Does Jesus still live in your heart, or have you buried Him again?

HAVE YOU BURIED HIM AGAIN

"And the angel answered and said unto the women, Fear not ye: for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified.  He is not here: for he is risen, as he said, Come, see the place where the Lord lay.  And go quickly, and tell his disciples that he is risen from the dead; and, behold, he goeth before you into Galilee; there shall ye see him: lo, I have told you."

Matthew 28: 5-7 (King James Version)

      Albert Henry Ackley wrote one of my favourite hymns that we sing a lot "He Lives".  We sing this hymn but are the words true in our life?  "He lives, He lives, Salvation to impart!  You ask me how I know He lives?  He lives within my heart."  Does He really live in our heart or have we buried Him again?

      If satan has put unforgiveness, resentment, bitterness, hatred, sarcasm and criticism in our heart and we have allowed them to remain there, we have buried Him again.  We are not allowing Jesus to work through us.  Not only have we buried Him again by our actions and words, these attitudes stink in His nostrils.

      One day every one of us will stand before a Holy God and give an account of what we did with Jesus.  How embarrassing and heartbreaking it will be if we have to hang our head in shame because we didn't tell our family, our friends and the world about our risen Saviour and how much He loves them.

      What about you?  Are you allowing Jesus to work through you or have you buried Him again by your rotten attitudes and cruel words?  If so, tell God you're sorry and ask Him to forgive you. He will be faithful to forgive you.  Our Heavenly Father is a compassionate, loving and forgiving Father.

Joanne Lowe

joannelowe8@cox.net

www.joanne-ourprecioussaviour.blogspot.com

Joanne Lowe's Meditations

NO MORE SICKNESS

"And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away."

Revelation 21: 4 (King James Version)

      Jim Hill wrote one of my favorite hymns "What a Day That Will Be".  These words are so precious to me.  "There'll be no sorrow there, No more burdens to bear No more sickness, no pain, no more parting over there.  And forever I will be with the One who died for me What a day, glorious day that will be."

      When I think about being in Heaven with Jesus for all eternity, I am humbled and filled with awe that my precious Saviour should love me so much that He died for my sins.  Not only will we have the privilege of living with Jesus for eternity, there will be no more sickness, no more pain and no more parting.

      It doesn't matter if we are sick physically or emotionally, Jesus is the great Physician and He can heal us.  It is very important that we go see the doctor and get the medicine that will help our body heal but only Jesus can heal a broken heart.  Thank God that one day there will be no more sickness or broken hearts.

      Heavenly Father, thank You for being a tender, loving, forgiving and compassionate Father.  I've lost track of the many times You have wiped the tears from my eyes with Your kisses.  I pray that You would please heal those who are sick.  Please comfort them and let them know how much You love them.  Amen.

Joanne Lowe

joannelowe8@cox.net

www.joanne-ourprecioussaviour.blogspot.com

Joanne Lowe's Meditations

OUR BATTERY

"Hast thou not known?  hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary?  there is no searching of his understanding.  He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength.  Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint."

Isaiah 40: 28-31 (King James Version)

      One of the definitions for power in Webster's Dictionary is "ability to act or produce an effect".  Just as a flashlight needs batteries to power it and give it light so we need the power of God in our life to produce the effect He wants us to have and to renew our strength when we are weary. 

      God is our battery and He gives us the energy and the power to go on when we are weak and have no strength.  I don't know about you but there are times when I am tired and don't think I can take another step.  It is then that God renews my strength as He whispers softly in my ear "I love you and I will help you".

      God not only renews our strength and helps us, He is also our encourager.  When we think that we can't do something, He assures us that we can because He will help us as He cheers us on to victory.  What a privilege to have God as the battery of our life and also be our encourager.

      Heavenly Father, thank You for being the battery of our life and for renewing our strength when we are weak.  You are a loving and compassionate Father and I love You with all of my heart.  Thank You for sending Your Son to die for my sins.  Amen.

Joanne Lowe

joannelowe8@cox.net

www.joanne-ourprecioussaviour.blogspot.com

Joanne Lowe's Meditations

GO TO THE ROCK

"And his disciples came to him, and awoke him, saying, Lord, save us: we perish.  And he saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith?  Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm.  But the men marvelled, saying, What manner of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey him!"

Matthew 8:25-27 (King James Version)

      There was a tornado warning this morning where I live.  I started to panic and then I remembered that I had a Rock who would protect me.  I cried out to Jesus to protect me and then I started reading my Bible.  I had peace in my heart again.  How I thank and praise God for our Rock, our precious Saviour.

      "And he said, The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; The God of my rock; in him will I trust: he is my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower, and my refuge, my saviour; thou savest me from violence" (2 Samuel 22:2,3).  We can trust Him to protect us from the storms of life.

      When the storms of life attack you, go to the Rock and He will protect you.  Jesus loves you so much and He wants you to be happy.  He cares when you are hurting.  I think that we sometimes forget that not only does He heal us physically, He also heals us emotionally.  He will dry your tears with kisses.

      Heavenly Father, thank You for loving us and for sending Your beloved Son to die for our sins.  You are a precious and dear Father and we love You and appreciate You.  Please help us to get out of our comfort zones and serve Jesus who left His comfort zone and everything He had for us.  Amen.

Joanne Lowe

joannelowe8@cox.net

www.joanne-ourprecioussaviour.blogspot.com

Joanne Lowe's Meditations

GOD'S WALL OF PICTURES

"And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire."

Revelation 20:15 (King James Version)

      God's pictures are in a different place than on the wall like we see in homes.  God's wall of pictures is in the Book of Life.  I believe when we are saved that our names and also our pictures are recorded in the Book of Life.  Just as we like to look at the pictures on the wall, God also likes to look at our pictures.

      Our Scripture verse is one of the saddest verses in the Bible.  If our names are not written in the book of life, we will go to hell instead of Heaven.  What a terrifying thought that someone would go to hell!  Christians need to fall on their knees and cry out to God for the salvation of their family and their friends.

      Before I had arthritis, I used to have my devotions on my knees.  I would kneel at the side of my bed and sing to Jesus and read my Bible out loud and pray out loud.  O what joy filled my heart when I was able to kneel and worship my precious Saviour!  I can't kneel any more because of my arthritis.

      If you have family members or if you have friends who have never accepted Jesus as personal Saviour, pray for their salvation.  However, just praying for them is not enough.  Our family and our friends need to see the difference that Jesus made in our life.  Do they see Jesus in your actions?

      My name and picture are recorded in the Book of Life.  Is your name and picture recorded in the Book of Life?  If not, I urge you, I plead with you to give your heart and life to Jesus before it is too late!  One day, it will be too late for you to invite Jesus into your heart.  Don't miss out on spending eternity with Jesus.

Joanne Lowe

joannelowe8@cox.net

www.joanne-ourprecioussaviour.blogspot.com

Joanne Lowe's Meditations

WHEN WE STRAY

"I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy transgressions, and, as a cloud, thy sins: return unto me; for I have redeemed thee."

Isaiah 44:22 (King James Version)

      People think that Christians are supposed to be perfect people.  Christians are not perfect.  They are only saved sinners.  I received an email from someone who wrote "I stopped going to church and started going to bars with my old friends.  I have also started drinking again and I am so ashamed of myself."

      I replied and wrote "Go talk to your pastor and tell your pastor what you told me."  The person emailed me again and wrote "Do you think Jesus still loves me?"  I told that person "Yes, Jesus still loves you and He will always love you.  There is nothing you could do that would make Him stop loving you."

      I submit to you on the authority of God's Word that Jesus does love us when we fail Him and hurt Him.  "The LORD hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee" (Jeremiah 31:3).

      However, just because we know that Jesus will always love us is no excuse to deliberately do things that hurts Him.  It should be just the opposite.  We should do everything we can possibly do to make Him happy.  We know that Jesus loves us.  Do we love Him?  If so, how much do we love Him?

      If you have strayed, confess your sins and return to Him.  Don't allow satan to keep you away from your Saviour.  Jesus said "return unto me; for I have redeemed thee".  Jesus is waiting with a heart full of love and with His arms open wide for you to come back to Him.

Joanne Lowe

joannelowe8@cox.net

www.joanne-ourprecioussaviour.blogspot.com

Joanne Lowe's Meditations

ARE WE WISE

"Even a fool, when he holdeth his peace, is counted wise: and he that shutteth his lips is esteemed a man of understanding."

Proverbs 17:28 (King James Version)

      I used to have a terrible temper before I was saved.  I said ugly, sarcastic and cruel words to people.  When the redeeming blood of Jesus was applied to my heart for the forgiveness of my sins, I no longer had the desire to say cruel words to people.  However, once in a while I still lost my temper.

      Christians are not perfect.  They are just sinners who have been forgiven.  Before we are saved, satan doesn't have to worry about us because we are serving him.  When we accept Jesus as our personal Saviour, it makes satan very angry and he will launch vicious poisonous attacks against us.

      When people say cruel, sarcastic and hateful words to us, we need to be quiet or as my Mother said to me many times when I was a child "Keep your big mouth shut!"  It is hard for us to be quiet when someone is saying cruel words to us.  Sometimes, we can't do it. 

      It is then that we need to cry out to Jesus for help and ask Him to put a zipper on our lips so we won't say cruel words to people that hurt them and also hurt Him.  We must never forget that when we hurt people, we also hurt Jesus.  Our precious Saviour has been abused and hurt enough.

      Are we wise?  If we say cruel words to people who hurt us, we are not wise.  Heavenly Father, please forgive us for saying words to deliberately hurt people.  Please help us to say kind and loving words instead of hateful words to people who hurt us.   Amen.

Joanne Lowe

joannelowe8@cox.net

www.joanne-ourprecioussaviour.blogspot.com

Joanne Lowe's Meditations

A WONDERFUL LIFE

"And a certain scribe came, and said unto him, Master, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest."

Matthew 8:19 (King James Version)

      One of my favourite movies that I watch over and over is "It's a Wonderful Life".  You and I can have a wonderful life if we will allow Jesus to be the Master of our heart and our life.  I think sometimes instead of following Jesus we go where we want to go and we also do what we want to do.

      It's no wonder at all that we have days where everything goes wrong.  If we are not following Jesus, we will have bad days.  Jesus has made it very clear where He wants us to go.  He wants us to go to people who are hurting and who haven't accepted Him as personal Saviour and tell them how much He loves them. 

      Have you told Jesus that you will follow Him?  If you have, are you following Him?  If you're not following Him, why aren't you?  Jesus loves you so much that He gave His life for you.  He doesn't ask much from us and He has done so much for us.  We should be eager to do anything that will make Him happy.

      One of the ways that He wants us to follow Him is in the area of loving one another unconditionally.  He showed us how to love unconditionally when He allowed them to crucify Him on the cross for our sins.  He forgave us while He was still hanging on the cruel cross in agony and excruciating pain.

      Are we willing to forgive those who have hurt us?  I have to be honest and admit that there are times when I have trouble forgiving those who hurt me but then I remember that Jesus forgave me from the cross.  Have you forgiven the people who have hurt you just as Jesus has forgiven you?

Joanne Lowe

August 18, 2011

joannelowe8@cox.net

www.joanne-ourprecioussaviour.blogspot.com

Joanne Lowe's Meditations

THE ONLY WAY

"Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way?  Jesus said unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me."

John 14:5,6 (King James Version)

      There are many people who are trying to get to Heaven by doing kind things for others.  These things are wonderful and we should do kind things for others.  However, doing these things will never get us to Heaven.  The only way to Heaven is through the blood of Jesus.

      Unless the precious redeeming blood of Jesus is applied to our heart for the forgiveness of our sins, we will never go to Heaven.   Jesus is also our joy.  The Bible makes it very clear that it is only when we are in the presence of Jesus that we have real joy.

      This is one of my favourite verses in the Bible.  "Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore" (Psalm 16:11).  There have been many times when I have had so much joy in my heart that I felt like I was going to explode with happiness.

      Jesus is also the only way for us to keep going when satan hurls his vicious poisonous darts of lies and discouragement at us.  We are powerless to defeat satan.  This is why we need to cry out to Jesus to help us when we are discouraged and hurting.  Jesus knows how it feels to hurt and be discouraged.

      If you are hurting and discouraged, cry out to Jesus.  He will be faithful to pick you up and carry you through all the dark valleys of your life and set you once again on the mountain top of happiness.  You can trust Jesus with your heart and your life.

Joanne Lowe

joannelowe8@cox.net

www.joanne-ourprecioussaviour.blogspot.com

Joanne Lowe's Meditations

NOT A SIN

"Then saith he unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with me.  And he went a little farther, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt."

Matthew 26:38,39 (King James Version)

      Someone emailed me and wrote "It is a sin to be discouraged".  Jesus was very discouraged when He prayed this prayer.  We know that Jesus was perfect and that He never sinned so it is not a sin to be discouraged.  Jesus tells us that we will have tribulation.

      We read in the Bible "These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace.  In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world" (John 16:33).  A pastor said one time in a sermon "If you don't have any problems right now, wait a few minutes".

      When we surrender our life in full time service to Jesus, it makes satan very angry and he will do all in his power to discourage and defeat us.  We are powerless to defeat satan on our own.  It takes the power of Jesus working through us to give us the victory in difficult situations.  Only Jesus can defeat satan.

      Remember that Jesus is the one who gives us the victory in situations and we must always give Him the credit. "I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing" (John 15:5).  Are you giving Jesus the credit?

Joanne Lowe

joannelowe8@cox.net

www.joanne-ourprecioussaviour.blogspot.com

Joanne Lowe's Meditations

NO MORE

"And he went a little farther, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt."

Matthew 26:39 (King James Version)

      Do you realize what would happen to us if Jesus had said to His Father "I'm not going to take these insults and the rejection and the ridicule and the cursing any more.  I'm not going to the cross."  If Jesus hadn't died on the cross for us, we would be on our way to hell for all eternity.

      Jesus loves us so much that not only was He obedient to His Father, He was also willing to endure the pain, the shame and the agony on the cross for us.  Jesus did not have to stay on the cross for us.  All the nails in the world couldn't have kept Him on the cross if He had chosen to come down from the cross.

      Songwriter Ray Overholt wrote an inspiring and heart touching song about our precious Saviour "Ten Thousand Angels".  "He could have called ten thousand angels, To destroy the world and set Him free.  He could have called ten thousand angels, But He died alone, for you and me". 

      Jesus was human just like we are and I believe there were many times when He was here on earth that He wanted to give up and say "no more".  "I am not going to be humiliated any more."  Just as you and I get tired of being ridiculed, rejected and cursed,  Jesus also got tired of it.

      Jesus, thank You for loving us so much that You not only went to the cross, You stayed on the cross.  You are so precious to my heart.  I love You.  How I long for the day when I will have the privilege of seeing You face to face.  Even so, come Lord Jesus.

Joanne Lowe

joannelowe8@cox.net

www.joanne-ourprecioussaviour.blogspot.com

Joanne Lowe's Meditations

DO WE MEAN IT

"But now, O LORD, thou art our father; we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand."

Isaiah 64:8 (King James Version)

      We sing this hymn a lot but I wonder if we really mean what we are singing.  The name of the hymn is "Have Thine Own Way, Lord".  Do we really want Him to have His way in our heart and in our life or do we still want to do things our way?         

      Sometimes we act like we are the potter and God is the clay.  We try to tell Him how to answer our prayers.  Not only do we get in trouble by doing things our way, we also hurt Him and break His heart by treating Him like He is the clay.  It is time that we allow Him to have His way in our heart and life.

      I'm reminded of someone who prayed and asked God to protect and help her daughter and then she proceeded to tell God what she wanted Him to do.  There are times when Christians are a very arrogant people.  We think we know more than God.  How dare you and I try to tell a Holy God what He should do.

      If we will only allow Him to have His way in our heart and life, we will have a lot less stress in our life.  We don't know what is going to happen in the future but He knows the future and He knows what is best for us.  We can trust Him to do what is best for us because He loves us very much.

      Heavenly Father, we confess that we sin at times by not allowing You to have Your way in our heart and life.  We're sorry.  Please have mercy on us and forgive us.  Thank You for being a tender compassionate and forgiving Father and for loving us so much.  We love You and we appreciate all You do for us.  Amen.

Joanne Lowe

joannelowe8@cox.net

www.joanne-ourprecioussaviour.blogspot.com

Joanne Lowe's Meditations

HIS WAYS ARE BETTER

"Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.  In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths."

 Proverbs 3:5,6 (King James Version)

      I wonder how many times we have made plans to do something without first consulting Jesus to see if that is what He wanted us to do.  It may have been a good thing to do but it wasn't what He wanted us to do at that time.  We need to learn to trust Jesus to direct our paths.  His ways are much better than our ways.

      What about you?  Have you decided to change jobs or move without first asking Jesus if that is what He wants you to do?  We will have a lot less stress and a lot more peace in our life if we will only allow Jesus to lead us down the path He wants us to take.  Are you trusting Jesus to lead you?

      Missionary Edgar Page Stites wrote a beautiful hymn "Trusting Jesus".  O that you and I would learn to trust Jesus all the time.  I love these words in this hymn "Simply trusting every day,  Trusting through a stormy way; Even when my faith is small, Trusting Jesus, that is all."

      Heavenly Father, please forgive us for not trusting Jesus to direct our paths.  Many times we rebel like little children.  We think that we know best and we want our own way.  How we must hurt You and break Your heart.  Help us to trust Jesus instead of insisting on doing things our way.  Amen.

Joanne Lowe

joannelowe8@cox.net

www.joanne-ourprecioussaviour.blogspot.com

Joanne Lowe's Meditations

HE IS STILL GOD

"The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms: and he shall thrust out the enemy from before thee: and shall say, Destroy them."

Deuteronomy 33:27 (King James Version)

      Pastor Tracy Dartt wrote a gospel song that never fails to bring tears of happiness to my heart and to my eyes "God on The Mountain".  When I hear Lynda Randle sing this, I feel like I am literally in Heaven.  What an inspiring song that fills our hearts with hope and gratitude to our Heavenly Father!

      "For the God of the mountain is still God in the valley When things go wrong, He'll make them right And the God of the good times is still God in the bad times The God of the day is still God of the night."  It doesn't matter if we are on the mountain top or in the valley, He is still God.

      It's easy for us to trust God when we are on the mountain top of happiness but it is a lot harder to trust Him when we are in the valley of discouragement and despair.  We have to make the decision to trust Him especially when things look hopeless.  There is nothing too hard for God.  He can do anything.

      "Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh: is there anything too hard for me?" (Jeremiah 32:27)  When your food is almost gone and you don't have money to buy more food, trust God.  He will never fail you.  He will make a way for you to be able to buy food.  I know this is true from personal experience.

      Heavenly Father, there have been many times when You have picked me up from the valley of discouragement and set me on the mountain top of happiness.  Thank You for loving me and for everything You have done for me.  Amen.

Joanne Lowe

joannelowe8@cox.net

www.joanne-ourprecioussaviour.blogspot.com

Joanne Lowe's Meditations

WHEN WILL WE TRUST HIM

"Then beware lest thou forget the LORD, which brought thee forth out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage."

Deuteronomy 6:12 (King James Version)

      I wonder how many times God has answered our prayers and brought us victoriously through trials and crises in our life yet we still don't trust Him like we should trust Him.  Did you know that we trust a chair more than we trust Him?  When we sit down, we don't even think about the chair holding us.

      How sad it is and how it must break our Heavenly Father's heart that we trust a chair more than we trust Him.  We pray and ask Him to do something for us and as soon as we say "Amen" we try to think of a way to fix the situation.  May God have mercy on us for doubting Him.  When will we trust Him?

      When we get in a car and start it, we don't wonder if it is going to start.  We just assume it will start.  Our Heavenly Father is more dependable than our car and yet we wonder if He is going to help us.  How many times does He have to prove Himself to us?  He proved He loves us when He sent Jesus to die for our sins.

      Jesus proved how much He loves us when He died for our sins on the cruel cross of Calvary.  It is time that we prove to Jesus how much we love Him.  How do we prove to Jesus that we love Him?  We prove it by serving Him.  Remember, the level of our service to Jesus depends on our level of love for Him.

      If we are only serving Jesus three or four hours a day, then we don't love Him like we should love Him.  We should serve Jesus every hour of the day.  How much do you love Him and what are you doing to prove to Him that you love Him?  Are you making Him happy or are you breaking His heart?

Joanne Lowe

joannelowe8@cox.net

www.joanne-ourprecioussaviour.blogspot.com

Joanne Lowe's Meditations

HE IS WAITING

"I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before thee.  And am no more worthy to be called thy son: make me as one of thy hired servants.  And he arose, and came to his father.  But when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him."

Luke 15:18-20 (King James Version)

      What a beautiful passage of Scripture and what a heart touching illustration of the compassion that God has for us.  Not only is God waiting for us to come back to Him, He is also watching and longing for us to come back to Him.  It reminds me of the day my brother left to go into the service. 

      My Mother stood in the road watching the car for a long time after my brother was out of sight.  Mom loved my brother so much and she was already missing him even though he had just left.  Our precious Heavenly Father loves us very much and He also misses us as soon as we leave His presence.

      Has there been a time when you wandered away from God?  He is waiting for you to come home to Him.  He loves you so much and He misses you.  William James Kirkpatrick published a beautiful hymn "LORD, I'M COMING HOME".  I am so thankful that we have a merciful and compassionate Heavenly Father.

      "I've wandered far away from God, Now I'm coming home; The paths of sin too long I've trod, Lord, I'm coming home."  I wonder how many times we have sung this hymn but never really meant it.  It is time that we mean what we sing instead of just giving Him lip service.  Go home to your Heavenly Father.

Joanne Lowe

joannelowe8@cox.net

www.joanne-ourprecioussaviour.blogspot.com

Joanne Lowe's Meditations

AN AUTOGRAPH OF BLOOD

"And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins."

Matthew 26:27,28 (King James Version)

      Do you remember asking people to write something in your autograph book?  There is another kind of autograph and it is an autograph of blood.  Jesus has written on our heart with His own blood so that we may be saved and live with Him in Heaven.  There is no greater love than the love that Jesus has for us.

      "And when they were come to the place, which is called Calvary, there they crucified him, and the malefactors, one on the right hand, and the other on the left.  Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.  And they parted his raiment, and cast lots" (Luke 23:33,34).

      Jesus has not only told us to forgive those who hurt us, He set the example for us when He forgave us from the cross.  If Jesus in all of the anguish and excruciating pain He was in while hanging on the cross asked God to forgive us, may God have mercy on us if we refuse to forgive those who hurt us.

      Unless the blood of Jesus has been applied to your heart for the forgiveness of your sins, you will spend eternity in hell with satan instead of spending eternity in Heaven with Jesus.  Don't let that happen to you.  Open the door of your heart and let Jesus come in before it is too late!

Joanne Lowe

joannelowe8@cox.net

www.joanne-ourprecioussaviour.blogspot.com

Joanne Lowe's Meditations

DID YOU DRINK TODAY

"In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink."

John 7:37 (King James Version)

      I drink a lot of water every day but the next day I am still thirsty.  Just as I am thirsty for water every day so I am thirsty to be in the presence of Jesus every day.  One of the definitions for thirst in Webster's Dictionary is "an ardent desire".  I have a longing and a desire to fellowship with Jesus every day.

      We read in the Bible "Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore" (Psalm 16:11).  When I am in the presence of Jesus and feel the joy He gives me, all of the crises in my life and all of the problems and heartaches are easier to bear.

      Pastor Oswald Jeffrey Smith wrote one of my favourite hymns about serving Jesus "Joy in Serving Jesus".  Pastor Smith knew the joy of serving Jesus from his many years of service to Jesus.  I believe he wrote this hymn from the depths of his heart.  Pastor Smith also raised a lot of money for foreign missions.

      Did you stay in the presence of Jesus today and drink from the joy that Jesus gives us?  It's wonderful to know that Jesus loves us but He also needs to know that we love Him.  I think that we forget that Jesus has feelings and it hurts Him when we neglect to tell Him that we love Him.

      Jesus, I do love You and I appreciate all that You have done for me and all that You do for me every day.  Thank You for loving me so much that You died for my sins.  Worthy is the Lamb of God!  All hail King Jesus!  Even so, come Lord Jesus.

Joanne Lowe

joannelowe8@cox.net

www.joanne-ourprecioussaviour.blogspot.com

Joanne Lowe's Meditations

WHAT WOULD WE SAY

"In Gibeon the LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream by night: and God said, Ask what I shall give thee."

1 Kings 3:5 (King James Version)

      If God appeared to me in a dream and said "Ask what I shall give thee", I would say "Please fill my heart with compassion and unconditional love for others".  I would say this because I fell in love with Jesus and it is the desire of my heart to make Him happy.

      However, if God had asked me that question before I fell in love with Jesus I would probably have asked for something for me.  It is only when we fall in love with Jesus and it becomes the desire of our heart to make Jesus happy that we don't ask for something for ourselves.

      How about you?  What would you say to God if He said to you "Ask what I shall give thee"?  We read in the Bible "But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.  To him be glory both now and for ever.  Amen" (2 Peter 3:18).  The more we know Jesus, the more we love Him.

      Do you know Jesus?  I didn't ask if you are saved; I asked if you know Him.  It is possible to accept Him as our personal Saviour but not know Him.  To really know someone, we have to spend time with that person.  How much time do you spend during the day with Jesus?

      If you are too busy to spend time with Jesus, you are too busy.  Jesus should come before everything and everyone.  I never get out of bed in the morning before I tell Him how much I love Him.  Just as we want Him to be available, so He wants us to be available.  Let's give Jesus first place in our heart and life.

Joanne Lowe

joannelowe8@cox.net

www.joanne-ourprecioussaviour.blogspot.com

Joanne Lowe's Meditations

IT IS A PRIVILEGE

"And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive."

Matthew 21:22 (King James Version)

      Joseph Medlicott Scriven wrote a beautiful hymn "What a Friend We Have in Jesus".  The words in this hymn touch my heart and remind me once again what a precious Saviour we have.  Not only is it a privilege to go to God in prayer, it is also a privilege to have Jesus as our Saviour.

      I believe that Mr. Scriven wrote this hymn from the depths of his heart.  "What a Friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear!  What a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer!  O what peace we often forfeit, O what needless pain we bear, All because we do not carry everything to God in prayer."

      Too often we take God for granted.  We know that He is a loving, forgiving and compassionate Heavenly Father and that He will answer our prayers.  However, there are times when we do things we know we shouldn't do because we know that He will be faithful to forgive us.  Yes, He forgives us but we hurt Him.

      Let's stop hurting God and instead of hurting Him let's become obedient children who bring Him happiness instead of being children who disobey Him and bring Him sadness.  Do you realize that it is a privilege to go into the presence of God?  He is holy and we need to treat Him with respect.

      Heavenly Father, thank You for allowing us the privilege to come into Your presence.  Indeed, You are a loving, forgiving and compassionate Father and we love You and appreciate You.  Jesus, thank You for being a friend who never fails us and never leaves us.  You are so precious, dear Jesus.  Amen.

Joanne Lowe

joannelowe8@cox.net

www.joanne-ourprecioussaviour.blogspot.com