Shockwave

Shockwave! Supersonic jet rips through sky...leaving sound behind to boom with anger...

Shockwave! Tsunami forces oceans to flee quaking sea floors...overrunning frightened coastlines and changing lives...

Shockwave! Man spies woman of his dreams...something clicks within...life together now in sharp focus...two becoming one...

Shockwave! God steps from outside time into flesh...buys our pardon...seals it with death overcome...Tells me (and you) we are His always!

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Psalm 23:⁶ Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me
all the days of my life,
and I will live in the house of the Lord
forever!

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Much happiness in the New Year with our Forever God!

Rob Smith

possessions

What if my attitude toward "possessions" is to have none? Of course, in a practical sense, that's really impossible. You just can't function in a physical world without owning some "stuff". But, if we are not careful, possessions can gain an upper hand in our lives and begin to possess us! Reflecting on this the other day it occurred to me that the real test of value of anything is its endurance...its lasting quality. What are the things about our lives and in our lives that last the longest? Why, it is our life itself that will go on past the physical state and into eternity. There is nothing of the physical world that I can own that will follow into that state. And so there is nothing that can be owned here that should consume too much of my attention or be weighted with a great value. In fact, even the reality of eternal life shows the importance of our lives not being our possession...but His...the One who invented life and the One who has bought us back to redeem our lives. It seems that so much of the world goes after possessions, as if to increase the value of life and the standing among those who are living.

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Perhaps we can simplify this by focusing on the One who has claim to our lives...to be His now and forever...Now there is a treasure to pursue!

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Matthew 6:³¹ "So don't worry about these things, saying, 'What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?' ³² These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. ³³ Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.

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blessings,

Rob Smith

living supernaturally

Without a care I breathe fresh air

Living supernaturally

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I jog beneath a sky of peace

Living supernaturally

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Every need He's pledged to meet

Living supernaturally

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Listening to His word...like bread

Living supernaturally

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Every day, my path He's led

Living supernaturally

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Blessed with wife, children and friends

Living supernaturally

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Speak to Him who frees from sin

Living supernaturally

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Freed from materialism's grip

Living supernaturally

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Life forever...just begun

Living supernaturally

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Lifted by His buoyant love

Living supernaturally

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Mortal meets immortal God

Living supernaturally

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Held now by His arms above

Living supernaturally

John 4:^{14 "}But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life."

blessings,

Rob Smith

in Jesus name

Acts 3:¹⁶ "Through faith in the name of Jesus, this man was healed—and you know how crippled he was before. Faith in Jesus' name has healed him before your very eyes."

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Matthew 12:^{20 "}He will not crush the weakest reed
or put out a flickering candle.
Finally he will cause justice to be victorious.
²¹ And his name will be the hope
of all the world." ^{(quoted from Isaiah 42)}

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Matthew 28:¹⁹ Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.

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Luke 10:¹⁶ Then he said to the disciples, "Anyone who accepts your message is also accepting me. And anyone who rejects you is rejecting me. And anyone who rejects me is rejecting God, who sent me."

¹⁷ When the seventy-two disciples returned, they joyfully reported to him, "Lord, even the demons obey us when we use your name!"

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John 12:²⁸ Father, bring glory to your name."

Then a voice spoke from heaven, saying, "I have already brought glory to my name, and I will do so again."

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John 14:¹³ You can ask for anything in my name, and I will do it, so that the Son can bring glory to the Father. ¹⁴ Yes, ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it!

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One common part of almost every prayer we share or hear is the closing phrase: "in Jesus' name". I believe this means something like: "according to the authority of Jesus, who alone is the Son of God and the Mediator between God and man". Perhaps it also means something like: "not in my name or my flawed and limited understanding but in Your holy name...the name which means Savior." And maybe it also means something like this: "Your name represents all you are and all you have done and all you can do. I lift my prayer to be energized, supplied, equipped and answered according to Your power and Your will and Your purposes!" When all is said and done, it is what He has said and He has done and He, alone, can do. His is the name above every name and our petitions, praise and all prayers must be submitted before Him, under that glorious name.

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Praise the name of Jesus!

Rob Smith

passion

The modern use of the word "passion" only stems from the 1600's, when it took on the sense of "strong liking or enthusiasm". In the late 1500's it had picked up the notion of "sensual love". But the original word traces its Lain roots to the word 'pati' which means to suffer or endure. Passion originally was originally associated with suffering. That is why the movie, "The Passion of the Christ" is so accurate and appropriate as a title. It also helps us understand what it means to have 'compassion'. When we have compassion we have an attitude and an inner drive to 'suffer with' or identify with the suffering of others. Jesus endured great suffering for us because He has always been compassionate for us. Perhaps we can combine the original and the later meanings by developing a passion to be compassionate. Certainly this has always been the way of the Lord.

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Acts 1:³ To whom also he shewed himself alive after his passion by many infallible proofs, being seen of them forty days, and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God

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Matthew 14:¹⁴ And Jesus went forth, and saw a great multitude, and was moved with compassion toward them, and he healed their sick.

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blessings,

Rob Smith

"of all generations"

We get so wrapped up in our personal lives...in the challenges of daily life and of the challenges of our season of life, whether old or young. It is encouraging to be under the care of the God of all generations, who has been with us since before the first generation and will be with us for all of our generations. It is humbling to be reminded that my life will rise and fall and God will remain. Many generations have received the light and passed the torch of the good news of God's love for us. It is easy to become centered on our personal, individual lives. It is good to be reminded that the One who formed life and brings life continues on to breathe life anew. We have a God who is much bigger than we are, but who cares as much for us as He has for all men in every generation. Now is the time for us to become restored to the One who lives across generations and breathes life into each generation.

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Psalm 102:¹⁸ Let this be recorded for future generations,
so that a people not yet born will praise the Lord.
¹⁹ Tell them the Lord looked down
from his heavenly sanctuary.
He looked down to earth from heaven
²⁰ to hear the groans of the prisoners,
to release those condemned to die.
²¹ And so the Lord's fame will be celebrated in Zion,
his praises in Jerusalem,
²² when multitudes gather together
and kingdoms come to worship the Lord.

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blessings,

Rob Smith

a new person

1 Samuel 10:⁶ At that time the Spirit of the Lord will come powerfully upon you, and you will prophesy with them. You will be changed into a different person. ⁷ After these signs take place, do what must be done, for God is with you.

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It is fascinating to read the story of the first king of Israel. Samuel is the Lord's prophet and he has selected Saul, as directed by the Lord to become the king. But Saul needs to be prepared for the job! When first chosen he was hiding in some baggage and was like the cowardly lion of the Wizard of Oz. So Saul needs a "heart transplant" to make him into the new man that God has in mind.

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1 Samuel 10:⁹ As Saul turned and started to leave, God gave him a new heart, and all Samuel's signs were fulfilled that day.

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Perhaps we can say that before any of us can do what God wants us to do we need to become the person God needs us to be. That can only come with a transformation...a heart transplant. When we are made new inside by the Lord our steps will lead in new directions...the paths He has prepared for us to walk in!

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blessings,

Rob Smith

Tower of Babel today

Technology is great but technology can get us in trouble! Way back there, after the Flood, the descendants of Noah developed some cutting edge construction technology as they got into the city building mode. There weren't a lot of rocks for building so they developed brick making from the clay.

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Genesis 11:² As the people migrated to the east, they found a plain in the land of Babylonia and settled there.

³ They began saying to each other, "Let's make bricks and harden them with fire." (In this region bricks were used instead of stone, and tar was used for mortar.)

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Apparently the new techniques were very effective and the people became pretty confident in their ability to build and expand.

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Genesis 11:4 Then they said, "Come, let's build a great city for ourselves with a tower that reaches into the sky. This will make us famous and keep us from being scattered all over the world."

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The people, who had not long before, experienced the Flood seem to have lost the strong connection with God. They see that they are able to invent and build and now they want to launch into self-directed ambition. They decide to build a tower that reaches way up into the sky. It's as if they are saying, "We don't need Heaven to reach down anymore. We can build our way to Heaven on our own."

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But God enters the picture at this point. He is not pleased that the people are all united around this Man-centered ambition. There is a time when unity is very good. But, apparently, when men are united around the wrong direction it is not good. The Lord confuses the language of the people so that they cannot understand each other and the different language groups scatter to find their own place on the earth.

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We don't have a Tower of Babel these days. We do have Cell phone towers, skyscrapers, massive bridges and we have digital technology that makes us feel very powerful. These days we believe that we have all the knowledge at our disposal to do whatever we want. This is a time when man feels on top of his game. We believe that, because we can do a great deal, we know which direction to go. But I think we confuse our advances in technology with wisdom to know how to use that knowledge and that ability. Today, we listen a great deal to each other, but we may not listen a great deal to God. Because there is much we can do, we think that we don't need God's input. And so our moral compass spins and the base desires that are fed by the World drive us, just as they drove the ancient people of Babel.

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A time may come when the Lord confuses the ways of man once again, so that we look up, and not only around, to find our direction. The Lord must be the foundation if our towers are to stand as lighthouses for Him.

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blessings,

Rob Smith

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