Starting Over

Question to think about: Do you realize who Christ is in your life?

A new day.
A new start.
A new perspective.
A new mindset.
How is it possible to authentically start over . . . to begin the day without the load of the day before?
First we must understand that through the great and mysterious power of Christ . . . all things are new.
People have struggled throughout the centuries of understanding that Christ is life. Period. Nothing else is life.
The religious leaders faced Christ.
They said to him, "Just who are you anyway?" (John 8:25-26, The Message)

John wrote about the identity of Christ in Revelations:
5 And the one sitting on the throne said, “Look, I am making everything new!” And then he said to me, “Write this down, for what I tell you is trustworthy and true.” 6 And he also said, “It is finished! I am the Alpha and the Omega—the Beginning and the End. To all who are thirsty I will give freely from the springs of the water of life. 7 All who are victorious will inherit all these blessings, and I will be their God, and they will be my children. (Revelations 21:5-7, NLT)

Christ, God with us will make all things are new.
Start over.
Begin the day with Christ.
Ask Christ to define your day, every hour and minute.
Experience the Springs of Life!
Celebrate . . . all things are made new in Christ!

Learning with you to start over,
Kerrie
(All devotions written by Kerrie Palmer ©2009 All Rights Reserved)

Living Beyond Your Horizons

Question to think about: Are you stuck in the mundane?

I encounter individuals that speak into my life by the way they live. These individuals are on my want-to-do-life-like-them list.
They
refuse
to be entrapped with the mundane-task-oriented-daily details . . .
determined to make a difference . . .
with attention on God.
They
want to engage with God
experiencing life to the fullest.
They
live beyond
the limitations of humanity's horizons.

Jesus said, "You're tied down to the mundane; I'm in touch with what is beyond your horizons. You live in terms of what you see and touch. I'm living on other terms. I told you that you were missing God in all this. You're at a dead end. If you won't believe I am who I say I am, you're at the dead end of sins. You're missing God in your lives." (John 8:23-24, The Message)

Live beyond your horizons.
Refuse to live in terms of what you see and touch.
Engage with God.

Learning with you to live beyond my horizons,
Kerrie
(All devotions written by Kerrie Palmer ©2009 All Rights Reserved)

Is God Missing?

Question to think about: Are you headed for a dead-end?

The stuff of life can be consuming.
Details,
deadlines,
problems,
and pressures
take precedence.
And . . . the presence of God is missed.
One thing for sure is that we are headed for a dead-end when we fail to acknowledge the presence of God in every component of life.
God is present.
God is always present.
God will never fail.
God invites us to engage in an ongoing-active-participating relationship in all we do.

Jesus explained:
Then he went over the same ground again. "I'm leaving and you are going to look for me, but you're missing God in this and are headed for a dead end. There is no way you can come with me." (John 8:21, The Message)

What do we need to do?
First things first . . .
But seek (aim at and strive after) first of all His kingdom and His righteousness (His way of doing and being right), and then all these things taken together will be given you besides. (Matthew 6:33, Amplified)

Refuse to miss God.
Turn away from the dead-end way of living.
Seek God.
Be aware of the presence, power, and peace of God.
Aim at and strive after doing life God's way.
Trust God for all things to come together.

Learning with you to not miss God,
Kerrie
(All devotions written by Kerrie Palmer ©2009 All Rights Reserved)

The Time

Question to think about: Do you have enough time?

There never seems to be enough time.
Time managers give
strategies,
techniques,
skills,
and tools
to
maximize time.
These experts say that it is imperative to shift our attitude towards time and to set measurable goals.

After all is said done, time is a marker of how we live which requires daily choices.

Jesus demonstrated time management. He lived with purpose in a specific allotted amount of time:
Jesus made these statements while he was teaching in the section of the Temple known as the Treasury. But he was not arrested, because his time had not yet come.(John 8:20, NLT)

How is it possible to live with the same kind of purpose Jesus had?

"If God gives such attention to the appearance of wildflowers—most of which are never even seen—don't you think he'll attend to you, take pride in you, do his best for you? What I'm trying to do here is to get you to relax, to not be so preoccupied with getting, so you can respond to God's giving. People who don't know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don't worry about missing out. You'll find all your everyday human concerns will be met." (Matthew 6:31-33, The Message)

Seek God-reality, God initiative, God-provisions in the time you are given. Rather than worrying about what you are missing, trust God every minute.
Live well in the time you have been given.

Learning with you to live well every minute of the day,
Kerrie
(All devotions written by Kerrie Palmer ©2009 All Rights Reserved)

Contrast

Question to think about: Is Christ visible in your life?

Chaos.
Order.

Ending.
New beginnings.

Impossibilities.
Possibilities.

Exhausted.
Energized.

Dark.
Light.

Death.
Life.

Why do individuals choose such contrasting ways to live?

The thing is . . . we often think we don't have a choice in the way we live because of circumstances; however, we do have a choice through Christ.

Christ, God with us, demonstrated the way we are designed to live. Meditate on the fact that God came:

So they were saying to Him, "Where is Your Father?" Jesus answered, "You know neither Me nor My Father; if you knew Me, you would know My Father also." (John 8:19, NASB)

The story does not end . . . God is present.
"If you love me, show it by doing what I've told you. I will talk to the Father, and he'll provide you another Friend so that you will always have someone with you. This Friend is the Spirit of Truth. The godless world can't take him in because it doesn't have eyes to see him, doesn't know what to look for. But you know him already because he has been staying with you, and will even be in you!" (John 14:15-17, The Message)

Choose to live in Christ.
Experience more.

Learning with you to live in Christ,
Kerrie
(All devotions written by Kerrie Palmer ©2009 All Rights Reserved)

How do you see it?

Question to think about: Do you see through doubt and fear or trust and faith?

Waiting.
Refusing doubt . . . fear . . . powerlessness.
Praying.
Believing.
Receiving trust . . . faith . . . power.

No one wants to wait; however, there are waiting seasons in life.
The process of waiting defines the way we see a situation . . . with doubt or trust, fear or faith, powerlessness or power. The thing is . . . doubt leads to fear and fear leaves us powerless; trust leads to faith and ultimately power.

How do we trust when doubt begins to work its way into our thoughts?

The key is our perspective:
Jesus replied, "You're right that you only have my word. But you can depend on it being true. I know where I've come from and where I go next. You don't know where I'm from or where I'm headed. You decide according to what you can see and touch. I don't make judgments like that. But even if I did, my judgment would be true because I wouldn't make it out of the narrowness of my experience but in the largeness of the One who sent me, the Father. That fulfills the conditions set down in God's Law: that you can count on the testimony of two witnesses. And that is what you have: You have my word and you have the word of the Father who sent me." (John 8: 14-18, The Message).

Jesus did not make judgments of situations through the limitations of the human mind but through the perspective of the Father.
When our perspective is narrowed to our experience we see all the impossibilities . . . when our perspective is enlarged through the view of God . . . we see the possibilities.

Learning with you to see more,
Kerrie
(All devotions written by Kerrie Palmer ©2009 All Rights Reserved)

Party in the ICU Waiting Room

Question to think about: What do you do?

An incomprehensible medical event occurred on Easter morning to one of our long-time-best friends . . . who was preparing to lead worship at his church.
A few years ago the same event had occurred to another long-time-best friend . . . his wife.
She died . . . he became a single father of their three children.
He met and married a beautiful woman . . . her husband had died of a devastating cancer.
Several years ago, his father experienced the tragic death of his wife, our friend's mother. A drunk driver came up an entrance on a highway the wrong way and had smashed into their car.
The pain for his wife,
children,
and father,
as well as for him,
overwhelmed us.

We did not know
what to
think . . .
say . . .
do . . .
imagine . . .
or
even
pray.

What do we do when situations are beyond our comprehension?
Ask others to intercede in prayer . . . the power of God moves through intercessory prayer.
Be still.
Know the presence of God.
Listen.
Listen to the Spirit of God.
God speaks.
A song began to echo within me:

Savior
He can move the mountains
My God is Mighty to save
He is Mighty to save
Forever
Author of salvation
He rose and conquered the grave
Jesus conquered the grave
~Michael W. Smith

And then a word seemed to be highlighted in the Life Workbook for humanity in the book of Isaiah chapter 43:

16The LORD says,
Who makes a way through the sea
And a path through the mighty waters,
17Who brings forth the chariot and the horse,
The army and the mighty man
(They will lie down together and not rise again;
They have been quenched and extinguished like a wick):
18"Do not call to mind the former things,
Or ponder things of the past.
19 Behold, I will do something new,
Now it will spring forth;
Will you not be aware of it?
I will even make a roadway in the wilderness,
Rivers in the desert. (Isaiah 43, NASB)

And . . . Matthew 19:26 which several of us have prayed for forty days ending on Easter morning:

"With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible."

So, we are praying:

God You are mighty to save.
You move mountains
and part the deep waters of the sea
providing a pathway that we can't see with our eyes but with our heart.
Would you move the mountain of all the medical problems?
Make a way through the sea of impossibilities
and a pathway through the deep waters of pain.
Quench and extinguish the obstacles to health.
All things are possible with You.
Do a new thing.
We will be aware of it.
Give us a new song and a new day.
Savior . . .
You are mighty to save.
With You all things are possible.

Yesterday morning, the doctors determined that an emergency procedure was needed . . . it was intense . . . and incredible.
Countless people prayed and continue to pray.
The procedure was successful . . . but more than that . . .
he began to respond . . . and we celebrated the work of God . . . it was a party in the ICU waiting room . . . with old and new friends that are united by the presence, power, and peace of God.
Pray.
Celebrate the work of God.
Party!
Learning with you to pray and party,
Kerrie
(All devotions written by Kerrie Palmer ©2009 All Rights Reserved)

Out of the darkness . . . into the Light

Question to think about: Is there Light?

The words came slowly,
underscoring the pain
that resided within.

No one has cared
about me.
Nights are the hardest . . .
in the darkness . . .
being alone
is a reality.
What if I die in
the darkness?
No one would
know.

How many others feel alone in the dark?

The thing is . . . there is a way out of the darkness . . . to come into the Light:
Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, "I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life."
(John 8:12, NASB)
Humanity . . . you and I . . . are invited to live in the Light of life.
The darkness does not comprehend the Light (meditate on John 1:5)and the Light moves the darkness out.
In the Light . . .
humanity is not alone . . .
in the Light . . .
the presence of the Spirit of Christ is seen.

Celebrate the Light of Christ that is in you this Easter weekend!
Learning with you to live in the Light of Christ,
Kerrie
(All devotions written by Kerrie Palmer ©2009 All Rights Reserved)

Decision

Question to think about: What have you done?

A wrong decision was made.
The impact of the decision worsened
when it was covered up.
Eventually the truth came out.
Life became messy.
Trust was lost.
Words and actions were questioned.
As time went on . . .
trust was restored.
Life became better . . .
until the wrong decision was made . . . again.

A woman stood in the middle of the court, condemned for her wrong decisions. The presence and the words of Jesus turned attention to their own sins:
The religious rulers walked away from the woman they accused of making wrong decisions.

When they heard it, they began to go out one by one, beginning with the older ones, and He was left alone, and the woman, where she was, in the center of the court.
Straightening up, Jesus said to her, "Woman, where are they? Did no one condemn you?"
She said, "No one, Lord." And Jesus said, "I do not condemn you, either Go From now on sin no more."
(John 8:9-11, NASB)

Christ freed the woman condemned to death. She did not deserve it . . . but she received new life.
The nameless woman was given the opportunity to live . . . it was her decision to start over . . . to live a different life through Christ . . . a decision that has been given to all of humanity.

Make the decision to live life through Christ.
Celebrate freedom from living condemned to death . . . through the power, presence, and peace of Christ.
Learning with you to decide to live life through Christ,
Kerrie
(All devotions written by Kerrie Palmer ©2009 All Rights Reserved)

Words In The Sand

Question to think about: Do you know what God said?

Miscommunication.
Offended.
Hurt.
Anger.
Refusal to forgive.
Avoidance.
Blame.
Division.
Broken.

How can individuals be reconciled?

Reconciliation is a process.
Those who reconcile must be willing to
give up their rights . . .
forgive . . .
and
reach out in peace.

Christ is the Reconciler. The presence, power, and peace of Christ has reconciled humanity to God and one another.

A woman stood between the accusations of religious leaders and the love of Christ.
Christ gave a strong message of truth and wrote a message in the sandy soil.

Again He stooped down and wrote on the ground.
(John 8:9, NASB)

What did Jesus write?
We can only imagine. Perhaps it was something like:
"Forgive and you will be forgiven."
"Love as I love you."
"Go in My peace."

Engage with the reconciling power of Christ.
What words would Christ write in the sand for you?
Forgive.
Love.
Go in peace.

Learning with you to live in the reconciling power of Christ,
Kerrie
(All devotions written by Kerrie Palmer ©2009 All Rights Reserved)

Stand Your Ground

Question to think about: Do you stand your ground?

It was dark . . . late at night.
I could hear footsteps behind me as I made my way into the hospital to visit an individual.
I startled the man when I turned around and said,

"Can I help you?"
He stuttered and said, "Ummm. . . I noticed the Bible in your hand."
I replied, "Walk with me and we will talk."

We walked into the hospital talking about God.

I don't know what the man was originally thinking . . .
but
I do know that we are not to fear,
facing who or what pursues us . . .
standing our ground through the presence and power of Christ.

Jesus did not fear what the religious rulers might do. He stood his ground.

But when they persisted in asking Him, He straightened up, and said to them, "He who is without sin among you, let him be the first to throw a stone at her."
(John 8:7-8, NABB)

Jesus stood His ground.
He faced the attackers.
He did not give into to their divisiveness.
He spoke in truth.

Stop.
Refuse to fear who or whatever is divisive.
Face the fear through the presence of Christ.
Stand your ground in the strength and power of the Spirit of Christ.


Learning with you to stand the ground,
Kerrie
(All devotions written by Kerrie Palmer ©2009 All Rights Reserved)

BUT . . .

Question to think about: Do you see possibilities?

I listened to the words:
"It's time."
"Nothing is working."
"It's over."
"But . . . we have hope."

The word, "but," grabbed my attention . . . indicating possibility in the impossible circumstance.

Certainly, the word, "but," had significance for one woman.
She had been caught.
She must have felt the weight of shame and disgrace
as she faced the religious rulers.
There was no doubt that she would be stoned to death.
The religious rulers used her to
trap Jesus.

Now Moses in the Law commanded us that such [women--offenders] shall be stoned to death. But what do You say [to do with her--what is Your sentence]? This they said to try (test) Him, hoping they might find a charge on which to accuse Him. But Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with His finger. (John 8:5-6, AMP)

"But" . . . the word is small . . . but . . . the word has power.
But . . . there was something more.
Jesus stooped down . . . God was at work . . . as he wrote in the sand.

Stop.
Life may seem hopeless . . . but . . . there you can find hope through Christ.
Refuse to focus on the hopelessness of a circumstance.
Receive hope through Christ.

Learning with you about the possibilities of the word, "but,"
Kerrie
(All devotions written by Kerrie Palmer ©2009 All Rights Reserved)

Tragedy

Question to think about: How does the tragedy of humanity define your life?

Long ago,
a man spent time
scaring kids in our neighborhood.
The thing is . . . he was living in our children's playhouse behind
our home.
Somewhere along the way, the man lost his purpose in life . . . a true tragedy.

The tragedy of humanity is real . . . living without purpose . . . lost . . . without God.

The story of one woman,
put on trial by religious leaders,
described the rejection and shame
that came out of the
tragedy of humanity.

The religious leaders did not see the result of the tragedy closed humanity off from living in a participating-active-ongoing relationship with God . . . it was as if their own hearts were boarded up with the sign . . . KEEP OUT . . . DO NOT ENTER. They were lost in a self-righteous-rigid-rule-keeping life . . . seeing themselves separated from others for the sake of God . . . but in reality . . . they lived separated from God.
The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman caught in adultery, and having set her in the center of the court,
they said to Him, "Teacher, this woman has been caught in adultery, in the very act.
John 8:2-4, NASB)

Each of us are impacted on a daily basis by the tragedy of humanity.
Stop.
Be released from the power of the tragedy . . .
receive the
presence . . . power . . . and peace of God.
Celebrate . . . with God . . . tragedy is not the end of the story.

Learning with you that life does not need to be defined by tragedy,
Kerrie
(All devotions written by Kerrie Palmer ©2009 All Rights Reserved)

He Came In Peace

Question to think about: Do you have peace?
There are certain people that impact our lives.
He was eighty-something.
He came in peace
to our church
to help us find healing
in a time of chaos and profound hurt.
Not all of us thought we were hurt.
We were.
Hurt is often hidden . . .
we tend not to deal with pain . . .
denying the presence and power it has over us.
He taught us to be honest,
to face pain,
and to receive
the presence
and power
of peace.
We did.
And . . . we began to experience peace . . . and become healthy.

We are unhealthy until we face pain and receive peace.

Christ, God with us, came to give humanity peace . . . shalom . . . well-being. Healing, at the deepest level, occurs through receiving the life-giving peace of Christ.

Christ came in active peace:
BUT JESUS went to the Mount of Olives.
Early in the morning (at dawn), He came back into the temple [court], and the people came to Him in crowds. He sat down and was teaching them,(John 8:1-2, Amplified)
Think about how this story reveals peace:
John 7 closes with the religious leaders telling the people not to believe. In response, the people went home.
Chapter 8 opens up with a dramatic scene . . . Jesus goes to Mount of Olives . . . and then early in the morning returns to the temple.
Jesus did not allow rejection to deter Him from bringing life-giving peace to humanity.
Jesus came back and the people came to Him.
No justification.
No arguments.
No strife.
He came
with life-giving peace.
He sat down.
He taught.
He sat down and taught them.

Think about it . . . God who created this world . . . comes to us . . . takes time to connect . . . and teach . . . without force . . . but with peace.

Jesus lived out the message of peace.
We are called to live in and through active peace.
Stop.
Face the pain that comes from this world.
Receive the peace of Christ.
Actively live out peace today.

Learning with you to live out the message of peace,
Kerrie
(All devotions written by Kerrie Palmer ©2009 All Rights Reserved)

Moving Your Mountains

Question to think about: What are your mountains?

It appeared that nothing more could be done,
the end seemed near,
they decided to
walk away.
A mountain of problems had piled up.
And then it happened . . .
an idea came to them.
One more try,
did not make sense;
however,
they had nothing more to lose.

Problems become mountains.

Is there something more that can be done when problems become impassable mountains in our life?
To see beyond the mountain, we need to first see the presence of God.
The thing is . . . the mountain of problems often block our view of God . . . as the problems begin to overpower faith.
Humanity has struggled since the beginning of time
with faith that God is present and more powerful than what we are facing.
In a conversation with religious rulers, the people were told not to believe that God would come and be in their midst:
Nicodemus, the man who had come to Jesus earlier and was both a ruler and a Pharisee, spoke up. "Does our Law decide about a man's guilt without first listening to him and finding out what he is doing?"
But they cut him off. "Are you also campaigning for the Galilean? Examine the evidence. See if any prophet ever comes from Galilee."
Then they all went home. (John 7:50-53, The Message)
God is present, regardless of the acknowledgement of humanity.
God invites humanity to faith that moves mountains. . . in the presence, power, and peace of God:

“You don’t have enough faith,” Jesus told them. “I tell you the truth, if you had faith even as small as a mustard seed, you could say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it would move. Nothing would be impossible.

Accept the invitation to faith, even as small as a mustard seed.

Move
the
mountain.

Learning with you to move mountains,
Kerrie
(All devotions written by Kerrie Palmer ©2009 All Rights Reserved)