Pickle Heaven Press-James R. Johnson

something to help you laugh and think about life with Christ

when God gets in the way — October 7, 2026

when God gets in the way

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does God ever stand in our way?  Maybe!

Dean was still less than 20 years old, but she had accumulated a lifetime of bad habits.  About that time, she met Jesus and His sweet love transformed her.  The vise-like vices in her life began to release their grip.

Smoking, however, was a tough one.  She loved to light up a Marlboro light and was a pack-a-day kind of girl.  But she felt like the Lord would have her give that up too – and so she did.  She trashed a brand-new box of cigarettes that day.  It was a sacred commitment that she made to the Lord.

She managed okay without them, but stressful times intensified her desire to have a smoke.  One day life became too much, and she was desperate to light up.  But she knew that God would not approve, nor would her church friends in that small town.

So, she boarded a ship for Tarshish.  She drove her pickup truck in one direction for about three hours to a community where she had never been nor would she be known.  She walked into the convenience store and looked for the familiar red and white box.

But then a voice reached out and said, “Hey Dean, what are you doing here?”  No, it wasn’t God, it was a guy with whom Dean worked with back home.  Turns out his mother lived in that town and he visited her every weekend. 

So, Dean bought a soda instead and drove home.

Our God is quite amazing.  He has given us the freedom to make choices, be they good or evil.  He will not rescind that gift.  We are free to choose, but also responsible for the choices we make.  He does this because He is a just God. 

But because He is also full of grace, He does for us what He did for Dean.  The apostle Paul put it this way in 1 Corinthians 10:13, “No temptation has seized you except what is common to man.”  He reminds us that we all experience temptation.  And there is no unique or exceptional temptation we are forced to endure. 

He continued, “And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear.”  God permits us to be tempted because an untested faith is no faith at all.   But, because God is committed to us, He vigilantly stands with us during those times we are tempted. He intervenes and limits the degree to which the evil one can entice us. 

And then Paul says, “But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.” Paul anticipated that we will be tempted in the future, but he tells us that God will assist us to resist it.  He will be there to help us succeed.  

Isn’t that what He did for Dean?  He sovereignly worked out the circumstances so that her quest to sin took her to a secret and remote destination which brought her to the same town her coworker would be. 

God also worked it out so that they would convene in the same convenience store at the same time.  Her devious heart was instantly exposed. She recognized that God was at work, and that was enough for her to say, “No this isn’t really what I want.” 

So be aware!   When you are about to click on that forbidden website and Windows freezes up – that’s God.  When you’re about to walk into that dive and you get a random text from your mother – that’s God.    When you are on the verge of losing your temper and your little girl comes into the room – that’s God.   You might want to pay attention – and make a better choice.

A PRAYER: Lord, we invite You to freely intervene if we should wander.

This has been Jim Johnson and pickleheavenpress.com

May the grace of our Lord Jesus be with you always. 

Scripture passages are from the New International Version

slipping away — September 30, 2026

slipping away

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It was a frigid day in rural West Virginia, and yet a great day because a young man came to Christ that Sunday morning.  He asked to be baptized in the nearby Mud River. 

The Mud River, however, was more like the Mud Shiver because it was covered with a thick sheet of ice.  Pastor Terry Keaton, took an axe and chopped a big hole in it.   The congregation watched from a bridge as they both stepped in.  Pastor Terry said the words, and then slipped the man beneath the waters, 

BUT the current caught the man and swept him under the ice and down the river.   The pastor panicked!   Terry jumped out and tried to intercept the guy, frantically chopping holes as he went.  Several yards downriver, he was finally able to snag the new convert and reel him in.

Pastor Terry was determined to retain that new church member.

Ironically, other folks are slipping away from churches today, never to be rescued.  They were often present for worship, and some helped with VBS.  Some were Deacons, others sang soprano in the choir.  Many were once a part of the youth group. 

But something happened.  Maybe they had expectations of the pastor that were not met.  Maybe someone said something that didn’t sit well.  Or maybe the fire inside just went out – and they drifted away from church. 

It is estimated by polling organizations that about 3.5 thousand people walk away from the church in the U.S every day.   Unfortunately, most of those folks don’t have someone like Terry to chase them down and break the ice. 

Jesus told a parable about people who wander away from the flock.  He said, “What do you think? If someone owns a hundred sheep and one of them goes astray, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go look for the one that went astray?” – Matthew 18:12.

It was a rhetorical question with an obvious answer.  “Yes, certainly if one of the foolish sheep were to slip away from the flock, most anyone would make sure the other 99 were good, and then seek out that one lost sheep.” 

Well, what’s good for sheep – is good for people. 

Jesus went on to say, “In the same way, your Father in heaven is not willing that one of these little ones be lost” – 18:14.  The Father in heaven values the one.  One person is too much to lose.  He is not willing to write them off.  Jesus said, “I came to seek and to save the lost.” 

If heaven rejoices when a wandering sheep has been found, tears must be shed in the heavenlies when 3.5 thousand daily wander away. 

So, what can we do about this?  People who leave the flock are typically suffering from a church inflicted wound.  They have been hurt, but they don’t have the courage or maturity to speak to someone about it, so they gradually withdraw.  And this withdrawal is their cry for help.  They hope that someone might notice and talk to them about their hurt.

Unfortunately, the majority of church dropouts will tell you, “No one noticed.  No one cared enough to call and ask why they haven’t seen me lately.”   And this then becomes their primary justification as to why they need to leave that church.

Like our Father in heaven, we need to seek out those who wander.  The pastor should be an essential part of that team, but Paul reminds us that “we are members of one another.” – Ephesians 4:25. A pastor doesn’t impart a sense of belonging – that comes from the church family

When we look at that pew and see nothing, we need to say something.  We need to seek that person out, sensitively probe and listen to them. In my many years of pastoral experience I have found that this is the most crucial step towards restoring broken fellowship. 

So, let’s grab an axe and get to it! 

A PRAYER: Lord sensitize us to those in our church family. 

This has been Jim Johnson and pickleheavenpress.com

Scripture passages are taken from the NETBible ®

tea bag troubles — September 24, 2026

tea bag troubles

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You may be an old bag – an old tea bag to be precise.

It was a cold day, so he made himself a strong, dark, steamy cup of tea.  His daughter also asked for a cup.  Well – being a frugal fellow, he took the tea bag from his cup and swirled it around in hers.  The water became slightly tinged with an amber color. 

But then her son also wanted a cup.  So, grandpa recycled the soggy tea bag a third time and then handed the boy a completely tasteless cup of hot water.  

That scenario is not likely to really happen, but it does occur quite frequently in fact, in the spiritual realm.  

The first-generation Christian believer is deeply devoted to the Lord.  They have personally experienced God’s work in their lives and are wholehearted in their obedience.  Like the first cup of tea, this person’s faith is strong and vibrant.  They raise their children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord

But that second generation slips a notch in their priorities.  Other things are more important, and they find it easy to compromise.   Like the second cup of tea, their faith is weaker and diluted but has just enough color to it to appear to be real.  

The faith of the third generation declines even more.  God doesn’t much figure into life for them.   They are unmotivated to follow Him or obey His word. Like the third cup of tea, there isn’t much evidence of any kind of faith at all.

Dr. Bruce Wilkinson traces this kind of decline in his teaching “The Three Chairs.”  (You can find it on youtube.) 

Joshua was a first- generation believer.  He and his people walked through the Red Sea, fed on manna in the wilderness and watched Jericho fall.  Joshua 24:31 says, “Israel worshiped the Lord throughout Joshua’s lifetime and as long as the elderly men who outlived him remained alive. These men had experienced firsthand everything the Lord had done for Israel.” 

The key words here are, “experienced and first hand.”  Joshua and his generation experienced God and His working in a first-hand way and they were faithful to Him for life. 

But Judges 2:7 tells us that the next generation slipped. “The people worshiped the Lord throughout Joshua’s lifetime and as long as the elderly men who outlived him remained alive. These men had witnessed all the great things the Lord had done for Israel.”

The words, experience and first-hand are not used here.  What we find instead is that they witnessed.  These people watched and saw the wonderful things that God did to bring His people from Egypt to Canaan. But they had been children. They rode along in the back seat and watched as their parents forged the way of faith. 

The third generation is found in Judges 2:10. “That entire generation passed away; a new generation grew up that had not personally experienced the Lord’s presence or seen what he had done for Israel.”

This third generation was born in Cannan land.  The exodus from Egypt and the fall of the Jericho walls were all ancient history to them.  They didn’t experience nor did they even see the works of the Lord.   Consequently, the remainder of the book of Judges chronicles the moral chaos that characterized this group. 

So where do you fall in the family tree?  Are you a taster or a watcher or maybe you are of the third group that has done neither.  

If you wish, you can go to the kitchen yourself and make your own cup of tea using a brand new tea bag.   How?  Paul wrote, “Present your bodies as a sacrifice—alive, holy, and pleasing to God—which is your reasonable service” -Romans 12:1. 

Surrender to Him – today – and enjoy your tea!  

A PRAYER: Oh God, save us from a watered-down faith.  

This has been Jim Johnson and pickleheavenpress.com

Scripture is quoted from the NETBible®

bray without ceasing — September 16, 2026

bray without ceasing

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New neighbors have moved into our neighborhood – a couple of mangy mismatched donkeys.  They saunter up to the back fence whenever they hear us. 

My wife is ecstatic.   We have taken out a loan to keep them supplied with carrots and grain pellets.  They also crave animal crackers which ironically include donkey shaped crackers.  Clearly a case of cannibalism? 

They insist I give them my attention when they see me.  The bigger one brays (which is donkey speak for screams).  He, in fact, brays without ceasing – continually – non-stop, and unfortunately, he sounds like he has swallowed a flip-flop. 

He knows that I have the power and means to feed him and he won’t let me forget it.  I am annoyed and yet I marvel at his persistence.  He puts my prayer life to shame. 

Indeed, the Apostle Paul tells me that I am to, “Pray without ceasing” 1 Thess. 5:17.  – KJV.    What?  The only thing I do without ceasing is to breathe.  And I have sleep apnea so I can barely do that.  

So, does Paul really expect us to pray non-stop?  Well, that’s what he did.  In multiple places Paul used the word “always” to describe the way he prayed. (Phil 1:3; 1 Thess. 1:2; 2 Thess 1:11; Col 1:3).

And he told us that a guy named Epaphras prayed in the same way (Col 4:12).

What does Paul mean by this?  The words, “without ceasing” are translated from one Greek word (adialeiptos).  In other literature of the day, this word was used to describe the payment of taxes, a nagging cough, repeat military campaigns and the production of fruit on a tree. 

The word isn’t an “every second of the day” kind of scenario.  The book of Acts makes it clear that Paul did lots of other things than just pray.  This word carries the idea of doing something on a regular basis as a matter of habit.   It is constantly recurring, not continuously occurring.”  (Wiersbe) So…

– To pray without ceasing is to make prayer a regular part of our lives.

We should pray daily when we meet with God and read in His Word.  We might keep a prayer journal to hold us accountable to the commitments we make to others to pray.  Because my wife and I use a prayer journal each evening, we could say that we pray for many people, pastors and churches without ceasing.  We should pray when we gather with others at small group, or church. 

         But there is more to this. 

– To pray without ceasing is to live in conscious dependence on God. 

We know that without the Lord we can do nothing (John 15:5)   If we truly understand this, then spontaneous verbalized prayer will naturally and appropriately happen.  We will give thanks throughout the day when we see evidence of His goodness and pray when we encounter challenges.  When we wake up in the middle of the night and worry – we will naturally seek Him.

Jesus captured this so well.  He was extremely busy with so many things, and yet we find Him deliberately pulling away at times to pray (Mark 1:35).  

At other times He would stop and abruptly pray right the middle of what He was doing (Luke 10:21).  He was dependent on His Father, which made it natural for Him to pray as needed.  This kind of prayer isn’t limited by time or place.  The right aptitude is not required for prayer, but the right attitude is. 

For most of my Christian life I have enjoyed the regular habit of prayer, but its only as I have aged that I have begun to experience this attitude of prayer.  

I am very aware of my desperate need for the Lord and His intervention and grace in my life.  Sometimes I think prayers to that end and often give voice to them as well.  And yet I still feel like I fall short when I hear my neighbor, “bray without ceasing.”

A PRAYER: Lord help me do what is important to You.

This has been Jim Johnson and pickleheavnpress.com

May the grace of our Lord Jesus be with you always.

be prepared — September 9, 2026

be prepared

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I believe it was Woody Allen who said, “I am not afraid of dying, I just don’t want to be there when it happens.”

Like it or not, death is the single most certain factor we can expect in this life.  We know it’s coming – so should we prepare? 

The prophet Isaiah would say yes.  He was the spiritual advisor to Hezekiah, King of Judah.  Hezekiah had made some foolish choices that came with a foul consequence.

Isaiah 38:1 says, “In those days Hezekiah became ill and was at the point of death. The prophet Isaiah son of Amoz went to him and said, “This is what the Lord says: Put your house in order, because you are going to die; you will not recover.”   

Isaiah probably needed to improve his bedside manner.  He spoke the Word of God to the King – the dreadful news that he would die but Hezekiah was also given the opportunity to prepare for it.  Evidently time was provided for the King to do that.  The Lord could have taken him home instantly but decided it was important to give him time to prepare.  

It would seem that we also have that opportunity to “put our houses in order” before we should die.

But what about the years that precede death, when we are unable to earn an income?  Again – we need to prepare.  Solomon wrote, “Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider its ways and be wise!… it stores its provisions in summer and gathers its food at harvest” – Proverbs 6:6-8.

I currently serve as a hospice chaplain.  I am really sad when I meet a patient who is unprepared for their latter days – and there are a great many!  

As of today, 45% of older adult households aren’t able to cover their basic living expenses. 80% don’t have the resources to cope with widowhood, serious illness, or long-term care.  (National Council on Aging).

And yet retirement and death are always on the horizon of this life.  So, what can we do to put our houses in order?

– We begin with Faith Preparation

Jesus said, “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on him” – John 3:36.  We need to receive Christ’s gift today – if we are to have a bright tomorrow.

– And then there is Family Preparation

A shocking number of the elderly people for whom I care, are alone – often divorced, or widowed and even at odds with their kids.  They have little to no family support at a time that it is most needed.  

Scripture says that family should provide care for their aging parents.  Paul wrote in 1 Timothy 5:8, “If anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for his immediate family, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.”  

Financial help would be great, but far more important is the relational/emotional support that is greatly needed.

So, before you start going grey, make sure to nurture the family that God has given you.  Love them, affirm them, and be sure to forgive them.  Do that and they will be there for you when you need them.

– And then of course there is Financial Preparation.

Again, I am shocked to meet and care for many who had prospered in their earning years and yet end up barely subsisting on Medicaid.  They are shuttled off to sad nursing facilities because they lack the finances for anything better.

Live below your means today so that you have the means to live comfortably in your senior years.  Take the difference you save now and carefully invest it. 

There are a multitude of other steps you can take to turn your current income into a comfortable retirement.  Check out Dave Ramsey on the net for help!

An ordered house, is a comfortable place to live.

A PRAYER: Lord, we are behind.  Help us make up for lost time. 

This has been Jim Johnson and pickleheavenpress.com

Scripture passages are taken from the new International Version

why so many versions of the Bible? — September 2, 2026

why so many versions of the Bible?

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There are approximately 50 different English translations of the Bible which are currently being published.   Which is why, come Sunday morning the pastor may preach from a version that is different from the one on our laps and may not even match the version projected on the video screen. 

So, when the pastor tells us to read our Bibles, we need to ask, “Well, which one?”    Why are there so many versions of the Bible?

The Bible was originally written in Hebrew and Greek, so it must be translated for us – which is a challenge because…

– language evolves.  The KJV used the word “wist” in Mark 9:6.   Most of us, “wist” we understood what it means.  The NIV replaced it with the words “did not know” which certainly fits the word wist.  We need a Bible translation that reflects the language that we speak and understand. 

– there are different translation approaches.  

There is not agreement as to the philosophy that underlies translation

a. There is the word-for-word approach. (NASB) The object is to translate word-for-word what the ancient Hebrew and Greek manuscripts say.   This type of translation is reliably true, but a little wooden to read.

b. There is the thought-for-thought approach which strives to translate biblical ideas when words are not enough. (NIV)

For instance, Genesis 1:27 says, “God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them” (NASB).  The word mankind, or people would better capture the intended meaning here than the word man.

The disadvantage of this approach is that it sometimes results in “this is what I think it means” instead of “this is what it says.” 

– there is new manuscript evidence.   When the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered in 1946, they gave new insight as to how the ancient Hebrew language was used.  The scrolls expanded the meanings of particular words and so on.  A translator would want to incorporate this newly discovered information into a fresh translation.

– some readers have special needs.  A quick way to discourage a kid from reading the Bible is to hand them the King James.  They ain’t gonna understand it.  So considerate translators have provided children’s translations. (ICB)

There are some reasonable reasons to have multiple translations, but – do we really need 50 of them?   Publishers think we do! 

– publishing the Bible is big business. 

If every Christian were satisfied with just one Bible, the publishers would soon be out of business. The market would dry up.  So, they continue to crank out new translations and then promote the idea that the new version is essential to our spiritual health.    

And they expect the authors, who they also publish, to use quotations from their new Bible, so that readers will be influenced to buy the new version for themselves.  All this guarantees a good profit margin and steady revenue.

Bible sales net $350-500 million annually.   The two biggest producers of Bibles are Zondervan and Thomas Nelson.  Both are currently owned by secular publisher Harper-Collins which is owned by Newscorp – Rupert Murdoch’s massive media company.  Publishing the Bible is big, big business – unfortunately.

But we really don’t need so many Bible versions.  The differences between good translations are usually inconsequential.

So what version is best to use?   I prefer and strongly recommend the word-for-word versions – such as the New American Standard Bible (NASB) the English Standard Version (ESV) the New King James Version (NKJV) or the NETBible.com   

Why?   Because they accurately and meaningfully communicate word-for word what the inspired authors once wrote.  To translate in any other way is to allow culture to influence the meaning of the Scripture, when it is Scripture that needs to influence culture.   Culture changes over time, the Word of God does not. 

A PRAYER: Lord, I speak of Your Word.  May Your Word speak to me.

This has been Jim Johnson and pickleheavenpress.com

May the grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.

mohican miracles — August 26, 2026

mohican miracles

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I like to plan.  Sometimes I even plan to plan.  But my plans have their limits especially when they bump up against the sovereign strategies of God. 

Solomon wrote in Proverbs 16:1, “The intentions of the heart belong to a man,

but the answer of the tongue comes from the Lord” (NETBible®).  What?   Euguene Petersen’s paraphrase makes this easier to grasp.  He wrote in The Message, “Mortals make elaborate plans, but God has the last word.”

A case in point: I began planning 16 months in advance for a family gathering to celebrate the 50-year anniversary of my wife and I.   Along the way I watched as God confirmed my plans at times and confounded them at others.  

I decided to book 4 cabins at the extremely popular Mohican State Park in Ohio.  But I had to wait until exactly one year prior to the date to book them.  When the clock struck 8:00 am, I locked in the only 4 cabins available, better known as The Last of the Mohicans. 

I also booked a trip to an Amish Farm that featured a horse-drawn wagon ride through an exotic animal park (Would the horses be dressed in black too?)  Finally, I made a banquet reservation at an excellent Amish restaurant.

Our cabins were next to a tubing river, and our daughter was able to snag 21 tubes on clearance.  All four of our families were excited about the trip and we found a date we could agree on, (And that’s a miracle).  It truly felt like the Lord went before me and streamlined the process. 

BUT, when the time finally came, the forecast could not have been worse.  There was a high probability of storms – every single day.   These storms would wash away most of my best laid plans and I was deeply concerned. 

God took over the planning process, without asking me, and after some wrestling, I determined to trust Him with the outcome.

On Day 1 it was most definitely storming.  We had our eyes on the weather radar the whole day, and what we saw was a ring of fierce storms very near to and all around us. Hourly my wife would check her weather app, and hourly that ring surrounded us but the weather at the park stayed peaceful and dry.  I thanked God for the miracle!

Day 2 it was overcast but no storm – perfect for a 4-hour float on the river. 

While on the river, Sharie, my wife, injured her knee.  Definitely not a part of my plan. 

On Day 3 she was really hurting so we decided that the Amish Farm would just be too much for her.  (You know how crazy those Amish can be) so we all opted to stay near the cabins for the day, but I worried that the kids would be disappointed.    

Our cabin was situated right next to the shallow river.  There was easy access and a good view.  So, all 11 kids, from ages 2 to 17, were in the river playing, fishing, swimming, and floating all day long, while their parents happily rested and watched.  God provided just the perfect plan for us. 

Then I discovered that I had booked the dinner reservation at the wrong restaurant.  It was an hour-long drive from the campground.  We grudgingly loaded up but ended up being surprised by a beautiful and interesting ride through Holmes County Ohio, where we dodged many an Amish buggy.

This was topped off with a fabulous banquet, where laughter abounded, tributes were given, vows were renewed and dinner was served family style.  Tina, our full-service waitress even snapped some great family photos.   

It is good to make plans.  Proverbs 21:5 says, “The plans of the diligent lead only to plenty”- NETBible®.  And yet my Mohican memories remind me that we need to loosely hold onto the plans that we make. 

If God is to work all things in our lives together for good, then He should be free to redirect us when needed.  I am so glad that He did! 

A PRAYER: Lord, when my plans are shattered, remind me that your plans for me are not.

a sticky situation — August 19, 2026

a sticky situation

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Back in the days of cassette tapes, I was in a band.  And after we performed a concert, people would sometimes ask “Hey do you guys have any tapes?”  I would say, “Yes we do, I got one from the Eagles and Gary has one from the Gaithers.”  Most people didn’t appreciate my witty reply.

But I’d like to discuss a different kind of tape here – the sticky kind.

I was invited to speak at a marriage retreat.  There were several couples present and they shared much in common: each person had been married and divorced before, and each couple had lived with their current spouse prior to marriage.  Each couple was also quite troubled. 

And I was reminded of the parable of the duct tape. 

Think of fictitious Bill as a piece of duct tape (you can choose the color).  He is alone and longs to be wanted.   Like tape, he is ready to adhere when applied to another person.

Bill met Sally.  She is also alone and ready for a partner.  Bill fit the bill.  After a couple of dates, they ended up in the bedroom and became “one flesh.”  Their sticky sides met and they deeply bonded. 

It was more than physical. Their union was also emotional, mental, and even metaphysical in its nature.

After several months of dating, Bill tried to pull away.  But stick two pieces of tape to each other, and it’s almost impossible to separate them.  If you succeed, both pieces are mangled beyond recognition.  And what is left loses most of its stickiness.

Bill eventually married another, but it was a deeply troubled marriage mostly because Bill was emotionally mangled and had lost his stickiness in several prior relationships. 

Back in Genesis 2, God created one man and one woman and invited them to become one flesh with each other – to marry for life and bear children.

This became the template for mankind going forward. God expected us to commit to lifelong relationships and reserve our sexual passions for our spouse alone.

Any departure from this is considered to be immoral.  The Scripture says, “Marriage must be honored among all, and the marriage bed kept undefiled, for God will judge sexually immoral people and adulterers” – Heb. 13:4. NETBible ®

God expects us to honor the institution of marriage.  We do that when we say, “I do.”  We are also told to keep the marriage bed undefiled.  Sex was designed to take place within the boundary of marriage, not before it, or with anyone who is not your spouse.

The author indicates that to do otherwise is to be immoral.  The word in the Greek from which this is translated is, “porneia.” Notice the root word “porn.”

Back in 1st century pagan circles, there was a huge number and diversity of sexual deviancies.  So many that God would have needed to compose 1,000 commandments to address each particular offense – so He summed them up instead with this word, “porneia.”

But why would God be so stingy and deprive us of the pleasures of unrestricted sex?  Only because He wants us to experience the richest marriage possible. 

He wants to see two fresh pieces of tape, stick to and bond with each other, so that their relationship will flourish and even endure the hardships of life.  He wants to protect us from the trauma of being mangled by multiple sexual partners.

God is not limiting us – He is looking out for us! 

Many of us, including myself, have already blown it in this area.  Know that God’s grace and forgiveness are great when we seek it.  There’s no need to despair. 

But, we can get it right going forward, and we can teach the parable of the duct tape to our kids and grandkids so that they might experience God’s very best for them.    

A PRAYER: God, how we need your help in this area. 

May the grace of our Lord Jesus be with you

to the end — August 12, 2026

to the end

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I had a good friend who had a terminal disease.  His immune system was shot, and the doctor ordered him to remain at home to avoid people who might infect him.  But then my wife happened to run into him at Wal-Mart.

She asked him why he was out.  He said, “I don’t want my tombstone to say, ‘He was cautious!’”

Like my friend, there are some of us who are very aware that our time on earth is almost done.  Some can’t sleep because they fear they’ll never open their eyes again.  Others try to reconcile with distant family members.  Some rest in peace before they die because they know they are secure in Christ. 

Christ also lived in the shadow of His death.   What was on His mind during those days?   

John 13 begins the telling of the Last Supper.  This, of course, was the last meal that Jesus would share with His disciples before His crucifixion.  His execution would take place only hours later. 

The Apostle John wrote, “Just before the Passover Feast, Jesus knew that his time had come to depart from this world to the Father” – John 13:1. No question here, Jesus clearly understood that the time of His crucifixion had arrived.  

John continued saying, “(Jesus) Having loved his own who were in the world…”   

That is quite an amazing statement.  Jesus loved – who?  Well, those who were gathered around that table. 

They had left everything for Him.  They shared countless adventures together; they saw the glory of God penetrate the gloom of Israel; and together they suffered rejection.  They were a tight bunch, and Jesus had loved them well. 

Then John completed his sentence by saying, “He now loved them to the very end.”  His end was near, but His mind was focused on this group of people that he dearly loved.  This is quite amazing for at least two reasons.

One: Jesus was thinking of others when most would be centered on themselves.

And Two: Those disciples were going to disappoint Jesus over the next few hours.

They eventually left the supper that night to retreat to an olive grove called Gethsemane.  Jesus took His inner circle: Peter, James and John with Him, and asked them to watch while He prayed and wrestled with the Father over His crucifixion. 

It would be incredibly stressful for Jesus and He wanted them to be with Him and to pray for Him, but they fell asleep instead.  Jesus was deeply disappointed, but His love for them persisted.

Judas had been present at that meal.  But at Gethsemane he would betray the one that loved him with a meaningless middle-eastern kiss on His cheek.  A heartless betrayal, and yet Jesus would love even that man to the end. 

Jesus was apprehended in the garden and His hands were bound as they led Him away like a sheep to slaughter.  The disciples vanished like roaches when the lights come on.  It was every man for himself.  And yet Jesus’ love for them endured to the end.   

And then of course there was Peter, who covertly slipped into the courtyard of the home where Jesus was on trial.  Three times Peter denied knowing His master, when in fact he probably knew him better than most anyone else. But even Peter was loved by Jesus till the very end.

Jesus threw caution to the wind and loved His own – His ungrateful, unreliable, unpredictable own – until the end.  How comforting it is to know that He loves you and me with that same unrelenting love. 

Paul wrote, “Neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor heavenly rulers, nor things that are present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in creation will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord” – Romans 8:38-39.

A PRAYER: Lord, thank you; thank you; thank you for such love.

God bless you!

Scripture is quoted from the NETBible ®

a soothing aroma — August 6, 2026

a soothing aroma

/pickleheavenpress

Our granddaughter is in second grade and she is ridiculously cute.  Her auntie found a sweat shirt at an estate sale that she thought she might like.  Her grandmother, whom she calls Mammo, ran it through the washer and then gave it to her.

The top was too big for her, but she chose to wear it to a school event anyway.  When asked why by her mom, she said, “I like the way it looks, and it smells like Mammo.”

She treasured the familiar smell of someone that she loved.  Did you know that this is true of God as well? 

In the Old Testament era, God’s people would present “offerings” to Him.  The offering might be for the purpose of covering sin, or restoring fellowship with God, or maybe a freewill offering solely to demonstrate one’s love for Him. 

A variety of gifts were offered: bulls, goats, lambs, oil, grain, even wine.  But the offering always represented a heartfelt financial sacrifice made by the presenter. 

The offerings were placed on an altar of fire and as the smoke rose to heaven, the Lord metaphorically inhaled it and regarded it as a “soothing aroma.”    

The first instance of it in the Bible is found in Genesis 8:20-21.  Global sin was the order of the day, and God reluctantly brought global judgment because of it.  Noah and his family were spared, and once the waters had receded, we read, “Noah built an altar to the Lord. He then took some of every kind of clean animal and clean bird and offered burnt offerings on the altar. And the Lord smelled the soothing aroma and said to himself, “I will never again curse the ground because of humankind.”

God found the offering to be a soothing aroma.  An aroma is a fragrant scent that is pleasant to the nose.  To soothe is to calm a person’s emotions, to relieve, or to refresh them.  Noah’s offerings did that for the Lord.  

But then the phrase “soothing aroma” was used 38 more times in the OT to describe the burnt offerings that were made and the way they were received by the Lord.  When something is repeated 38 times, it must be important. 

It fascinates me – that a person is capable of giving to God, something that soothes and pleases Him – something that inclines Him to look upon us with pleasure.    

Does God still enjoy a soothing aroma?  He does. 

The Lamb of God became an offering for us.  Of Him Paul wrote, “…Christ also loved us and gave himself for us, a sacrificial and fragrant offering to God.”  Ephesians 5:2   

Christ offered Himself.  He satisfied the wrath of God that had been directed toward us.  He saved us and God regarded His offering as a fragrant, soothing aroma.     

Now as we stand in Christ, we have the opportunity to offer gifts that please the olfactory sense of God.   Consider Philippians 4:18. 

Paul was in the process of writing a thank you note to the Philippians for having assisted him financially in his ministry.  He wrote, “For I have received everything, and I have plenty. I have all I need because I received from Epaphroditus what you sent—a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice, very pleasing to God.”

The financial sacrifice given by that church was received as a wonderful fragrance, very pleasing to God.

As I pointed out, the offerings of the Old Testament were many and varied, but the thread than ran through each – was sacrifice.  When a sacrifice was made on behalf of the Lord, it was received as a soothing aroma.

We sacrifice today when we financially support God’s work, or we give of our time to serve God’s purposes or even to lay our pride at His feet.  He receives any sacrifice, made with the right motive, as a soothing and fragrant offering. 

So, when the Lord sniffs your way – what does He smell?

A PRAYER: Oh God, our hearts want to bring you joy.  Teach us how to do that

This has been Jim Johnson and pickleheavenpress.com

May the grace of our Lord Jesus be with you

Scripture passages are from the NETBible ®