"Trust me"

Have you ever found yourself overwhelmed by the issues of life and you didn't know what to do? Perhaps it was (or is) financial distress, or  unemployment, or  health concerns, or family issues, or whatever.  When you were faced with such an ordeal, how did you handle it?  Did you ignore it and hoped that it would just "go away"? Or maybe you just shut yourself off from the rest of the world so that you could have your own private "pity party"? Maybe you are like me. I recently found myself in a situation, and since I consider myself a "hands-on" type of individual, I was getting ready to "handle my business" so to speak.  I wasn't going to do anything illegal or drastic, but I was not about to stand by and do nothing.  Just as I was plotting my course of action, I heard the Lord speak to me.  He asked me something very simple, yet very profound. He asked, "Do you trust Me?" Did you know that the word "trust" is the Old Testament counterpart of the New Testament words "faith" and "believe"? Trust appears 154 times in the OT and it literally means to take refuge (Ps. 2:12); to lean on (Ps. 56:3); or to roll on (Ps. 22:8).   So when I heard the Lord ask me such a powerful question, it immediately humbled me, but at the same time it snapped me right into place and back on track.  I answered Him ( with bowed head and slightly embarassed), "Yes Lord, you know I trust You." And with that confession of faith, immediately all the weight and stress I was feeling disappeared!  Not only that, He began to show me what to do in order to properly address the situation.  You know, life is so much easier when we place all of our cares and concerns "in the Master's hands."  My prayer is that someone else that may be in similiar situation like me, will be blessed and encouraged by this message.  Let me leave you with this passage of scripture from Proverbs 3:5-6: "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths." (NKJV)

Peace,
Rev

Redeeming the time

The world lost a talented and gifted genius with the passing of Steve Jobs. As I'm sure you are all aware by now, he passed away at the age of 56 after a long battle against a rare form of pancreatic cancer.  I didn't know him personally, and I didn't know his religious affiliation, but the bottom line is that he used all the gifts and graces that God blessed him with to their fullest extent.  For that, the we should all be truly grateful.

In Ephesians 5:16 we are commanded by God to "redeem the time".  In other words, God wants us to "buy back" or make the most of the time that we have here on Earth. As children of God, we are to use our time wisely and do so to help make this world a better place.  I don't know if he realized it or not, but Steve Jobs was fulfilling this biblical mandate.  He knew that he was ill, yet instead of yielding to it, he continued to bless the world with his talent, right up until the very end.  May we all do likewise. 

Peace and blessings,
Rev

"Masks"

I was just thinking the other day about how we need to be honest with ourselves and one another.  How many times has someone greeted you and asked "How are you?" and we say "I'm fine, how are you?" knowing good and well that sometimes things aren't so "fine" in our lives.  I'm not saying that we should go around and tell all of our business to every person that we meet, but lets be real. We get up in the morning, put on our "Masks" and go to work and act like nothing is ever wrong.  This is especially true about those of us that are Christians.  We put on our Masks and go to church and have conversations with others and every other word is "Praise the Lord", "Amen", or "Thank you Jesus", and meanwhile we have not even addressed those unresolved issues in our lives: i.e depression, substance abuse, infidelity, etc.  I just saw a headline on the internet that talked about how a pastor hired a hitman to kill his wife!  C'mon people!  Jesus said, "Come to Me all ye that are labored and heavy laden and I will give you rest" (Matthew 11:28).  It's time to take off the "Masks" and have a real, honest conversation with Jesus.  Let Him guide you thru the various issues of life.  Trust me, you'll be glad you did.

Peace,

Rev

God's Workmanship

God has truly blessed me with a wonderful wife.  In addition to being very attractive, she is also very creative and talented.  For example, she collects Barbie dolls and repaints them and turns them into "one of a kind" (OOAK) masterpieces.  I am constantly amazed by her ability to take an "ordinary" doll and turn it into a work of art. Here is an example:

As I reflect on my wife's talents, I am reminded of the fact that we are God's workmanship or "masterpieces" (see Isaiah 64:8, and Ephesians 2:10). When we place ourselves in God's hands, God remakes us into an entirely new and blessed creation, designed "to do good works."  All I can say is, "little becomes much, when we place it in the Master's hands." Food for thought....

God bless,

Rev. Williamson

Random thoughts

Lately I have been thinking about just how precious life is.  So many people have been affected by hurricane "Irene", with several lives lost and millions upon millions in property damage.  Also, on a personal note, last week my 85 year old father suffered a heart attack, but thank God he is recovering.  And then, I just saw on tv that a former profootball star and current Hall of Famer suffered a stroke on Friday and died on Sunday at the age of 56!  Just a few years older than me! In the words of Marvin Gaye: "Makes me wanna holla, throw up both my hands..."

Let me leave you with this scripture from Isaiah 55:6 "Seek the Lord while He may be found; call on Him while He is near."

Peace and Blessings,

Rev. Williamson