Living the Branded Life

I remember when the Nike Cortez tennis shoes became popular at my school. Many of my friends had them & it was the first time that I noticed brands.

My first pair of the famous shoe wasn’t the lavish leather one, but a nylon knockoff with a light blue logo. I remember feeling fancy when I wore them.

This morning, as I read the account of the Israelites fleeing Egypt, that memory about the Nikes surfaced.

On the very day of their rescue, Moses exhorts the 600,000 Israelites to remember, “the day you left your slavery.” He declares an annual festival to celebrate what the Lord has done so that it,

 “will be a visible sign to you, a mark branded on your hand or your forehead. Let it remind you always to recite this teaching of the Lord, ‘With a strong hand the Lord rescued us from Egypt.‘“

As I read the sentence above, 3 words glared off the page:

“A mark branded”

It was a brand mark of remembrance.

As I recalled how superficially special I felt with my new Nikes, I thought how THIS kind of brand is an eternal one.

It’s a mark that remembers great deliverance from slavery & a ransom of first borns from death. (Read Ex 12:28-42! I’s WAY better than Netflix!)

Even though this is the history of the Israelites, it’s also a foreshadowing for us! We are ALL in need of rescue & we have the final Passover Lamb, Jesus Christ, who shed His blood so that we too might be rescued from our Egypt!

I felt fancy in my nylon Nikes, but how much more fancy do we feel when we remember the much from which we’ve been saved & that our eternal future is secure?

Jesus died so we might live an abundant life marked by His Presence! Anyone whose accepted Jesus as their Savior & Lord has entered a brand deal of sorts - but we get the best end of the deal!

Our lives are ransomed from eternal death & all we need do is accept His forgiveness, receive Him as our Savior & allow our lives to become branded with His Lordship!

Oh Jesus, brand our lives with your Lordship! Worries fall, perfection pales & strivings cease when we come underneath the mark of Your Presence. May we represent Your brand well, with a life marked by undeserved forgiveness & a lavish love only You can provide!

#OneYearBible

January 31st One Year Bible Readings

EXODUS 12:14-13:16

MATTHEW 20:29-21:22

PSALM 25:16-22

PROVERBS 6:12-15

Have You Ever Felt Jealous When God has Been Kind to Others? I Have…

Of all the teachers in my school years, Mr. Newhouse made the greatest impact. He had a way of making Biblical Truth come alive. Sometimes it comforted, other times it convicted & sometimes I felt frustration when I became the object lesson. 

Such was the case on a January afternoon after we’d finished our morning of swimming at the local indoor pool. I showered super fast because I wanted to be first in line for the bus. The temperature was below freezing & I wanted to sit near the front so I’d be closest to the heater.

When it was time to load up, however, he pulled the rug out from under me by telling the jokesters at the back of the line (who always took forever) that they would get on first.

I was so mad inside. It felt so unjust. After I settled squarely in the back of the frigid bus, he said,

“For those at the back of the bus, should you be jealous that I am kind to others? Jesus said the last shall be first and the first shall be last. Let this moment remind you that it’s a selfish eye that envies when God gives grace to others. Remember that He is a good God & His kindness to them is not injustice to you.”

Ouch 🤕 

Selfishness, jealousy & comparison are all strategic tools in Satan’s tool belt. He loves to sidetrack us with any of the three. My diligence was good, but my response exposed a rotten place in my heart. I was out for me & felt his kindness as unfair. 

Life can feel like that at times…we “do” all the right things to be first in line only to:

👉🏽Be overlooked for a job

👉🏽Battle feelings that trump Truth

👉🏽Have a child become a prodigal

👉🏽Face sickness or disease

👉🏽Struggle financially

It’s far easier to look at the evident blessings in others only to miss out on the biggest blessing of all - the omnipresence of our God who always goes before us…we can trust Him & His sometimes seemingly backwards ways.🤗

Lord, forgive us for the times we give in the temptation to compare & become jealous. Sometimes the opportunity for envy arrives daily! Help us rejoice when others rejoice knowing full well that You are Jehovah Jireh, our God Who provides all that we will ever need! May we be first in line for the sake of your love alone.

#OneYearBible

January 30th One Year Bible Readings

EXODUS 10:1-12:13

MATTHEW 20:1-28

PSALM 25:1-15

PROVERBS 6:6-11

Trading Worry for Wonder

I don’t know when the elusive pursuit of perfection began, but social media only compounds the lie by quadrillions!

I watched a video the other day of a gal saying, “This is not me. I may look perfect but this? This is artificial me because it’s a filter.”

Then she clicked her screen & when the filter disappeared, freckles, pimples & asymmetry appeared.

If she hadn’t told me it was a filter, I would have dubiously thought she had flawless skin, symmetrical features & perfectly arched eyebrows😂

I remember my 5th grade teacher telling us about Mt. 19:14 when Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me. Don’t stop them! For the kingdom of Heaven belongs to those who are like these children.”

Mr. Newhouse exhorted our almost middle school ears saying, “Keep your heart as a place of wonder! You‘ll never know everything this side of heaven, so don’t act like you do!

As you grow, the cares & concerns of this life will creep in like a viney weed seeking to consume the Truth of who you are.

You are a child of the God Who created all, knows all & is the Source of all, so all you need do is ask as His child.”

I remember being little & wondering about everything instead of worrying about everything. Our Father wants our hearts to remain in that place of child-like wonder.

Instead of strategizing a solution or seeking perfection, how might the enemy lose his iron-like grip if we simply hand over his sweet nothing lies to Abba Father?

My great nephew’s daddy is Jewish. When they stayed with us for a few days, I couldn’t get enough of him saying, “Abba, Abba, look at me!” “Abba, Abba, when will we?” “Abba, Abba, how does this work?”

He always said “Abba” twice. Every time he did, it made me want to run to my heavenly Father with the same childlike trust & wonderment, kicking the “what ifs” to the curb.

Jesus, You said that the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to the childlike. Guard us from pride that demands we have all the answers & the temptation to appear with perfection.

Abba, Abba, there’s no perfection apart from You! We need not strive for answers when You are our Source of Truth. Renew a childlike wonder in our hearts that releases all worry unto Your care.

#OneYearBible

January 29th One Year Bible Readings

EXODUS 8:1-9:35

MATTHEW 19:13-30

PSALM 24:1-10

PROVERBS 6:1-5