Illuminating the darkness

By Tammy Hensel

Surprised by the sudden darkness, I stood motionless in the hotel indoor swimming pool. Taking a deep breath, I squelched the urge to panic.

"Hey, that's not funny! Turn those lights back on," someone yelled. A voice from the hallway answered, "It's a power outage. The whole hotel is dark."

The emergency back-up lights had failed, leaving us stranded in complete darkness. Fortunately, I stood close to the side of the pool. I reached for the edge and slowly inched my way in the direction of the steps.

"I have a light on my cell phone if I can find it," a young man said.

A few seconds later his small light shone into the darkness. Then another man came into the room with a flashlight. Using his added light, everyone exited the pool safely. We made our way to the lobby, where a several other people shared flashlights as the hotel night clerk lit some small emergency candles.

As I reflect on the scene, it reminds me of the verbal image Jesus painted in the Sermon on the Mount: “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven." (Matthew 5:14-16 NIV)

Deep in the heart of the every person dedicated to Christ burns a light fueled by the indwelling Holy Spirit. Under His guidance we shine that light of God's glory by serving those around us. We do not perform "good deeds" for earthly recognition or to earn our way to heaven. Rather, we do them in loving obedience to our Savior who gave His life for ours.

The first little cell phone flashlight gave off enough illumination for me to move a few feet. The second light helped me to see enough to get out of the pool and walk through the hallway. But, when I reached the lobby with several little lights shining together, I could see a whole room!

Jesus calls us a "city on a hill." We picture windows brightly lit to welcome weary travelers. The more we work together as believers, the more we illuminate Christ for the world to see. Satan strives to divert or bury our lights. He wants us to hide them under the coverings of busyness, inadequacies, or organizational differences. We become susceptible when we don't follow the Holy Spirit's guidance day-by-day. Trials, distractions, and, especially unconfessed sin can cause a temporary "power outage" or interruption in our communion with the Spirit.

Daily prayers of confession and thanksgiving help strengthen or restore our connection to the Spirit. Then, in His power, we do good works that draw lost souls to the light of God's love.

copyright Tammy L. Hensel 2012 All Rights Reserved

Video: Go Light Your World by Kathy Troccoli

The Unopened Gift

By Tammy Hensel

“For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God.”—Ephesians 2:8 (NASB)

It looked so lonely sitting there under the tree—unopened, unwanted. My twelve-year old mind just couldn’t understand it. How could anyone not want a Christmas gift?

A few hours earlier the room teemed with much anticipated activity. Almost every Christmas Eve during my childhood my family gathered at the home of one of my grandmother’s ten siblings. We kids played “Santa’s helpers,” as we read the nametags and distributed the gifts.

“Here, Grandmother, another one for you. It’s so pretty.” I admired the beautifully wrapped package as I offered it to her. To my surprise, she refused to take it.

“Who’s it from? I already have my name gift.” She checked the tag. “Edna, you aren’t supposed to give me anything this year.” Many years before, my grandmother’s family agreed to draw names for giving among the eleven siblings. However, once in a while, not everyone obeyed the rules. Edna told her the gift was for her, but my grandmother was adamant.

“Put it back under the tree.”

I couldn’t believe my ears. Sadly, I obeyed. Once in a while, someone who hadn’t heard the exchange picked up the gift and again tried to give it to Grandmother. Each time she refused and ordered it back under the tree. When the party ended and we walked out the door, I turned back to look once more at the unopened gift, sitting so beautifully under the Christmas tree.

Think of the above story as a parable. God offers a beautiful gift to all mankind—eternal life with Him. Have you opened it? Or is it still sitting under your Christmas tree?

Applying Diligence

By Tammy L. Hensel


Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge, and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness, and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love.—2 Peter 1:5-7

A few weeks ago I had an arthritis flare-up in my neck and shoulder. Every morning I wake up feeling stiff until I get over to the pool for my morning work-out. After an hour of laps and pool exercises, ending with several minutes in the whirlpool, I feel a lot better. I'm energized and ready for a productive day.

That is until I sit at the computer too long, bend my neck the wrong way, or lift something too heavy. Then pain acts as a barometer letting me know that I need to change my activity. Now, I can either ignore the warning and keep going or I can listen to its voice to avoid further aggravating my condition. It takes daily diligence to not undo the benefits I receive from my morning exercise.

Reading and meditating on God's word is also part of my morning routine. Often I discover a new nugget of truth that I want to apply to my life. Or I'm convicted of something I need to change. I intend to follow through, but sometimes circumstances come up that distract or tempt me from my resolve. In John 14:26, Jesus promised, "But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you."

Often the Holy Spirit reminds me of something from Scripture in the nick of time to keep me from stumbling, just as the first twinge of pain in my neck reminds not to bend that way. If I don't listen to His gentle warning, I soon regret it, just as I feel the consequences of not taking a break from the computer when my neck starts hurting. Yet, even when I fall, He wraps me in the soothing balm of His love, forgiveness and peace. With His peace that passes all understanding (Phil. 4:7),He calms my heart much more than the hot water of the whirlpool that relieves my aching joints.

Diligence in my exercise program helps me to strengthen my body and better manage my chronic pain. Spiritual diligence strengthens my walk with God, building in me a godly character so that I can share the peace, love and joy He gives with others.

copyright Tammy L. Hensel 2011 All Rights Reserved



Video: Let the peace of God reign - Hillsong Updated

The Wonder of Redemption

By Tammy L. Hensel

". . . knowing that you were not redeemed with perishable things like silver or gold from your futile way of life inherited from your forefathers, but with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ."—1 Peter 1:18-19

As a child I loved collecting trading stamps to take to the redemption store. I recall the wonder of seeing the stamps magically emerge from the cash register at the grocery store. Then I carefully pasted them into the special books, always counting ahead to see how many more I had to fill before I could "redeem" them for something precious.

Trading stamps went out of vogue around 1980, the year I married. At a bridal shower all of my female relatives gave me their saved up stamps to redeem before our local store closed down. Boy, did I feel rich! I traded them for dishes, pots and pans, and many other items to help us set up housekeeping. The best thing I got was a canister vacuum cleaner, which I still use to today, more than 30 years later!

Yet, the wonder I felt as a child about trading stamps pales significantly compared to the awestruck wonder I feel when I consider the eternal redemption accomplished by Jesus Christ.

The Bible tells us that Jesus redeemed us with His own precious blood. Through His sacrifice He paid the penalty for my sin. He liberated me from my bondage to sin and empowered me with His Holy Spirit.

The items I got with my trading stamps were made with purpose. But as long as they sat in the store unredeemed they were unable to fulfill that purpose. It is the same with mankind. God created us to love, worship, and serve Him. The only way we can do that is to embrace the precious gift of redemption.

copyright 2011 All Rights Reserved

Video: Another great Gaither praise video of an awesome hymn.

Patwork Spirituality

By Tammy Hensel


Saturday evening my husband and I went for a walk around our neighborhood. For some reason I rejoiced to see that we were not the only ones whose lawn sported a patchwork look of green and brown grass.

Our property has an in-ground sprinkler system, installed by a previous owner, that doesn't water the yard evenly. And our many trees deprive some of the grass by blocking the sprinkler spray from reaching certain areas. I know I need to gives these areas extra water, and do so occasionally, but not consistently.

Seeing that most of my neighbors have the same problem, made me feel a little less guilty that I wasn't providing the nourishment my lawn needed to flourish. Then we came to a yard that was completely green! Not one brown patch in sight! Obviously the owners valued their lawn enough to water every area. When I arrived back at my house, I gave the brown patches a little TLC.

Unfortunately, I allow the same inconsistency in my spiritual life as I do in watering my yard. There are I times I soak myself in the word of God and experience amazing new spiritual growth. Other times I let either the busyness or entertainments of the world deny me spiritual refreshment, much like the trees in my yard block the water from reaching the grass. The result is patchwork spirituality, with dry spells that open me up to temptation and discouragement, while robbing me of my joy in the Lord.



Fortunately, our Lord offers us a well-spring of living water that can nourish us back from the driest of spiritual dry spells. King David penned Psalm 63 in just such a period of spiritual dryness. In verses 1-8, he shows us the way to spiritual renewal: confess our need and recognize the awesome lovingkindness of our God.



"O God, You are my God; I shall seek You earnestly;
My soul thirsts for You, my flesh yearns for You,
In a dry and weary land where there is no water.
Thus I have seen You in the sanctuary,
To see Your power and Your glory.
Because Your lovingkindness is better than life,
My lips will praise You.
So I will bless You as long as I live;
I will lift up my hands in Your name.
My soul is satisfied as with marrow and fatness,
And my mouth offers praises with joyful lips.
When I remember You on my bed,
I meditate on You in the night watches,
For You have been my help,
And in the shadow of Your wings I sing for joy.
My soul clings to You;
Your right hand upholds me." (NASB)

As I follow King David's advice — seek God earnestly, fill my mouth with praise and my heart with meditation on His word — then my brown patches fade and my spirit begins to thrive again.



Video:

Here is a song based on Psalm 63 by one of my favorite music groups Acapella:

Morning Devotional

I began my devotions earlier than usual this morning - before I even woke up! When I awoke I found there was a scripture verse and a song of assurance and praise pouring through my mind and my heart. I could not recall all of my dream, but I knew that in it I was worshiping my Lord, who gave His all for me. I am continuing my worship by asking all who read to join with me.

The verse is:

Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. John 15:13

The song is a great church hymn, "The Church's One Foundation." I think I will be singing it all day, because it is stuck in my head. I could only recall the first verse clearly, although I remembered some lines from other verses. So I looked it up on www.cyberhymnal.com Here are all the words from the Cyber Hymnal (I found that there are YouTube videos of this hymn, but I am having a problem with the speakers on my computer, so I can't listen to them to find a good one to post. I may add it in later after I get that fixed) I hope it blesses everyone who reads it.

THE CHURCH'S ONE FOUNDATION

words by Samuel J. Stone 1866 music by Samuel S. Wesley 1864

The Church's one foundation
Is Jesus Christ her Lord,
She is His new creation
By water and the Word.
From heaven He came and sought her
To be His holy bride;
With His own blood He bought her
And for her life He died.

She is from every nation,
Yet one o'er all the earth;
Her charter of salvation,
One Lord, one faith, one birth;
One holy Name she blesses,
Partakes one holy food,
And to one hope she presses,
With every grace endued.

The Church shall never perish!
Her dear Lord to defend,
To guide, sustain, and cherish,
Is with her to the end:
Though there be those who hate her,
And false sons in her pale,
Against both foe or traitor
She ever shall prevail.

Though with a scornful wonder
Men see her sore oppressed,
By schisms rent asunder,
By heresies distressed:
Yet saints their watch are keeping,
Their cry goes up, "How long?"
And soon the night of weeping
Shall be the morn of song!

'Mid toil and tribulation,
And tumult of her war,
She waits the consummation
Of peace forevermore;
Till, with the vision glorious,
Her longing eyes are blest,
And the great Church victorious
Shall be the Church at rest.

Yet she on earth hath union
With God the Three in One,
And mystic sweet communion
With those whose rest is won,
With all her sons and daughters
Who, by the Master's hand
Led through the deathly waters,
Repose in Eden land.

O happy ones and holy!
Lord, give us grace that we
Like them, the meek and lowly,
On high may dwell with Thee:
There, past the border mountains,
Where in sweet vales the Bride
With Thee by living fountains
Forever shall abide!

Jesus The Ultimate Fall Guy

It has been several weeks since I have posted on this blog and I would like to apologize to those of you who have been kind enough to subscribe. I have been tremendously busy, as you will see over the next few months when I add to my "published works" links here. I have several items that have been accepted by webzines and a few more pending. One of them is my "Boxes, boxes, boxes . . . devotional which I had posted here, but have taken down since it will be published.
This morning I decided I really needed to return to this blog. While praying about what to post, I was reminded of a short devotional I wrote in February 2007 for my myspace ministry blog. It includes a YouTube video of the song "Above All."
I hope you enjoy it. Please feel free to leave a comment if it blesses you.

Jesus – The Ultimate Fall Guy
by Tammy L. Hensel

During my private worship time this morning I was really blessed by a praise song we often sing at church "Above All" by Paul Baloche and Lenny LeBlanc. I found the words on the Internet and printed them out to use as part of my morning devotional. It is the last part of the song that really caught my attention this morning. These words "You took the fall, and thought of me above all," have circulated through my brain all day encouraging me. As I pondered these lyrics it occurred to me that Jesus really is the ultimate "fall guy."

I did a quick google search to see if I could find the origin of the term "fall guy". I came up with a variety of opinions. In fact the only thing that really was common to all the theories was that it emerged in American slang in the early part of the 20th century to refer to someone taking the blame for someone else.

And that, my friends, is just what Jesus did for us. 2 Corinthians 5:21 (NASB) "He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him."

THANK YOU LORD JESUS!

Here is a music video of the song.

CLUTTER

Here is a prosaic piece from a journal I call my "heart musings."
Clutter
By Tammy Hensel

Company is coming and I am trying to straighten up my house. There is so much clutter! How could I let all of this pile up? I am aghast at myself. Hurriedly I stuff it into drawers, closets, under the bed, and every unobtrusive nook and cranny I can find. I will just have to deal with it later, I promise myself.

As I work furiously, a question comes to me. Is this what I am doing with sin in my life? Am I stuffing it into nooks and crannies in my heart? Telling myself I can deal with it later - promising God that the time will come.

On the surface, my house looks clean and comfortable. I appear to my friends to have it all together. They say I am so spiritual. But the clutter is still there – in my house and in my heart. Eventually it will have to be dealt with or it will creep out and take over

One day soon we are planning to move out of this house. The day of reckoning with my junk is not far off. I will be forced to take the time to sort through it all and either take it with me or get rid of it.

But the day of reckoning with my sin could come any moment. Can I delay sorting through the junk in my heart any longer? I sure don't want to take it with me!
I drop down on my knees and open my heart once more to the sweet forgiveness that follows confession. What a blessed Savior indeed!

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. -1 John 1:9

Copyright Tammy L. Hensel November 10, 2006. All Rights Reserved.