EVERY SIN

“And when they were come to the place, which is called Calvary, there they crucified him, and the malefactors, one on the right hand, and the other on the left.  Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment, and cast lots.”

Luke 23:33, 34

King James Version

Ethel Taylor wrote the hymn “Calvary Covers It All”.  “The stripes that He bore and the thorns that He wore Told His mercy and love ever more And my heart bowed in shame as I called on His name, And Calvary covers it all. Calvary covers it all, My past with its sin and stain; My guilt and despair Jesus took on Him there, And Calvary covers it all.”

One of the most hateful things that satan does is  lie to us and tell us that Jesus doesn’t love us and that He hasn’t forgiven us for what we did in the past and that He never will forgive us for our sins.  Don’t listen to satan because he is a liar.  We read in the Bible.  “Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it” (John 8:44).

Heavenly Father, thank You for giving Your beloved Son to die on the cross for our sins.  I pray for every person who has not invited Jesus into their heart.  May today be the day they open the door of their heart and let Him come in to be their personal Saviour.  I love You, Heavenly Father, and I appreciate all You have done for me.  In Jesus’ Name, I pray.  Amen.

Joanne Lowe

August 7, 2019

OUR HEART

“But the LORD said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the LORD seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart.”

1 Samuel 16:7

King James Version

My best friend gave me a picture of herself.  She is a beautiful lady to look at, but far more important she has a beautiful heart.  She has a heart that is filled with love for Jesus, for her family and for her friends.  This is what impresses God, what is in our heart.  We worry so much about our outward appearance and I am guilty of doing this, but God is looking at what is in our heart.

I am so glad that when I was saved, Jesus gave me a new heart because I was a very hateful person.  My heart before I was saved was filled with hatred, resentment, criticism and all other things that hurt God and break His heart.  We read in the Bible.  “And I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them an heart of flesh:” (Ezekiel 11:19).

Rev. Rufus McDaniel wrote a hymn that describes me since Jesus saved me “Since Jesus Came into My Heart”.  “What a wonderful change in my life has been wrought Since Jesus came into my heart! I have light in my soul for which long I had sought, Since Jesus came into my heart!  Since Jesus came into my heart, Since Jesus came into my heart, Floods of joy o’er my soul Like the sea billows roll, Since Jesus came into my heart.”

There are no words to describe how much I love Jesus and how grateful I am to Him for dying on the cross for my sins so I could be saved and go to Heaven when I die.  James Rowe wrote another hymn that I love “Love Lifted Me”.  I love the words in this inspiring hymn.  “Love lifted me! Love lifted me! When nothing else could help Love lifted me! Love lifted me! Love lifted me! When nothing else could help Love lifted me!”

We can give our family and friends big and expensive gifts but if we don’t give them love, none of the gifts mean anything.  It is very important that we not only tell people we love them but also thank them for what they have done for us.  Several years ago, I called a friend to thank her for what she had done for me.  Her son answered the telephone and said “Mom died three months ago”.  It broke my heart.  I had waited too long to thank her.

A pastor who was preaching about love and thanking people said “My uncle raised me and I loved him very much and was grateful to him for all he did for me.  I decided to call him and thank him for raising me and loving me.  However, I waited too long to tell him.  The day that I decided to call him, I found out that he had died the day before.”

Please don’t wait!  Tell your family and your loved ones how much you love them and appreciate them but more important than this, tell Jesus you love and appreciate Him.  When is the last time you said “Jesus, I love You”?  Jesus has feelings too.  He knows our heart but He wants us to tell Him that we love Him.  Do you love Him?  If so, what are you doing to prove to Him that you love Him?

Joanne Lowe

August 6, 2019

BELLS OF HAPPINESS

“Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.”

Luke 15:10

King James Version

Rev. W. O. Cushing wrote a beautiful hymn about the angels rejoicing when someone accepts Jesus as personal Saviour.  “Ring the Bells of Heaven”.  I love these words.   “Ring the bells of Heaven! Spread the feast today!  Angels, swell the glad triumphant strain! Tell the joyful tidings, bear it far away! For a precious soul is born again.”  What happiness, what excitement and what joy there is in Heaven when someone is saved.

The biggest and most expensive birthday party we can have is nothing compared to the birthday party the angels have when someone is saved.  Have the angels had a birthday party for you?  Has there ever been a time in your life when you admitted you were a sinner, repented of your sins, asked God to forgive you and invited Jesus into your heart to be your personal Saviour?

If not, I urge you to do it now before it is too late.  One day it will be too late for you to invite Jesus into your heart.  Jesus loves you so much He died for your sins on the cross.  He endured pain and agony that you and I will never know and He had never sinned, not one time.  He died on the cross for you because He loves you.  Your family and friends can’t do it for you as much as they want to because salvation is personal between Jesus and you.

You may be saved but does Jesus have first place in your heart and in your life?  Are you serving Him?  You might think there is nothing you can do for Jesus.  There is always something we can do to make Jesus happy. You can hug for Jesus.  If you don’t feel comfortable hugging people, hug them with your loving words and your loving actions.  To serve Jesus, you will have to shut off the television and get out of your comfort zone.

Heavenly Father, I pray for every man, for every woman, for every boy and for every girl that has not invited Jesus into his or her heart.  May today be the day they invite Jesus into their heart.   Thank You for my salvation and for adopting me into Your family and for the privilege You have given me to serve Your Son.  In Jesus’ Name, I pray.  Amen.

Joanne Lowe

August 5, 2019

ALMOST

“King Agrippa, believest thou the prophets? I know that thou believest.  Then Agrippa said unto Paul, Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian.”

Acts 26:27, 28

King James Version

I believe that this is one of the saddest verses in the Bible.  King Agrippa told Paul that he was almost persuaded to be a Christian.  I wonder how many people are almost persuaded to be a Christian but never invite Jesus into their heart to be their personal Saviour.  I think there are some people who aren’t saved because they don’t see or hear the difference Jesus can make in their heart and life.

It is so important that we let others see and hear Jesus in our words and in our actions so they will want Him as their Saviour.  We read in the Bible “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven” (Matthew 5:16).  If we want our children to accept Jesus as their personal Saviour, they need to see and hear the difference Jesus has made in our heart and life.

What about you?  Do your children and grandchildren see and hear the difference Jesus has made in your heart and life?  We can’t fool children.  They can tell if we are really saved or if we’re just putting on a show.  How sad and tragic it will be if our children aren’t saved because we didn’t show them by our actions that Jesus made a difference in our heart and in our life.

Heavenly Father, I pray for every man, for every woman, for every boy and every girl who has not invited Jesus into their heart.  May this be the day they confess their sins and invite Him into their heart.  I am so glad that on August 14, 1980, I admitted that I was a sinner, asked You to forgive me and invited Jesus into my heart to be my personal Saviour.  Thank You for adopting me into Your family and for giving me the privilege of serving Jesus.  I love You so much, Heavenly Father and I appreciate all You have done for me.  In Jesus’ Name, I pray.  Amen.

Joanne Lowe

August 4, 2019

WE CAN’T HIDE

“The eyes of the LORD are in every place, beholding the evil and the good.”

Proverbs 15:3

King James Version

A man who was mean to his wife and children and beat them when he was drunk said “What I do in my own house is my business”.  That is not a true statement because everything we do is God’s business and we can’t hide from Him even if we close the door.  If we aren’t doing something wrong, we wouldn’t have any reason to hide from God.  I think that we sometimes forget that God knows everything.  He sees everything we do and He hears everything we say.

We read in the Bible.  “Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence?  If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there.  If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me.  If I say, Surely the darkness shall cover me; even the night shall be light about me.  Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee; but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both alike to thee” (Proverbs 139:7-12).

Just as we can’t hide from God no matter where we go, we also can’t hide our thoughts or what is in our heart from Him.  God sees everything.  He hears everything and He knows everything.  If we have allowed unforgiveness, bitterness, hatred, jealousy, resentment and all other things that hurt God and break His heart to remain in our heart, He sees them and it hurts Him and breaks His heart.  I wonder how many times we hurt Him and break His heart because we refuse to forgive people who have hurt us.

If God can forgive us for what we did to His Son and Jesus can forgive us while still hanging on the cross with the blood flowing down His body, how dare you and I allow hatred, resentment and unforgiveness to remain in our heart?  If ever someone had a right to hate and not forgive, it is Jesus but He loves us so much that He asked God to forgive us.  What kind of love is this?  It is a compassionate and an unconditional love that comes from the heart of our precious Saviour.

We read in the Bible.  “And when they were come to the place, which is called Calvary, there they crucified him, and the malefactors, one on the right hand, and the other on the left.  Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment, and cast lots” (Luke 23:33, 34).  Think about it, Jesus didn’t have to forgive us and He didn’t have to walk that long lonely road to Calvary and allow them to crucify Him for our sins.  Yes, He didn’t have to forgive us and He didn’t have to stay on the cross but He stayed on the cross because He loves us unconditionally.

Ray Overholt wrote the hymn “Ten Thousand Angels”.  “They bound the hands of Jesus in the garden where He prayed; They led Him thro' the streets in shame. They spat upon the Savior so pure and free from sin; They said, "Crucify Him; He's to blame. He could have called ten thousand angels To destroy the world and set Him free. He could have called ten thousand angels, But He died alone, for you and me.”  The next time someone hurts you and you refuse to forgive him or her and allow resentment and hatred to remain in your heart, remember Jesus forgave you for your sins. 

Jesus was beaten beyond recognition, spat on, cursed, mocked and suffered pain and agony that you and I will never know and He still forgave you for your sins so how can you refuse to forgive the ones who have hurt you?  How we must hurt our precious Saviour and break His heart many times because we refuse to forgive the ones who have hurt us.  It is time we stop hating people and start loving unconditionally as Jesus has commanded us to love others.

We read in the Bible “A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another” (John 13:34, 35).  If Jesus comes back for us today, are you ready to meet Him or will you have to hang your head in shame because you haven’t forgiven the ones who have hurt you?

Joanne Lowe

August 3, 2019

BECAUSE

“And the angel answered and said unto the women, Fear not ye: for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified.  He is not here: for he is risen, as he said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay.”

Matthew 28:5, 6

King James Version

Bill and Gloria Gaither wrote one of my favorite hymns “BECAUSE HE LIVES”.  I’m so glad the words in this beautiful hymn are true.  “Because He lives I can face tomorrow Because He lives all fear is gone Because I know He holds the future And life is worth the living Just because He lives.”

It doesn’t matter how many times satan attacks us, Jesus is alive and we can face tomorrow.  Life is worth the living because Jesus is alive.  If I hadn’t invited Jesus into my heart to be my personal Saviour, there would be no reason to live because without Jesus, we aren’t living, we just exist.

Someone said “People are always watching Christians to see if they are really Christians”.  How sad it is that some people claim to be a Christian but their actions and words are not like Christians should be.  Many years ago one of my pastors said in a sermon “This man sang in the choir, and he taught Sunday school and everyone thought how wonderful he was but this same man went home and beat his wife”.  How that must have hurt Jesus and broke His heart.

One of the most heartbreaking things I have ever read is about a teenage boy.  He said to his parents “You teach Sunday school, you sing in the choir and you go to church every time the door is open but when you come home you criticize the pastor and the sermon.  If that is what being a Christian is, I don’t want any part of it”.

What are people thinking and saying about you and your life?  Peter Scholtes wrote a hymn that should make every Christian search his or her heart “They will know we are Christians”.  “We are one in the Spirit, we are one in the Lord We are one in the Spirit, we are one in the Lord And we pray that our unity will one day be restored And they'll know we are Christians by our love, by our love Yes they'll know we are Christians by our love.” 

Do the words in this hymn describe you and your life?  Are your actions and life making Jesus happy or are they making Him sad?  May God help us to be kind and loving to one another.  If Jesus comes back for us today, are you ready to meet Him?  You may be saved but what about your heart?  When God looks in your heart, does He see things that hurt Him?  If we have allowed unforgiveness, bitterness, hatred, resentment and anger to remain in our heart, we are not ready to meet Jesus. 

How sad it would be if we have to hang our heads in shame when Jesus comes for us because we are hurting Him by not forgiving the ones who have hurt us.  Jesus forgave you and He forgave me while hanging on the cross with the blood flowing down His body.  If Jesus can forgive us for crucifying Him, how dare you and I allow unforgiveness to remain in our heart.  How we must hurt Jesus at times and break His heart.

Joanne Lowe

August 2, 2019

EMOTIONAL WHEELCHAIRS

“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world.”

1 Peter 5:8, 9

King James Version

When we see people with a broken leg, we know they are unable to walk to the doctor so we put them in a wheelchair and take them to the doctor.  It is the same when we see people with a broken heart.  They are unable to cry out to Jesus for help so we need to put them in an emotional wheelchair and take them to Jesus, the great Physician.

Rev. William Hunter wrote the hymn “The Great Physician”.  I love these words in this beautiful hymn. “The Great Physician now is near, The sympathizing Jesus; He speaks the drooping heart to cheer, Oh, hear the voice of Jesus! Sweetest note in seraph song; Sweetest name on mortal tongue; Sweetest carol ever sung: Jesus, blessed Jesus!”

Pastor William C. Martin wrote one of my favorite hymns “The Name of Jesus Is So Sweet”.  “I love the name of Him whose heart Knows all my griefs, and bears a part; Who bids all anxious fears depart -I love the name of Jesus.  “Jesus,” O how sweet the name! “Jesus,” ev'ry day the same; “Jesus,” let all saints proclaim Its worthy praise forever.”

If you know someone who is hurting emotionally and has a broken heart, put him or her in an emotional wheelchair and take them to Jesus.  Doctors can set broken bones and do surgery but only Jesus can heal a broken heart.  Jesus knows how it feels to be discouraged and feel all alone. So He understands when we have a broken heart.

Heavenly Father, I pray for all who are hurting emotionally.  Please comfort and encourage them as You have done for me so many times.  I pray for every pastor who is preaching the good news of our risen Saviour.  Please comfort and encourage them.  Thank You so much for the privilege You have given me to have Pastor Davis as my Pastor.  I love You, Heavenly Father and I appreciate all You have done for me.  In Jesus’ Name, I pray.  Amen.

Joanne Lowe

August 1, 2019