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Making Messes & Asking for Help!

A friend sent me this about creating messes and asking for help. Despite our best efforts, we all create “messes” sometimes 🙂

“Once upon a time, there was a child, who was 6 years old, who wanted his parent to take them to the store to “help” go shopping. The child knew that there was a good chance they would stop at the place next to the store and get their favorite drink – a “Slushee”. As expected, the parent asked the child if they would like to go to the place next to the store. The child replied, “Oh, Yes!!”. They both got something and of course the child requested a “Slushee”. They both sat down at a table and wouldn’t you know – the child accidentally spilled their drink. We are talking blue and red goop all over the floor, the table – everywhere! The child looked up at their parent and immediately apologized. Instead of getting angry, the parent said, “Hey, it happens. Let’s go get napkins and I can show you how to clean it up.” Then they calmly went to get napkins and then helped the child clean the entire mess. As they were throwing the napkins ways, the parent said to the child, “You’re going to be a human being for probably some time, and you have such a smart brain that it’s important you learn how to be more careful of what you’re doing. So next time, just be sure to pay more attention to your surroundings – so accidents like this don’t happen. Accidents like these can be prevented, but it’s still okay if they happen. As long as you take responsibility for your mistakes, the clean up is a breeze. I know big messes seem overwhelming and you might feel like you can’t do it by yourself – it’s okay to ask for help. There is no problem with asking for help when you need it.”
Truly, God’s Children on this earth are born into human nature, which sometimes creates a huge mess. Your Heavenly Father knows this and even helps to guide you around those surroundings, that creates these. He lovingly still gives you a choice – whether to follow His Direction or to create a big mess on your own – all over you and even sometimes all over those around you. He also gives you His Word to help you prevent such problems you may encounter. The best you can do IS really try to follow His Voice in His Will and Purpose for you. When you make mistakes, take responsibility for them – ask your Father to forgive you. Even when they seem overwhelming to you, that you just can’t cope with it all – ask for His Help. He may even send one of His to help you clean up your mess. He IS SO Good like that!
My thoughts and prayers are that you do your best not to make a mess of your life. If you do sometimes, that you not hesitate to ask for your Heavenly Father’s help to wipe away your mess with His Living Water. That especially when you are overwhelmed with the world, that you give yourself to Him and thank Him for helping you. It’s okay to ask for help. In Jesus’ Name. Thy Will be done. Amen”

Preparing for the Last Days: Forgive Everyone!

Much has been written about forgiveness, because forgiveness is often harder than it looks. And we can’t always change how we feel, fortunately for us, forgiveness is not about how we feel, but about what we choose to do.

Family hurts, friend hurts, fellow Christians who are killed or who suffer for their faith… And perhaps hardest of all, forgiving a hurt when anger is truly justified.

Sometimes the only way to forgive someone is to recognize that it’s a choice. I love the story that Carrie Ten Boom told about forgiveness. Someone had hurt her badly and she kept a letter that they had sent that proved their guilt in that particular matter. She had thought that she had forgiven that person, but then realized that by keeping that letter-she had not. And so she threw the letter away. She chose to let it go. She chose to forgive that person, even though she was clearly justifiably hurt and angry.

There’s something else that may help us, if we remember. It’s a tough life. We may encounter someone who is having their worst day (or worst season lol) and they may behave badly, sometimes very badly. But I would hate to be judged for my worst day, and only for my worst day. Because let’s face it-we all have bad days. And if we want others to have forgiveness and compassion for us, we need to give it to others as well.

Lastly, there is something else than can help us to forgive. If we remember that Jesus not only forgave us, but He died so that we might be forgiven. I don’t know about you, but I know I look at myself and at my own sins and wonder that some one, any one, could love me that much!

And at the same time, I can’t help but think that if Jesus forgave me, how can I not forgive another?

God IS Merciful!

Sometimes, perhaps always lol, the Bible just says it better 🙂

“For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is His mercy toward them that fear Him.

As far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.

Like as a father pities His children, so far has He removed our transgressions from us.

For He knows our frame; He remembers that we are dust.

As for man, his days are as grass; as a flower in the field, so he flourishes. For the wind passes over it; and it is gone; and the place thereof shall know no more.

But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear Him, and His righteousness unto children’s children.“

Pslam 103 11-17 KJV

Ezekiel 18New International Version (NIV): The One Who Sins Will Die

I think this is one of the passages that one really needs to read the whole passage to get the point. Yes, the title is frightening, but don’t forget that Jesus came 🙂

But I also think the point of the passage is that we are responsible for only our own selves. There are no grandchildren in Heaven (as the saying goes).

We must, each one of us, find our way to the Lord.

For each of us will either receive Christ’s Mercy or God’s Justice. It’s up to us, but we each have to choose 🙂

Ezekiel 18

18 The word of the Lord came to me: ²“What do you people mean by quoting this proverb about the land of Israel:

“‘The parents eat sour grapes,
and the children’s teeth are set on edge’?

³“As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, you will no longer quote this proverb in Israel. ⁴For everyone belongs to me, the parent as well as the child—both alike belong to me. The one who sins is the one who will die.

⁵“Suppose there is a righteous man
    who does what is just and right.
⁶He does not eat at the mountain shrines
    or look to the idols of Israel.
He does not defile his neighbor’s wife
    or have sexual relations with a woman during her period.
⁷He does not oppress anyone,
    but returns what he took in pledge for a loan.
He does not commit robbery
    but gives his food to the hungry
    and provides clothing for the naked.
⁸He does not lend to them at interest
    or take a profit from them.
He withholds his hand from doing wrong
    and judges fairly between two parties.
⁹He follows my decrees
    and faithfully keeps my laws.
That man is righteous;
    he will surely live,
declares the Sovereign Lord.

¹⁰“Suppose he has a violent son, who sheds blood or does any of these other things^[a] ¹¹(though the father has done none of them):

“He eats at the mountain shrines.
He defiles his neighbor’s wife.
¹²He oppresses the poor and needy.
He commits robbery.
He does not return what he took in pledge.
He looks to the idols.
He does detestable things.
¹³He lends at interest and takes a profit.

Will such a man live? He will not! Because he has done all these detestable things, he is to be put to death; his blood will be on his own head.

¹⁴“But suppose this son has a son who sees all the sins his father commits, and though he sees them, he does not do such things:

¹⁵“He does not eat at the mountain shrines
    or look to the idols of Israel.
He does not defile his neighbor’s wife.
¹⁶He does not oppress anyone
    or require a pledge for a loan.
He does not commit robbery
    but gives his food to the hungry
    and provides clothing for the naked.
¹⁷He withholds his hand from mistreating the poor
    and takes no interest or profit from them.
He keeps my laws and follows my decrees.

He will not die for his father’s sin; he will surely live. ¹⁸But his father will die for his own sin, because he practiced extortion, robbed his brother and did what was wrong among his people.

¹⁹“Yet you ask, ‘Why does the son not share the guilt of his father?’ Since the son has done what is just and right and has been careful to keep all my decrees, he will surely live. ²⁰The one who sins is the one who will die. The child will not share the guilt of the parent, nor will the parent share the guilt of the child. The righteousness of the righteous will be credited to them, and the wickedness of the wicked will be charged against them.

²¹“But if a wicked person turns away from all the sins they have committed and keeps all my decrees and does what is just and right, that person will surely live; they will not die. ²²None of the offenses they have committed will be remembered against them. Because of the righteous things they have done, they will live. ²³Do I take any pleasure in the death of the wicked? declares the Sovereign Lord. Rather, am I not pleased when they turn from their ways and live?

²⁴“But if a righteous person turns from their righteousness and commits sin and does the same detestable things the wicked person does, will they live? None of the righteous things that person has done will be remembered. Because of the unfaithfulness they are guilty of and because of the sins they have committed, they will die.

²⁵“Yet you say, ‘The way of the Lord is not just.’ Hear, you Israelites: Is my way unjust? Is it not your ways that are unjust? ²⁶If a righteous person turns from their righteousness and commits sin, they will die for it; because of the sin they have committed they will die. ²⁷But if a wicked person turns away from the wickedness they have committed and does what is just and right, they will save their life. ²⁸Because they consider all the offenses they have committed and turn away from them, that person will surely live; they will not die. ²⁹Yet the Israelites say, ‘The way of the Lord is not just.’ Are my ways unjust, people of Israel? Is it not your ways that are unjust?

³⁰“Therefore, you Israelites, I will judge each of you according to your own ways, declares the Sovereign Lord. Repent! Turn away from all your offenses; then sin will not be your downfall. ³¹Rid yourselves of all the offenses you have committed, and get a new heart and a new spirit. Why will you die, people of Israel? ³²For I take no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Sovereign Lord. Repent and live!