Oh, to have been among the multitude following Jesus,

...not for his personality or charisma, but to marvel with reverence at His compassion and miracles. 


One particular day they strolled into a town called Nain, and a funeral procession met them at the city gate. The dead man being carried was a widow's only son. Jesus always showed compassion for widows, and He felt her grief. "Weep not," He said.


Luke 7:14  And He came and touched the bier; and they that bare him stood still. And he said, "Young man, I say unto thee, Arise." And he that was dead sat up and began to speak. And he delivered him to his mother.


Awe-struck onlookers, jarred with fear, worshipped Him. "God has visited His people," they said.


What an experience. His holy-hallowed presence has touched me many times, leaving me blubbering in humility.

You might be a redneck if your family tree doesn't fork

...or you go to family reunions to meet women. Our Ladies Bible Study Coffee Club met today. No, we didn't tell redneck jokes. I just wanted to get your attention.  Missy led us in a study of Relationships.  


People in your life may disappoint you, but your relationship with God can be peaceful and sure. God has promised to fill in the blanks in our relationships. He is the parent to the orphan, a husband to the widow, a friend to the lonely, and a brother to the believer. Doing God's will secures our relationship with him. (Sheila Walsh)


Jeremiah 29:11-13  For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you an expected end. Then shall ye call upon me and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will harken unto you. And ye shall seek me and find me when ye shall search for me with all your heart.


Do you have a relationship with God?

The book of Genesis is all about beginnings.

The creation, the fall of man, the flood, and the Tower of Babel. Calling Abraham out of idolatry began a new nation – God’s earthly people. His covenant with the Jews was passed down through generations. God would make them a great nation. His people would be blessed and a blessing to the world. God would bless them who blessed Israel and curse them who cursed Israel.

 
Abraham wasn’t perfect and neither are we. He messed up going to Egypt instead of following God, and because of fear he lied about his wife and got kicked out of the country.

 
Instead of waiting for God to give him the son He promised, Abraham had one – an Arab – by a servant, and the world is still plagued by that mistake. Later, God gave him Isaac, the chosen seed for the lineage of Christ.

 
Abraham’s faith didn’t waver when God asked him to sacrifice his Isaac for a burnt offering. At the last minute an angel stopped him, and then they saw the sacrificial lamb caught in the brush.

 
Abraham’s faith was counted for righteousness, as is ours. He wasn’t great until he started obeying God. We will never grow spiritually until we obey God.

Scribes and Pharisees thought they had caught Jesus in a sin.

He was eating without washing his hands. Caught up in their rituals, these guys trampled on the Son of God.


The one who had healed the sick, cast out demons, raised the dead, calmed the storm, walked on water, and fed a multitude of people with a little boy's lunch didn't follow the tradition of the elders.


Jesus quoated the prophet Isaiah, calling them hypocrites because they honored God with their lips, but their heart was far from him. Do we do that? Jesus said it is not what goes in us but what comes out. We can try to clean up on the outside, but forget about the real issue: the heart.


The Bible tells us the heart is deceitful. When the heart is wrong, everything is wrong. We need to give all our wrongs to God and allow Him to change us. We need to get into His Word.