No Eye Has Seen

Luke 3:14 Then some soldiers asked him, “And what should we do?” He replied, “Don’t extort money and don’t accuse people falsely–be content with your pay” As I was reading this verse the story of the workers in the vineyard came to mind. (Matthew 20:1-16) At the end of a long day of work, several men had been hired. Some had been working all day while others had only worked for an hour. The men who were hired first grumbled even though they had agreed to the pay they were given. They were not happy that the men who were hired last were also given the same pay. I know I often get upset when I’ve been working hard and no one notices “my extra hard work” (sarcasm sign) Just this week for example. I was on the KP (Kitchen Patrol. Washes dishes, cleans kitchen all that) team last week and I was looking forward to having this week off after climbing a volcano, and doing KP the last seven days I am tired. However the teams got rearranged for the next four weeks and I am...

1 Timothy 6:6-8 But godliness with contentment is gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing from it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. Contentment. Sometimes it comes across as being ok with something even if you’re not really ok with it. Truly this word or idea means being joyful in God, and really needing nothing else to fill your earthly desires. A lot of times I find it hard to find my fulfillment in Jesus, However, I have realized that it’s only when I look at the things of this world, take my eyes off my king, and begin to look at the fading beauty around me that I feel discontent. I have tried to find peace in the things this world has to offer but I have never found peace like what I have in Jesus. I can truly say I am content in my savior, I need no earthly thing. I have food and clothing, and am more than content with that. However I also have a personal relationship with my savior Jesus Christ. W...

Hebrews 6:12 We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised. This week has been on perseverance, it has become very apparent to me how intertwined faith and patience are with perseverance. First you must have faith that what you are waiting for will come to fruition, second we must have patience and know that all things happen according to God’s perfect timing. I know in my life neither of these have been especially easy. Sure I can have faith for a short while but is it really faith if it doesn’t stand the test of time? I am usually pretty patient too but when it comes to God...well I tend to expect everything to happen “snap snap snap” but it doesn’t work that way. I smile when I think about how God must react to my constant begging for a timeline. He probably sits back and laughs, knowing the plans He has for me. All three of these; faith, patience, and perseverance are how we should wait f...

Revelation 1:9 I, John, your brother and companion in the suffering and kingdom and patient endurance that are ours in Jesus was in the island of Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. John re-starts his letter by relating to his readers, I think this helped them to see that even though he wrote some really strange stuff, he could be trusted that it was true. He also tells us why he is on Patmos, he says he is there because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. I think this is funny and admirably humble, since he was banished to Patmos because they couldn’t kill him. They had tried to boil him twice, tried to burn him, stone him, as well as a number of other things, yet, God preserved him. So John was sent to Patmos so the rulers at the time could be rid of him. I find it interesting how even though it would seem he is out of the worst of it John still makes mention that he is the reader’s brother and companion in the suffering, bu...

Colossians 1:11 Being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully While this is a piece of a three verse long sentence it is still amazing. It speaks to me personally as I have been asking God for strength, endurance, and patience to deal mainly with my self. Since I’ve been here in Guatemala it has been so easy for me to just sit in a corner and think to my self about anything to distract me from my surroundings. I thought before I came that some how it would just fly by, that somehow I would get on the plane and the next thing I would know I would be landing back in my home town in 2018. But it doesn’t work like that. I have tired myself out trying to focus on the future. It so much easier to think about the future than to deal with the present. Any notion of the future is merely make believe until the future becomes the present. All that said this verse was and is very timely for ...