Standing by the sea, its easy to call to mind what David said - "When I consider the works of your hands, what is man that You are mindful of him?" The ocean reminds us of a few things, though. Vast as God's creation is, David also said "How precious are Your thoughts toward me, how great are the sum of them!" He tells the oceans how far they can come up. Habakkuk 2:14 also reminds us that one day, which is foreshadowed by the Feast of Tabernacles in which we are in, that one day the glory of the knowledge of God will cover the earth as waters cover the sea. The ocean is a reminder that despite creations vast beauty, His thoughts of us are precious, and the sun of them are greater than the ocean's volume.

In Genesis 28, we find Jacob, the son of Isaac on the run from his brother, Esau. Finding a rock to rest his head in a place called Luz, an ancient Israelite crossroad, he has a dream of a heavenly ladder and the Lord at the top. The Lord confirms the Abrahamic covenant with Jacob. When he wakes up, he anoints the rock he used as a pillow and it became a pillar. Luz gets renamed to Bethel, the House of God. You may have to lay down in a Luz place and endure hardness in your rest. But by morning, God can take that hard pillow and make it a new point of reference for life, moving foward. Jacob said "Surely the Lord is in this place, and I knew it not." He is in the crossroads place, the hard place, the place of uncertainty in your life.

The same year that the king Uzziah died, Isaiah saw a life-changing vision. Uzziah means the Yahweh is strength, but 2nd Chronicles 26 tells us he was lifted up not in the strength of Yahweh, but in his own pride and strength. He ended up dying alone as a leper. In the year that pride and strength of self dies, Isaiah sees the Lord in a stunning vision that forever changed his life. When we rely on God and not in ourselves, we see Him in a brand new way.

John 15:1-6 discusses an atmosphere for growth and fruit production. The best and only place we can hope to bear fruit is in Christ, abiding in Him as the vine and us as the branches. Him abiding in us is no problem, He is faithful. Do we abide in Him? Is it in Him that we live, move, and have our being? Are we allowing the Holy Spirit to put us in a place that we can produce better fruit? Are we allowing the Father to prune the dead weight that holds our fruit back from growing? If you are in Christ but feel stuck and fruitless, dont lose heart but allow the Holy Spirit to put you in an atmosphere of growth.

I recently had gallbladder surgery. The science is fascinating but in the middle of it came a message. The gallbladder is one member of a larger body. When that member stops functioning, it loses its purpose, starts producing hardened stones, and starts working against the rest of the body. This is a picture of what bitterness can do in a church or congregation. God calls us to let go of that and be healed.

David writes about the awesome wisdom of God's creation in Psalms 19, which then takes an interesting turn. He then starts talking about how the Word of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul and also "cleanse me from secret fault," "keep your servant back from presumptuous sin." Jesus' first sermon as recorded by Mark was simple. "The Kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe the Gospel." The Word of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul. Repent and believe the Gospel. Paul said it was the power of God unto salvation. Repent in Hebrew means to turn. In the Greek it means to change the way you think. When you change how you think about the weight and sin that so easily besets us and turn away from that to God, and believe the Gospel, your life is transformed.

In John 4, a woman heaves a heavy waterpot to and fro at unusual times to avoid the crowd . A woman who has been rejected and divorced by many husbands. She comes across Jesus who offers her living water. Once she accepts who He is, she leaves the heaviness behind and runs to the people she used to avoid to proclaim Him. Perhaps she even went to some of her ex-husbands...no longer bitter, but excited and transformed by the Man who told her everything she ever did, as the promised well of everlasting life sprang up in her. Truly this is the Christ.

Christ was crucified. The disciples were in hiding. The women were mourning. The sun was rising. The mystery was beginning. The resurrection is not a day we celebrate...its a reality we live in. Despite being slain, He took the keys of death and hell back, took away death's sting and the grave's victory. May the Lord bless you greatly in this resurrection season.

Jesus enters into Jerusalem to the fanfare of people rife with Messianic fervor. The Pharisees are plotting, but everyone is trying to catch a glimpse of the Messiah, whom recently resurrected His friend Lazarus from the dead. Tension between Jesus, the politics of Herod and Rome, and the Pharisees trying to maintain balance is at an all-time high against the backdrop of the Son of God, setting records straight at the start of what will be His last five days before His crucifixion.

Long time friend of Jesus, Lazarus, is dead. Mary, Martha, and others mourn while Jesus shows up four days late with a promise that Lazarus will live again because Jesus is the Resurrection and the Life. What follows next sets Jesus into the final climactic week of Jesus' earthly ministry. Stay tuned. John 11:17-56