Tag: forgiveness of sin

A Flight With No Delays

vickie j blairLeave a comment

Yesterday a dear friend from America arrived to visit us.  Mom and I love being tour guides.  We have our itinerary planned and look forward to showing her our UK world.

When she arrived at the departure airport in America,  she sent a message to tell us her flight was delayed.  A little while later another message came informing us of another delay.  I kept watch on this end, looking online at flight arrivals so we would know what time to be at the airport.

Now she is with us and we are already off to a great start, having taken her yesterday afternoon to see some of our favorite views where we live in our coastal town.  She walked on our pebble beach.  Even our dog, Jack, took her into the hills to show her a much loved walking place where the views back over to the sea are gorgeous.  She was slightly delayed in her flight to get here but all is well now.

I couldn’t help but think of the flight departure that awaits everyone who personally knows Jesus.  He has promised to return to take us to Himself.  He will actually meet us in the air!  What an exciting flight that will be.  There will be no delays in that flight.  At the already appointed time (Our heavenly Father has scheduled that time) Jesus will be sent to collect us.  Here is what we are told in I Thessalonians 4:15-18, “We tell you this directly from the Lord: We who are still living when the Lord returns will not meet Him ahead of those who have died.  For the Lord Himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God.  First, believers who have died will rise from their graves.  Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air.  Then we will be with the Lord forever.  So encourage each other with these words.”  It certainly is encouraging to know that we who have invited Jesus into our lives, accepting His forgiveness and promise of eternal life, will be taken to live with Him in perfect joy (no sadness, tears, or death) in heaven for eternity.

I sometimes look into the faces of people I see on the streets or in shopping areas, or I think of people I have met all over the world in my travels, and I wonder and hope and pray, that understanding of the opportunity of eternal life in heaven will come to them.  It’s so easy to receive Jesus into one’s life.  Just call out to Him, thank Him for dying to forgive everything you have ever done, invite Him into your life.  He will come.  He will forgive.  He loves you.  I hope you come.

Washing The House

vickie j blairLeave a comment

In order to begin writing today’s blog entry, I looked up the dictionary definition of “pervasive.” It means: “an unwelcome influence or physical effect spreading widely through an area or a group of people.” What I was doing yesterday and today involved something that had become pervasive and it was definitely unwelcome. It was sticky brown dust and green algae — all over the house!

My mother’s house is covered in white vinyl siding. When it was first put up years ago it was brilliant white. Then, as the year came on, so came the dust and algae. How did it get there? Basically, farmers plow their fields, and north winds blow cold that produces algae in places where the sun doesn’t shine all that much.

The grime creeps up slowly. It’s barely noticeable until one day the streaks of brown and green scream out! It’s been building up throughout the year, but it seems to have arrived overnight. Well, I tackled it good: a spray bottle of bleach and a garden hose to wash it away took care of the problem. The bleach eats the grime and in minutes it’s all pretty again. There was a section of the house that didn’t look so bad. I nearly left it until I stepped back to look at the whole house. Wow! That put it all into proper perspective. When I looked at what was already cleaned, the part that I thought was okay actually stood out in its obvious dirt! I quickly applied the bleach, and now the whole house is gleaming white.

Don’t we do that in our spiritual worlds? When we invite Jesus into our lives and ask Him to forgive us of all our sins, He applies the blood of the cross and cleans us up perfectly! We’re gleaming clean and forgiven! Of course, we still live in an imperfect and sinful world. Therefore, we get our feet dirty. Perhaps that’s the obvious grime. What if we cleaned our feet everyday but ignored the rest of our bodies? What if we asked forgiveness for some sins but ignored others? Of course, when we take time to step back and see ourselves as God does, it puts things into proper perspective, and we clearly see that our minds and our hearts need cleansing. All sins must be dealt with because just one left will leave us still dirty. Even if we consider it a “little” sin, if left unattended, it will grow, and when it grows, it will choke our joy. Sin left unattended will keep us from reaching our full potential in Christ. Why, therefore, do we try to hang on to sin? It’s destructive! It’s not pretty. It is of no value to us.

Let’s not do that to ourselves. Let’s not lie to ourselves, saying that just one sin doesn’t matter. Jesus died for that one sin; it matters. Let Him wash it away. Then, walk free and full of joy. The only other choice is to walk around dirty.

Let’s come to Jesus everyday to be washed and forgiven. He never refuses a repentant heart. Read His loving words in Isaiah 1:18, “Come now, let’s settle this,’ says the Lord. ‘Though your sins are like scarlet, I will make them as white as snow. Though they are red like crimson, I will make them as white as wool.'” Go ahead, get your house washed today and bask in the beauty of holiness.

Because Of The Water

vickie j blairLeave a comment

I visited my sister the other day, and she gave me a bouquet of red tulips. I gently laid them on the back seat of my car to take home. However, on the way I stopped somewhere for several hours. When I finally got home, and picked up my tulips, they did not appear very healthy. Taking them from the paper they were wrapped in, every tulip fell limp, literally hanging toward the floor.

My first sad thought was that I would have to simply throw them away; but they were a gift. I didn’t want to throw them away; therefore, with that thought in mind, I filled a vase with water and placed the tulips inside. The floppy stems bent all the way over causing the tulip heads to lay on the table. It was a very sad and sorry sight indeed. Nonetheless, I left them there.

The next morning when I walked into the kitchen to get my anticipated mug of coffee, I glanced in the living room, and then did a quick several steps back. I was absolutely flabbergasted at the sight before me! Every tulip in the vase was standing to attention, like soldiers ready for a marching parade! Unreserved joy pulsated in my veins and stretched a smile across my lips! I heard myself laugh out loud and audibly say, “I thought you were dead!” As if in answer, each tulip proudly remained tall and straight.

A smile stayed on my face for a long time after the, tulip gone from death to life, discovery. That’s when thoughts about the water stirred in my mind. The tulips could only be alive because of the water in the vase. They drank all night, and as the water rose in their stems, signs of glorious life appeared.

I thought of the conversation that Jesus had with the Samaritan woman at the well. He said to her in John 4:14, “The water I give takes away thirst altogether. It becomes a perpetual spring within, giving eternal life.” To those of us who have taken God’s gift of salvation, by receiving God’s love and forgiveness, only available to us because of Jesus paying the penalty for sin in our place; well, we too, were lifeless, perhaps nearly dying from our own attempts to give meaning to our lives. Then, along came Jesus, offering to us spiritual water from the well of His own life; water that would never dry up.

If there is anyone reading this who is searching for meaning in life; anyone who is feeling life just isn’t worth living anymore; anyone who is caught in an unbearable situation and can see no way out; then, take heart and take Jesus. Only He can give you a living drink of water that will heal your wounds and give you hope through all your days. Then, when life on this earth is over, it is only because we drank of His living water, that we have assurance of life in heaven for eternity. In that place, there will be no more tears or death or sorrow. It’s a beautiful place, and it’s available to all through receiving Jesus Christ.

Here is a glimpse of what awaits us who know Him. It’s recorded in Revelation 22:1-6
“And the angel showed me a pure river with the water of life, clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb, coursing down the center of the main street. On each side of the river grew a tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, with a fresh crop each month. The leaves were used for medicine to heal the nations. No longer will anything be cursed. For the throne of God and of the Lamb will be there, and His servants will worship Him. And they will see His face, and His name will be written on their foreheads. And there will be no night there — no need for lamp or sun — for the Lord God will shine on them. And they will reign forever and ever. Then the angel said to me, ‘The Lord God, who tells his prophets what the future holds, has sent his angel to tell you what will happen soon.'”

If you don’t know Jesus, it’s not too late. Call to Him now. Ask His forgiveness and He will forgive all. He will fill you with living water from which springs eternal life. Why wait? It’s a treasure chest waiting to be opened, but only you can take what is offered. I pray with the sending of this blog, that if you don’t personally know Jesus, that today you will drink of the water He is offering to you — and begin a new life!