Daughter

Welcome to Unseen today. We just passed Valentine's and my birthday, and I have been missing my parents.  Read on to see a lesson I learned about being a daughter to the King.

Daughter

In Him we have received the spirit of adoption as sons and cry out Abba Father. Rom 8:23

                Work has been bordering on chaos the last few weeks and last night was no exception.  We were going like a house afire trying to get everything done. I glanced at the night stand in one of the resident’s room. She had a beautiful Valentine’s card that read, “To my wonderful daughter.” A wave of sadness hit me. My parents have both passed away and also my sweet “substitute mother”.  Never again will I get a card that says “Daughter.”  I will not get any more hugs from someone who loves me that unconditionally.  My mom was the walking social calendar. She would call and say, "Grandma’s birthday is today. You are going to call her, aren’t you?” She made holidays and birthdays special, not so much because of stuff, but because she made us feel loved and approved.  My dad only remembered our birthdays because mother told him when they were.  After she died, his secretary bought us cards from him.  Just as quickly as the sadness came, another realization followed.  I will have all eternity to be their daughter. Even more important is the fact that God’s word says that I am HIS daughter.

                In Romans, the word tells us that we have received the spirit of adoption as son (and daughters) and cry out Abba Father. (8:23) With every adoption there is a process of approval and an adoption fee.  The approval process is based on Jesus’ merits and not ours.  The adoption fee is his blood. John 1 says that he came to his own and his own received Him not, but to everyone who did receive him he gave the right to become children of God. Along with that adoption we receive the identity and benefits of being His children.  We read later that we are heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ (Rom 8:17).

                I miss my parents and being their daughter, but I believe in the resurrection and the restoration of all things. In the meantime, I have a heavenly father who tells me that I am his precious daughter.

 

Power

Welcome to Unseen today. Do you feel like you're going through the motions in life? Like you are just marking time? I have often felt that way.  Read on for a way out of the rut.

What is wrong with this picture?

 

Be strong in the Lord and in the power of his might: Eph 6:10

 

    A woman in my Sunday school class is from Vietnam. She works the night shift at a cookie factory. It is hard work, with hours of standing and tedious work.  One night she got sleepy and her eyes closed.  Her hands were still going through the motions. She heard someone say, “Hey, look. Tran fell asleep.” She jumped and opened her eyes. In her broken English, she said “My eye close but my hands make box real good.”

There is a silly story about a man who went to the hardware store and bought a chainsaw.  It was supposed to cut 10 cords of wood a day.  The first day he went out used the saw he cut 5 cords of wood.  The second day he worked harder and cut 6 cords.  The third day, he got up as early as he could and stayed out till dark and still only cut 8 cords of wood.  The next morning he took the saw back to the hardware store and told the clerk that it was not working.  The clerk said, “well, let’ see what’s wrong.” He cranked it up and turned it on.  The man jumped and said, “What’s that noise?”

Silly, isn’t it?  Think about how often we do this to God, though.  We try to do God’s work without God’s power.  We end up exhausted and ineffective, just going through the motions without any power.

One of the saddest things I heard was that when the tribes were divided and the temple was built, the presence of God moved from the tabernacle to the temple. However, the larger group of Israelites continued to worship at the tabernacle. They kept up the same motions and the same ceremonies, but the power had left. 

God's power is limitless.  Let allow God to work through us with his power. All we have to do is plug in to the source (the Holy Spirit).  Spend time in the word and in the body. Encourage each other. PLUG IN.

 

 

The Price is Paid

Welcome to Unseen today.  Technology can get a bad reputation and television in particular. There are definitely negative influences, but God can use anything to teach us. Read on for a fun lesson I learned from a game show.

The Price is Paid

You are not your own. You were bought with a price. Therefore glorify God in your bodies. 1 Cor. 12:3

I have a guilty pleasure. I love to watch The Price is Right. I like the excitement of people coming up to contestants’ row or up on stage. I like the silly T-shirts people come with, and I like the games. I was talking about this to a friend and these are our favorites.

                Cliff Hanger - You can make a certain number of mistakes but if you make too many, your little man falls off the edge of the mountain.

                Plinko - You win Plinko chips and release them from the top of a slanted board.  They bounce off of pegs and end up in slots at the bottom. The slots have different dollar amounts from 0 to 10,000

                The Check Game - You fill in the amount on the blank check that you think the prize ids worth.

                 Has your spiritual life ever felt like a game show?  Do you feel like you have a certain number of mistakes allowed before God gives up on you and lets you fall off the cliff? Maybe you try to keep all the rules or do good deeds to scramble back down the mountain a few steps. How about Plinko? Even though you know God loves you, do you feel like life tosses you around like a Plinko chip? Maybe you feel secure in your salvation, but when it comes to abundant life you are unsure whether you will end up with lots of blessing or a bit fat nothing.  Maybe you feel more like the check game.  What value do you place on yourself? Who gets to decide how worthy you feel? Is it your job, your spouse, or is it a parent’s voice that said, “You’ll never amount to anything. “             

                There is good news. The game we are playing is The Price is Paid. Jesus paid for our mistakes with his death.  He didn’t fall off the cliff. He willingly went over the edge so we wouldn’t have to. John 10:28 says, “For this reason the father loves me because I lay down my life. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father."   He also gives us abundant life (John 10:10). Psalms 23 says that He anoints our head with oil and our cup runs over. When it comes to value, he says that he bought us with a price.  The price was his own blood.  Matt 20:28 says the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."

                Yes, life can seem like a game, but we can win here and we can reap the rewards for eternity. Take heart.