March 31, 2008

"The Lord does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities. As far as the East is from the West, so far he removes our transgressions from us." Psalm 103:10,12

Do you believe in ghosts? How about the ghosts of sins past? Now there is a frightening thought. I believe all of us have a room in our mind where lurk the ghosts of past sins. The problem is that we sometimes visit that room, sit down and relive, rehash and re-blame ourselves for past mistakes. We have all done things we are totally ashamed of. If you are like me, you will say, "But I have asked God to forgive me a hundred times!" But have you asked God to help you forgive yourself? God forgave you the first time you asked. Forgiving ourselves is another matter. It is sad how we Christians who claim to be a people of grace find God's grace so hard to accept. Next time Satan throws a past sin in your face, try this. Write out on a piece of paper that past sin that likes to visit you frequently. Pray and ask God to forgive you one last time. Then shred the paper as fine as you can and throw it away. Then say aloud, "I am forgiven and I am free." The next time Satan brings it us, ask him "What sin?" As far as God is concerned, it is gone forever and it is about time you believed it too.

Thought for the week: Politics is supposed to be the second oldest profession. I have come to realize that it bears a very close resemblance to the first. -- Ronald Reagan

Funny for the week: "White Gloves"

Frequent hand washing in my job as a medical technologist and the harsh weather combined give me very dry skin.

One night as I prepared for bed, I rubbed my hands with petroleum jelly and covered them with an old pair of white gloves. As I sat in bed reading a book with my gloves on, my husband finished showering and came into the room wearing a towel.

Drying himself off, he went to the closet, selected a tie and put it on. "What are you doing?" I asked.

"Well" he replied, "if you are going to be formal. So am I."

And that is a man with a sense of humor................. Chaplain Barnes

Last week’s answer: What three classes of creatures did the sheet lowered to Peter in a vision contain? Animals, birds and reptiles (Acts 10:12)

This week’s question: What restriction did God put on Satan’s torment of Job?