In Dr. David Jeremiah’s book, “Living with Confidence in a Chaotic World”, Chapter 8 is entitled, “Stay Consistent”, and it is based on the Book of First John.
With permission from Karyl Maiorana , she summarizes the principles of staying consistent.
Consistently Christlike – First John 2:6 – Anyone who says he is a Christian should live as Christ did.
Consistently Caring – First John 2:23 – Believe on the name of His Son, Jesus Christ, and love one another.
Consistently Confident – First John 2:14 – And so I say to you fathers who know the eternal God, and to you young men who are strong with God’s Word in your hearts, and have won your struggle against Satan. Keep doing the will of God.
Consistently Compliant – First John 2:17 -And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.
Consistently Consistent – First John 2:24 – So keep on believing what you have been taught from the beginning. If you do, you will always be in a close fellowship with both God the Father and His Son, stay ready to keep from getting ready.
Follow all of the above for the eternal life He has promised us.
References:
Jeremiah, Dr. David (2009) Living with Confidence in a Chaotic World. W Publishing Group.
“And so, dear brothers and sisters, we can boldly enter heaven’s Most Holy Place because of the blood of Jesus. By His death, Jesus opened a new and life-giving way through the curtain into the Most Holy Place. And since we have a great High Priest who rules over God ‘s house, let us go right into the presence of God with sincere hearts fully trusting Him. For our guilty consciences have been sprinkled with Christ’s blood to make us clean, and our bodies have been washed with pure water.
Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep His promise. Let us think of ways to motivate one another into acts of love and good works. And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of His retun is drawing near.” (Hebrews 10:vv. 19-25, NLT)
“Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it give us assurance about things we cannot see. Through their faith, people in the days of old earned a good reputation.
By faith, we understand that the entire universe was formed at God’s commandments that what we see now did to come from anything that can be seen.” (Hebrews 11:vv 1-2, NLT)
“And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who want to come to Him must believe that God exists and that He rewards those who sincerely seek Him. ” (Hebrews 11: 6, NLT)
“For God is not unjust. He will not forget how hard you have worked for Him and how you have shown your love to Him by caring for other believers, as you still do. Our great desire is that you will keep on loving others as long as life lasts, in order to make certain that what you hope for will come true. Then you will not become spiritually dull and indifferent. Instead, you will follow the example of those are going to inherit God’s promises because of their faith and and endurance.” (Hebrews 6: vv. 10-12, NLT)
“All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort. He comforts us in our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us. For the more we suffer for Christ, the more God will shower us with His comfort through Christ. Even when we are weighed down with troubles, it is for your comfort and salvation! For when we ourselves are comforted, we will certainly comfort you. Then you can patiently endure the same things we offer. We are confident that as you share in our suffering, you will also share in the comfort God gives us.” (2 Corinthians: vv. 3-7, NLT)
“”Watch out! Don’t do you good deeds publicly, to be admired by others, for your will lose the reward from your Father in heaven. When you give to someone in need, don’t to as the hypocrites do – blowing trumpets in the synagogues and streets to call attention to their acts of charity. I feel you the truth, they have receive all the reward they will ever get. But when you give to someone in need, don’t let your left hand know what your right hand is doing. Give your gifts in private, and you Father, who sees everything, will reward you.””
I was looking at our Christmas cards received this year. We only received seven cards this year. I noted that I did not get cards from several friends and family who have sent yearly Christmas cards in past years.
I, too, have reduced the amount of Christmas cards that have sent over recent years. I sent out about 20 cards this year. This year, I tried to write at least a personal note on the card addition of just signing our names.
When I was younger, I remember sending double or triple that amount. Once or twice, I cheated and typed a letter of our year and added it to the envelope, instead of personally writing a paragraph or two on the card. I also remember getting so many Christmas cards that we strung them up on the wall mantle, and later that was reduced to a cute Christmas card holder. In the past five years or so, the cards are so few, that we just lay them on a table.
It is so easy to wish folks a generic Merry Christmas on social media. But it is certainly not as personal as receiving a card that someone took the time to mail especially to me and my husband.
Of course, there is the obligatory Christmas card sometimes sent in response to a card that I mailed to someone, that is usually received after Christmas.
Maybe as we get older, we are forgotten. But we are never forgotten by God.
“For God is not unjust. He will not forget how hard you have worked for Him and how you have shown your love to Him by caring for other believers as you still do. Our great desire is that you will keep on loving others as long as life lasts, in order to make certain that what you hope for will come true. Then you will not become spiritually dull or indifferent. Instead, you will follow the example of those who are going to inherit God’s promises because of their faith and endurance.” (Hebrews 6:10-12)
“”The Lord passed in front of Moses, calling out, “Yahweh! The Lord! The God of compassion and mercy! I am slow to anger and filled with unfailing love and faithfulness.
I lavish unfailing love to a thousand generations. I forgive iniquity, rebellion, and sin. But I do not excuse the guilty. I lay the sins of the parents upon their children and grandchildren; the entire family is affected – even the children in the third and fourth generations.” “
After reading several commentaries, I think that the Lord is referring to the sins of the parents affecting the generations because these sin are continued down through the generations without repentance. I refer to Exodus 20:5-6, where the Lord says, “You must not bow down to them (idols) or worship them, for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God who will not tolerate your affection for any other gods. I lay the sins of the parents upon their children in the third and fourth generations of those who reject me. But I lavish unfailing love on those who love Me and obey My commands.”
My daily Bible study is currently in the Book of Ezekiel. In Chapter 18, The Lord is talking to Ezekiel who was a prophet during the Judean exile in Babylon (Ezekiel 1:1) I am taking excerpts from Chapter 18, please refer to the entire chapter for further reading.
“”Then another message came to me from the Lord: “Why do you you quote this proverb concerning the land of Israel: The parents have eaten sour grapes, bu their children’s mouths pucker at the taste? As surely as I live, says the Sovereign Lord, you will not quote this proverb anymore in Israel. For all people are Mine to judge- both parents and children alike. And this is My rule: The person who sins is the one who will die.””(Ezekiel 18: 1-4)
From commentary from www.reddit.com, I understood this verse to mean that that the Jews blamed their parents for their captivity and the Lord was telling them to stop saying this because they should express resentment of their ancestors.
The Lord give three examples in this chapter. “Suppose a certain man is righteous and does what is just and right…….. and faithfully does my decrease and regulations. Anyone who does these things is just and will sure live, says the Sovereign Lord.” (vv. 5, 9)
“But suppose that a man has a son who grows up to be a robber or a murderer and refuses to do what is right. And the son does all the evil things his father would never do-…. Should such a sinful person live.” No! He must die and must take full blame.” (vv. 10, 13B)
“But suppose that sinful son, in turn has a son who sees his father’s wickedness and decides against that kind of life….. and obeys My regulations and decrees. Such a person will not die because of his father’s sins; he will surely live. But the father will die for his many sins- for being cruel, robbing people, and doing what is wrong among his people.” (vv. 14,15, 17B, 18)
“”What” you ask, “Doesn’t the child pay for the parent’s sins?” No! For if the child does what is just and right and keeps My decrees, that child will surely live. The person who sins is the one who will die. The child will not be punished for the parent’s sins, and the parent will not be punished for the child’s sins. Righteous people will be rewarded for their own righteous behavior, and wicked people will be punished for their own wickedness. But if the wicked people turn away from all their sins and begin to obey My decrees and do what is just and right, they will surely live and not die. All their past sins will be forgotten, and they will live because of the righteous things they have done.” (vv 9-22)
“Do you think that I like to see wicked people die? says the Sovereign Lord. Of course not! I want them to turn from their wicked ways and live. However, if righteous people turn from their righteous behavior and start doing sinful things and act like the other sinners, should they be allowed to live? NO, of course not! All their righteous acts will be forgotten, and they will die for their sins.” (vv. 22-24)
“Therefore, I will judge each of you, O people of Israel, according to your actions, says the Sovereign Lord. Repent, and turn for your sins. Don’t let them destroy you! Put all your rebellion behind you, and find yourselves a new heart and a new spirit. For why should your die, O people of Israel? I don’t want you to die, says the Sovereign Lord. Turn back and live!” (vv30-32)
In today’s world, these Scriptures surely apply as well. We should admit that we are sinners, believe that Christ died for our sins, and commit our lives to following Jesus.
(All Scripture taken from the New Living Translation)
I haven’t posted in a while, and for good reason. Somewhere during the first week of December, I caught a cold, or so I thought. The symptoms progressed to sinus congestion, but no fever. I continued my routines with a nasal decongestant and ibuprofen. I still thought nothing of it, until the day of December 14th. I had been working as part-time seasonal help at a local department store. Having standing on my feet for five hours, they began to ache. When I got home, and walked my dogs, the aching persisted. I went to bed early that night because I was so tired. During the night, I developed a sinus headache, and I noted my temperature was 99. I slept until 1:00 pm the next day. The medication helped control my symptoms and I felt better.
A few days after I caught my cold, my husband began with the same symptoms of nasal congestion. He ran no fever, but had a little cough. He started getting more fatigued around December 16th. He had to take naps during the day. He has underlying medical conditions, one of which is low sodium, which has cause confusion and memory loss in the past. While playing his favorite interactive video game, he got confused about how to play the game. This happened on several occasions over the next few days. When I got home from work on December 19th, all the lights were on outside as well as inside the house. My husband was obviously in a confused state of mind. He forgot when I was coming home from work and had been looking for me inside and outside of the house. He was very fatigued and he went to bed. Long story short, I called my son and he came over to help me convince him to go to the ER. I called the EMTs and they checked him out. By that time, he was more in his right mind. He agreed to be take to the local ER.
We got to the ER around 10:30 pm. Chest X-ray and CT scan were normal, the Flu A swab was negative. Lab work showed low sodium and magnesium which necessitated admission to the hospital. It being 1:30 PM and I had a 30-minute drive home and knowing I could not go to the room with him, I left for home. I called him when I got home. He said he was still in the ER and they had tested him for COVID, but the results were not back yet. He called me back around 4:30 AM and said he was finally in a room, and he had tested positive for COVID. I could not believe it.
Shortening the story some more, my husband was discharged home on Monday, December 21st. That night he had a major coughing spell. I made an appointment for him to be seen by one of his providers on Tuesday, December 22nd. Because of his diagnosis of COVID, he had to go to their special Sick Clinic (COVID clinic). Chest X-ray showed mild patchy groundglass and interstitial opacities in both mid to lower lungs, indicating viral COVID pneumonia. He received a shot of Rocephin and Kenalog, and added Vitamin C and Zinc to his medications (he was already on Vitamin D). I told his provider what symptoms I had and she told me that I had already had COVID. I asked her if I need to be tested, and she said no, that wasn’t necessary at this point.
They sent us home, with with home care instructions and ordered home oxygen. We bought a pulse oximeter to measure his blood oxygen levels. He was given breathing exercises and an incentive spirometer. There were four positions he had to sleep in during the night to avoid the pneumonia settling in.
Tuesday and Wednesday nights were rough.He was so weak he had to either us a walker or walking cane to move around My husband had night sweats and I had to change the bed sheets every day. Thursday night was much better. By Friday, Christmas morning, he was beginning to get stronger, no longer needed the walker, but did use the walking stick on occasions. He still is using oxygen.
Obviously, we were unable to spend Christmas with our family. But we were together and because of the multitude of people praying for my husband’s recovery, he has been able to remain at home where I can take care of him. I truly believe he would not have done as well if he had to go to the hospital and be there by himself. His quarantine ends December 30th. I imagine his recovery back to normal will take many weeks.
In light of our COVID Christmas, we cannot forget the real real reason for Christmas. The birth of Jesus, our Savior of the World. Without faith, I could not have had the strength to endure these past few weeks.
” God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble.” Psalms 46:1
“Therefore, angels are only servants, spirits sent to care for people will will inherit salvation.” Hebrews 1:24
While decorating our Christmas Tree this year, I thought about some of my favorite ornaments which include ornaments from my childhood and those purchased from places we have visited around the world.
The Angel and Baby Jesus ornaments are probably the oldest ones. We always placed them at the top of the tree. These are probably from the 1950s.
These are also ones from my childhood. Probably from the 1950-1960s.
The Santa is the first ornament that I remember making and probably was in the 1959-1960s. The other is the original Elf Christmas ornament. He rarely stays on the tree anymore, and has become the Elf on a Shelf (sitting on a picture frame this year(
I purchased this butterfly from Hospice in memory of my mother (who died of cancer in 1982). The other ornaments are of our current two rescue dogs, Daisy and Tanya.
This collection of ornaments , from left to right top row – Cartigena, Columbia, Santorini, Greece, Vatican City, Italy; left to right bottom row – Victoria, Canada, Alaska, and the nativity is made of olive wood, from Israel.
This the final group- left to right t0p row: From my first and only Live Trans-Siberian Orchestra event, in memory of climbing to the top of a rock wall on a Royal Caribbean Cruise Ship, I made this wood slice ornament. – left to right bottom row; I ordered this one, but it was after I visited the Beetles Museum in Liverpool, an lastly, this is a Hallmark ornament. I had a similar Barbie case, a Barbie like the one inside the case, in the first year of issue and both of the outfits as a child.
I hope this has sparked some nostalgic memories for you. I would love to see some of your memorable ornaments! (post a feedback and/or email me at cackywalker@yahoo.com
