents and younger brother went out of town. To make her feel special, my sister and I took her to Dollar Tree and then picked up lunch for the three of us. Taking the kids to Dollar Tree and telling them that they can choose a certain amount of items is something special I do with them occasionally; and they seem to really enjoy it. While paying, I slipped a package of M&M's in with the items while the little girl wasn't watching. When we got into the car, I handed them to my sister to put into her purse. When we got back to her house and had eaten lunch, I used the candy as a bribe for my niece. She had woke up early, so was exhausted. I told her if she would have "rest time" for an hour, I had bought a special snack for her that grandma would give to her. She did fall asleep, and as soon as she woke up the first thing she did was ask my sister for her special snack. She loved it! A couple days later, I was helping my sister put her into the car after church. She was telling me bye and I told her that her parents and brother would probably be home when she got up from rest time. She said, "Are you going to buy me another special snack for after rest time?!" Her grandma told her no -- she had enough special things bought for her while her parents were gone. She wasn't so sure that was a good answer!! She said, "Well, if Aunt Moretta wanted to buy me a special snack, she could do that!" I told her no -- I'd already done that!

THOUGHT TO PONDER:

For I am the Lord your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you,

do not fear; I will help you. - Isaiah 41:13

OUR HEARTFELT THANKS TO YOU:

We love you!

Loretta & Jon

http://www.graysheep.org