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Tuesday, November 11, 2014
A colorful autumn view in Lancaster County
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"But I have trusted in Thy mercy; my heart shall rejoice in Thy salvation" (Psalm 13:5). "Who is a God like You, who pardons sin and forgives the transgression of the remnant of His inheritance? You do not stay angry forever but delight to show mercy" (Micah 7:18). "Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest. But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved)" (Ephesians 2:3-5). "Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need" (Hebrews 4:16).
Last night a horrible stench filled every room in our house. Brooksyne awakened me to advise me of the situation but she didn't have to say a word; the foul odor streamed into the first stirring breath I took. Initially I was concerned that it was odorous vapors coming from a broken drain pipe, but when I opened the outside door my olfactory glands quickly informed me that the odor was coming from outside. A phone call Ester had from a friend about a mile from us also confirmed the problem was in the neighborhood, not in our house. All three of us had a hard time going back to sleep but the weariness of the day overtook us and we finally went to sleep.
Sure
enough, this morning I drove by and saw that our neighbor had spread some
organic fertilizer on nearby fields, thus accounting for the awful
smell (far worse than any previous experience we've had with organic
fertilizer over the past 13 years of residing in Lancaster County). The
fertilizer came from a large hog operation about 1/2 mile from our
house.
Thankfully already this morning the odor is gone! I
called another farmer friend this morning and he commented that it may
smell awful to the non-farmer but to the farmer it smells like...money!
Today, we want to consider another stench: the stench of sin that fills our world. On the one hand this stench should sicken or grieve the hearts of dedicated believers. Proverbs 13:5 states, "The wicked make themselves a stench." This stench should compel us to scour the Scriptures for discernment, direction, and strength to stand up for righteousness and against the forces of evil.
But, on the other hand, sin can creep in and over time deaden our spiritual senses incrementally. Essentially we get used to the stench and we no longer notice it but grow accustomed to its presence, to the point that some even accommodate it.
We who follow Christ have all experienced the heartache and stench of sin in our own lives, and have often observed the awful consequences others may have suffered due to sinful behavior.
"...We too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest." We, who are saved by grace, can easily relate to those who are still children of wrath, before the great transition took place in our own hearts. Notice the transitional verse that follows, "But God... " Our own abilities, intellect and power made us dead in our transgressions. But God being rich in mercy,.....made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved).
Let us contrast the stench of sin with the aroma of God's mercy. Micah 7:18 states that God "delights to show mercy." In the places of greatest need God is still demonstrating His mercy. In fact it's in places like this that His mercy is made more evident and further appreciated.
Some have made this distinction between mercy and grace: mercy is not getting what we deserve; grace is getting what we don't deserve. We give thanks today for the complimentary aspects of God's abundant mercy and overflowing grace.
Mercy; what an incomparable dimension of our Lord's character! It's extolled by writers throughout the Bible. David declared "His mercy is very great." Zechariah proclaimed the "tender mercy of our God." Paul says we are "objects of His mercy", and that God is "rich in mercy." And James says, "The Lord is full of compassion and mercy." Praise the Lord whose mercies endure forever! And He delights to demonstrate mercy to each one of us today.
Let us respond to God's mercy by offering our life to Him. "Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship" (Romans 12:1).
Be encouraged today,
Stephen & Brooksyne Weber
Daily
prayer: Father, we thank You for the redeeming blood of
Jesus that imparts mercy and pardon for my sins. Wretched as I
may be, Your mercy is greater! Only a God like You chooses to
delight in expressing mercy to the undeserving masses that defy Your
Holy Name. Thank You for reaching me in the depth of my sin and
raising me to the height of Your Holiness – it's only through Your
blood and it's only through Your mercy that I come and You joyfully
welcome me! Words cannot express my eternal gratitude for such indescribable love.
Reader's Note: I have numerous times mentioned how I am blessed by a Canadian, Walter Kember, who has distributed scores of calligraphed Scripture prints (see here). We received this email: "I just happened to put my father's name into search and was a little surprised to actually come across as much information as you have disclosed about the near lifelong work that he was engaged in. In reading it, many memories were brought to me. For instance if we ever wanted to find my father we could always find him in the shop were the texts were made. Also as children we (9 children) always knew that it was important to keep busy at something and not be caught idle or we would end in the text factory for the rest of the day. Actually as I look back at it he did something that he was specially gifted to do. I thought that you might be interested in hearing from one who knew him personally. Yours by God's grace" - Dan Kember, South West Fence & Decks Lt
Here are some more photos of our drive through rural Lancaster County this last Saturday.
Amish one room schoolhouses dot the landscape throughout rural Lancaster County. They're tiny without electric and indoor plumbing. But alot of learning takes place in these one room schools that house 1st through 8th graders who learn altogether. We've visited our Amish friend's school twice and were impressed by the excellent skills of the teacher, the visible respect from the students, and the inexpensive surroundings that neither took away or added to the learning that takes place in the classroom. We believe our educational establishment could learn a lot from these schools and teachers!
Perhaps we should have this message, "Enter With a Smile" posted on the exterior doors of our homes, churches, classrooms and workplaces.
Today's Suggested Music and Supplemental Resources
"Mercy Saw Me" Video Calvin Hunt
"Mercy Said No" Video Greg Long
"Mercy Walked In" Video by Gordon Mote
"When Mercy Found Me" Video Rhett Walker Ban
"That's Where His Mercy Begins" Video Steve Green
"Mercy Came Running" Video Phillips, Craig & Dean
Send a message to Stephen & Brooksyne
To receive the "Daily Encouragement" each Monday-Friday through email see this page to subscribe to our email list. You can also subscribe to the Wordpress rss feed or through a Wordpress email subscription. (See the email subscription on the right side after opening this page.)
Are
our daily encouragement messages a blessing to you? We ask you to
consider making a donation to Daily Encouragement Net so that we can
continue to prepare and provide this daily resource which is
accessed by believers and seekers all over the world. Daily
Encouragement Net relies solely on the generosity and financial support
of its readers and podcast listeners. See here for more information on supporting this
ministry. Gifts are tax deductible.
Permissions: Please feel free to pass on, reproduce and distribute any material on Daily Encouragement Net, in part or in whole, in any format, provided that you do not alter the wording in any way or charge a fee beyond the cost of reproduction. It is our desire to spread this material, not protect or restrict it. I do request that you keep the contact, copyright and subscription information intact.
Text only version for printing: To make a text only version for printing (without photos or any of the supplemental materials)
1) Open the basic text editor that comes with all computers (known as wordpad, textpad, etc.) You can also use a program like Word and select paste text only.
2) Select and copy the text from the portion of the message you want to print.
3) Paste into the text pad. (The photos won't show up but you will have a brief text description of the photo which you can delete or just ignore.)
4) Format if you desire (change font, increase or decrease size, etc.)
5) Print!
Scripture references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version. © 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. and the King James Version.
Personal Mission Statement: "I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God's Son Jesus Christ I have been redeemed and I make it my life's goal to please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and to prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity."
© Copyright 2014 Stephen C. Weber - All Rights Reserved
Daily Encouragement Net - 495 Kraybill Church Road - Mount Joy, PA 17552 USA
<Previous Message Next Message>
Tuesday, November 11, 2014
A colorful autumn view in Lancaster County
Click on image to enlarge
Listen to this
message on
your
audio player."The Stench Of Sin, The Aroma Of Mercy"
"But I have trusted in Thy mercy; my heart shall rejoice in Thy salvation" (Psalm 13:5). "Who is a God like You, who pardons sin and forgives the transgression of the remnant of His inheritance? You do not stay angry forever but delight to show mercy" (Micah 7:18). "Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest. But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved)" (Ephesians 2:3-5). "Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need" (Hebrews 4:16).
Last night a horrible stench filled every room in our house. Brooksyne awakened me to advise me of the situation but she didn't have to say a word; the foul odor streamed into the first stirring breath I took. Initially I was concerned that it was odorous vapors coming from a broken drain pipe, but when I opened the outside door my olfactory glands quickly informed me that the odor was coming from outside. A phone call Ester had from a friend about a mile from us also confirmed the problem was in the neighborhood, not in our house. All three of us had a hard time going back to sleep but the weariness of the day overtook us and we finally went to sleep.
Sure
enough, this morning I drove by and saw that our neighbor had spread some
organic fertilizer on nearby fields, thus accounting for the awful
smell (far worse than any previous experience we've had with organic
fertilizer over the past 13 years of residing in Lancaster County). The
fertilizer came from a large hog operation about 1/2 mile from our
house.
Thankfully already this morning the odor is gone! I
called another farmer friend this morning and he commented that it may
smell awful to the non-farmer but to the farmer it smells like...money!Today, we want to consider another stench: the stench of sin that fills our world. On the one hand this stench should sicken or grieve the hearts of dedicated believers. Proverbs 13:5 states, "The wicked make themselves a stench." This stench should compel us to scour the Scriptures for discernment, direction, and strength to stand up for righteousness and against the forces of evil.
But, on the other hand, sin can creep in and over time deaden our spiritual senses incrementally. Essentially we get used to the stench and we no longer notice it but grow accustomed to its presence, to the point that some even accommodate it.
We who follow Christ have all experienced the heartache and stench of sin in our own lives, and have often observed the awful consequences others may have suffered due to sinful behavior.
"...We too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest." We, who are saved by grace, can easily relate to those who are still children of wrath, before the great transition took place in our own hearts. Notice the transitional verse that follows, "But God... " Our own abilities, intellect and power made us dead in our transgressions. But God being rich in mercy,.....made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved).
Let us contrast the stench of sin with the aroma of God's mercy. Micah 7:18 states that God "delights to show mercy." In the places of greatest need God is still demonstrating His mercy. In fact it's in places like this that His mercy is made more evident and further appreciated.
Some have made this distinction between mercy and grace: mercy is not getting what we deserve; grace is getting what we don't deserve. We give thanks today for the complimentary aspects of God's abundant mercy and overflowing grace.
Mercy; what an incomparable dimension of our Lord's character! It's extolled by writers throughout the Bible. David declared "His mercy is very great." Zechariah proclaimed the "tender mercy of our God." Paul says we are "objects of His mercy", and that God is "rich in mercy." And James says, "The Lord is full of compassion and mercy." Praise the Lord whose mercies endure forever! And He delights to demonstrate mercy to each one of us today.
Let us respond to God's mercy by offering our life to Him. "Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship" (Romans 12:1).
Beautiful! That's how mercy saw me.
Though I was broken and so lost,
but mercy looked past all my faults.
The justice of God saw what I had done,
but mercy saw me through the Son.
Not what I was, but what I should be,
that's how mercy saw me.
Though I was broken and so lost,
but mercy looked past all my faults.
The justice of God saw what I had done,
but mercy saw me through the Son.
Not what I was, but what I should be,
that's how mercy saw me.
Be encouraged today,
Stephen & Brooksyne Weber
Daily
prayer: Father, we thank You for the redeeming blood of
Jesus that imparts mercy and pardon for my sins. Wretched as I
may be, Your mercy is greater! Only a God like You chooses to
delight in expressing mercy to the undeserving masses that defy Your
Holy Name. Thank You for reaching me in the depth of my sin and
raising me to the height of Your Holiness – it's only through Your
blood and it's only through Your mercy that I come and You joyfully
welcome me! Words cannot express my eternal gratitude for such indescribable love.Reader's Note: I have numerous times mentioned how I am blessed by a Canadian, Walter Kember, who has distributed scores of calligraphed Scripture prints (see here). We received this email: "I just happened to put my father's name into search and was a little surprised to actually come across as much information as you have disclosed about the near lifelong work that he was engaged in. In reading it, many memories were brought to me. For instance if we ever wanted to find my father we could always find him in the shop were the texts were made. Also as children we (9 children) always knew that it was important to keep busy at something and not be caught idle or we would end in the text factory for the rest of the day. Actually as I look back at it he did something that he was specially gifted to do. I thought that you might be interested in hearing from one who knew him personally. Yours by God's grace" - Dan Kember, South West Fence & Decks Lt
Here are some more photos of our drive through rural Lancaster County this last Saturday.
Amish one room schoolhouses dot the landscape throughout rural Lancaster County. They're tiny without electric and indoor plumbing. But alot of learning takes place in these one room schools that house 1st through 8th graders who learn altogether. We've visited our Amish friend's school twice and were impressed by the excellent skills of the teacher, the visible respect from the students, and the inexpensive surroundings that neither took away or added to the learning that takes place in the classroom. We believe our educational establishment could learn a lot from these schools and teachers!
Perhaps we should have this message, "Enter With a Smile" posted on the exterior doors of our homes, churches, classrooms and workplaces.
Today's Suggested Music and Supplemental Resources
"Mercy Saw Me" Video Calvin Hunt
"Mercy Said No" Video Greg Long
"Mercy Walked In" Video by Gordon Mote
"When Mercy Found Me" Video Rhett Walker Ban
"That's Where His Mercy Begins" Video Steve Green
"Mercy Came Running" Video Phillips, Craig & Dean
Send a message to Stephen & Brooksyne
To receive the "Daily Encouragement" each Monday-Friday through email see this page to subscribe to our email list. You can also subscribe to the Wordpress rss feed or through a Wordpress email subscription. (See the email subscription on the right side after opening this page.)
Are
our daily encouragement messages a blessing to you? We ask you to
consider making a donation to Daily Encouragement Net so that we can
continue to prepare and provide this daily resource which is
accessed by believers and seekers all over the world. Daily
Encouragement Net relies solely on the generosity and financial support
of its readers and podcast listeners. See here for more information on supporting this
ministry. Gifts are tax deductible.Permissions: Please feel free to pass on, reproduce and distribute any material on Daily Encouragement Net, in part or in whole, in any format, provided that you do not alter the wording in any way or charge a fee beyond the cost of reproduction. It is our desire to spread this material, not protect or restrict it. I do request that you keep the contact, copyright and subscription information intact.
Text only version for printing: To make a text only version for printing (without photos or any of the supplemental materials)
1) Open the basic text editor that comes with all computers (known as wordpad, textpad, etc.) You can also use a program like Word and select paste text only.
2) Select and copy the text from the portion of the message you want to print.
3) Paste into the text pad. (The photos won't show up but you will have a brief text description of the photo which you can delete or just ignore.)
4) Format if you desire (change font, increase or decrease size, etc.)
5) Print!
Scripture references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version. © 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. and the King James Version.
Personal Mission Statement: "I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God's Son Jesus Christ I have been redeemed and I make it my life's goal to please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and to prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity."
© Copyright 2014 Stephen C. Weber - All Rights Reserved
Daily Encouragement Net - 495 Kraybill Church Road - Mount Joy, PA 17552 USA