… That you may love the Lord your God,

listen to his voice,

and hold fast to him.

For the Lord is your life,

and he will give you many years

in the land he swore to give to your fathers,

Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

~Deuteronomy 30:20 (NIV)~

Closet

HOW DO YOU build a “sanctuary” in your busy life; a place where you can meet with God…?

Build a “closet.”

Isaac’s closet was in a field (Genesis 24:63). Peter’s closet was on a housetop (Acts 10:9).

You must fashion your own.

It may mean leaving the kids with your spouse, while you sit out on the back porch with a cup of coffee and your Bible for fifteen minutes.

It may mean snatching a few minutes when your baby is taking his or her afternoon nap.

For those who have a long drive to work, your sanctuary may be in your car with a CD player. It may mean posting a passage of Scripture near your steering wheel, where you can meditate and pray about it during the time that you drive.

It may mean reading your Bible during your lunch break at work.

It may mean taking the first ten minutes to read and pray in your office each morning.

It may mean putting your tennis shoes on and going for a walk with your Bible in hand.

It may mean sitting in your garage or workshop with a CD player to listen to sermons.

It’s not what the sanctuary looks like or where it is that matters. It’s what you do there that makes it a meaningful place. The sanctuary does not provide rest. What takes place there in the desert is what refreshes the inner man. (Steve Farrar)

“But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.” Matthew 6:6

Posted by Mike Benson

Enjoy some fellowship time and some Bible study with Christians today.

Anna Lee

For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you

except Jesus Christ and him crucified.

~1 Corinthians 2:2 (NIV)~

Holly K. made it back to West Africa (with luggage).

ENDURING HARDSHIP

It’s the end of December which means that, in some parts of the country, ski season is in full swing.  For those of you who plan to do some skiing this winter, someone has composed the following list of exercises to get you prepared:

~ Visit your local butcher and pay $30 to sit in the walk-in freezer for half an hour. Afterwards, burn two $50 dollar bills to warm up.

~ Soak your gloves and store them in the freezer after every use.

~ If you wear glasses, begin wearing them with glue smeared on the lenses.

~ Find the nearest ice rink and walk across the ice 20 times in your ski boots carrying two pairs of skis, accessory bag and poles. Pretend you are looking for your car. Sporadically drop things.

~ Place a small but angular pebble in your shoes, line them with crushed ice, and then tighten a C-clamp around your toes.

~ Buy a new pair of gloves and IMMEDIATELY THROW ONE AWAY!

~ Secure one of your ankles to a bed post and ask a friend to run into you at high speed.

~ Fill a blender with ice, hit the pulse button and let the spray blast your face. Leave the ice on your face until it melts. Let it drip onto your clothes.

~ Drink several ounces of water (or another beverage of choice), dress up in as many clothes as you can; now, quickly take them off because you REALLY, REALLY HAVE TO GO TO THE BATHROOM!

~ Repeat all of the above every Friday and Saturday until you’re ready for the real thing.

When I lived in Boone, North Carolina, I was in an area where skiing is a popular activity.  There were several ski slopes within a 30-minute drive of our house.  Before moving to Boone, I had never been skiing before, but it sure looked like fun, so one year I gave it a try.  Will I do it again?  Reread the list above for my answer!  🙂

Maybe I shouldn’t have waited until I was 40, or maybe I’m just not coordinated enough (skiing was no problem — it was the stopping that I had trouble with).  I just know I spent several hours saying to myself, “People actually pay to go through this?!”

Why do skiers endure such hardship?  You would need to ask them that question, but there is obviously a certain amount of pleasure that they find in skiing.  If the reward of an activity is not greater than the hardship, we tend not to continue to engage in that activity.

Some people, no doubt, wonder the same thing about Christians.  They don’t understand people who make sacrifices, putting others ahead of themselves, living in a way that brings glory to God, and denying the “pleasures of life”.  So why do Christians endure hardships?  I’ll let the apostle Paul answer that question:

“Therefore I endure all things for the sake of the elect, that they also may obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory.  This is a faithful saying: For if we died with Him, we shall also live with Him. If we endure, we shall also reign with Him.” (2 Timothy 2:10-12a)

Again, if the reward of an activity is not greater than the hardship, we tend not to continue to engage in that activity.  So it’s important that we continue to remind ourselves of the “reward” of living the Christian life.  If you find that living the Christian life is getting tough, remind yourself every now and then why you’re doing what you’re doing.

Have a great day!

Alan Smith
Helen Street Church of Christ
Fayetteville, North Carolina

“If you find that living the Christian life is getting tough, remind yourself every now and then why you’re doing what you’re doing.”  The reward is heavenly!

Anna Lee