Two rich men

Good Thursday morning, my friends.

My friend Dan sent me a link to a sermon by Francis Chan.  The sermon is called "Lukewarm and lovin' it!".  I felt very challenged by this message, so I decided to do what I usually do in those circumstances - share the pain with you.

In Mark 10:25 Jesus says "It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God."

We have heard this hundreds and hundreds of time, I am sure, and choose not to dwell on what He truly means by this - because we are some of the richest people who have ever lived on this earth.

So let's be brave enough to dwell on this for a minute.  What does He mean?  Is He saying it is impossible for us to get into Heaven?   Let's look at two other passages:

The Rich Ruler

A certain ruler asked him, "Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?"

"Why do you call me good?" Jesus answered. "No one is good—except God alone. You know the commandments: 'Do not commit adultery, do not murder, do not steal, do not give false testimony, honor your father and mother.'"

"All these I have kept since I was a boy," he said.

When Jesus heard this, he said to him, "You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me."

When he heard this, he became very sad, because he was a man of great wealth. (Luke 18:18-23)

Zacchaeus the Tax Collector

Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through. A man was there by the name of Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was wealthy. He wanted to see who Jesus was, but being a short man he could not, because of the crowd. So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree to see him, since Jesus was coming that way.

When Jesus reached the spot, he looked up and said to him, "Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today." So he came down at once and welcomed him gladly.

All the people saw this and began to mutter, "He has gone to be the guest of a 'sinner.' "

But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, "Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount."

Jesus said to him, "Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost." (Luke 19:1-10)

Here are two rich men.  The first is so caught up in his riches, so attached to them, so dependent on them that he cannot give them up.  The second immediately recognizes what is truly important - his relationship with God.  He is willing to part with all that he has to gain that.  (Does that remind you of the story Jesus told about the man who found a valuable pearl in a field?)  

"Today salvation has come to this house."  A rich man has been saved.  The impossible has been accomplished.  

How attached are you to your "stuff"?  The think about stuff is - the more you have, the safer you feel.  Like I said, this is challenging for me.  A week ago or so I told you that I was in a precarious situation in regards to my work situation.  I work on contract, and my contract ends today.  I went to God and told Him that I trusted Him, and that whatever happens, whatever I might have to divest myself of, I was willing to do so, knowing that He would provide for me and my family.  And I mostly believed what I was saying.  Mostly.  Yesterday afternoon we were told that our bid had won the new contract ("by the slightest of margins") and I will be remaining where I am currently planted.  A big thank you to all of you for your support and prayers during this time.  And praise and thanksgiving to God for His generosity and faithfulness.

Amazing Grace and Eternal Peace to you today,

Bruce

Father, we come to you knowing that we are rich beyond the wildest dreams of most of the people who have ever walked the earth.

Help us to understand that all we have has been given by You,

that you gave us this wealth not to make our lives easier,

but that we could use it to ease the burden and pain of others.

Forgive us for the times that we have trusted in earthly treasures

and not built up treasures in heaven.

Give us hearts like Zacchaeus, so that salvation may be brought to our houses - today.

In the name of Christ our Lord we pray.  Amen

Bruce MacPherson macpherson@celtic.ca

Draw aside these veils I have made

Good Wednesday morning, my friends,

The prayer/poem below is beautifully written and has scripture cleverly embedded in it.  

For instance, it talks about "the Way" and how God lights the path (Psalm 119:105).

I love how it draws a picture of the masks we wear "fashioned with the many fragments of my fears".  Can I get an "Amen" to that?

And it does not sugarcoat how we will look back at life in the end - at "the bitter and the sweet" - but promises no vain (i.e. useless) regret.

Read it a few times and meditate on His "Ancient Form" and your own journey.

Amazing Grace and Eternal Peace to you and yours today,

Bruce

My Lord,

Draw aside these veils I have made

Interwoven and fashioned with the many fragments of my fears.

That I might glimpse Your Ancient Form upon the inner road of mine.

Where Wisdom reigns and Silence guards the Way to heavens gate.

May my heartbeats walk with a measured step.

May I see with Inner Eye.

Those gleaming forms of radiant Light upon this

Holy Way.

And perhaps at Journeys end when I turn to look upon the bitter and the sweet.

No vain regret will dim my eyes or diffuse the Light, upon

this my

own

Damascus Way.

Raleigh Michael Smith - 1987

(http://www.worldprayers.org/frameit.cgi?/archive/prayers/adorations/you_are_the_peace_of_all.html)

Bruce MacPherson macpherson@celtic.ca

God's economy

Good Tuesday morning, my friends.

Below is a beautiful prayer that celebrates autumn and harvest time.  It reminds us of how God's amazing creation provides for us.  And He provides so that we may share with our neighbours.  In doing so, we store up treasures in Heaven.  I much prefer God's economic plan to the ones of this world.

Amazing Grace and Eternal Peace to you today,

Bruce

Good and generous Lord, You have once more brought the year full circle, through planting and growing and ripening to harvest time, and autumn.

We thank You for the sun and the wind, the rain and the dew, the minerals of the earth and all the plants that grow and all the beasts and birds of farm and field. We marvel at Your wonderful ways of bringing food from the earth for man's good.

Dear God, help us to use Your rich gifts as You want us to. Teach us to share them with our neighbor when he is in need. Make us see, in the marvelous succession of seasons, and in the growth and ripening of our crops, the merciful, generous hand of Your divine providence.

Help us to realize, too, that if we keep Your commandments and live according to the inspirations of Your grace, we shall also reap a plentiful harvest in the autumn of our lifetime: a harvest that we will be able to enjoy for ever and ever, where no rust can destroy, nor blight spoil any least part of it. Amen.

(http://bobhostetler.blogspot.com/2010/09/autumn-prayer.html)

Bruce MacPherson macpherson@celtic.ca

A bouquet for god

Good Monday morning, my friends.

Did you ever watch a little child come up to his or her mother with a bouquet of wild flowers they had just picked?  Some plants still had the roots still attached.  Some had the stems broken.  But to the child they were better than three dozen red roses.  And to the mom they are the most beautiful flowers on the planet.  Charles H. Spurgeon, in the prayer below, paints a similar picture of our offerings to God.  Like the mother receiving the wild flower bouquet, nothing could be more precious to Jesus.  Why not pick some for Him today?

Amazing Grace and Eternal Peace to you today,

Bruce

Blessed Jesus, thou dost receive with favor the smallest sincere token of affection! 

Thou dost receive our poor forget-me-nots and lovetokens, as though they were intrinsically precious, though indeed they are but as the bunch of wild flowers which the child brings to its mother. 

We will give thee the first fruits of our increase, and pay thee tithes of all, and then we will confess "of thine own have we given thee" 

Charles H. Spurgeon

(http://bobhostetler.blogspot.com/2010/09/as-bunch-of-wild-flowers.html)

Bruce MacPherson  macpherson@celtic.ca / Blog: The Celtic Christian / Home: 613.489.4174 Cell: 613.720.0821 You are receiving this email because you have requested it or I felt you would be interested in this material. If you would like to be removed from this email list, please do not hesitate to contact me at the above email address.  Likewise, if you know of someone else who you believe would appreciate receiving these messages, please let me know.

Turn to God or run away?

Good Friday morning, my friends.

I think I am pretty safe in saying that we all encounter trouble in our lives at one point or another.  It may be the death of someone close to us - parent, spouse, child or friend.  It may be serious illness.  It may be divorce.  It may be that we experience more than one of these things, potentially at the same time.  How do we handle this incredible stress in our lives?  Well, we will do one of two things:  we will either run to God, or run away from Him.  We will either learn to trust His promises more, and lean into Him for strength, or we start to doubt His compassion, His love, and possibly even His very existence.

Paul talks of this very subject when he wrote his second letter to the Church in Corinth:

You let the distress bring you to God, not drive you from him. The result was all gain, no loss.

Distress that drives us to God does that. It turns us around. It gets us back in the way of salvation. We never regret that kind of pain. But those who let distress drive them away from God are full of regrets, end up on a deathbed of regrets.

And now, isn't it wonderful all the ways in which this distress has goaded you closer to God? You're more alive, more concerned, more sensitive, more reverent, more human, more passionate, more responsible.  

2 Corinthians 7:9-11 (The Message paraphrase)

So we can choose to live a life full of regrets, or we can be more alive, more human and more passionate.  No brainer, right?  If only it were that easy.  I know it isn't.  But more and more I choose to pitch my tent in His encampment.  But I occasionally still scoot over to the enemy side to see if things are any better over there.  They aren't, by a long shot.  And regrets?  I always regret going.

Whatever you are enduring in your life right now - run to God.  It is all gain and no loss.

Amazing Grace and Eternal Peace to you,

Bruce

O Lord, grant me to greet the coming day in peace. 

Help me in all things to rely upon thy holy will. 

In every hour of the day reveal thy will to me. 

Bless my dealings with all who surround me. 

Teach me to treat all that comes to me throughout the day with peace of soul, and with the firm conviction that thy will governs all. 

In all my deeds and words guide my thoughts and feelings. 

In unforeseen events, let me not forget that all are sent by thee. 

Teach me to act firmly and wisely, without embittering and embarrassing others. 

Give me strength to bear the fatigue of the coming day and all that it shall bring. 

Direct my will, teach me to pray, pray thou thyself in me. Amen.

Metropolitan Philaret of Moscow (1782–1867)

(http://michaelhyatt.com/a-prayer-for-times-like-these.html)

Bruce MacPherson  macpherson@celtic.ca / Blog: The Celtic Christian / Home: 613.489.4174 Cell: 613.720.0821 You are receiving this email because you have requested it or I felt you would be interested in this material. If you would like to be removed from this email list, please do not hesitate to contact me at the above email address.  Likewise, if you know of someone else who you believe would appreciate receiving these messages, please let me know.

Lord, keep me out of your way

Good Thursday morning, my friends.

The prayer below is simple, elegant and to the point.  It speaks to God's own words in Micah 6:8 

He has showed you, O man, what is good. 

       And what does the LORD require of you? 

       To act justly and to love mercy 

       and to walk humbly with your God.

The author, Father Mychal, was one of the first victims to be found in the rubble of the World Trade Centre - he had been praying for others at the time of his death.  Was God answering this prayer?

Amazing Grace and Eternal Peace to you today,

Bruce

Lord, take me where You want me to go;

Let me meet who You want me to meet;

Tell me what You want me to say; and

Keep me out of your way.

Father Mychal Judge, O.F.M.

Chaplain, New York Fire Department

Died 9/11/2001

(http://inspire.luquette.org/father_mychals_prayer.htm)

Bruce MacPherson macpherson@celtic.ca

Heal me

Good Tuesday morning, my friends.

I love this prayer.  One of my most frequent requests is that He heal me from my past wounds - both self-inflicted and other-inflicted.  We all have these, and the more we heal, the more we can do in His kingdom.  And ONLY He can heal us.

So join me in this prayer today - may we all move to the next level in our service to Him.

Amazing Grace and Eternal Peace to you today,

Bruce

Lord, You invite all who are burdened to come to you. 

Allow Your healing Hand to heal me. 

Touch my soul with Your compassion for others; 

touch my heart with Your courage and infinite Love for all; 

touch my mind with Your Wisdom, and may my mouth always proclaim Your praise. 

Teach me to reach out to You in all my needs, and help me to lead others to You by my example. 

Most loving Heart of Jesus, bring me health in body and spirit that I may serve You with all my strength. 

Touch gently this life which you have created, now and forever.

Amen. 

(http://www.catholic.org/prayers/prayer.php?p=1325)

Bruce MacPherson  macpherson@celtic.ca / Blog: The Celtic Christian / Home: 613.489.4174 Cell: 613.720.0821 You are receiving this email because you have requested it or I felt you would be interested in this material. If you would like to be removed from this email list, please do not hesitate to contact me at the above email address.  Likewise, if you know of someone else who you believe would appreciate receiving these messages, please let me know.

Monday Morning Prayer

Good Monday morning, my friends.

The prayer below is appropriately titled "Monday Morning Prayer".  Pause for a few minutes, lifting it to God, and setting your week off on the right foot.  Allow Him to permeate your soul with His grace and peace this morning.

Amazing Grace and Eternal Peace to you today,

Bruce

Dear Father in heaven,

As we begin another week of hurrying and scurrying about our busy lives, we pause for just a moment to express our sincere praise of your majesty. We are amazed that the Creator of the Cosmos is mindful of each one of us and thankful that you are attentive to our needs.

We confess to you that we are intensely aware of our frailties and failings as humans. We also acknowledge that we are utterly dependent upon you for all that we have and all that we are able to do in this day....in every day. Help us deny ourselves, take up our crosses and simply follow Jesus so that we might live in such a way as to bring you honor and glory.

We humbly ask you to guide our steps throughout this week. We ask you to help us search for and find ways to serve as instruments of your peace in this tumultuous world. Help us to be a blessing to others. Please help our actions to be just and merciful. Fill us with your Holy Spirit that we might be empowered to walk humbly with you each step of the way.

Please bless those whose names flow from our hearts to your throne. Provide for each of these according to their needs.

Accept our thanksgiving for your sustaining grace in our lives. Thank you for being the Giver of every good and perfect gift we have received. Help us to bring you pleasure by enjoying these gifts. Help us, also, to honor you by being good stewards of all you have placed in our care. Above all, thank you for the indescribable gift of your Son to be our Lord and Savior. Please give us the faith, courage, grace and wisdom we need to follow in Him each and every day.

In the precious and powerful name of Jesus we pray.

Amen

(Bill Williams - http://praying.kansasbob.com/2010/09/monday-morning-prayer.html)

Bruce MacPherson macpherson@celtic.ca

Beware how you treat the mockers ...

Good Friday morning, my friends.

I read the following article this morning:

Key Bible Verse:

 Since prayer is at the bottom of all this, what I want mostly is for men to pray—not shaking angry fists at enemies but raising holy hands to God. (1Timothy 2:8, The Message) Dig Deeper: Luke 18:1-8

In May of 1934 in Charlotte, North Carolina, a small group of men met together on a dairy farm to pray. It was the middle of the Great Depression, and the farmer had lost all of his savings in the banking collapse the previous year. But he gave up much-needed time at work to pray with his friends.

Together they asked God to raise up a person from the Charlotte area who would share the Good News of Jesus all over the world. A few months later, the farmer's teenage son (who was mocking his father's faith at the time of the prayer meeting) committed his life to Jesus. His name was Billy Graham.

What would have happened if there hadn't been a prayer meeting on the Graham farm that day? What would we have missed? How many millions of people would never have heard the message of Jesus' love through the sermons of Billy Graham if this group of farmers had not asked God to provide a gospel preacher?

When we pray together, we draw close to God's heart and tap into his infinite power and love. God has chosen to use our prayers—especially our prayers together—as one of the main ways he accomplishes his work in our world.

—James Banks in The Lost Art of Praying Together

I see a couple of messages here.  The first, and most obvious, is that as much as private prayer is important, communal prayer is a very valuable tool in God's toolbox.  Jesus said "For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them" (Matthew 18:20).  

The second message, and perhaps less obvious, is to be careful of how we treat those who heap scorn on the faith.  I do not compare myself in any way to Billy Graham, but I was once a "mocker".  And how about that guy in the New Testament named Saul (who later became Paul)?  We need to be aware that they are not the enemy, they are simply not privy yet to the Truth, in need of prayer and, when the opportunity presents, guidance.

Amazing Grace and Eternal Peace to you today.

Bruce

O God, the everlasting Creator of all things, remember that the souls of unbelievers were made by Thee and formed in Thine own image and likeness.

Remember that Jesus, Thy Son, endured a most bitter death for their salvation.

Permit not, I beseech Thee, O Lord, that Thy Son should be any longer despised by unbelievers, but do Thou graciously accept the prayers of holy men and of the Church, the Spouse of Thy most holy Son, and be mindful of Thy mercy.

Forget their idolatry and unbelief, and grant that they too may some day know Him whom Thou hast sent, even the Lord Jesus Christ, who is our Salvation, our Life and Resurrection, by whom we have been saved and delivered, to whom be glory

(http://catholicism.about.com/od/prayers/qt/For_Unbelievers.htm)

Bruce MacPherson macpherson@celtic.ca

Answered prayer!

Good Thursday morning, my friends.

So I am curious - how many of you prayed for the salvation of family members after reading yesterday's prayer?  

How many prayed for the brother of the man I spoke of?  

Well, I didn't - I was too caught-up with praying for my own family, and that slipped my mind.  But he was being prayed for.  And God listened to those prayers!  I found this incredible message in my inbox this morning:

I did have opportunity to lead my brother in a prayer of repentance while he was in the hospital. I trust he committed his life to Christ.

A roommate in the hospital told my brother-in-law that Ben sang hymns late at night; songs about going home to heaven.

I just heard today that Ben asked my cousin who is a believer to come and talk to him before he died. 

This gives me joy, peace and hope that my brother in with the Lord.

God is good.  God answers prayers - in His time.  So if you have been praying long and hard for a family member, or only just begun, take heart.  He is faithful.

Amazing Grace and Peace that surpasses all understanding be yours,

Bruce

Thank you Father that Your Son came to die for us so that we might be reconciled with you, that we might have permission to come to Your throne room with our petitions.

Thank you Father that you listen to your children.

Lord we than you today for the work of your Holy Spirit in saving this man, Ben.

And we thank you for giving his family peace.

Please, Lord, as we lift up our own family members who do not know you, be at work in their lives, drawing them close to you, prompting them to seek you.

We ask this in the name of your Son, Jesus.  Amen

Bruce MacPherson macpherson@celtic.ca

Praying for family members

Good Wednesday afternoon, my friends.

Like many of you, I have a few family members who don't have a relationship with Jesus.  Up until two days I did not give this a lot of thought, let alone prayer.  Sure, occasionally it would occur to me and I would offer a short prayer, but beyond that I have done little.  

On Monday, I heard a man speak about his brother who was dying.  A brother that has not accepted Christ as his saviour.  This man who spoke was in so much pain over the possibility of spending eternity separated from his brother that it tore my heart out.  At that point the Holy Spirit reminded me of those in my family who were in the same boat.  It was an eye-opening, somewhat shocking experience for me.  I know this should have been much more of a priority for me, and for this I have asked forgiveness.  But unlike the man I described, I still have time to pray and to act.  And I pray that you will do the same for your family.  And if you feel comfortable, feel free to share their first names with me and I will pray for them too.

But please remember these words from Billy Graham in "Just As I Am":

I am always deeply conscious that I am absolutely helpless and that only the Holy Spirit can penetrate the minds and hearts of those that are without Christ. All I am doing is sowing seed. It is God - and only God - who can make the seed bear fruit.

Amazing Grace and Eternal Peace to you today,

Bruce

open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are being sanctified by faith in Jesus Christ. — Acts 26:18

Father, I ask that You fill them with the knowledge of Your will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding. 

As we intercede in their behalf, we believe that the power of the Holy Spirit is activated, and from this moment on, we shall praise and thank You for their salvation. 

We are confident that You are alert and active, watching over Your Word to perform it. It will not return to You void. It will accomplish that which You please and prosper in the thing whereto it was sent. (Jeremiah 1:12; Isaiah 55:11)

(excerpted from Prayer for Unsaved Family Members: http://www.victoryint.org/index.php?/Scriptural-Prayers-to-Pray/Prayer-for-Unsaved-Family-Members.html)

Bruce MacPherson macpherson@celtic.ca