Edtucner, Author at Creation Beckons

Proclaim Peace and Salvation

Isaiah 52:7 Proclaim Peace and Salvation

“How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, ‘Your God reigns!’” Isaiah 52:7 (NIV).

In the musical, “The Sound of Music,” there is a title song, “The Hills Are Alive with the Sound of Music.” It’s a beautiful scene. The heroes have escaped the Nazis, and they are singing in a grassy meadow strewn with wild-flowers with a background of majestic snow-peaked mountains. How much more beautiful is the scene when the songs they sing are those of praise and worship to our Lord!

We are encouraged by the Scripture above to “bring good news, to “proclaim peace,” to “bring good tidings,” and “proclaim salvation.” Then we are to say, (I really think we are to shout), “Your God reigns!” When we do that, we top the scene from the Sound of Music no matter what our voices sound like. Our God enjoys the praises of His people in song from those “who can’t carry a tune in a bucket,” to those who sing classical opera, to those who sing in a modern, popular style, and even those who sing with a country twang. We benefit from singing His praises, He enjoys hearing us sing them, and others who may have never heard of salvation, peace, and joy are equally blessed. By singing His praises, whether it be on a mountain-top or in a jail cell, we are spreading the Good News of Jesus and perhaps presenting it for the first time to the lost. Let our feet be beautiful as the Word says in Isaiah 52:7.

Roads and Streams Where Needed

Isaiah 43:19 Roads and Streams Where Needed

“I have put roads in deserts, streams in thirsty lands” (CEV).

As desert dwellers, we can perhaps appreciate this verse better than others. My wife and I have driven on a road in the deserts of Nevada that is the flattest road and land that I have ever seen. It is also one of the most desolate places I have experienced. There are no plants or almost no plants in sight to either horizon. The land is so flat and desolate that it doesn’t matter if your car wanders off the pavement, except that you might not get to your desired destination. It’s a featureless plain that appears to have no driving hazards. The insidious and always-present danger of this road is the non-ending boredom of driving it. This stretch of road needs some hills, some turns, and especially, some water.

Thanks be to God that He has provided a more interesting life for us. Living the life of a Christian is the opposite of the land described in the previous paragraph. The reading of the Word provides new insight almost every time I read a passage. The Bible has been written by many different authors from many different places and also at many different times. But the message throughout is central and unchanging. The love and care God has for us, the ones He created for fellowship, shows up everywhere. It is intriguing to discover how God shows His love in the creation in Genesis, in the poetry so beautifully written in the center of the Word, to the salvation He presents to us in the Gospels, to the end of His amazing book, Revelation, where He draws to himself all who will accept His love.

Fellowship with our Lord is interesting and exciting because even though He does describe life on this earth from creation to eternity with Him, He doesn’t show us what might happen tomorrow. Along with the physical streams created by Him long ago, He has given us spiritual streams to carry us and nurture us all the way through our lives. Enjoyment is always present for us when we interact with others who have accepted Jesus. And, to top it off, He has given each of us a job or jobs to do. My boss created the entire universe, and He knows me, He knows what I do, and He provides guidance and help whenever I request it. Thank God that I don’t live on a featureless plain with nothing to do but indulge my desires. God has provided a fantastic planet, amazing spiritual wonders, and He has given me the privilege of living on this planet, experiencing the wonders of His love along with other children of His. Praise be to God!

God Bless America

God Bless America Irving Berlin

God Bless America

God bless America

Land that I love

Stand beside her

And guide her

Through the night

With a light from above

From the mountains

To the prairies

To the oceans white with foam

God bless America

My home sweet home

Flowing, Living Water

John 7:37,38 Flowing, Living Water

“On the last and greatest day of the festival, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, ‘Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.’” (NIV)

Jesus’ brothers had suggested to Jesus that He go to the festival in Jerusalem with them. According to Matthew Henry, their reason, ostensibly, for asking Jesus to go up to Jerusalem with them was two-fold. If He were to gain the support of the people and the Jewish leaders, they could bask in His popularity, but if He were to be disbelieved, they could disavow Him and not be tainted by their relationship with Him.

Jesus refused to go with them, but He did leave shortly after they did. He went not to gain popularity or to justify Himself in the eyes of the Jewish leaders. He went to walk and talk with the people until His appointed time had come. The time had come at the end of the Festival of Tabernacles when Jesus stood and said in a loud voice the words of John 7:37 and 38. To be sure, the time had come, the people were gathered, and He could speak the words of God to the most people without any preamble by the Jewish leaders. The words would not be diminished by any comment the leaders would have made or questions they would have asked before He spoke these stirring words of calling people to Himself.

If we thirst, Jesus has the water that will satisfy thirst and, at the same time, give a desire to drink more and more of the water He offers. Those who drink it will not only be satisfied, but they will become a conduit of the same water, a conduit that calls others to the source, God the Father and God the Son. This living water is the gift of the Holy Spirit who dwells within us to lead us, guide us, and direct us in the ways of our Lord. Be encouraged. Not only do we receive this living water, we can also be the way by which others receive it. We fulfill the desires of our God when we help bless others in this way.

Let the Water Flow

Exodus 17:6 Let the Water Flow

“I will stand thee before you by the rock at Horeb. Strike the rock, and water will come out of it for the people to drink. So Moses did this in the sight of the elders of Israel” (NIV).

The Israelites had gladly left Egypt and had seen Pharaoh’s army killed by the Lord at the Red Sea. They were now in the desert and had no source of water that they could see. God didn’t bring them out to the desert to die of thirst. He knew that He was their source for all things, including water, and He worked through Moses as He had been doing. When Moses went to God with the water problem, God did what God does—He provided all the water they needed, once again proving His faithfulness to His chosen people.

Moses had to put his trust in God, as he had so many times on this journey. God put Moses on the spot by telling him to stand by a dry rock and hit it with his staff. He also told Moses to make sure that the leaders of Israel were there. It seems as though God wanted to demonstrate to the leaders that Moses was, indeed, His chosen man among His chosen people. Moses again put his trust in God and did as he was told. Wow!—water out of a dry rock, and not just a trickle. It was enough for all the many thousands of the people of Israel and their animals to drink, and in the middle of the desert. When God does something He does it right! That’s a good thing for us to remember. Can we summon the faith and trust in God that Moses demonstrated? If and when we do, we will also experience God doing above and beyond all that we can imagine. God is all mighty. Let’s join our levels of faith together until we make God rejoice and release His great power on our behalf.

Justice Rolls on Like a River

Amos 5:24 Justice Rolls on Like a River

“But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream (ESV).

We spent two weeks in Idaho this summer, and water seemed to be at the center of much of the beauty of God’s creation that we saw. We saw snow in the mountains, water in smooth flowing rivers, water in rushing streams, water gushing over waterfalls, water in deep beautiful blue lakes, and even water in steam from geysers. I’ve said this before, and I will say it again: God’s creation is amazingly beautiful. Water always seems to be in motion, even in lakes and oceans. Of course, tides continually roll in the oceans, and lakes are often in motion because of the breezes that flow over them. Even water in geysers continually boils or even spouts high in the air. Needless to say, we were quite blessed by God’s use of water in creation.

I’ve often thought of the necessity of having a source of the water that flows in rivers. It never just appears. Sure it does; God makes it rain and snow. Those two things, rain and snow, are the source of all water that flows. And when the water flows, it has to be replaced or the rivers and streams will run dry. If lakes have no incoming source of water, they eventually dry up. There is one ultimate source of water. God created the seas during creation, and that water has been recirculating ever since through the processes of evaporation and precipitation.

This Scripture, Amos 5:24, tells that God wants justice to continually roll like rivers and righteousness to flow forever. Well, if justice and righteousness are to continually roll and flow, they have to be replenished. God took care of that. He is filled with justice and righteousness, and it flows from Him continually. Psalm 89:14 proclaims that: “Righteousness and justice are the foundations of your throne; love and faithfulness go before you” (NIV). He gives us a great opportunity, or should I say opportunities, to be the riverbeds through which justice and righteousness flow. What a joy it is to be a conduit by which God blesses His people. As children of God, we are expected to add to justice and righteousness, love, and faithfulness. We are given opportunities to do that every day, so let’s go forth and represent our Savior, Jesus, well as we live each day. The world yearns for justice, righteousness love, and faithfulness. Let these four things flow through us.

God Created (2)

Genesis 1:1 God Created (2)

“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth” (NKJV).

He created the heavens and the earth with great beauty for our enjoyment and benefit and as a means to draw us to Him. Enjoy a few examples of His creativity.

We hope you have enjoyed these few examples of God’s creativity.

Norma and I are taking the month of June for much needed rest, for spiritual rejuvenation, and to celebrate our 60th wedding anniversary.

I’ll be back on July 1!

God Created

Genesis 1:1 God Created

“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth” (NKJV).

He created the heavens and the earth with great beauty for our enjoyment and benefit and as a means to draw us to Him. Enjoy a few examples of His creativity.

Go ouside, and look around. Let His creation draw you to Him.

Come back tomorrow for a few more examples of His creativity.

The Awesome God

Nehemiah 9:6 The Awesome God

“You alone are the Lord. You made the heavens, even the highest heavens, and all their starry host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in Therm. You give life to everything, and the multitudes of heaven worship you” (NIV).

God is indeed awesome. All we need to do to discover that is look outside and see the vast beauty of the universe, the earth and all the magnificent landscapes, animals, plants, and the seas it contains. Mountains are stunning from the Alps to the Rockies, to the Appalachians to the hills of Missouri—they are all stupendous. The vast numbers of plants, from spiny cactus to beautifully petalled pansies, the many animals from the amoeba to the great whales—they are all unbelievably intricate. He created the earth such that the animals, the plants, the landscapes, the oceans and the heavens work together as an amazing functioning unit that sustains life. From His creation alone, we can see that “Our God Is an Awesome God.”

He went beyond all that, and He created humans, and these He loved. He loved and loves them so much “…that He gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish, but have eternal life” John 3:16 (NIV). Nehemiah tells us more of God’s awesomeness in Nehemiah 1:5: “O Lord, God of heaven, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and obey his commands.” As we saw in John 3:16, He went beyond that love spoken of in promised in Nehemiah to include not only those who obey his commandments, but also to those who would accept His Son, Jesus.

He is powerful. He is awesome. He is the most loving. HE IS GOD

Growth

Job 8:7 Growth

“Even though you’re not much now, you’ll end up better than ever” (MSG).

In Job 8, Job’s friends took him to task regarding what had happened in his life, but even in their criticism they have some encouragement. For example, Bildad said, in the Scripture above: “…you’ll end up better than ever.” And he was correct. The end of Job’s life contained even more blessings than the beginnings did. The same is true of flowers, as I have found out the past few years.

We bought flowers at the local nursery and planted them, and then the work began. It’s not easy to grow flowers and keep them blooming during the hot days of a Tucson summer. They take constant care, frequent watering. Taking a few days off in the growth of flowers in a Tucson summer does not work unless you are looking for dry, withered twigs. The flowers need frequent watering and even a cooling spray during the afternoon. The summer heat in Tucson is merciless to young flowers. With proper care and attention, flowers can maintain their beauty throughout the summer season even in Tucson.

Our lives as Christians may resemble the growth of flowers planted in Tucson in the spring. Flowers bought from a nursery are full of blooms and look like they will thrive forever. The new Christian appears much the same way—vigorous and full of promise. And that is true: every new believer has immense prospects for growth. After all, the master gardener, the one most able to help us discover and grow into our fullness as a follower of Christ is with us every day. One big difference between us and flowers is the fact that we choose whether we get fed or not and just how much we get fed. We are fed and watered through the reading of the Word, prayer, gathering with other believers to hear and learn, and quiet contemplation of God’s remarkable creation. When we accept the feeding, we find ourselves fed with the choicest of nourishment, and our growth is awesome.