Best Plan Ever

Psalm 71:17 (NET) - O God, you have taught me since I was young, and I am still declaring your amazing deeds.

Since the beginning, God has done the miraculous.

He spoke the universe into existence.

From the farthest flung galaxies to our neighboring moon, the universe declares God’s glory.

The Earth itself is also a testament to God’s glory from one extreme to the other.

For example, the wings of a butterfly are frail and delicate.

The wings of an eagle, however, are strong and sturdy.

Yet, God created both.

God created both the depths of the oceans and the highest mountain tops 

Personally, I am quite fond of the mathematical and scientific formulas I use daily.

The fact that they work time after time tells me that God is behind everything.

A growing number of scientists now concur that there is an intentional design to the universe.

That means that there must be a master designer as well.

In short, God is the master planner.

But of all God’s plans, one outshines them all.

In Luke’s gospel we read of a man named Simeon.

The Holy Spirit revealed to him that he would not die before he saw the Redeemer.

This happened when Joseph and Mary brought the young Jesus to Jerusalem.

The moment Simeon took Jesus into his arms, he knew the Redeemer had come.

Luke 2:28-30 (NET) - Simeon took him in his arms and blessed God, saying, “Now, according to your word, Sovereign Lord, permit your servant to depart in peace. For my eyes have seen your salvation

Of all the wonders planned and brought about by God one outshines them all.

That wonder is none other than Jesus.

For in his eternal wisdom, God knew we could never save ourselves.

Therefore, He planned for our salvation from the beginning and brought Jesus into His creation.

 

Blessings,

Jim Pokorny

The Other Brother Jim

Look for me at https://otherbrotherjim.blogspot.com/ on Friday, September 25, 2020.

I’ll be back here on Friday, October 2, 2020

 

Fruits of the Spirit

Nehemiah 9:20 (NET) - You imparted your good Spirit to instruct them. You did not withhold your manna from their mouths; you provided water for their thirst.

The Holy Spirit is the least understood member of the Trinity.

But the same Holy Spirit who helped those who came before us helps us as well.

Moreover, we do not need to fully comprehend the Holy Spirit in order to know Him. .

That is because He has been given to us,

John 14:17 (NET) - the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot accept, because it does not see him or know him. But you know him, because he resides with you and will be in you.

It is the Spirit that enables us to learn and do things for God.

It is the Spirit that enables us to learn and do things for our fellow man,

But there is a difference.

God is omniscient, so He knows absolutely everything we do.

Our fellow man however is not omniscient.

He is most likely aware only of what we specifically do for him at the time.

He might even identify us that way.

For example some know me as an employee, a coworker, a teacher, an author and so on.

In fact, a friend at church recently identified me as a “tech guy”.

I am sure everyone can relate.

We might even feel frustrated by this from time to time, but this does not have to be so.

We just need to allow the Holy Spirit to work through us in everything we do.

Then the things we do become “fruits of the Spirit”.

This means that they become evidence of the Holy Spirit to others.

Galatians 5:22-23 (NET) - But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

Doesn’t today’s world need to witness more of these things?

Just remember that Jesus reminds us of something important in one of His parables.

Luke 12:48 (NET) - But the one who did not know his master’s will and did things worthy of punishment will receive a light beating. From everyone who has been given much, much will be required, and from the one who has been entrusted with much, even more will be asked.

There are times when we might feel like there is no room on our plate to do one more thing for anyone.

That is when the Holy Spirit can truly surprise us.

He can choose to make our plate bigger and surprise others as well.

Blessings,

Jim Pokorny

The Other Brother Jim

Look for me at https://otherbrotherjim.blogspot.com/ on Friday, September 11, 2020.

I’ll be back here on Friday, September 18, 2020