“And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.” (Eph. 1:13-14 NIV)

I love blackberries!

As a youth, I loved to pick blackberries. I was fortunate to live in a community where they grew wild everywhere. I loved to eat them raw and any way they were prepared. I loved them in cobblers, pies, and on pancakes. I especially loved them made into jelly.  We made large batches of it each year. Blackberry jelly cooking on the stove filled our entire house with its wonderful fragrance. When it was done cooking it was poured into small jars and then hot paraffin wax was poured into the top of each one to create an airtight seal. The seal protected the jelly from anything that could contaminate it. The jars were then placed on a shelf in the pantry ready for us to use them throughout the rest of the year. One of my favorite things to do was to open a fresh jar of jelly by removing the waxed seal with a kitchen knife and get a whiff of the wonderful fresh blackberry aroma.

God has sealed you!

Similar to the waxed seal on jars of blackberry jelly, when you believed, God placed a protective seal on you with His Holy Spirit. It is there to keep you safe and guarantee your inheritance as His possession until the day of redemption. This is something to praise God about! (Eph. 1:13-14)

You can be assured

“I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day.” (2 Tim. 1:12b KJV)

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

"May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had.” (Rom. 15:5 NIV)

When I was in my early 20’s I worked as a drywall installer, also called a sheet-rocker. My partner and I were what you would call in those days, highballers, because we were very fast at it! In fact, we often completed two houses in one day. Back then we nailed drywall on with a hammer (it's screwed on these days), and I figured out, at 48 nails per sheet, that I hammered in about a million nails every three months! That's a lot of nails! All that lifting and hammering made me very strong in those days.

Eventually I changed jobs and started doing something less strenuous

Many years later, my son John, was installing wallboard on the ceiling of a house he was working on and asked me if I would give him a hand since I knew how to do it. I agreed, and grabbed my old set of tools and jumped right in. I was happy to see that I could still swing a hammer and lift the heavy board! It was like I had never stopped…. well, for a very short time, anyway. I soon ran out of energy, and got tired. Sadly, even though I knew what to do and was willing to do it, I was no longer in my 20’s and didn't have the strength or endurance I once had. I felt bad about it, but John just smiled, and said, “it's okay Dad!” I knew he was trying to be encouraging to me and I appreciated it. I continued to help him that day, but he did most of the heavy lifting.

Endurance and encouragement

Endurance is defined as the act of working very hard without stopping, even in the face of difficult situations or pain. Encouragement is defined as an expression of support or approval, or is words or actions that assist or inspire someone or something.

In our walk of faith, God gives us both endurance and encouragement, and He expects us to do the same for others

“And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching." (Heb. 10:24-25 NIV)

“Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.” (1 Thes. 5:11 NIV)

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.” (2 Cor. 1:3-4 NIV)

"Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time.” - Thomas A. Edison

“If you are going through hell, keep going.” - Winston Churchill

"And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one: I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.” (John 17:22–23 NIV)

So, exactly what is glory anyway?

Glory is defined in the dictionary as high renown or honor won by notable achievements. It is fame, prestige, honor, distinction, acclaim.

In the Bible, glory can mean different things depending on its context

·      The glory of position: Joseph in Egypt. (Gen. 45:13)

·      The glory of possessions: Jacob’s servants and livestock. (Gen. 31:1)

·      The glory of young men: is their strength. (Prov. 20:29)

·      The glory of the elderly: is their long life. (Prov. 16:31).

·      The glory of human character: is willingness to overlook the faults of others (Prov. 19:11), or to avoid strife (Prov. 20:3).

·      The Glory of God: His greatness (Deut. 5:24) and hundreds of other verses.

·      The Glory of Jesus’ second coming: “The Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory." (Luke 21:27 NIV)

Why did Jesus share His glory with you?

Jesus said in John 17 that He was sharing his glory with you, and He gave the reason, “That they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.”

You must reflect His glory!

Because He shares His glory with you, your life must reflect that glory as you go about loving others as He loves you!

“For God, who said, ‘Light shall shine out of darkness,’ is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.” (2 Cor. 4:6 NIV)

“In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.” (Matt. 5:16 NIV)

“Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.” (Eph. 3:20-21 NIV)

“I will give you hidden treasures, riches stored in secret places, so that you may know that I am the LORD, the God of Israel, who summons you by name.” (Isaiah 45:3 NIV)

Wow! “Hidden treasures, riches stored in secret places.” Imagine that!

There have been many stories throughout history about hidden treasures, such as the lost Dutchman’s Goldmine, for one, believed to exist somewhere in the Superstition Mountains of Arizona. About 8,000 people a year continue to search for it. Think how exciting it would be to actually find such a thing.

The hidden locations

There is someone who actually knows where all the hidden treasures are, and of course, I'm talking about God Himself. He has that information! And He could tell you where they are located, as our verse at top says. And sometimes he does. But that may not be best for you. He knows that too, because for many, riches do cause problems.

Be discerning!

Keep in mind that there are different kinds of riches and treasures and some are much better to be had than others. Ask God for wisdom. 

The deceitfulness of riches

“But the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches and the desires for other things enter in and choke the word, and it proves unfruitful.” (Mark 4:19 ESV)

“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matt. 6:19-21 NIV)

Heavenly treasures

“But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal." (Matt. 6:20 NIV)

Kingdom of heaven is like a treasure

“The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in the field, which a man found and hid again; and from joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking fine pearls, and upon finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had and bought it.” (Matt. 13:44 NIV)

A good foundation is a treasure

“Storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is life indeed.” (1 Tim. 6:19 NIV)

 Wisdom and knowledge are treasures

“That their hearts may be encouraged, having been knit together in love, and attaining to all the wealth that comes from the full assurance of understanding, resulting in a true knowledge of God's mystery, that is, Christ Himself, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” (Col. 2:2-3 NIV)

God’s kind of blessings makes rich without sorrow

“The blessing of the Lord makes rich, and he adds no sorrow with it.” (Prov. 19:22 ESV)

“The crucible is for silver, and the furnace is for gold, and the Lord tests hearts.” (Prov. 17:3)

My company handles marketing for the automotive recycling industry. Some of my clients are recyclers of vehicle catalytic converters. It is a device attached to a vehicle’s exhaust system which converts Hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide and oxides of nitrogen into carbon dioxide, nitrogen gas and water vapor.

Something special inside!

What you may not know is that catalytic converters contain precious metals, platinum, palladium, and rhodium. They are very valuable! At the time of this writing, Platinum is valued at $986 per ounce, Palladium $620 is per ounce, and Rhodium is $800 per ounce. But to look at old converters which have been removed from wrecks, you’d never suspect their value. That's because they are usually dirty and rusty looking things. But, when they are placed into a smelter furnace, all other materials are burnt away exposing the precious metals inside.

In a similar way, God works within you

We look at the outward appearance, but "the Lord looks at the heart." (1 Sam. 16:7). He sees what's there and refines us with fire. 

“For you, O God, have tested us; you have tried us as silver is tried.” (Psalm 66:10)

Therefore…

“Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw— each one's work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. If anyone's work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.” (1 Cor. 3:12-15)

“In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace which He made to abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence.” (Eph. 1:7-8)

When I was living in California in the 1950’s, my dad bought a three bedroom house on two acres of land for five-thousand dollars! That was a lot of money for a house back then! But not so much money now. That same place would be worth half million dollars in today's housing market. When Susan and I bought our brand new three bedroom home in Washington State in 1971, we paid seventeen-thousand dollars for it. We sold it twelve years later for forty-five thousand. We then bought our present home for fifty-five thousand dollars. We recently had it appraised and it's now worth about four-hundred-fifty thousand dollars!

It amazes me how much prices have changed over the years! Not only houses, but everything else!

The riches of God’s grace - priceless!

Prices of things often fluctuate. They go up and they go down. But, one thing that will never change is “the riches of God’s grace,” (Eph. 1:7). Its value is priceless because it is paid for by the shed blood of God’s Son, Jesus Christ! There is nothing in existence, or has ever existed, more valuable, more precious! And to think, “He made it abound to us in all wisdom and prudence.” (Eph. 1:8).

Think what this means to you!!

No matter what you may have done

“The riches of His grace” has it covered! His grace towards you is above and beyond, and it more than covers any possible need!

Exceeding riches of grace!

• “That in the ages to come he might show the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.” (Eph. 2:7)

• His grace is more than abundant!

•  “And the grace of our Lord was more than abundant, with the faith and love which are found in Christ Jesus.” (1 Tim. 1:14)

• The riches of his kindness leads to repentance!

“Or do you think lightly of the riches of His kindness and tolerance and patience, not knowing that the kindness of God leads you to repentance?” (Rom. 2:4)

We all fall short and need God's grace!

“I'm not perfect. And who knows how many times I've fallen short. We all fall short. That's the amazing thing about the grace of God.” – Tim Tebow

“And after the earthquake a fire; but the LORD was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice.” (1 Kings 19:12)

I didn't want to be bothered! 

I was on a plane on my way back from a speaking engagement. I was travel-worn and exhausted. Usually when I travel, I try to get a seat next to the window, then I put on my noise cancelation headphones to escape mentally from all that is around me.

But, not this time!

I was seated in a middle seat between two people. I put on my headphones as usual and started to relax into my private thoughts. But, I noticed that the man sitting in the aisle seat next to me was ordering one drink after another. He wasn't sitting still but was squirming in his seat and seemed uncomfortable. I tried to ignore him!

I hoped sincerely, that he wouldn't talk to me. I closed my eyes and pretended to be asleep. I just didn't feel like talking to, or being bothered by, anyone!

“Speak to that man!”

Then I heard the Lord gently prompt me, “Speak to that man.” And I instantly thought, “No! I don't want to!!!! I tried to ignore that still small voice and tried to think about something else.

But, I heard it again!

“Speak to that man.” So, very reluctantly, I removed my headphones, looked right at the man and said, “How are you doing?” He said, “I don't know if you’ve noticed, but I am drinking a lot.” I said, “Well, yes, I did notice that you’ve been slamming them down. What’s up?”

He said, “I have been drinking a whole lot! My wife just left me and is filing for a divorce. I can't think, I can't sleep, and I'm about to lose my job because I can't concentrate on my work anymore. My life is a mess! I need help but I don't know where to get it!”

I told Him my story

I said, “Actually, your story is very similar to mine. My life had been messed up, too, and I had also turned to alcohol.”

For the next few minutes I told him my story as he listened intensely. I told him how I had also struggled with alcohol and had one personal failure after another. Then I told him how I had prayed to receive Christ and how He had changed my life. I told Him that Jesus loved him, and had died on the cross for him, so that he could come into a personal life changing relationship with God. Then I asked him if he would like to receive that for himself. I then offered to pray with him. He said, “Yes, I would like that very much!” So, I prayed with him to received Christ.”

I was happy that I had finally obeyed God’s gentle prompting!

“Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine.” (2 Tim. 4:2)

“But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect.” (1 Peter 3:15)

“Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.” (John 14:12)

How about you?

Have you ever been in a public place such as a grocery store, airport, shopping mall, or just walking down the street, and then you saw someone obviously in pain with some sickness, injury, or other physical disability, and felt like you should pray for them? But didn't!

I have! Many times, and it bothers me that I have not been bold enough to pray for them with faith! Yes, over the years there have been a handful of times that I actually did pray for someone in need publicly, but it's been rare!

Ordinary?

Recently, I watched a YouTube video showing some “ordinary street Christians,” as they called themselves, praying for folks on a city street. They would just walk along and then see someone who was in obvious pain, and would stop and offer to pray that God would heal them on the spot. What was especially interesting, was how people reacted to their offer. Most agreed to be prayed for, although they looked a little surprised. The person about to pray would first ask them to tell him the details of what was wrong and where the pain was. And then he prayed specifically according to the person's need, a very simple, straight forward kind of prayer. One person, obviously walking with a painful limp, told of the severe pain he was having in his swollen foot. The street Christian then prayed for him, “In the Name of Jesus, I demand that all injury, swelling, and pain, leave this foot right now! Be completely healed!” The person being prayed for then looked startled, then amazed. Then moved his foot around, walked on it, then started jumping around, and was obviously healed. He then burst into tears, threw his arms around the person who had just prayed for him, and said, “Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" The praying person quickly said, “Don't thank me! You were healed today by Jesus! Thank Him!”

Does this story sound familiar?

“One day Peter and John were going up to the temple at the time of prayer—at three in the afternoon. Now a man who was lame from birth was being carried to the temple gate called Beautiful, where he was put every day to beg from those going into the temple courts. When he saw Peter and John about to enter, he asked them for money. Peter looked straight at him, as did John. Then Peter said, ‘Look at us!’ So the man gave them his attention, expecting to get something from them. Then Peter said, ‘Silver or gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk.’ Taking him by the right hand, he helped him up, and instantly the man’s feet and ankles became strong. He jumped to his feet and began to walk. Then he went with them into the temple courts, walking and jumping, and praising God. When all the people saw him walking and praising God, they recognized him as the same man who used to sit begging at the temple gate called Beautiful, and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.” (Acts 3:1-10)

Should we be noticing and praying for people in pain around us? The answer is yes!

We are as He is in the world!

“By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world.” (1 John 4:17)

We are to imitate Him!

“Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” (Eph. 5:1-2)

We can do far more than we ask or think through the power within us!

“Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us.” (Eph 3:20)

“And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work.” (2 Cor. 9:8)

Knowing that God has given me “all sufficiency in all things for every good work” makes my life function a whole lot better without unnecessary stress, or worries.

The family business and CEO

I think of myself as one of God's kids, as one of Jesus' little brothers. A joint heir with Him and a worker in the “family business”. And, my Heavenly Father, the creator of “the business”, and Jesus, the CEO of it, will continually guide me to do what is needed to make it thrive and prosper.

Therefore

I expect Him to, and he does, give me exactly what is needed at the right time, according to the exact specifications needed, to get the right things done at exactly the right times. (Eph. 2:10).

Things work much better!

Looking at things this way makes me successful and happier because, if any problems do arise, personally or business-wise, and they do occasionally, I let the CEO of “the family business” handle it!

And, He of course, does!

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” (Rom. 8:28)