Just a thought by coppi

Just a thought by coppi – written in 2015

A light house does not blow fog horns but it only shines.  

When I read the above I thought of our walk as Christians.  Does our life reflect the light  of Jesus.  St Mark 4:21: and he said unto them, is a candle brought to be put under a bushel, or under a bed? And not to be set on a candlestick?  A candle beams its flickering light so we may find our way in the dark as does the Lighthouse.  As Christians we should let our light shine & walk in the light of Christ.  We need not blow fog horns but just shine & let the Holy Spirit beam through us.  Proverbs 20:27 The spirit of man is the candle of the Lord……i grew up in a very legalistic religion & if we did have a little light, it was totally blown out with dos & don’ts & lots of fear. 1 John 4:7: Beloved, let us love one another; for love is of God….10: herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us & sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. 1 John 4 is filled with scriptures of love.  The pendulum swings both ways but should be in balance.  I guess my desire is not to be a fog horn but a flickering light for our Lord.

 Just a thought by coppi

I don’t know why there is sadness in this world.  However, I have learned that there are several things that can help us survive.  Friendship & prayer.  And, live by the sayings of Jesus Christ & become like that wise man who built his house upon the rock.  You can have an inner security, strength, & courage that defies all the storms of life.

Friendship, prayer, a personal relationship with Jesus & reading the Bible have been my source of survival in this journey of life.

“If someone does not want me, it is not the end of the world. But if I do not want me, the world is nothing but endings.” – Nayyirah Waheed 

“What Satan put into the heads of our remote ancestors was the idea that they could ‘be like gods’—could set up on their own as if they had created themselves—be their own masters—invent some sort of happiness for themselves outside God, apart from God. And out of that hopeless attempt has come nearly all that we call human history—money, poverty, ambition, war, prostitution, classes, empires, slavery—the long terrible story of man trying to find something other than God which will make him happy.”  C.S.Lewis

“Yesterday is history; tomorrow is mystery; today is all there is.”

“A gold medal is a wonderful thing. But if you’re not enough without one, you’ll never be enough with one.” – John Candy in Cool Runnings   

Dear God,  (Henri Nouwen)

Speak gently in my silence.

When the loud outer noises of my surroundings

and the loud inner noises of my fears

keep pulling me away from you,

help me to trust that you are still there

even when I am unable to hear you.

Give me ears to listen to your small, soft voice saying:

“Come to me, you who are overburdened, and I will give you rest . . .

for I am gentle and humble of heart.” Let that loving voice be my guide.

Amen

• Relating to, or constituting mystery. the mysterious ways of God. b. : exciting wonder, curiosity, or surprise while baffling efforts to comprehend or identify : mystifying.

• And to bring to light for everyone what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in God, who created all things, Ephesians 3:9

• Psalm 77:19. “Your path led through the sea, your way through the mighty waters, though your footprints were not seen.”

• Do I understand the mysterious ways of God – never!  I only know in my long life, I have experienced mysteries that I did not understand. I only know they happened in my life; I believe also God was in His sovereignty protecting me. Years ago when I moved to Dallas, I knew nothing about Dallas only that it was a Cosmopolitan City. I had a cousin who lived in an area of the city that was not the most popular part of Dallas.   I found a job in the downtown area, and moved into an apartment in the area where my cousin lived.  I would stop into a coffee shop for a cup of coffee where many would congregate and socialize. I met a lady there and we became friends.  I usually would set my alarm around 6:00 in the morning in order to have a few minutes to enjoy my coffee, etc. The night before my new friend called me and asked if I would pick her up in the morning because her car was out-of- commission.  I said yes, and then changed my alarm from 6:00 to 5:00A.M.  That morning at 5:00, the alarm clock awakened to a man standing over my bed.  The alarm producing a long, loud, wailing sound and my jumping up hitting him in the stomach caused him to immediately turn and run out the door! Needless to say, I was so emotionally upset, it took a few minutes to settle down. I called the police, and then called my friend to tell her I would not be able to pick her up due to the happening that morning.  Her reply alarmed me.  She said, “Coppi, I never called you to pick me up”.  God moves in mysterious ways, and if I had not received that call the night before, I shiver to think what might have happened to me. 

I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.”

‭‭Ezekiel‬ ‭36:26‬ ‭NIV‬‬

A new heart and spirit are given by God alone through regeneration and the new birth. This is a miracle of grace. A “heart of flesh” means a new ability to see and understand truth, a new delight in God and desire for Him, and a new spirit that loves Him. The gospel offers hope for the hardest of hearts

God takes our slate and erases all the evil and sin, leaving only the good. He takes our hearts, hardened by the hurt and sin and evil in the world, and gives us hearts of flesh, able to accept His love and share it. He gives us the Holy Spirit, clothes us in His righteousness and teaches us through His Word.

There are common characteristics among those who have hearts of stone. They are incapable of receiving, and giving, love. They walled off their hearts early in life to self-protect. In so doing, they saved themselves from feeling the pain of other’s neglect and abuse.

Place your heart in God’s hands. Allow Him to reconstruct the brokenness and infuse joy into those damaged situations. God seeks to repair the injuries and fully restore function in every area of your life. Heavenly Father, I surrender into Your hands all that is hurting in my life.

Enough said. 

Just a thought by coppi

Just a thought by coppi

“Luke Ditewig of the Society of St. John the Evangelist in Boston writes: “We Brothers say that the person who most gets under your skin in the community has a special role to play. That one is your teacher. Often what annoys us in another relates to something in ourselves. Uncomfortably, he or she is the one whom you especially need on the bus. We all belong in one large, messy family of God.” 

I read the above quote several times before it really sunk in, and when it did, i said “yes, from my experiences in life that was always the issue.  If jealousy was the problem, it usual represented itself in something I envied in another person.  I detested the way I felt and would usual be in my closet praying to God about the situation.  The ‘ugly’ was never removed until I honestly confessed to the Lord exactly what the problem was.  In Ps 32:1-5 NLT -David was faced with the same issue ‘“Oh, what joy for those whose disobedience is forgiven, whose sin is put out of sight! Yes, what joy for those whose record the Lord has cleared of guilt, whose lives are lived in complete honesty! When I refused to confess my sin, my body wasted away, and I groaned all day long. Day and night your hand of discipline was heavy on me. My strength evaporated like water in the summer heat. I Finally, confessed all my sins to you and stopped trying to hide my guilt. I said to myself, “I ll confess my rebellion to the Lord.” And you forgave me! All my guilt is gone.”  Complete honesty is what the Lord wants – truth is hard but it works.

Just a thought by coppi

So Mephibosheth dwelt in Jerusalem: for he did eat continually at the king’s table; and was lame on both his feet.”�2 Samuel 9:13

Mephibosheth was no great ornament to a royal table, yet he had a continual place at David’s board, because the king could see in his face the features of the beloved Jonathan. Like Mephibosheth, we may cry unto the King of Glory, “What is thy servant, that thou shouldst look upon such a dead dog as I am?” but still the Lord indulges us with most familiar intercourse with himself, because he sees in our countenances the remembrance of his dearly-beloved Jesus”.  (Charles Spurgeon)

Aren’t we blessed!  God looks at us through Jesus.  Our deformity shall not rob us of our privileges.  Lameness is no bar to sonship.  Let’s come to the king’s table with our lameness  – it’s a hiding-place for all our inadequacies.  Come.

I sent this before, but when I was reading Samuel regarding the friendship of King David and Jonathan, King Saul’s son, I was taken by their great friendship.  Jonathan was next in line to be King, but his love for David was greater than being a king.  Briefly appearing in 2 Samuel, Mephibosheth is the disabled son of Jonathan, the son of Saul. Jonathan was King David’s best friend, and defended him when Saul wanted to kill him. Upon his death in battle, King David made a vow that he would care for the needs of Jonathan’s family in thanks for his friendship.    I love reading about King David and Jonathan and their great friendship and love for each other.  King David never forgot is vow to Jonathan – Jesus is our friend, constant companion, helper, redeemer, and covers our life with grace and love. All He wants from us is to come to His table and partake of all He offers.  I love the song “What a friend we have in Jesus” – let’s join him at his table of love. 

Just a thought by coppi

My grace is enough

Over & over I said to myself.  “My grace is enough”.  Is it enough to solve my struggles of unbelief of how He is going to answer my prayer. How? When? & Where? When I was in college I hired a tutor to help me with a subject I was having problems with.  One of his suggestions was that I write how, when & where above each topic & then as I read it I was to ask those questions….he said it would help me retain the information.  I don’t think God needs me to do that but instead just say a simple prayer laced with honesty…”how I don’t know, when & where I don’t know either but I ask you to forgive me of my unbelief & put trust & hope in its place

 Max Lucado:  ” God gives us more by going deeper than we ask.  He wants not only your whole heart – He wants your heart whole.  Why?  Hurt people hurt people.  Think about it why do you fly off the handle?  Why do you avoid conflict?  Why do you seek to please everyone?  Might your tendencies have something with an unhealed hurt in your heart.  God wants to help you for your sake.”

The other night driving home from a restaurant, a man in a van kept cutting us off.  We tried to ignore him but to no avail.  The next thing I knew he was besides us, rolled down his window & threw a cup full of gooey stuff at us.  We ignored him as it is dangerous to react to someone’s anger.  I looked in the rear view mirror & he had pulled over & beckoned us to stop & say something.  Ignore him, I said.  We did. As we did nothing – just driving home.  I wondered if this person had some unhealed past hurt he never dealt with….”I have always said when one stuffs feelings, they eventually will come out….”  Much better to have a confidant that you trust & talk it out or write a letter to Jesus & tell him about your hurt feelings……I promise you, you will feel better.

Just a thought by coppi