Week Twenty-Four, 2024
So, God created the great creatures of the sea and every living thing with which the water teems and that moves about in it, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good (Genesis 1:21).
We live on an incredible earth, all created by an intelligent designer in just a week. There are various creatures and topography, and it all works together as designed. There are blistering deserts and frozen glaciers. I have been to both and everywhere in between. Each of the seven continents is unique and populated by living creatures that are designed to live there and co-exist with others.
Recently, we spent a week in Botswana, deep in the tundra. As we traveled daily across the Mashatu, we saw animals, big and small, all designed to exist together.
The giraffes eat the treetops to allow the sun to penetrate to the earth, where is feeds the growing plants that provide a foot source for smaller vegetarians. The elephants eat all day and only digest forty percent of what they eat, so as they walk, they re-seed to replace the plants that they eat.
The lions are carnivorous, and they always win, as they capture the zebras and impalas for meat. But they don’t eat it all, leaving some for other animals who can’t capture their prey. Once the bones are clean, the hyenas, having the strongest jaws, chew the bones and make a paste, which they deposit on the ground for the birds to eat and get the calcium for their eggshells. When it is all over, the vultures wipe it all clean. The cycle is repeated over and over again, as He made all capable of recreating themselves, by the union of male and female. And they haven’t changed since God first created them.
And the list goes on. God made every kind of wild animal, every kind of tame animal, and every kind of thing that crawls on the ground. God saw that it was good. (Gen 1:25) And then He made man, the most complex creature of all. Features of living organisms such as the locomotive organs, internal organs like the heart and the kidneys, the sense organs, the ability to react on external stimuli, the social behavior, the understanding of symbols, the use of language, and the intelligence are examples of features displaying man’s complexity.
Adam and Eve were the first human beings created. God spent six days creating all the different elements of the universe and created Adam on the final day before he rested.
The Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and He breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. God then called the man Adam, and later created Eve from Adam’s rib. And they haven’t changed since God first created them.
Our God is an awesome God!
SOMETIMES TRUE STORIES
In the New Testament – Jesus made…
• 132 public appearances – 122 were in the marketplace
• 52 parables that Jesus told – 45 had a workplace context
• Of 40 miracles in the Book of Acts – 39 were in the marketplace
• Work, in its different forms, is mentioned more than 800 times in the Bible – more than all the words used to express worship, music, praise and singing combined.
• Don’t minimize your daily work – it is nothing less than a Holy Calling
• God has you right where He wants you… Right now!
• Remember – Jesus was a Carpenter most of His adult life
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There was a television show called Extreme Makeover which ran from 2003 to 2007. The premise was that a woman who was thought to be less attractive than she could be, by so-called societal norms, was treated with plastic surgery, weight loss, hair and makeup, clothing and more as needed. They would trumpet the before and after pictures and think it was a life changing event.
But was it? They could change what a person looks like on the outside, but they couldn’t change one’s real person on the inside. Too often, we look at people the same way. We form our opinions of them by the outside, when it’s the inside that matters.
God doesn’t do that. He looks at our character on the inside and determines if that needs a makeover. And since it so often does, He provides the means. All we have to do is place our trust in Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit of God comes alive in us and creates a true-life changing event.
Let God give you an extreme makeover. Rich Jensen
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Words of wisdom from Edgar Aponte:
• Christ’s grace extends to us even when we are neither expecting nor asking for it.
• There is a cost to follow Jesus, but the cost to not follow Him is infinitely more.
• Jesus is not like a used car salesman trying to trick you to buy anything.
• Discipleship is living a life with Jesus.
• There is a cost to follow Jesus, but there is also an urgency.
• Jesus paid an incredible cost for our redemption. Be prepared to pay a cost for being His disciple.
• A call to follow Jesus is a call to count the cost and to commit to Him completely. Follow Him now.
• Conditional acceptance is a complete rejection and delayed obedience is disobedience. Follow Him today.
QUOTES YOU CAN USE
He created each and every human being and He reads the thoughts and determinations of their mind. Yet He is generous to extend salvation to all, who choose to be saved. Stephen Bernard
Focus on what it truly means to be a Follower of Jesus. Not just by words that come from our lips, but by action and deed. Let’s truly begin to live out what we say we believe. Marty Stubblefield
Failure will never stand in the way of success if you learn from it. Hank Aron
The Bible is life’s ultimate and best instruction book. It tells us how to deal with all our encounters successfully. But don’t wait until it becomes your last resort. Read the instructions before they are needed so you will be properly prepared. Rich Jensen
Formula for success:
Live simply
Work diligently
Give generously
Everyone wants a miracle, but no one wants to be in a position to need one.
A day wasted on others is not wasted on one’s-self. Charles Dickens
If a hummingbird can find food in the midst of a rainstorm, God will help me find food for my soul. Dwight Short
I usually make up my mind about a man in ten seconds, and I very rarely change it. Margaret Thatcher
We like to think of ourselves as seeds until we realize that to succeed, we must die to ourselves. Dwight Short
Never let go of what you do know because of something you don’t know. Dan Shock
Pursue what catches your heart, not what catches your eyes. Roy T. Bennett
Regarding your Christian faith, don’t be a reservoir; be a river. Rob Taylor
Be transformed from the inside and out by adjusting your thinking to the Word and the Holy Spirit.
Truth is beautiful, without doubt; but so are lies. Ralph Waldo Emerson
Worshiping and thanking our God who, is our salvation through His Son Jesus, is something we do because He is worthy of our worship and praise. Elbert Nasworthy
What we learn from history is that people don’t learn from history. Warren Buffet
Peace comes when we turn those overwhelming issues over to God and cease trying to dictate the outcome. Dan Shock
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