Complete in Him

December 11, 2021

“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; [it is] the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9 NKJV)

My husband, Kris,  received his Master of Science in Leadership yesterday at the ripe old age of fifty-two.  I am beyond excited and so very proud of him.  He decided during the corona  shutdown to pursue his graduate degree.  He told me, “You study all the time.  I think I will, too.” Study, he did.  He was tirelessly committed to excelling and earning his Masters’ degree.

The difference between Kris and I is that I am blessed to rise early and study as long as I desire. 

He, on the other hand, worked full-time as Vice President of Advancement at Austin Peay State University. He hosted and attended a multitude of after-work events as necessitated by his occupation. Somehow, by the grace of God, he then found the strength and endurance  to write, write, write into the wee hours of the night, as required by his class load.  And, since he had nothing else to do, he worked out at Orange Theory five days a week and lost close to fifty pounds.  The man worked!!  He resolutely labored hard for everything he earned and attained.  I cannot cheer for him loud enough!!!

 I share his story to show the depth of commitment required to attain.  I AM SO THANKFUL that we do not have earn our salvation, nor do we have to pass a test to graduate or to garner our ticket to eternity.  No checklist has to be completed.  No work has to be done.  Jesus did it ALL for us on the cross.  He paid the price.  He worked tirelessly for the Father.  He sacrificed.  He was THE Sacrifice.  He, alone, earned our way into “forever.”  It was by grace that He saved  us through faith. It is not us!  We cannot do anything to earn salvation. We cannot do better, give more , nor work harder to gain entrance into the Father’s presence.  It is Jesus alone.  It is the gift of God.  It is not our works.

What a gift we were given! 

I enCOURAGE you to work hard.  It has its rewards.  More importantly, I enCOURAGE you to accept the gift of God, Jesus.   I could not share with you a greater present at Christmas than Jesus.  I couldn’t gift you a car, a Rolex, an island, or even pay off all your bills.  They all pale in comparison to the sacrificial gift God gave us.  His name is Jesus.  Accept God’s free gift.  Invite Him into every area of your life. 

Then…you can start working on your rewards.  Yes, God is a giving God.  We don’t have to work our way to Him, but what we do for Him and how we obey His word, He rewards.

“For the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He will reward each according to his works.” (Matthew 16:27 NKJV)

“Now he who plants, and he who waters are one, and each one will receive his own reward according to his own labor.” (1 Corinthians 3:8 NKJV)

“And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward [is] with Me, to give to everyone according to his work.”(Jesus, Revelation 22:12 NKJV)

by Tammy Phillips
December 10, 2021

The word “go” appears in the King James Version of the Bible 1492 times.   Jesus told people to go often after He had healed them.  When one exclaims, “GO!”  It is word or shout of encouragement.  The word “go “simply means to journey; to traverse; to move; to pass; to proceed from one place; to walk; to move on the feet or step by step; to proceed or advance in accomplishing an end; to do it.  The Lord use “go” as a commissioning word. He told:

• Noah when to go in and out of the Ark. (Genesis 6:18 , 8:16  )
• Moses to go to Pharaoh, and say, “Let my people go.” (Exodus 6:11 , Exodus 8:1 )
• Joshua to go to war. (Joshua 8:1)
• Haggai to go up to the mountains… ( Haggai 1:8 )
• The rich young ruler, “If you want to be perfect, go…(Matthew 19:21 )
• Us to go. ( Matthew 28:19 , Mark 16:15 )

God likes the word go.  It makes up two-thirds of His name in how we spell it.   God is always on the move and wants us to be on the move as His agents. He wants us to “walk by faith ” and proceed on our journey.  We are kingdom people who have kingdom work to do in and for Him.  We are commissioned to “go in faith.”  Like Noah, Holy Spirit will lead us in and out of the places to go.  One of my guiding scriptures, “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go.” (Psalm 32:8 NKJV)

If the Lord has not given you specific directions on which way to go, be still.  Keep doing what you are doing. He will. Ask Him.  He has your marching orders, and they are for a specific time and place.  When it is time, He will tell us to go.  We just have to be obedient to go and believe.

There is a second part to the “going.”  We have permission and must ask God to “go” for us in the name of Jesus.  Jesus said:

“And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. “If you ask anything in My name, I will do [it].” (John 14:13-14 NKJV)

Let’s play a little substitution game.  “Go” can mean “do.”  In which case, John 14:13-14 could read like this:  “And whatever you ask in My name, that I will ‘go’, that the Father may be glorified in the Son .”If you ask anything in My name, I will ‘go.’”

We have to be like the centurion who asked Jesus to heal His servant and believed that Jesus would.  The centurion knew at the very word of Jesus that the Word would go and heal his servant.  AND IT DID!  (Matthew 8:5-13 NKJV)

“Then Jesus said to the centurion, ‘Go your way; and as you have believed, [so] let it be done for you.’ And his servant was healed that same hour.” (Matthew 8:13 NKJV)

Once we have asked the Lord to go on our behalf, we must believe and keep on going.  We must be confident enough in Jesus that He can handle our request and then we just continue going on our everyday journey. 

In the Cover Tennessee Prayer group, I believe JoAnne Ross started this cheer about two months ago in one of our text/prayer threads, “GO, JESUS, GO!”  As a group, we have asked and believed.  Jesus has really gone for us.   He has brought a loved one back to life from death (for real!),  healed bodies, marriages, aches, pains, and brokenness.  He has escorted other loved ones into His presence.  He has supplied supernatural provision.  He has made the way when there was no way.   I could go on and on.  We have been amazed by Him.  He has done exceedingly, abundantly, above what we could ever ask or believe.  Our official cheer of thankfulness and encouragement back to our loving Father  for His action and answers has become, “Go, God, go!”   These are the testimonies that I have shared over the last four days.  I will continue to share as they come in.

I enCOURAGE you to ask and believe God for whatever you need.  He will go for you, too.  He will also answer and show you which way to go.  When He answers, and He will, remember to thank Him, and say, “Go, God, go!”    “Afterwords, ” share your story with me and I will share it with the “world.”  

 

 

By Tammy Phillips
December 9,  2021 

“I know that nothing [is] better
for them than to rejoice,
and to do good in their lives,
and also, that every man
should eat and drink and enjoy
the good of all his labor—
it is the gift of God.” (Ecclesiastes 3:12-13 NKJV)

I have seen “MERRY AND BRIGHT”  EVERYWHERE since I read this verse and started this encouragement.  I could only laugh when I saw the words on a big sign in our hotel lobby!  I have seen them on shirts, mugs, ornaments.  I suppose  as much as I love, “Falala,” MERRY AND BRIGHT are the 2021 words for the season for me.  I cannot seem to run away from them. 

Where does “MERRY AND BRIGHT” have to do with Ecclesiastes 3:12-13?  Glad you asked.   It comes from a treasure hunt of the word rejoice.   Early in life, I would ask my stepfather what a word meant.  He would curtly say, “Look it up!”  I do not know if it was because he didn’t know the answer or because he wanted me to learn the meaning.  I have learned the love and  joy of the treasure hunt in looking up the meaning of words in the Hebrew and Greek.   There is usually an explosion of light and meaning in the words.  For instance, “rejoice” is the  Hebrew word, samah, which means be glad; cheer up; be merry; brighten up. You got it.  Rejoice means “Be MERRY AND BRIGHT!”

“A merry heart makes a cheerful countenance…” (Proverbs 15:13 NKJV)

Solomon, said to be the wisest man ever, declared that nothing is better than to be merry and bright!  He also followed that statement up with do good in your lives, eat drink, and enjoy what you have worked for.  Do good; eat, and drink.   Be MERRY AND BRIGHT.  It is the gift of God.  God expects and want us to work hard.  The fruit of that labor is to enjoy life.  It our choice.  We can choose to be merry.  We can choose to be bright, or we can choose to be a fright.  “Merry  and Bright” is a gift of God and it’s ours for the taking. 

Why do you think we say, “Merry Christmas?”  We encourage others with our words.  We urge others to enjoy the season and to celebrate Jesus.

“‘A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to You’ was the verse that was shown on the first commercially available Christmas card in 1843. Christmases has been merry long before that though. The use of ‘Merry Christmas’ as a seasonal-salutation dates back to at least 1534, when, on 22nd December, Bishop John Fisher wished the season’s greetings in a letter to Thomas Cromwell, recorded in Strype Ecclesiastical memorials, 1816):

‘And this our Lord God send you a Merry Christmas, and a comfortable, to your heart’s desire.’” (https://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/merry-christmas.html)

I enCOURAGE you not to get caught up in the nonsense of the season.  We just have to keep focus on the reason, Jesus!  Spread the joy.  Enjoy your gifts!  Share you gifts!  Share Jesus! Be MERRY & BRIGHT!  And don’t forget, “Merry Christmas!”

“A merry heart does good, [like] medicine, But a broken spirit dries the bones.” (Proverbs 17:22 NKJV)

by Beverly Adkins
December 8, 2021

“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.” (Jeremiah 29:11 NKJV)

Let me start by saying, God has intervened in so many areas of my life.  It would be impossible to write them all!  There are many that I will possibly never know about until  I see him face to face.

 I will share without all the details how God intervened in an area that affected our whole family.  It was 21 years ago that I felt my world had fallen apart.  Our family was being torn apart by all of Satan’s schemes!  We went to church every Sunday, raised our children in church, yet Satan had slipped into our home and was destroying our family unit!  Our marriage was over…the days were dark, and the nights were darker…But God! The LORD moved in and began to soften our hearts.  God gave us a wonderful church family that loved us! God gave us a wonderful pastor and wife that loved and prayed for us diligently!  We cried out to God like never before.  Every day, we looked for the positive things that God was revealing to us through this storm.  I truly learned to praise God in the storm.  God is the Healer!  He healed our marriage, strengthened our love for one another,  and for Him!  We have two wonderful children with two wonderful spouses and 5 grandchildren.  Every time we are all together, we rejoice that our family was healed and are all together!  Thank you, God,  for healing and restoring our family! 

Sometimes, we don’t realize we are just going through motions. Going to church, check; quick prayer, check;  quick Bible read, check.  God wants our hearts not a check list.  Satan can slip right in an attempt to steal, kill, and destroy.  It is his mission (John 10:10)  In the dark days healing did not come instantly.  Jeremiah 29:11 is the verse I clung to. God always has a better plan. 

I enCOURAGE you to allow God  to slip in and overcome the plans of the enemy.  Don’t run from Him and His people. Lean into Him!  Invite Him in to shine His light in your darkest place’s. Let Him heal your brokenness.  He will.  He did it for me and my family.  He will do it for you!

Carefully, invite Christian brothers and  sisters in.  We do not need to do life alone.  When you can’t pray for yourself have your Christian friends pray for you.  I remember so well talking to my pastor and telling him, “I don’t even know how to pray right now.”  He said let us do that for you!

“God [is] my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid: for the LORD JEHOVAH [is] my strength and [my] song; he also is become my salvation.” (Isaiah 12:2 KJV)

 

(Beverly and David Adkins opened their home and were our small group leaders.  for  the “Doing Life Together” group.  She is one of the funniest people you will ever meet.  She exudes joy and the love of the Lord.)

by Josephine Crestman
December 7, 2021

“But God has shown me that he doesn’t think anyone is unclean or unfit.”  (Acts 10:28 CEV)

My husband Mike has dementia and much of the time he is in his own world.  Times are few and far between that I get a glimpse of the man I married and still dearly love.  He is so precious to me, and I am devoted to him. We still do everything we can together.

My sister’s son-in-law was being ordained in Little Rock, Arkansas.  We planned on driving and taking my parents to the celebration.  My sister informed me that Mike and I were not welcome because of Mike’s dementia.  My parents had already asked me for a ride so went on and drove them. We dropped them at the door, dressed in our best Sunday duds.  I had hoped that my sister would change her mind.  My niece ushered my parents in and sent us away with , “Thanks for bringing them. Bye.”

During the return trip, I began to wonder if maybe we were a bother to our new church.  They had been very nice to us.  I questioned how they really felt.  When my own blood sister excludes us from a family event and a makes us feel so unwelcomed, makes one a bit self-conscious.

Soon after our return, we were at our church’s “Prayer and Praise.”  A lady who I had seen before but had not had the pleasure of meeting came up to me.  She sweetly hugged me and said, “We are so thankful to have you at our church. We are blessed watching you take care of him. We love watching him dance when he worships.” I thank God that our church loves us like Jesus.

God is so good. He answered my question with His love and the love of my church family.  This is not unusual.  He answers and speaks to me so often. I  am always amazed and  exceptionally appreciative, but never surprised!! God loves his children!

“The crowds learned about it and followed him. He welcomed them and spoke to them about the kingdom of God and healed those who needed healing.” (Luke 9:11 NIV)

I enCOURAGE you to love unconditionally like Jesus.  

“Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God.” (Romans 15:7 NIV)

(Josephine is an incredible sister in Christ and wife to Mike.  Her love for Mike is a beautiful thing to see.  The Lord led our prayer group to her through a miraculous chain of events.  As a group, we have prayed, and are believing for the healing of Mike’s mind.   Please join us in praying for them.)

 

(I have asked a few pray-ers to be my guest to share their testimony where they invited God in and He showed up and out.  Gina was the first brave sister to step up.  I am so excited to share her story.)

by Gina Suiter
December 6, 2021

 “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you.  When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.  For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior;” (Isaiah 43:2-3)

“I can’t Lord” is what I said.  I can’t do this without you!  I can’t be everything in this season that life is demanding of me without you!  I can’t bear the pain of seeing the people I love hurt, struggle, grieve … without you!  I trust YOU LORD with them and with all of me. 

God knows our needs, has a plan in place,  and is waiting for us to ask!  The Lord answered the needs of my family in a MIGHTY way. 

The Lord prompted me to reach out to a family member about a difficult season our family has been walking through. We needed  to convert  a portion of our free-standing garage to a small apartment.   I shared with him what I felt were our needs.  From that point, everything fell into place.  Our answer was his response, “Don’t worry about anything. We are going to take care of it and make it as easy on your family as we can.”  We were  blown away by the kindness of four incredible young men with hearts to serve, who stepped into our lives to help meet the needs of our family.  When there seems to  be a shortage in everything, God supplied all we needed without delay. The Lord also made provision through an incredible woman,  to provide a place for them to stay while they worked on our conversion! 

They all have sacrificed for us!  They have given their time, skills, and time away from their own families to help meet the needs of our family.  We are blown away by God and by these young men (and woman)!

“I CAN” is what I heard the Lord shout into my heart!  The love the Lord has shown us, His provision and the hearts of these men have reminded our family that WE CAN…“with GOD all things are possible”.  (Matthew 19:26)

I enCOURAGE you to trust God in all things.  He has your answer.  You “can” with Him.

(Gina is a sister in Christ that I met at church on Prayer Team.  Our lives have traveled similar paths.  God wove our lives together in an uncanny way.  We have common interests, callings, and have experienced so many similar things thought our lives.  We ar together for “such a time as this.”)

by  Tammy Phillips
December 5, 2021

“‘Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know.’” (Jeremiah 33:3 NKJV)

Forgive me? On December 1, 2021, at the Complete in Him encouragement, I wrote:

“I enCOURAGE you to not do life without Him.  Invite Jesus and all His wisdom into every area of your life.  It will be miraculous. It’s Him in us “who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us.” (Ephesians 3:20 NKJV).  Stay tuned tomorrow for some real-life examples of how Jesus stepped in and saved the day.”    

I wrote this encouragement the same day but forgot to post on December 2^nd.  Again, forgive me?  This is the story of how Jesus multiplied my time and saved the day.  It is a great follow up to yesterday’s post!

We have a flexible spending account, a debit card with pretax dollars loaded to use for medical expenses.  It is a great idea until one has to justify the charges on the account by matching “Explanation of Benefits,” collecting receipts, and submitting, itemized doctor charges, especially when the physician’s charges do notexactly match the EOB. I have had to do this in the past and it is a pain.  Last year, it took me hours of gathering on the phone with doctor’s offices, insurance companies and the FSA company. It took four to eight hours to put all the pieces of the puzzle together and submit the justification.   To be honest,  this year I ignored the justification request for months and it has laid in a neat pile waiting my attention!   I designated one whole day as “deal with it day.”  When I finally went to work on this project, I was missing a piece, the physician’s itemized billed.  I had it on top of my file, but it was nowhere to be found.  It had been there less than a week ago, calling out my name.   I could have become very upset, but I had prayed for wisdom before I started.  This arduous task had taken me all day to accomplish in the past.  I was determined to wipe this project off my to-do list in a day.

Thankfully, I only had five charges at one doctor, not multiple charges at multiple doctors.  I went to the doctor and was quickly given the itemized five-page bill.  This was not going to be simple.  It was going to be like looking for a needle in a haystack. 

BUT GOD…I had invited Him in earlier with the request for wisdom.  I had not lost my cool in the delay.  HE SHOWED UP.  Not one, but two of the financial advisors gave me the same advice, “Submit your explanation of benefits and your itemized bill and let them match up everything .”  What?  Was this possible?  Had God miraculously answered my call for wisdom? 

I went home and did as instructed.  It may have taken thirty minutes to upload  and submit my justifications, probably less.  The next day, I looked online at our account, and all holds on our account were GONE!  The Holy Spirit had stepped in and saved the day.  God multiplied my time.  He answered my prayer and I declare it was a miracle!  You have no idea what a headache it has been in the past.  I feared doing it because of the difficulty.  I faced the fear and God showed up with the answer.  GLORY TO HIS NAME. 

I enCOURAGE you to invite God into the middle of everything!!!!  I am about to open some doors that I have kept closed to Him. I will let you know how that works out, too.  I believe it will be life changing.  If He does this for me in a little problem, I can’t wait to see what He does when I surrender everything, and I mean everything to Him.   Stay tuned!

 

 

by Tammy Phillips
December 4, 2021

“To everything [there is] a season, A time for every purpose under heaven:” (Ecclesiastes 3:1 NKJV)

We say we do not  have time to do this and that. The word of God says there is  “a time for every purpose under heaven.”  The word  season implies a stated or appointed time.  The word “purpose” is the Hebrew word, hepes,meaning, delight and pleasure.   In light of these facts, Ecclesiastes 3:1  could read like this: 

To everything there is a season, an appointed, stated time,  A time for every purpose, delight, and pleasure under heaven. 

When we say we do not have time, that is a fallacy.  Everything has an appointed time.  The truth is we do not make time.  We run around like  “a chicken-with its-head-cutoff.”  We let time manage us instead of us managing  and stewarding the time we have been given by God.  We have been given…

“A time to be born,
And a time to die;
A time to plant,
And a time to pluck [what is] planted;

A time to kill,
And a time to heal;
A time to break down,
And a time to build up

A time to weep,
 And a time to laugh;
A time to mourn,
 And a time to dance;

A time to cast away stones,
And a time to gather stones;
A time to embrace,
And a time to refrain from embracing;

A time to gain,
And a time to lose;
A time to keep,
And a time to throw away; 

A time to tear,
And a time to sew;
A time to keep silence,
And a time to speak;

A time to love,
And a time to hate;
A time of war,
And a time of peace.” (Ecclesiastes 3:2-8 NKJV)

Life is monotonous and filled with “and’s.”  All we have is time and time and  time, until our time “under the sun” runs out.   We have an appointed time to be brought into this world and to leave.  We have time.  What are we doing with our time?  Are we managing it well? What “and” would you add to King Solomon’s list?  Christmas shopping?  Time with your spouse or children?  Time with the Lord praying or reading His word?  Life is the same cycle over and over again, but we have time to do whatever we want or choose to do.

We cannot waste our time and  stay in any one place too long because we might miss the appointed time.  Why do we squander our time confessing how sick we are?  The Bible says there is “a time to heal.” There is an appointed time to mend.  Step into it.   There is a time to weep and mourn, but don’t stay there too long; we all so have an appointed time to laugh and dance.  Move into it.  God…

“He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also, He has put eternity in their hearts, except that no one can find out the work that God does from beginning to end.” (Ecclesiastes 3:11 NKJV)

God made “everything beautiful in its time.”   I would add, and not so beautiful past its time. When we leave something in the oven too long,  it burns.  Milk past its date sours.  Men past their God given time to choose Jesus as Savior equals death, eternal separation from God and an eternity spent in the lake of fire.   God “has put eternity in their hearts.” Eternity in the heart of every man  is looking for more than the monotonous routine of life. Man is looking for eternity and man is seeking more time. It can only be found in Jesus.

I enCOURAGE you to invite Jesus into every area of your life.  He will give you more time now, and for eternity. With the time God gives you, Holy Spirit will “instruct you and teach you  the way to go” (Psalm. 32:8), IF you call on Him.   And when it’s time to go and leave the “under the sun,” He will welcome and escort you into eternity.  “There is a time for everything.”  Don’t miss your time.

 “Many a man lost his soul, as Saul did his kingdom, by not discerning his time. Esau came too late; so, did the foolish virgins. If the gale of grace be over-past, the gate shut, the drawbridge taken up, there is no possibility of entrance.” (John Trapp)

by Tammy Phillips
December 3, 2021

“I explored with my mind the pull of wine on my body ​– ​my mind still guiding me with wisdom — and how to grasp folly, until I could see what is good for people to do under heaven during the few days of their lives.” (Ecclesiastes 2:3 CSB)

Solomon grasped that life under the sun is just a few days.  Some days seem like they last for an eternity, but really, they are a blink of an eye in light of eternity.  Solomon contemplated the meaning of life throughout the book of Ecclesiastes.  I think it is funny that the same man who wrote, “A joyful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit dries up the bones “ (Proverbs 17:22 CSB),  in the next book of the Bible questioned what does pleasure really accomplish?   He implies the following in Ecclesiastes 2.

PLEASURE IS EMPTY (Ecc. 2:1-3)
Laughter makes you look like a fool.  What does it accomplish?

POSSESSIONS ARE EMPTY. (Ecc. 2:4-11)
Solomon had everything “under the sun.” He had…

• houses
• vineyards
• gardens and parks
• every kind of fruit tree
• reservoirs to irrigate
• male and female servants
• slaves who were born in his house
• livestock -​large herds and flocks ​- ​more than all in Jerusalem
• mass amounts silver and gold
• the treasure of kings and provinces
• male and female singers 
• many concubines, the delights of men
• became great
• surpassed all in Jerusalem
• had wisdom, wisdom, wisdom
• all that his eyes desired and did not deny himself
• did not refuse himself any pleasure

“When I considered all that, I had accomplished and what I had labored to achieve, I found everything to be futile and a pursuit of the wind. There was nothing to be gained under the sun.”  (Ecclesiastes 2:11 CSB) 

The wisest and the richest man who had gained everything “under the sun” proclaimed it all to be empty and nothingness.  In America we are conditioned to believe that we can have it all.  We are driven to believe that more, more, and more will complete us.  Solomon begged to differ. His wisdom knew that there was more than what is “under the sun.”

WORK IS EMPTY (Ecc. 2:18-26)
Solomon hated all his work that he labored at under the sun because he had to leave it behind in death.  He questioned, “what does a person get with all his work and all his efforts that he labors at under the sun?”(Ecclesiastes 2:22 CSB)

He spoke the truth when he said workdays are filled with grief  and sorrow. Like many workers He also talked about not being able to leave his work at work.  He stated, “even at night, his mind does not rest. This too is futile.” (Ecclesiastes 2:23 CSB)

Ecclesiastes 2, Solomon, the man who had everything “under the sun,” concluded pleasures, possessions and work were all empty nothingness.  Pleasure for pleasures sake, possessing just to possess and working just to work brings nothing.  However, he believed,  “There is nothing better for a person than to eat, drink, and enjoy his work.  I have seen that even this is from God’s hand because who can eat and who can enjoy life apart from him?” (Ecclesiastes 2:24-25 CSB)

Life, meaning, and enjoyment are only found in and from God.  Without Him it is all for nothing! 

“For to the person who is pleasing in his sight, he gives wisdom, knowledge, and joy; but to the sinner he gives the task of gathering and accumulating in order to give to the one who is pleasing in God’s sight. This too is futile and a pursuit of the wind. “ (Ecclesiastes 2:26 CSB)

If we do for doing sake, it brings naught.  It is futile and a pursuit of the wind.  How do you think Solomon became so wealthy?  He gained the spoils of those who did not honor nor listen to God.

I enCOURAGE you to make your life count in the few days that we have under the sun.  “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do everything for the glory of God.” (1 Corinthians 10:31 CSB).  It will bring meaning to life.  Otherwise, you will continue to wade in the see of futility.  Do you ever ask yourself why you are doing what you are doing?  Life has meaning and it is not  found in work, possessions nor pleasure.  It can only be found in doing all we do for Jesus.  We are only complete in Him.

by Tammy Phillips
December 2, 2021

“[What is] crooked cannot be made straight…”(Ecclesiastes 1:15 NKJV)

When our boys were little and misbehaved, we would direct them to “straighten up.” They might manage for a while and then we would have to issue the instruction again.  They were boys and they were messy.  Straight would last a bit but not for long. 

Solomon said, “I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and indeed, all [is] vanity and grasping for the wind.” (Ecclesiastes 1:14 NKJV).  He saw the world through the eyes of man.  In all his wisdom he saw chaos, disorder, and incompleteness.  He discovered the crooked, perverted, bent, twisted, and bowed down could not simply autocorrect itself.  Adam and Eve bowed down in the garden.  They ignored the voice of wisdom and embraced the lie. When they did this, it messed up the world and they could not fix it.  They could not bring worldly order out of the disorder they had created.

They could not straighten nor mend things up. It was just not in their power. 

When man sinned, he bowed down to the words of Satan and turned his back on God.  Thank God, He had a plan to straighten everything out, Jesus.  Isaiah through faith-washed eyes saw things from God’s perspective. He heard…

“Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain:” (Isaiah 40:4 KJV)

“And I will bring the blind by away [that] they knew not; I will lead them in paths [that] they have not known I will make darkness light before them, and crooked things straight. These things will I do unto them, and not forsake them.” (Isaiah 42:16 KJV)

“I will go before thee, and make the crooked places straight: I will break in pieces the gates of brass, and cut in sunder the bars of iron:” (Isaiah 45:2 KJV)

Isaiah saw the coming Messiah as a change agent to make the “crooked places straight.”  Solomon realized all the wisdom under the sun was futile, empty, and could not bring the needed eternal straightening. He concluded, “For in much wisdom [is] much grief, And he who increases knowledge increases sorrow.” (Ecclesiastes 1:18 NKJV).  He was discouraged.  The more he learned, the more he realized he didn’t know. The more knowledge gained about  life under the sun, the greater was his sadness and hopelessness. Turn your back on God and this is where life will lead. 

I encourage you with the words of John recorded by Luke, “Every valley will be filled, and every mountain and hill will be made low; the crooked will become straight, the rough ways smooth, and everyone will see the salvation of God.” (Luke 3:6 CSB). God had a plan to “level the playing field.” It was and is the salvation of God!  His name is Jesus.  Can you hear Him calling?  “Straighten up, kids!  I will lead the way and be your example.”  He is the only way.  He is the only wisdom that can clean up the mess that we have made in the world and our lives.  Men cannot autocorrect, but Jesus can and will straighten up the “crooked places” in the world.  It is why He came to straighten the mess man  made.  Don’t be discouraged.  We have hope in Jesus.  Invite Him  and watch him straighten things up.