Why are you smiling?

“Why are you smiling?”, my daughter asked me the other day. It was too complicated to answer her right away. I had been lost in thought. I had been thinking about my life and all the blessings that I had been given by God. I was thinking about the first time that I held my daughter in my arms. I was thinking about just recently giving her a driving lesson. I was thinking about all those joyous and priceless moments in between. I was thinking of my two sons who in spite of their handicaps and learning difficulties had taught me more about love, kindness, and bliss than I could ever have hoped to learn on my own. I was thinking about my family and friends and about all the joyful support they had given me over the years. They had helped me to grow into the person I am now.

I was thinking too about how wonderful it had been to grow up in these mountains of my home. Their natural beauty had touched my soul daily. I was thinking as well about how delightful it had been to have so many dogs and cats all through my life. Their love so freely given was a constant source of joy for me. I was thinking most of all, however, about how much God must love all of us to bless us with so many opportunities to choose love and share joy in this life. I was thinking about all of these things so naturally my face and soul were smiling.

Life is so wonderful. Life is so beautiful. Life is such a glorious gift from God. It is full to overflowing with people to love, wonders to enjoy, and good things to do. Even its most painful moments and most difficult times can lead us to greater growth, learning, love, and oneness with God if we let them. Be thankful for all the blessings God gives you in this life. Think of them often. Let them fill your heart, mind, and soul.
And then when people ask you why you are smiling all the time, you will know what to say.

By: Joseph J. Mazzella

The Answer is in His Word

My son, give attention to my words; incline your ear to my sayings. Do not let them depart from your eyes; keep them in the midst of your heart; for they are life to those who find them, and health to all their flesh. (Proverbs 4:20–22)

God has given us a sure way to receive the answers to our problems and challenges. It is His Word. Every answer or solution we need is found in the Bible. Yet, many of us are not walking victoriously in certain areas of their lives. This is because the devil continuously wages a war of distraction against them. He has managed to take them away from the one thing that can bring them victory — the Word. He will do everything possible to prevent them from opening the Bible because he knows that the Word will deliver them.

The distraction can be very subtle: A lot of things to get done, a lot of TV programs that interest you, or it may take the form of a big problem that makes you feel that you need to focus all your attention on it. The enemy knows that if he can get you to take your eyes off the Word of God, he can keep you from winning the battle. When you are going through a tough time, it is not enough to know that God’s answer to the problem is “somewhere in the Bible”. Find the scripture in which God has promised the solution. Meditate on it until the truth of that scripture is revealed to you. When you do this, no demon or devil can prevent that word from God from bearing fruit in your life.

Even Jesus Himself used the Word to defeat the devil in the wilderness — “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’” (Matthew 4:4) The way to defeat the enemy is with “It is written…”

My friend, there is no substitute for the written Word. God tells us that we will find life and health if we give our attention to His Word and keep it in the midst of our hearts. So get into the Word and let God’s promises abide in you.

Grandpa’s Heavenly Cake

Two little boys are telling their Grandma how “everything” is going wrong: the bully at school, their parents grounded them, and they have colds.

Meanwhile, Grandma is baking a cake. She asks the boys if they would like a snack, which of course they do.

“Here. Have some cooking oil.”
“Yuck,” says one boy.”
“How about a couple raw eggs?”
“Gross, Grandma,” says the other.
“Would you like some flour then? Or maybe baking soda?”
“Grandma, those are all yucky!” they said in unison.
To which Grandma replies:

“Yes, all those things seem bad all by themselves, but when they are put together in the right way they make a wonderfully delicious cake! God works the same way. Many times we wonder why he would let us go through such bad and difficult times. But God knows that when He puts these things all in His order, they always work for good! We just have to trust Him and eventually they will all make something wonderful!”

Your Sins are not being Recorded

For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.” – Hebrews 8:12

I once read a comic book which showed how a man lusted after a woman, then died of a heart attack and went to heaven. In heaven, he saw a big screen showing everyone present a recording of all the sins which he had committed while on earth, including the last one. How embarrassing! Don’t worry, that is not going to happen to you in heaven. There is no big screen with front-row and circle seats for everyone to sit and watch your past sins. There is no video recorder in heaven recording your sins right now. Because your lifetime of sins has already been punished in the body of Jesus, God declares to you, “Your sins and lawless deeds, I will by no means ever remember!”

This is true even for the Old Testament heroes of faith such as Abraham, Moses and David. If you read Hebrews 11, which was written after the cross of Jesus, you will notice that there is no record of their sins or failures. Yet, their life stories tell us that they were far from perfect. Abraham lied twice about his wife Sarah. He told Pharaoh, and later, King Abimelech, that she was his sister to protect his own life. Moses killed an Egyptian who was beating a Hebrew, and hid the body in the sand. David committed adultery with Bathsheba and later arranged for her husband to be killed in battle. Yet, their sins were not recorded in Hebrews 11, only their deeds done in faith!

God is showing you that He does not record your sins or failures today. Instead, He records your faith confessions and deeds done in response to what His Son has done for you. Every time you sin, every time you waver in your faith, God does not record it. But every time you believe Him and respond in faith, He records it! That should not make you want to sin more. It should free you to love God more! So don’t be conscious of your failures. If God Himself does not remember them, who are you to remember them? Be conscious instead of your righteousness in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:21), and you will reign in life! (Romans 5:17)

What’s so good about Good Friday

“Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should like unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.” – 1 Peter 2: 24.

As we join with Christians all over the world to celebrate Resurrection Day, I am awed by Jesus’ reactions to the events that preceded his death. He experienced pain before he ever endured the cross.

“We may say that on the first Good Friday afternoon was completed that great act by which light conquered darkness and goodness conquered sin. That is the wonder of our Savior’s crucifixion.” – Phillips Brooks

The Bible states that everyone sins and falls short. We should strive for perfection, but we are humans, and we will fail at times. Jesus’ love for his people wouldn’t allow him to hold a grudge against those that betrayed him either. In fact, he chose to serve and have dinner with them. He washed the feet of his betrayers. He sat at the dinner table and broke bread with a known backstabber. In so many words, Jesus told Judas, “You’re going to turn on me for some pocket money, but I’m OK with that. I still love you and I’m still going to die for you.”

That’s amazing, but his ability to love beyond the pain didn’t stop there. When he was arrested and handed over to Pilate, his best friend Peter denied ever knowing him. On several occasions, people approached him about their association with Jesus and told, “I never knew the man.” All these people were giving up on Jesus, but he never gave up on them. Even as he was stripped of his clothes, spit upon, and struck in the head; forgiveness was still in his heart.

What’s so good about Good Friday? The fact that Jesus never hesitated to die for those who hurt him deeply and he chose to die for me is what’s good about “Good Friday.”

“Jesus said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die.'” – John 11:25-26