Clinging to the Cross!
Easter: When we celebrate Jesus death on the cross, His burial, and His resurrection. The empty tomb is foundational to the Christian faith. The empty tomb is Easter. But oh, how we love the cross! continue reading here
Good-Bye Yellow Brick Road…
We were all at Mom and Dad’s a few years ago doing some spring cleaning and painting and my sister, Betty, was responsible for bringing the music. The minute she put on the Elton John CD Sing along here!
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Raising the Roof!
Brian took me to my very first NBA game on Saturday to see the Chicago Bulls at the United Center. 
Wow! It was an amazing experience.
The arena was decorated with banners and championship trophies all dedicated to the victories and glory of the Bulls! 
Cheering fans raise the roof here!
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For Barb and Bruce Bryant
Bruce Bryant’s funeral was Thursday. Bruce’s body died on Sunday, but Bruce is alive. His family grieves his passing from this life, yet at the same time celebrates that his days of pain are over.
On Tuesday evening, some of us gathered to pray for Barb. We prayed for God to comfort and sustain her through the difficult days ahead. He is, and He will. She also asked us to pray for those who would attend the visitation and funeral: For believers to be comforted and unbelievers to hear, believe, and receive God’s word of salvation.
“How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ.” – Romans 10:14-17 NIV
Everyone at Bruce’s funeral heard God’s word about Christ.
Some at the funeral will be challenged by what they heard. God’s word will sound comforting, and they may even want to believe it, but they will stop short of commitment because they aren’t sure salvation is that easy. Or they will think they are too unworthy. We prayed that the seeds of truth that were sown will take root. We prayed that the hearers will understand that grace means you can’t earn salvation; you receive it from God’s hand.
“It is by grace you have been saved.” – Ephesians 2:8 NIV
And, some who were there will be comforted by God’s word. They were reminded that though death seems final it isn’t. Death has been defeated. Death is the doorway into the presence of God. God’s word will comfort those who mourn.
“I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?” – John 11:25 – NIV
Dying and death are real. Every “body” will die, but not every person will. Those who don’t die, are those who have responded to God’s word and accepted the gracious gift of salvation that God offers through the Lord Jesus Christ. It is free to us. It cost the life of God’s one and only Son.
To reject God’s word is to choose to take upon your own shoulders the responsibility for the errors, omissions, failures, guilt, shame, and heartache you have caused throughout your entire life. To reject God’s word is to stand condemned to eternal death. No one has to do that. It is a choice
“I told you that you would die in your sins; if you do not believe that I am the one I claim to be, you will indeed die in your sins.” – John 8:24 NIV
Some of those alive at Bruce’s funeral will experience death for all of eternity. Some will live forever with Jesus. Where will you spend eternity? How do you know? Upon whose word are you relying?
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Under Siege
A little over five years ago, my friend’s family came under siege. Her husband was diagnosed with cancer. They engaged the fight.
Under siege, you have limited resources. At their disposal were surgery, medicine, wise doctors, time, faith, hope and love. They have used up all the procedures, medicines, doctors and clinical trials available to them. Now, they are hoarding the only things they have left: Time, Hope, Faith and Love.
Time is running short. The enemy will try to rob them of time together with each call, text and email notification on their phone. To protect each precious moment with their family, they have asked their friends not to phone or text. We won’t. We will pray and stand by in silence. We will give them uninterrupted moments together.
Hope will soon end for my friend’s husband as he will no longer need it. He will see the face of Jesus. He will dwell, in the glory of eternity. He will hear “Well done, good and faithful servant.” Hope gives this family peace today.
Faith will sustain them as they grieve his passing from this life into the next. Their faith is in the Gospel: Jesus’ perfect life, death, and resurrection. They trust in the salvation that Jesus purchased on the cross. Their faith is in God’s promise of resurrection and new life.
Love never fails, and love never ends. When this precious family is reunited in glory, their love for God and for each other will grow through all eternity.
What can we learn from my friends?
Time is running short. No one is guaranteed tomorrow. Not you, your parents, children, relatives or friends.
“The life of mortals is like grass, they flourish like a flower of the field; the wind blows over it and it is gone, and its place remembers it no more.” – Psalm 103:15 NIV
Hope is the settled assurance that what God says is true. Our hope is in Christ alone. He is the promise that sustains us.
“In you, Lord, I have taken refuge; let me never be put to shame. For you have been my hope, Sovereign Lord, my confidence since my youth.” – Psalm 71:1, 5 NIV
Faith is confidence in what we hope for. We must confidently believe that the Gospel is true, and act on that belief by receiving Jesus as our Savior and committing our lives to Him as our Lord.
“Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.” – John 1:12 NIV
Love is sacrificial. It is how Christians act toward one another because this is how God acted toward us.
For God so loved the world that He gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. – John 3:16 NIV
We are all under siege in one way or another and we have limited resources. Time is running out for all of us. How might you share hope, increase faith, and show love to others while you still have time?
Marcia Furrow 