Hair

Pluck a hair from your head (or retrieve it from a hairbrush). Look at it closely with a magnifying glass, or even a microscope if you have one. If you must, I'm sure you can google an image of a strand of hair. Consider the craftsmanship that God put into that hair--the delicate structure, the color, the curliness or straightness of it.

How important is hair? Why do we have it? Ever had a bad hair day? A good hair day? What difference does it make?

What messages does your hair (the look of it, the style) communicate to others about you?

"What's the price of two or three pet canaries? Some loose change, right? But God never overlooks a single one. And he pays even greater attention to you, down to the last detail—even numbering the hairs on your head! So don't be intimidated by all this bully talk. You're worth more than a million canaries." (Luke 12:6-7, The Message)

This passage contains another message about hair. Jesus uses hair o communicate His great love for you and His care for you. the Creator who cares about the life and events of the lowly sparrow cares much more about you! Every detail of your life is important. Every circumstance. Every fear. Every worry. God cares.

What are the concerns or situations most troubling to you right now? Share them with God.

What are the fears or worries that keep you from the fullness of joy you can have in Christ? Tell Him.

How have you questioned God's care for you? Tell Him about it now.

Close your eyes, and let God embrace you and wrap His loving arms around you. Stay still and quiet. Ask God to hold you. Ask Him to show you ways to rest in His hand, free worry and fear.

Father, thank You for knowing me so intimately, for knowing every hair on my head, and for how much You lovingly care for me. May I live as Your child today, cared for, loved, and free from worry and fear. You are on the throne. You hold everything in the palm of Your hand. You are good and wise. May You be glorified in My life today as I really live in You.

A Family Likeness

Christ... in me.

Find some photos of your ancestors--your mom or dad, your grandparents, your great-great aunt (if you can find them). How many generations can your go back?

Study the photos and look for family likeness. Where do you get your nose from, or your type of hair? Who does your family blame for your short temper (or whatever crazy issue you may have inherited--my wife tells me that I inherited the vice of whistling all the time from my dad)? From whom do you get your height (or lack thereof)?

Some of us don't know much about our families. For me, personally, one side only can think back a couple of generations. On the other, my grandfather has traced our lineage, through one line anyway, to the tribe of Benjamin. I didn't even know I had Jewish blood until I was in my mid-thirties. But I also know that I'm like many Americans--a mixture of many backgrounds and ethnicities.

What would you ask your ancestors if you could?

Perhaps you are adopted--what traits of personality, taste, or behavior might you have "inherited" from your adoptive parents? What have they passed on to you?

Do you have the same hobbies or habits as others in  your family? Who has passed on their likes and dislikes to you?

The Life-Light was the real thing: Every person entering Life he brings into Light. He was in the world, the world was there through him, and yet the world didn't even notice. He came to his own people, but they didn't want him. But whoever did want him, who believed he was who he claimed and would do what he said, He made to be their true selves, their child-of-God selves. These are the God-begotten, not blood-begotten, not flesh-begotten, not sex-begotten.(John 1:9-13, The Message, by Eugene Peterson)

You are God's child, part of His family. What family likenesses are there between you and God? Do you share His concerns, His passions, His likes and dislikes? How would you like your character to become more like God's?

Ask God to make you more like Him. What do you have to look forward to as His child? Who else is part of the family?

Revel in the sense of belonging, of significance, of security, and of hope.

(adapted from Christ In Me, 30 Next-Level Encounters, Group Publishing, 2002)

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Father, You are so good. Thank you for creating us, Your children. May we have an overwhelming sense of awe and love from being in Your family today.

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Every blessing in Christ to each of you this week!

Shopping

Go and buy something at a supermarket. It doesn't have to be big--maybe a candy bar or a piece of fruit. Then sit near the checkout counter and watch other people paying for hey items. Who has the fullest shopping cart? How do they pay--cash, check, or charge?

Now imagine what would have happened if you had walked out of the store without paying. Or what if someone pushed a full cart past the checkout and headed straight for the door? The cashier might shout, security guards might come running, an alarm might sound... Consider the drama of that scene in your mind. How would it end?

Consider the following thoughts from 1 Peter 1:18-21 (The Message):

Your life is a journey you must travel with a deep consciousness of God. It cost God plenty to get you out of that dead-end, empty-headed life you grew up in. He paid with Christ's sacred blood, you know. He died like an unblemished, sacrificial lamb. And this was no afterthought. Even though it has only lately—at the end of the ages—become public knowledge, God always knew he was going to do this for you. It's because of this sacrificed Messiah, whom God then raised from the dead and glorified, that you trust God, that you know you have a future in God.

Paying for something means you own it--it's yours. Taking without paying is theft and brings consequences.

Jesus hs paid a price for you--to set you free from an empty way of life. You belong to Him--and no one can change that. But He didn't pay with money--He paid with His own life, His own precious blood because you were worth it.

How does that make you feel? Take a moment to pray and tell Jesus about it.

Jesus. ALL.

(adapted from Christ In Me: 30 Next-level Encounters, Group Publishing, 2002)