Monday June 29, 2015

Posted on June 29, 2015 by Don Schmidt

Hebrews 13:1 Keep on loving each other as brothers.

I grew up in a little town right on Lake Michigan across from Chicago.  Going to the beach was a favorite pastime in the summer.  There was a particular beach that we loved to go to.  It had sand dunes to climb on and big sandbars in the water that were wonderful to play on.  Typically, when we entered the water it would get a little deep but as you kept going out the water became shallow.  The water there was less than knee deep.  When there were waves, the sandbar was a great place to body surf.  Out beyond the sandbar it got much deeper going way over our heads.

Today, the word shallow often refers to something that is superficial or not really desirable.  It is not a word typically used in a positive way.  I would like to change our reference point with the word shallow because it is a very helpful and descriptive word that can shed some important light in our lives.  Think of the word shallow as it applies to the water level on a sandbar or in a swimming pool.  It simply means the water isn’t very deep.  Amplifying a bit further, the water is real, just not very deep.

Now think about the friendships and relationships we have.  Doesn’t the word shallow constructively describe many of them?  They are real – just not very deep.  Many of these people would be there for us in a time of need, but there just isn’t much time spent together.  Our lives are just so busy and we are often spread too thin for it to happen.

Depth in relationship takes effort – it takes learning to love one another.  It involves intentionality because such relationships typically don’t happen by accident.  Seeing needs and helping out; caring for one another; being in small groups together; spending time together are all ways that we can develop depth in our relationships.  Another way is sharing meals together and simply making time for each other.

We can’t do this with everyone, but there are those in our lives that God wants the relationships to deepen.  It involves reordering our priorities and pursuing activities that make it happen – and God will guide us.  Developing true community in our churches means that we must pursue the opportunities we have to develop deep, strong relationships.  They are a missing reality in so many lives today and God wants that to change.

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Sunday June 28, 2015

Posted on June 28, 2015 by Don Schmidt

Galatians 5:22-23   But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

I grew up in southwestern Michigan which is an area that has been known as the Fruit Belt since the 1800s.  In the spring there are strawberries, followed in the summer and fall by cherries, blueberries, peaches, plums, pears, apples, and grapes.  The trees that produced much of the fruit all bore blossoms in the spring.  It was so wonderful to drive through the countryside and see fruit trees in bloom everywhere.

The blossoms, although beautiful in their own right, are a promise of something to come.  Whether the bearer of the fruit is a tree, a bush or a vine, the fruit is the natural result of the plant – and typically the fruit is supposed to be sweet and flavorful.

Have you ever been in an orchard where you could pick and eat the ripe fruit as you walked along?  Regardless where you find it, how pleasant it is to bite into sweet fruit and savor its taste.  Unfortunately, we’ve all probably tasted fruit that was anything but sweet and flavorful!   The typical result is wanting to spit it out.

The scriptures are clear that Christians produce fruit.  The question then isn’t, are you producing blueberries or grapes, but rather what does your fruit “taste” like?  The fruit of the Spirit listed above is sweet and flavorful.  The “fruit of the flesh” if you will, would be the antonyms of the fruit of the Spirit and characterized as sour and bitter.  Which fruit do we want taste in others?  Which fruit do we want in our own lives?  We have choices to make because good fruit doesn’t happen by accident.

Think of the blessing that others receive from tasting love; from savoring faithfulness; from encountering kindness – from experiencing any of the fruit of the Spirit.  God wants those who encounter us – His people – to be able to walk through the orchard of our lives and taste the sweet and flavorful fruit of His Spirit.  Once they do, they’ll be back for more.

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Saturday June 27, 2015

Posted on June 27, 2015 by Don Schmidt

Matthew 6:13a  “And lead us not into temptation,…”

Years ago I heard a Bible teacher give a very illuminating paraphrase of this verse: “Lord, let there not be anything in my heart that would cause you to put me to the test.”  We know from Scripture that God doesn’t tempt anyone.  (James 1:13)  But God will allow situations to arise that will reveal what is within us – (note Friday’s ruling by the Supreme Court on same sex marriage.  Their ruling doesn’t change God’s truth.  The manner in which lovers of Jesus respond is critical.)

I think of King Hezekiah in 2 Chronicles 32:31 – “But when envoys were sent by the rulers of Babylon to ask him about the miraculous sign that had occurred in the land, God left him to test him and to know everything that was in his heart.”  The same Bible teacher explained that the way God leaves us is to withdraw our conscious awareness of His presence.  We think we’re alone, but we’re not.

God uses these experiences in our lives for our benefit – not as ‘Gotcha!’ moments.  They are God’s gifts to us that allow us to show ourselves strong in His behalf; or to have faults within us revealed that we then can deal with.  If we have ‘termites’ or are building our ‘house’ upon sand rather than rock (Matthew 7:24-27), isn’t it critical that we find out and repent?!

Sometimes the situations we encounter reveal our unbelief or lack of faith.  When we see our deficiencies, they are not putdowns – but are revelations that enable us to change for the better.  The Holy Spirit is working within us to conform us to the image of Christ in every area of our lives.  The opportunity to repent is such a gift from God!

God wants and expects excellence from us in every area of our lives.  If we think we are only capable of mediocrity, we will be content with mediocrity.  But with the Holy Spirit we are not only capable of excellence; we are held accountable for it as well.  Not in a judgmental way, but as recipients of the greatest gifts ever given: the new birth and the Holy Spirit.  This news isn’t meant to intimidate us but exhilarate us!

God is working incessantly within us to enable us to become a glory to Him.    He is the Master Craftsman.  When people see us (the work of His hands), His intent is for them to recognize His craftsmanship.  They will see Him in us; and experience Him when interacting with us!  We are an intimate part of the process so let’s embrace it with the passion it deserves.

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Friday June 26, 2015

Posted on June 26, 2015 by Don Schmidt

Mark 3:1-6  1Another time he went into the synagogue, and a man with a shriveled hand was there. 2Some of them were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, so they watched him closely to see if he would heal him on the Sabbath. 3Jesus said to the man with the shriveled hand, “Stand up in front of everyone.”   4Then Jesus asked them, “Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?” But they remained silent.  5He looked around at them in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts, said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was completely restored. 6Then the Pharisees went out and began to plot with the Herodians how they might kill Jesus.

It is difficult to find words to describe everything contained in these few verses. So many big things happen.  Jesus had compassion on a crippled man and does a wonderful miracle.  Jesus not only discerned the stubborn hearts of the Pharisees, he was angry with them.  The Pharisees were unable to see their own stubbornness and unbelief.  In the face of the miraculous, they were blind and deceived.  I think this is one of the most frightening things in the scriptures.  They saw Jesus and wanted to kill Him.

How could anyone see such a wonderful miracle and not be moved and humbled by it?  These religious leaders believed in God, yet the condition of their hearts made them blind to God right in front of them.  They were witnessing a demonstration of the power of God unlike any seen in the history of mankind.  Yet they failed to see Immanuel, (God with us) in their midst.

Surely they too had family or friends who were sick, crippled or in bondage.  Jesus was doing miracles everywhere.  Why didn’t they go and get them and bring them to Jesus?  Instead, the Pharisees become so angry that they wanted to kill Jesus – because He did the miracle on the Sabbath.    How could these men not recognize the wonder they were beholding?  They clung to arguments rather than recognizing the Son of God – right in front of them.

I think of Isaiah 6:9, 10   9 He said, “Go and tell this people:

“‘Be ever hearing, but never understanding;
be ever seeing, but never perceiving.’
10 Make the heart of this people calloused;
make their ears dull
and close their eyes.
Otherwise they might see with their eyes,
hear with their ears,
understand with their hearts,
and turn and be healed.”

We must recognize that the same spiritual deafness and blindness can happen to us.  We can miss God working in our lives and right in front of us through the ‘callousing’ of our hearts.

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Thursday June 25, 2015 – Happy Birthday Judy!

Posted on June 25, 2015 by Don Schmidt

Mark 12: 28 – 31  28 One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?”  29“The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one.  30Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ 31The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’  There is no commandment greater than these.”

This portion of Mark describes a wonderful interaction between Jesus and a teacher of the law.  It is one of my favorites because this teacher recognized the truth.  This teacher is one of the very few leaders who interacted wisely with Jesus.  Jesus is asked to identify the most important commandment – which He does in quoting Deuteronomy 6: 4, 5.

Note how Jesus describes loving God.  Jesus describes it as loving Him with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.  This is something that you work at in accomplishing – not something that just happens.  It requires intentionality and is all consuming.  Also remember that this is the greatest commandment.  Nothing is greater.

Let’s look at it from a different perspective.  Consider loving God as an acquired skill.  It is defined by a whole set of beliefs, attitudes, motives and actions. It has standards all its own, and Scripture details what they are.  It involves learning the specific required skills in order to become good at it. In order to develop excellence, a great deal of practice is required.  We might think of it as being lifelong apprentices – we never stop learning how to do it better.

When we were born again we became new in Christ.  We were freed from the power of sin in order to become the people that God wants us to be.  Jesus’ answer describes the people we are to become – lovers of God.  But loving God goes beyond skill sets we acquire because it involves who we are as a person. Praise God, the Holy Spirit is the master craftsman, our personal trainer, coach, enabler and so much more.  He is God’s gift to us so that this might all come about.

We may start out doing many of these things because we are supposed to, but as we embrace the process, the Spirit will transform us so that it all becomes a genuine expression of a life committed to Jesus.  We more and more become that which we are doing.   Loving God becomes the passion of our lives.

Note – Judy is my wonderful sister.  What a treasure she is!

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Wednesday June 24, 2015

Posted on June 24, 2015 by Don Schmidt

Matthew 14:28  “Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.”

Have you ever dreamed of what it would be like to be in the boat with the disciples when Jesus walked on the water?  How would we have responded to seeing Him?  Remember it was a very windy night and the disciples were struggling to survive let alone get across the lake.  In the midst of it, they saw a figure walking on the water that was about to pass them by and were terrified.  They thought it was a ghost.  But then Jesus spoke to them saying, “Take courage!  It is I.  Don’t be afraid.”

Even then they weren’t sure it was Jesus as indicated by Peter’s response, “Lord if it’s you…”  Isn’t it amazing that Jesus chose a stormy night – and not a calm one for this encounter.  (Note: God does the same thing with us.)  Imagine Peter’s excitement when he heard (above the sound of the wind and waves) the Lord say “Come”.

I wonder what went through Peter’s mind.  Did he simply want to be with Jesus?  Or was it more, “I’d sure like to do that!”  Whatever, Peter didn’t allow the risk involved to stop him.  Picture him trying to hang on to a bouncing boat as he got his legs over the side and then began to walk.  Peter experienced an incredible wonder – before he began to sink.  Remember the water wasn’t flat or calm but was wind-swept waves.   Peter did walk on the water and came toward Jesus.

Then his focus shifted from Jesus and the wonder of what he was doing, to the adverse conditions around him.  Although he did succumb to fear and begin to sink, Jesus was right there to rescue him.  Peter experienced the miraculous because he responded to the opportunity that Jesus gave him.  He didn’t allow fear to keep him in the security of the boat.

God uses the same principle in His dealings with us.  In the midst of our often difficult circumstances, He will give us opportunities to respond to Him.  We have to have ‘eyes’ to see the opportunities and the willingness to respond.  In spite of the safety of the ‘boat’ – our lifestyle and circumstances that we are comfortable with – will we overcome our fear and the risk involved to respond to the Lord bidding us to come?  It’s amazing the wonders He has for us to experience if only we will respond to Him.

Note: One of my favorite authors is John Ortberg.  He has a wonderful book on this very subject that I highly recommend titled, If You Want to Walk on Water You’ve Got to Get Out of the Boat.

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Tuesday June 23

Posted on June 23, 2015 by Don Schmidt

Psalm 19:1  The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.

When I was a little boy I had a book about Grandpa Bunny Bunny.  He was the founder of Bunnyville and the father and grandpa of many little bunnies.  He was dearly loved by them all. He taught his children and grandchildren how to paint Easter eggs and spring flowers and autumn leaves.  People would see the incredible beauty around them and wonder where it all came from.  But the little bunnies would laugh, because they knew it was Grand Bunny Bunny’s doing.

Then came a day when Grandpa Bunny Bunny told all the little bunnies that it was time for him to leave – and then he was gone.  A few days later, after a rain, there was a sunset of incredible color.  All the little bunnies who loved him so, knew that he was still painting.  The colorful sky was the work of their beloved Grandpa.  In my family, we referred to such colorful sunsets as “Grandpa Bunny Bunny” skies.

So many people are blind to the wonder of creation.  Others, instead of recognizing the heavens as evidence of His existence, struggle with questions that deny the reality of what they are seeing.  The heavens declare God’s glory – but they are also designed to provoke a response in each of us to find the One who created them.  The “creator” wants to be found by the “created”.

When we look at the stars and the skies; when we see a glorious sunset or enjoy the beauty around us – we get to recognize them as the work of our beloved Lord.  They are not the work of some omnipotent, unknowable, distant being.  We are able to view the wonder in the context of our love relationship with Him.

While God’s greatness and power are beyond our imagining, it never ceases to amaze me that through Jesus, we belong to Him – and that He loves us so! As I sit and write this, I’m laughing and grinning with joyous wonder because He made me His.  The God who made the heavens knows my name and made me one of His sons.  WOW!  The wonder of the heavens pales in comparison to that!

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We have moved!

Posted on June 22, 2015 by Don Schmidt

We just moved from the western side of Akron to the wonderful house we purchased in Cuyahoga Falls, OH.  We had been renting from missionary friends for several years.  The past 2 – 3 weeks has been a real adventure, because on top of our move a week ago, on this past Friday, our son Jamie and his family moved to Lexington, KY where he has a new job.

The house is a bit smaller than we would have liked but it is a wonderful gift from the Lord.  We had been praying for and seeking the  right house to buy and as we considered this one, God changed our hearts to look at it for what is has – not what it’s missing!  It is bright and airy and on a half-acre, in a wonderful location.  We are on the upper edge of the Cuyahoga Valley National Park.  Better still we are ideally located close to the homes of 2 of our sons and their families here!

Our son Michael has done a marvelous job in the house.  We were able to hire him to do the painting, carpet removal, sanding and staining all the hardwood floors, and painting the trim.  He does such quality work! Donna has chosen such special colors for everything.  What a joy it is to see her so thrilled with how the house looks.  It’s also so wonderful to be able to hang once again the many wonderful paintings, prints and pictures we’ve had in storage.

Now it is simply the adventure of getting everything unpacked and sorted – and determining what to do with the stuff we’ve accumulated.  What an adventure!

 

 

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Friday June 12, 2015

Posted on June 12, 2015 by Don Schmidt

Genesis 42:3, 4  Then ten of Joseph’s brothers went down to buy grain from Egypt. 4 But Jacob did not send Benjamin, Joseph’s brother, with the others, because he was afraid that harm might come to him

It has been about 8 years since Joseph entered the service of Pharaoh to prepare for the famine that has now arrived.  It is about 21 years since he was sold into slavery by his brothers.  The famine is everywhere, not just Egypt, and word has spread that there is grain available in Egypt for purchase.  So Jacob instructed his sons to go to Egypt and purchase grain to save their lives.  But he did not send Benjamin.

Why was Jacob afraid that harm might come to Benjamin if he sent him with his brothers?  He didn’t just have a suspicion – he was afraid.  Twenty-one years earlier, Joseph had disappeared leaving a bloody robe – apparently killed by a wild animal.  That had a devastating impact on Jacob.  He mourned for Joseph many days and refused to be comforted.

One suspects that the idea of foul play by Joseph’s brothers had occurred to Jacob.  The brother’s hatred of Joseph was as visible as was Jacob’s love for him.  It had been apparent to the entire family that Jacob loved Joseph and Rachel, his mother, so much more than any of the rest of them including his other wife Leah.  All these years Jacob lived with the horrible suspicion that his sons had killed Joseph.

One of the sobering things in all this is that Jacob experienced 21 years of pain as part of God’s plan.  He not only lived with the thought that Joseph had met a cruel death, but he was also deprived of all those years of having Joseph with him.  Would God do such a thing?  Yes he would!

We need to come to grips with the fact that God will allow or cause all manner of things to happen that will accomplish His will – many of which are things that we would view as highly negative – yet they are part of God’s plan.  Often our viewpoints are far more influenced by our culture than by our understanding of God.  We must learn and understand His ways and come to know Him more intimately.  If we do, we can better respond with faith no matter what happens to us.

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Thursday June 11, 2015

Posted on June 11, 2015 by Don Schmidt

Genesis 41:38  So Pharaoh asked them, “Can we find anyone like this man, one in whom is the spirit of God?”

Joseph has just interpreted Pharaoh’s dreams.  But he’s done more than that.  He has given instructions on what needs to be done to prepare for this famine that God is sending upon Egypt.  Key to this will be Pharaoh finding a wise and discerning man to put in charge of the land of Egypt.  Pharaoh chooses Joseph.

This moment in Joseph’s life speaks to me of a number of wonderful principles in scripture.  I think of Matthew 5:16 first of all: “In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.”  Joseph didn’t know what was coming.  He was simply called to appear and given an opportunity.  He didn’t try to negotiate for himself his release from prison.  He spoke the truth.  Pharaoh recognized that the divine was present – that there was more going on here than simply a man giving an answer.

I think of Luke 12:11, 12 “When you are brought before synagogues, rulers and authorities, do not worry about how you will defend yourselves or what you will say, 12for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what you should say.”  Although the context of this verse deals with the defense of believers, the principle of the Holy Spirit being with us, giving us the words to say is something we are to rely on.  It is no excuse for lack of preparation, but it instructs us where our faith and trust are to be.  It’s not us, it’s Him.  Joseph’s confidence was in God.  His faith assured him that God would give him what was needed.

Another powerful element of our faith is expressed in Psalm 57:2  “I cry out to God Most High, to God, who fulfills {his purpose} for me.”   Joseph walked faithfully where God had put him.  I’m sure he cried out to God trying to understand what had happened to him.  But in the end, God’s purpose was fulfilled.  Joseph was prepared and ready to walk through the door of opportunity that God opened.  Let us renew our commitment to our Lord and His dealings in our lives so that the same will be true of us.

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