What’s the thing you’re most scared to do? What would it take to get you to do it?
I’ll never forget when my mother and I visited the Yucatán peninsula. I don’t recall if it was Chichen Itza or Uxmal, but I ascended into the inside of a windowless pyramid up a narrow staircase with narrow steps. There was no handrail and when I looked downward to descend, the bottom looked way too far away. And my feet seemingly wouldn’t fit on the stairs with my bulky sneakers.
I sweat so badly in the sweltering humidity in the pyramid, that my hands slid off the walls. So I sat on my butt and slid down each step while bracing myself against each wall to prevent a fall.
And violently shaking with fear.
A line of people backed up behind me.
I’ll never forget someone yelling from the ceremonial room at the top: “Who’s holding up the line?!!!”
It was my mother!
So, there’s absolutely, positively no way I’d ever climb up a sheer cliff or rock.
And zero chance I’d ever rappel down a sheer cliff or rock.
Unless I accidentally slipped off or was tossed off.
I feel anxious even thinking about it!
PS. I had nightmares for decades after visiting the observation deck at what was formerly called The Sears Tower in Chicago.
For a few years Buddy started knocking things over to get my immediate attention. I’ll never forget when he knocked the top off of my shredder onto the tile of my dining room; my friend must’ve jumped two feet in the air off her chair. Buddy likely loved the loud slamming sound.
Buddy stopped knocking things over for about a year. Then, above, he pulled my fleece jacket off the back of a high chair to the floor. No loud slam, but it elicited a laugh—and my attention.
I’ve recently returned to school to improve my design skills. However, there’s a lot of intense homework this semester; I’ve been stressing out and my severe insomnia has returned. I’ve realized that my focus has been on the time crunch and worrying about not doing well—my focus has been negative, rather than positive.
So I’m trying to focus on the fact that the school allows older adults into their certificate programs, I’m already learning useful and valuable information helpful for my artistic goals, I only need to pass and not get perfect scores, etc.
OK. My mind goes in different directions sometimes. But this experience has prompted me to consider how Satan works: he wants our attention focused on the negative, rather than the positive, to discourage and depress us.
The devil lives “to steal and kill and destroy (John 10:10)”, Jesus declared. He can only tear down and create chaos; he doesn’t want us focused on the beauty, creativity, and kindness of God—enjoying the Lord’s world. Satan wants us focused on his world of darkness, evil, and depravity.
As always, Satan wants to be the center of attention, rather than submitting to our Lord and Creator.
Satan’s self-centered desire to replace God in worship and attention never changes.
“You said in your heart, ‘I will ascend to the heavens; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly….I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.’”—Isaiah 14:13-14
So, please, just like I need to, keep your focus on the blessings of the Lord.
Bud is admittedly spoiled. Which greatly concerns me as he’s willful and doesn’t like to listen to me. A family member let him slip out the front door this afternoon, so I panicked, knowing that Buddy wouldn’t listen to me call for him to return to the house. However, he was more interested in following me back through the doorway to safety than running away.
If Bud ran off, he’s too quick for me to catch him.
Some people won’t like this post. But if I’m only repeating what’s already posted out there on the internet ad nauseam, then why bother? I could just post links directing people to other material.
Many Christians have memorized Psalm 23; some have even read the excellent book, “A Shepherd Looks At Psalm 23” by W. Phillip Keller; and many follow the Shepherd of our souls; but how many “sheep of His pasture (Psalm 100:3)” actually trust Him?
“The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want… He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His namesake.”—King David, Psalm 23:1, 3
Jesus made it clear several times what His attitude toward His flock is.
1. If they wander off, He goes in search of them:
“What do you think? If a man had a 100 sheep, and one of them goes astray, does he not leave the 99 and go to the mountains to seek the one that is straying? And if he souls find it, assuredly, I say to you , he rejoices more over that sheep than over the 99 that did not go astray?”—Matthew 18:12-13
Jesus doesn’t just wave goodbye when one of His children stray away from the faith. He takes action and goes in search of that Christian to return them to the fold.
2. The Good Shepherd leads His sheep in the paths of righteousness for “HIS namesake” (Psalm 23:3).
Jesus takes action to correct His wandering sheep because His reputation is at stake when someone claims to be born again but is willfully, or deceived by Satan, disobeying.
3. Jesus promises that we’re united with Him through the Holy Spirit once we’re born again. As a result, He will never abandon us to evil nor can anyone or anything separate us from Himself.
“And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, Who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.”—John 10:27-28, 30
“I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word (the Apostles); that they may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me…I in them, and You in Me…”—John 17:20-21, 23
So, if you believe you can lose your salvation, you may not either understand what being born again means and your salvation—or you are trusting in your own works and efforts to maintain your relationship with Him. You are not trusting Him to seek his wandering sheep and return those sheep back into the safety of His flock.
You don’t have temporary life until you die. You are promised eternal life if you are in Christ Jesus (John 3:16, John 10:27).
Apostle Paul strongly admonished the Galatians about this teaching in his letter, Galatians 3:1-3:
“O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? Before your eyes Jesus was clearly portrayed as crucified? I would like to learn just one thing from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by believing what you heard? Are you so foolish? After beginning by means of the Spirit, are you now trying to finish by means of the flesh?”
Christ’s crucifixion put to death all human self effort. You’re either one with Christ or not, trusting in Him or yourself.
So you have a choice, dear brother and sister in Christ: standing on sifting sand or on the rock of Jesus Christ; trusting in Him to keep you—or in your own shifting, unstable efforts and moods (Matthew 7:24-26).
Your salvation is not at stake.
But, rather, your ability to rejoice in your salvation and truly feel grateful for being delivered out of slavery in the kingdom of darkness to becoming a sheep in the kingdom of light. (Colossians 1:13).
You can exhaust yourself with fear on the hamster wheel of insecurity or…
Dance with joy, little sheep, trusting in His work on the Cross, not your works.
He promises to “never leave you nor forsake you (Hebrews 13:5)”.
So who is your shepherd?
You?
Or Jesus?
***
Please trust in Jesus for your eternal life. Only He can send the Holy Spirit to indwell you and resurrect your dead spirit into eternal life. Other religions can teach you how to behave better, or experts can guide you in self-improvement programs, but only Jesus can give you life (John 5:40).
I spend the time to write these blogs because I waited till I was twenty-eight-years-old to give my life to Jesus. I only regret not doing it sooner. Becoming born again is the most wonderful experience—to know that God is real and loves you—and I want this for you too.
Please, heed my plea and give your heart to Jesus now.
Tomorrow is never guaranteed to any of us.
Repeat the following prayer out loud, if possible:
Dear Heavenly Father, I’m sorry for my sin and for being my own worst enemy. I call on Jesus Christ to be both my Lord and Savior. Please fill me with Your Holy Spirit. I give my life to You. Please change my heart and teach me how much You love me. Thanks for hearing my prayer. I ask in the mighty name of Jesus, amen.
If you prayed sincerely, congratulations, you’re born again. Please start reading the Bible daily as it’s both your soul food and God’s letter to you. Just as your body needs daily nourishment to be healthy, so does your soul.
And join a Bible believing church or Bible study, and get baptized. If that’s not possible right now, I suggest these two ministries, which also have apps, if that’s your preference: http://www.LTW.org (Leading The Way) and http://www.AndrewFarley.org (The Grace Message).
There are other godly ministries out there, but it’s easy to be misled by legalism or false teaching till you know the Bible fairly well.
God bless you. May Buddy and I meet you in heaven one day.
Buddy has been my fur pal for over thirteen years now. I almost always know what each unique look communicates, even when Buddy is not making any sound to emphasize his point.
I grind my own beans since I have the time to do so. I dipped some fresh grounds into the paper sleeve of my coffee machine Monday afternoon but still had some residual left in the grinder. I swiped my fingers around the inside and tipped the machine over the coffee filter, but didn’t hear anything. Did the grounds drop into the filter?*
I looked inside the grinder and the grounds were gone, so apparently they dropped into the filter but I didn’t hear anything.
God doesn’t usually shout that He exists. The Apostle Paul said everyone is without an excuse not to believe there’s a God, because everyone can see the evidence of a Grand Designer in nature (Romans 1:20).
“The heavens are telling of the glory of God; and their expanse is declaring the work of His hands.…There is no speech, nor are there words; their voice is not heard.”—King David of ancient Israel, Psalm 19:1, 3
When I’ve recently read about how complex the human heart is or how many functions the liver performs, it shocks me that there’s still people in our modern world who deny God’s existence.
If you could make your pet understand one thing, what would it be?
Buddy was abused for three years before I adopted him. Because of his past, he won’t snuggle: won’t sit on the couch with me, won’t sleep on my bed next to me, won’t sit on my lap, won’t allow me to hold him for more than half a minute.
But I suppose, if he did snuggle, it would be too hard to part from him one day after thirteen years together.
Buddy has this cute habit of placing a front paw on one of my feet when he wants my attention. He’s making sure that I’m aware he’s there or wants to ensure that he’s not forgotten.
I had a disturbing conversation of a sort with a blogger who claims that being in union with Christ means that we are God. And had a twisted interpretation of what Christ meant below:
“Now He was questioned by the Pharisees as to when the Kingdom of God was coming, and He answered them and said, ‘The Kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed…For, behold, the kingdom of God is in your midst.’”—Luke 17:20-21
The Pharisees believed that the Messiah would usher in a physical kingdom by vanquishing all of Israel’s enemies and freeing them from bondage to the Roman Empire.
But Jesus was declaring that the kingdom of God was a person Who was standing in front of them, right in their midst.
Just like Buddy places a paw on my foot so that I won’t miss seeing him, Jesus wanted the religious leaders to recognize Who was speaking to them: their long awaited Messiah.
And though the Pharisees knew the Old Testament Scriptures and prophecies thoroughly, they weren’t able to get beyond their own interpretation to understand the truth.
Many people nowadays mix New Age mysticism with Christianity. This error is illustrated by a comment made in the movie, “Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade,” by Indy’s sidekick, Marcus Brody:
“The search for the Grail is the search for the divine in all of us.”
This comment both captured my attention and greatly bothered me, because too many people believe it, even those claiming to be Christians with a knowledge of the Bible’s teachings.
1. We are born spiritually dead, separated from our Creator by our sin until we repent and give our lives to Jesus. The “divine” or “divinity” does not exist within every person.
“But God, Who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved)…”—Apostle Paul, Ephesians 2:4-5
2. When we become born again, we become spiritually alive, no longer in bondage to Satan, the world, and the flesh, but are now members of God’s kingdom:
“For He rescued us from the domain of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of His beloved Son,…”—Apostle Paul, Colossians 1:13
Until Christ’s Second Coming, the manifestation of God’s kingdom is a spiritual one.
3. This kingdom is God’s kingdom, not our kingdom. Jesus paid the price in His blood to take authority back over His kingdom. He rejected the devil’s temptation to skip the Cross and redeem it back, claiming the Father’s promise in Psalm 2:7-8:
“‘The Lord has said to Me, “You are My Son, today I have begotten You. Ask of Me, and I will give You the nations for Your inheritance and the ends of the earth for Your possession.”’”
We dwell in God’s kingdom through faith in Christ, but we’re under His authority. We do not kick God off His throne.
4. Lastly, it is a mystery how we can be united with Christ and part of His body, but He is still the head of the body. We are not coequal with God. We do not become a god nor are we God.
We are created “in the image of God (Genesis 1:27),” but are not gods. We cannot “manifest” reality not speak it into being, like God can. He is the Creator, not us.
Jesus, with the Father and the Holy Spirit, created the heavens and the earth, but are distinct from creation. He spoke the universe into being; it didn’t arise out of His own essence.
To declare that a person is divine and a god is to fall for Satan’s lie to Adam and Eve that they could be like God (Genesis 3:5).
When you repent of your sins and declare Jesus to be your Lord and Savior, you’re reversing the effect of the Fall in your life by rejecting the devil’s deception: declaring that the Creator is your moral authority and Lord of your life—your boss—and that Jesus died for your sins and is your Savior, because you’re helpless to atone for your own sin.
“He is also the head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He will come to have first place in everything.”—Colossians 1:18
This will always be true:
“The Lord has established His throne in heaven and His kingdom rules over all.”—Psalm 103:19
You are not God and never will be.
Becoming born again doesn’t mean you’ve become a god.
Please do not believe Satan’s lie.
The devil never changes his tactics because they always work on those unwilling to submit to the truth.
God bless you.
Much love from Dawn and Buddy
***
Maybe you’re unhappy because you’re trying to be your own god instead of submitting your life to the Lord and trusting in His guidance.
Jesus is omniscient and omnipresent. He sees the future. What seems the right course of action to a person may actually be leading toward disaster. Only God knows where a chosen path will lead.
Jesus died to pay for your sins. He lived a perfect life as a human being so that He could pay for the sins of others, having no sin of His own to be punished for. After His crucifixion, He rose from the dead to prove that He is also God, that He has the power over death.
You don’t have to continue living a life of regret and defeat. But becoming a Christian doesn’t guarantee health and wealth, as false preachers claim, but does set you onto a new path leading away from self-destructive behavior.
A new Christian is like a baby: You’ll crawl, then totter on wobbly legs till you learn to walk steady. I’m encouraging you to give your life to Jesus, because it’s wonderful to be in relationship with God. But I also want you not to get discouraged after doing so. It takes time to learn about God’s love for you and how He works.
Are you ready to make Jesus your Savior from sin and your Lord, the God Who rules your life? If so, please repeat the below prayer, out loud if possible:
Dear Heavenly Father, I’m sorry for my sin and ask for Your forgiveness. I call on Jesus to be both my Savior and Lord, my moral authority. I give my life to You. Please fill me with Your Holy Spirit. And teach me how much You love me. I want to learn to trust You. Thank You for hearing my prayer. In the mighty name of Jesus Christ, the Lord, amen.
If you prayed sincerely, congratulations, you’re born again. You should begin to experience new attitudes and a desire to obey Jesus as you’ve been given a new heart by the power of the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit. You’re starting to walk a new path in life, so please be patient with yourself as you learn and grow in the knowledge of the Lord.
Please start reading the Bible daily. And join a Bible believing church or Bible study. And get baptized. If that’s not possible right now, I recommend these two ministries, which also have apps, if that’s your preference: http://www.LTW.org (Leading The Way) and http://www.AndrewFarley.org (The Grace Message). There are other godly ministries, but it’s easy to be misled by legalism or false teaching until you know what the Bible teaches fairly well.
God bless you. May Buddy and I meet you in heaven one day.
On Thanksgiving Day 2022 a black labradoodle escaped out of a neighbor’s home at my parents’ development and insisted on attacking and killing Buddy. Fortunately, neighbors ran out to assist. After our escape, I rushed Buddy over to the veterinarian across the street in Mesa the next day to patch his wounds.
The veterinarian’s staff said they wouldn’t help Buddy without an appointment and none were available that day, so I drove back to his usual doctor in Scottsdale who happily made accommodations to treat him without much notice.
So when, a few months later, Buddy injured his shoulder by ramming into a table doing zoomies at my parents’ home, I took him to the ER vet further away instead of the much closer office across the street.
The ER vet not only recommended arthritis chews, besides pain meds, but also a medication called Azodyl for Bud’s ailing kidneys.
Buddy had his annual physical last week at his usual doctor in Scottsdale, which included a blood test.
The test showed that Buddy’s kidneys stabilized and stopped deteriorating.
I don’t know why Bud’s usual vet didn’t recommend the Azodyl, because he was the one who told me about the prior concerning kidney test results during his 2023 annual physical. But those pills will likely extend his life for several more years.
The timeline:
Dog attack.
Vet across the street refused to treat Buddy.
Buddy taken to the ER vet when he injured his shoulder because the closest Mesa vet “sucks rocks.”
ER vet recommends kidney pills.
Annual visit with regular doctor shows pills worked.
Ironically, the dog attack led to Buddy getting put onto lifesaving medicine that is extending his life.
Truly, “all things work together for good to those who love God.”—Apostle Paul, Romans 8:28
Thank you, Lord, for taking care of my furever pal.
Meditations About God and Buddy 