Consider God…

As you have already guessed, my spouse is now home from the Middle East and our part in telling God’s story of hope and rescue has been silenced, at least for now.

I do want to thank you for reading these God stories as they point to a loving, gracious God who initiates a relationship with all people. And if you haven’t as yet….

Consider God.

God, holy, just, tender-hearted, merciful, sustainer and creator of the universe, looked down from heaven at sinful people living in the mud, muck and mire of wickedness and who are helplessly unable to change their predicament. They are hopelessly lost and unable to come back to Him, to God who is holy and altogether pure, yet people are unable to breach this chasm of sin.

So what does God decide to do with his sick, twisted and diseased creation?

God, compassionate and long-suffering determines a plan of rescue that can satisfy their plight. He decides to go down to man himself by taking on human form and to pay the price of their sin, to sacrifice himself, so that man can once again be united with holy God.

Christ Jesus, Messiah in flesh bore the wrath against sin on a cross to show his power over sin, in the resurrection so that everyone who turns from sin to trust in Him, will be reconciled to God forever. This divine action is what Christ Followers and the bible call the gospel, translated literally means, good news and it is!

I am hoping that you will continue to remember Ishmael, Massoud, Khaleed, Joseph and Dianna. They are real people. Of course, the names were changed and specifics altered to maintain anonymity. And even though this colored thread woven in the tapestry of Gods glory has ended, their lives go on.

I was hoping that you would join me by continuing to pray for them as they are still searching, seeking, and in need of a Savior. Please pray specifically that these men will continue to contemplate and consider our living Almighty Christ, Isa al masih, who intercedes for them both day and night drawing people unto Himself (John 6: 44).

This is God, who watches over us, day and night; watches but neither slumbers nor sleeps; watches and provides shade by day and by night; and watches over our coming and going both now and forevermore (Psalms 121).

God is watching over us… funny thing about that word watches… it is shâmar ‘shaw-mar’ . In its original language shamar means to protect, preserve, to save, but the primitive root has a much richer meaning and one that demonstrates the depth of God’s love for the epitome of his creation, mankind. The word literally means to properly hedge about, as with thorns.

Christ Jesus, God Almighty, the Alpha and Omega of our faith was victorious in death, and proudly wore a crown of thorns, to forever hedge in people such as Ishmael and Massoud, both now and forevermore.

Will they accept Him and his costly gift… let’s pray fervently that they will.