Wants

Wants
By Steve Crowley

“The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.” ‭‭Psalm‬ ‭23‬:‭1‬ ‭(ESV)

Does this verse convict you? It certainly does me because I’m being fully transparent, I want constantly. I want my health. I want joy and peace in the world. I want my family and friends to not have hardships. Then there are my selfish wants. Boy did I want to win the $1.5 billion lottery earlier this summer. I even decided what I would spend and give away much of it. I find myself wanting things each and everyday.

But when I read and meditate upon Palms 23.1, “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want” my heart/spirit is moved to seek God and lay my wants before Him. Then the Holy Spirit nudges me by reminding me of many bible verses reminding me of Yahweh-Yireh, God provides.

“Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.” Matthew‬ ‭6‬:‭8‬ ‭(ESV)

“And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.” ‭‭Philippians‬ ‭4‬:‭19‬ (‭ESV)

So if God has promised to provide for our needs how can we live beyond our wants?

“But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” Matthew‬ ‭6‬:‭33‬ ‭(ESV)

“But godliness with contentment is great gain, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world.” ‭‭1 Timothy‬ ‭6‬:‭6‬-‭7‬ ‭(ESV‬)

Contentment is only obtained when we seek God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength. It is through our seek of God that we are filled with God. When we are filled with the presence of our Lord and Savior we are filled with a peace that surpasses our understanding. A sense of peace transcends our being where our hearts are content.

“And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”
Philippians‬ ‭4‬:‭19‬ ‭(ESV)

God has shown us His provisional being through His prophet Elijah and the widow woman.

“And she went and did as Elijah said. And she and he and her household ate for many days. The jar of flour was not spent, neither did the jug of oil become empty, according to the word of the Lord that he spoke by Elijah.” 1 Kings‬ ‭17‬:‭15‬-‭16‬ ‭(ESV)

God is faithful to the promises of His Word.

Father God, we thank You for Your sovereign grace in providing for our needs. Our biggest need is You. May You fill us with Your presence and may You bring to life the promises of the Words in our Bibles as we seek You above all.

Father, we ask You to fill us with an insatiable appetite for spending time in prayer and in resting Your Word. May the eyes of our hearts be filled with understanding of Your spiritual blessings.

For it is in the name of Jesus who is to come to Him and He will give us peace that we pray.

Amen

Grief

Grief
By Steve Crowley

““Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.” ‭‭Matthew‬ ‭5‬:‭4‬ ‭(ESV)

I have often read these words from Jesus’ sermon on the mount and wondered how can those who mourn possible be blessed? The pain of loss is like no other pain we suffer. It creates a hole in the depth of our soul which we cannot seem to escape from, like waves from the sea that seem to crash over us.

So why does say blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted? From a personal perspective (and each one of us are different) when I am in the pit of despair I realize I have no other option but to look up. I look to the only one who truly understands the agony of loss, God Himself. God gave His one and only Son to die so that we can live. God is intimately aware of the pain of grief.

“I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.”
‭‭Psalm‬ ‭121‬:‭1‬-‭2‬ ‭(ESV‬)

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.” 2 Corinthians‬ ‭1‬:‭3‬-‭4‬ ‭(ESV)

My wife and I have both lost our parents and the pain of those losses never goes away. But knowing they await us in heaven brings us joy. Life goes on. But we give thanks to God for His love, mercy and grace He gives us when we seek Him.

So yes, those who mourn are blessed if you turn to God. He has promised us He is with us and will never leave us. All we have to do is call on Him and He will respond.

“Call to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known.” ‭‭Jeremiah‬ ‭33‬:‭3‬ ‭(ESV)

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.” ‭‭John‬ ‭14‬:‭27‬ ‭(ESV)

Father God, we thank You for being there for us when we need you the most. We ask You to make Your presence known in our lives as we are tossed to and fro by the waves of grief. You know our pain and grief so we look to You. May Your loving grace envelop us and we rejoice with the hope You gave us through Your Son Jesus Christ.

Lord, our prayers are prayers with tears so comfort us, embrace us giving us the assurance of Your unfailing love.

May Your Holy Word as communicated to us through the Bible give us strength as we read Your Word. May they be a comfort to our spirit as we rest in Your presence. For it is by the name of Jesus that we pray.

Amen

Who Am I?

Who am I?
By Steve Crowley

“He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”” Matthew‬ ‭16‬:‭15‬-‭16‬ ‭(ESV)

If Jesus were to ask you that question how would you reply? Before you say anything remember Jesus asked all twelve disciples the question and only Peter responded.

Prior to asking Jesus to come into my life I would have responded to that question differently than I would today. In not having a personal relationship with Jesus, I only knew of Him. So in essence, to me He was a historical figure that live two thousand years ago. Without a personal relationship with Jesus I only knew what I heard or was told, a prophet and a teacher. Basically that is the same thing some of His disciples had said.

It is not until we confess with our mouth and believe that Jesus was crucified, dead, buried and on the third day rose again to sit at the right hand of God and truly believe do we begin to know Him. Yes He died on the cross as the atoning sacrifice for our sins but He lives so that we too can live.

“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.” John‬ ‭10‬:‭10‬ ‭(ESV)

Not only do we live an abundant life but an eternal life!

“I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand.”
‭‭John‬ ‭10‬:‭28‬ (‭ESV‬)

Isn’t it worth getting to know Jesus? We have the ability through reading of His Word and devotion through prayer to know Him so well that we become one with Him.

“The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me.”
‭‭John‬ ‭17‬:‭22‬-‭23‬ ‭(ESV‬)

O Father, by Your Word You created the heavens and the earth and by Your breath You gave life. Holy is Your wonderful name.

Father, thank You for sending Jesus to the world so we could see You in the flesh. Thank You for the teachings of Jesus as well as the inspirations of Your Holy Word as written in the Bible. By these words we come to know You, fill our hearts and minds as we open our hearts to You. May we know You better each day and may we spend time in Your presence asking You to open the eyes of our hearts to the love You have for us.

It is in the name of Jesus Christ and through the power of the Holy Spirit that we pray.

Amen

Press On

Press On
By Steve Crowley

“Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” ‭‭Philippians‬ ‭3‬:‭13‬-‭14‬ ‭(ESV)

I do not believe there’s a human being alive that doesn’t want to forget something in their past, be it words spoken in haste or actions we wished we hadn’t done. We all have made mistakes at some point during our lives. I think back on my corporate career and it pains me how I treated some of my colleagues. My industry was extremely competitive. It was a dog eat dog, winner take all type of environment. I admit I said things I wish I could have taken back or at least said more tactfully. The more I think about those painful experiences the more I realize my guilt haunts me. Have I made amends and apologized to those who I needed to? Yes, but still the past mistakes live on inside me from time to time. But I press on knowing I have a Savior who paid the price for my sins so I can blameless before Almighty God one day.

“For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” ‭‭2 Corinthians‬ ‭5‬:‭21‬ ‭(ESV)

“There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” ‭‭Romans‬ ‭8‬:‭1‬ ‭(ESV‬)

When we don’t have God in our lives we fall prey to our sinful flesh. We say and do things we wish we didn’t say or do. Then we live with the consequences, the guilt, regret and remorse of our actions. But thanks be to God for sending His Son, Jesus Christ to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins so we can stand blameless before God.

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” ‭‭1 John‬ ‭1‬:‭9‬ ‭(ESV)

Gracious and merciful Father, hallowed be Your name. Thank You for loving us even when we are unlovable. thank You for sending Your Son to pay the price for our sins so we don’t have to. Father, there is no greater love than the love of Jesus who took our sins upon Himself and shed His blood so we could be forgiven for all the horrible sins in our lives. Praise be to You O God.

Father, we humbly come before You in prayer laying our sins before the cross. May You cleanse us and restore us to walk in the light of Your truth. May Your light shine in us so we can bring glory and honor to You.

For it is in the blood of our Savior and the power of You in dwelling Spirit that we pray.

Amen