My Divine Notes

Lent series at First Presbyterian | My sermon notes Luke 23:32-34   Jesus wasn't the only one being crucified that day. There were two others, criminals, who were also being led to their execution.  When they came to the place known as “The Skull,” they crucified Jesus there, in the company of criminals, one to the right of Jesus and the other to His left.  Jesus: Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they’re doing. Meanwhile they were drawing lots to see who would win Jesus’ clothing.   God's grace is boundless and there's nothing you have to do to deserve it. There's nothing we can do because we all fall short.  "God is a perfect God. We are an imperfect people." ~ Pastor preaching Jesus prayed an intercessory prayer before those who crucified Him even understood that they were killing God.  You don't have to know or understand. And there's nothing you can  do that doesn't fall under God's ...

Romans 12:10 Love each other in a way that makes you feel close like brothers and sisters. And give each other more honor than you give yourself.  I've  been thinking about how harsh we can be with people around us whether it’s folks who work with us, neighbors, workers at the stores we go to, and especially with people who are closest to us. It’s like we forget that we are forgiven and that God’s grace doesn’t discriminate based on the level of sin we’ve committed.  Sin is going to catch up with us … believe it.  No one is immune. Our “self-honor”  doesn't  allow us to see what deep burdens or hang ups others deal with… Next time we start to criticize or show how witty we can be, we should consider honoring the other person more than ourselves. It just may change the words from our mouths and the thoughts of our hearts. I’m making an effort to be kinder. I am. 

Isaiah 1:18-20 - The Message Come. Sit down. Let's argue this out." This is God's Message: "If your sins are blood-red, they'll be snow-white. If they're red like crimson, they'll be like wool. If you'll willingly obey, you'll feast like kings. But if you're willful and stubborn, you'll die like dogs." That's right. God says so. It’s hard to say I’m sorry when I don’t acknowledge my sins. Perhaps it’s pride that stops many of us from asking for forgiveness from those we offend or hurt. The longer we stay away or keep from making amends, the further away we get from God. When we get away from God, we make excuses, we take further steps into the pit and then we excuse and tolerate our sins and the sins of others. Very soon, sin isn’t sin; it’s just the way the world operates. The sin/guilt cycle begins - we stop reading the Bible, praying or having a close relationship with the Lord. The enemy clouds ...

Proverbs 19:3 We are ruined by our own stupidity, though we blame the Lord. I am so glad that I finally told the Lord that I could not do life on my own. Since I was a child, I recall having an independent spirit and wanting to do things on my own. The same spirit continued throughout my life, I wanted to do things on my own and my way. So I left God out. Of course, when things went wrong, I’d blame God. I didn’t even know God, but I still blamed him. My family loved God, so it’s not like I didn’t know he existed. As I look back, I realize how God carried me through all the messes, doubts and pain I encountered, which I blamed on Him. Knowing God hasn’t made me perfect, but it has made me more in tune with myself and I also have more compassion for others. It also makes me more sensitive when I encounter people who don’t believe in God or people who believe in little gods who need answers to their questions. Regardless of how “perfect” our lives are and how much we study, rese...

Colossians 3:12 Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. 13 Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. Old habits hang around like dirty clothes. You know you have to wash them, but sometimes they just pile up. The Lord has been challenging me to go to the next level of obedience and maturity in my walk with him. I’ve changed quite a bit, I’m not who I used to be, but I’m not where God wants me to be. I have a responsibility as someone who loves the Lord to walk the talk. Today I was challenged to drop my tendency to get offended. I was pleasantly surprised when I recognized that I was about to fall into my old habit of wanting to take the high road because I’m always right. Offense opens the doors to making irrational decisions, in the heat of the moment, which you will often re...

November 2, 2011   1 Corinthians 13:3b But I gain nothing if I do not have love. Deep down on many levels, I was always afraid to love because I didn’t trust.  As I’ve come to know the everlasting and limitless love of Jesus Christ, I have to make changes to the way I love. I still find myself falling into the old habits of judging, hedging and hesitating because I may be hurt or disappointed. When I do not love unconditionally, I shut out the gifts God wants to give others through me and vice versa. I’ve come to realize that I am selfish when I don’t love. I don’t have to like those I love, but something amazing happens when you love people you really don’t like. They become “like-candidates” because you realize that God wired them, so they must have a purpose -- even if you can’t figure out what it might be.  J And that’s fine. In essence, loving God means loving others. Love because God loves you. I f God made us and asks us to love, why don’t we try it? Why no...

May 2, 2011 Ecclesiastes 3: 1 Everything has its own time, and there is a specific time for every activity under heaven: 8 a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace. The speech that rocked the world last night has been in my heart and mind since I sat at the edge of my chair waiting to hear it. There’s a surreal feel to it all, how can we celebrate cruelty just after we celebrated a royal wedding: love and hate? Someone said that there will be ‘one more evil person rotting in hell.’ If that was the case, what hope would we all have? What could King David base his hope on since he not only took a man’s wife, but he had the man killed and then married the man’s widow. That’s low to go, but obviously redeemable in God’s eyes. Honestly, I don’t know the answers, but I do know this: There is a compassionate God who is waiting to take his sinful creations into his arms and to let them know that they are loved unconditionally regardless of what they've do...