Monday Morning Memo: Are You Poor?

Imagine you and I are on the mountainside, sitting at the feet of Jesus.  We are talking, laughing and showing each other pictures of our kids, grandkids, pets etc.  Then, Jesus clears his throat and begins to talk, and immediately, we and everyone else around us grow quiet.  We have no idea what He will share with us, but we have heard enough about this man to know we need to listen.

The problem is that Jesus’ first words just confuse us.  He begins by saying, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”   Matt. 5:3 (NIV).  What in the world does He mean?  Is He telling us to not make any money so we will be poor?

I don’t think Jesus is talking about our finances in this first Beatitude.  He is saying that if we are humble; if we realize that without our Savior we are nothing, we will be blessed.  To be poor in spirit means that on our own, we can’t obtain enough or do enough to earn God’s love.  We can’t live a life which is good enough all on our own because we just don’t have what it takes.

This is a hard truth to accept in our society today.  Our culture is all about “me” and living for ourselves.  The world tells us that we can do anything if we just try hard enough. The sky’s the limit if we believe in ourselves and do what makes us happy.  Admitting we are nothing on our own isn’t a popular way of life today.

Honestly, everyone is poor in spirit.  All of us, whether we admit it or not, are powerless without God and unworthy before God.  Romans 3:23 tells us, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”  But, even though we are all poor in spirit, we won’t all be blessed.  Only those who realize their inadequacies, recognize their sinful nature and are willing to humble themselves before God will be blessed.

There were many people in the Bible who showed us what it looks like to be poor in spirit.  Remember Abraham?  We read in Genesis 18:27, “Then Abraham spoke up again: ‘Now that I have been so bold as to speak to the Lord, though I am nothing but dust and ashes.’”  John the Baptist said in John 1:27, “He is the one who comes after me, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.”  Then in John 3:30 he said, “He must become greater; I must become less.”  These two men realized they were nothing without God.

So, what will we receive if we humble ourselves before God?  The first beatitude tells us we will receive the kingdom of heaven!   I never cease to be amazed at this fact.  The God of the universe wants to spend eternity with me and with you.  That, my friend, is surely being blessed!

Well, we may not have immediately understood what Jesus meant concerning this first beatitude as we listened to Him on the mountainside.  Surely the next one will make sense, right?  Then we hear Him say, “Blessed are they who mourn, for they will be comforted.”

Oh my…

Monday Morning Memo: Our Word

I shared with you last week that I feel the Lord leading me back to a particular section of scripture.  In preparation for this, I asked you to send me a one-word description of how you are feeling at this point in your life.  Many of you responded and I am so thankful for your participation. 

Some of the same words were sent from multiple people, but I only listed the word once.  The words I received were:

Seeking                        Content/Peaceful

Joyful                          Blessed 

Forgiven                       Stressed

Trusting                       Renewal 

Acceptance                  Mediocre 

Hope                            Content

Apprehensive               Loved

Struggling                    Hopeful 

Grateful                       Reset/Restart

Regretful                     Unlikable

Exhausted                   Confused

We are humans made up with many emotions and I realize that our “word” can change depending on the day and what is happening to us and around us.  Oftentimes, our circumstances can change in an instant, and we can go from feeling hopeful to feeling exhausted, from feeling blessed to feeling stressed. 

I’ve been wondering lately why my “word” seems to change even though the God I serve never changes.  If I am supposed to be striving to look more like Him, and if I want others to see Him in me, does that mean my “word” shouldn’t be based on my emotions?   Should it be based more on my all-powerful God and His abilities and less on my own frailties?  

These questions have taken me back to the Beatitudes which are found in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5.  Here we find Jesus teaching on a mountainside.  Matthew 5:1-2 tells us He was teaching his disciples, but it seems there were crowds of others listening in, because at the end of the sermon it says in Matthew 7:28, “When Jesus finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at his teaching.”  Many were there that day to glean from Jesus’ wisdom and I can’t imagine what it must have been like to sit at His feet.  It makes me wonder how intently I would have listened if I could have been there.  Would I have been too preoccupied with my own problems to grasp what He was saying?  Would I have spent my time thinking His words were meant for someone else and not for me? 

Fortunately, Jesus’ words were written down and we can now make the decision as to whether we will learn from what He shared that day on the mountainside, or whether we will figure the Beatitudes don’t pertain to us.  So next week, I will begin to share with you my findings concerning the first Beatitude and how it might give you and me more insight as to what our walk with Jesus should look like.  I’m looking forward to diving into these verses with you to see if what we find affects our “word”.

The Beatitudes

“Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are those who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the earth.
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled.
Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called children of God.
Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are you when people insult you,

persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you

because of me.  Rejoice and be glad, because great

is your reward in heaven, for in the same way

they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Matthew 5:3-12

Monday Morning Memo: What's Your ONE WORD?

There is a section of scripture which I wrote about some years ago and I felt led to return to it again.  I will, once again, write about these verses for the next several weeks, but before I do, I need your help.  I would love for you to send me a ONE WORD description of how you are feeling at this point in your life.  Maybe you are happy, sad, content, lonely, confused or any other feeling which you might be experiencing at this time.  Please…NO foul language!

Feel free to email your word to me at luannfulton@gmail.com or you can private message me through Facebook.  I will not be using your name in anything I write, nor will I tell anyone else what word you sent me.  This will just be for my use as I prepare my posts for the coming weeks.

All of us are at different places in our lives and in our walk with Jesus, but I want you to know that wherever you are…Jesus loves you.  He doesn’t love you less if you are newer on the journey or love you more if you have walked with Him for many, many years.  He loves everyone the same.  Remember, Jesus died for everyone…not just a chosen few.  

It is so important that we love each other the way that Jesus loves.  Unfortunately, that isn’t always easy to do, but that needs to be our goal.  If we can learn to love like He does, we can make a huge impact on eternity.  I know I have a long way to go in this department, so I’m hoping that my studying for the next few weeks will give me more insight on what Jesus wants to change in my life.  Then, hopefully, my sharing what He is teaching me will also be of help to you.

So, what is the ONE WORD which describes your feeling in life right now?  Don’t forget to let me know!  

“Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, 

you must clothe yourselves with 

tenderhearted mercy, kindness, 

humility, gentleness, and patience. Make allowance 

for each other’s faults, and forgive 

anyone who offends you. 

Remember, the Lord forgave you, 

so you must forgive others. 

Above all, clothe yourselves with love, 

which binds us all together in perfect harmony.”

Colossians 3:12-14

Monday Morning Memo: Don't Say AMEN...Yet

If we are truly honest…we’ve all been there.  We’ve all had a time when we were listening to someone else pray and we are convinced they will never stop.  Maybe it is at a meal and we are starving…and we know we can’t dig in until we hear that much anticipated word…AMEN.  Or maybe we are in a church service and we are already struggling to stay awake, so having to listen to someone go on and on and on…just isn’t helping.  So, we keep pinching ourselves trying to stay conscious until we hear them finally say…AMEN.

Most of us know the word AMEN is a closing to a prayer. We know that once we hear that word…the prayer is over.  But do we know why we use that word?  Is it just to signal completion of our time talking to our Heavenly Father?

I did some reading on this last week and I found that AMEN is a Hebrew word that is essentially an affirmation of truth or agreement, meaning something like ‘so be it’, ‘it is so’, or ‘it is true’. When we end a prayer with the word AMEN, we are acknowledging that we believe God actively hears our prayers, and that our prayers will be answered by Him in His time. One commentary said that AMEN is an expression that all those things we just asked for in prayer, all the things we praised God for, all the questions, all the pain and the joy we express in prayer are founded in the truth of God.

What would happen if we really grasped what the word AMEN means AND what if we didn’t voice this word until we went to bed at night.  Let me explain. Do you know that God wants us to talk to Him throughout our day?  He wants to be in constant communication with us from the time we rise in the morning until we lay our head on the pillow at night.  But, unfortunately, it is so easy for us to quickly rattle off to God in the morning what we need Him to do for us that day…end with our AMEN…and then we are off and running and don’t give Him another thought.  And we wonder why we get more and more frazzled with each passing hour.

Maybe we should try an experiment.  What if we were intentional to spend at least 15 minutes with God first thing every morning…reading His Word and then spending some time in prayer.  Then, instead of saying AMEN…let’s say “Talk to you soon Jesus”.  Then, throughout your day…be intentional on implementing “Pause Prayers”.  Before you get out of your car at work…just take 30 seconds to pause and reconnect with Him again…praying for direction and focus while you work.  Or, if you are a stay-at-home parent…pause and reconnect again while you do the dishes or pick up toys.  Before you meet with a client…just take a few seconds to pause and close your eyes and ask Jesus to direct your words so His love will flow through you.  Throughout your day, be intentional to just take a few moments to pause and reconnect through prayer with your Heavenly Father.

Then, when you climb into bed at night, thank Him for walking with you that day and then ask Him to give you a mind, body and spirit which is filled with His peace so you can get a good night’s rest and then say AMEN.  SO BE IT Lord.

I’m guessing that if we incorporate “Pause Prayers” into our day…we will feel more focused and peaceful as we serve Him in all that we do.  So, give it a try today…but remember…keep the conversation going throughout your day and then say AMEN before you go to sleep.  SO BE IT Lord!

“Always be joyful. Never stop praying. 

Be thankful in all circumstances,

 for this is God's will for you 

who belong to Christ Jesus.”

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

Monday Morning Memo: A Daily Habit

Happy New Year!  As we say every year…2023 just flew by and here we are in a new year.  God was faithful last year…and I have every reason to believe He will be faithful in this coming year.

Many people make New Year’s Resolutions at this time of year, but unfortunately, they are often dropped before January is over.  Many are determined to eat better, exercise more and be intentional on spending time in the Bible every day.  I can’t help you with the first two…but I do want to recommend tools for the third resolution.

I recommend, especially if this is a resolution you have never made before…or a resolution you have made in other years but just couldn’t accomplish it…that you find an app to remind you every day what to read.  The app I have used for years is Bible Gateway.  You can download the app on your phone…or just go to their website at www.biblegateway.com.  There you will find all kinds of reading plans which you can follow.  I have read the Bible through each year for quite a while…and this website tells me what to read each day.  I can even select if I want to start in Genesis and ready through to Revelation…or read it chronologically…or read sections from the New Testament and Old Testament every day.

If reading the entire Bible sounds like more than you want to start with…you can select to read just the New Testament through.  There are many, many options from which to choose.  They will even email you every day to remind you what you are to read.  

If Bible Gateway doesn’t have what you want…just google “Free Bible Reading Plans” and many choices will show up.  There are even audio plans where the Bible is read to you.  In other words…there really isn’t an excuse for not finding something that works for your schedule. 

Start out with something easy so you won’t feel overwhelmed.  The idea is to at least start!  Once you’ve done it for a month…it will become a habit and you will probably find that you look forward to that time reading His Word.

Did you know that the God of the universe wants to spend time with you and me?  He looks forward to those moments when we read the Bible and spend time talking and listening to Him.  Make 2024 the year that you establish a daily time with Him…I’m sure you will be glad that you did!

“All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right. God uses it to prepare and equip his people to do every good work.”

2 Timothy 3:16-17