Pickle Heaven Press-James R. Johnson

something to help you laugh and think about life with Christ

no skin off his feet — May 22, 2024

no skin off his feet

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I have a friend who has three passions: basketball, the guitar and frugality.  One day they all came together.  It was in his college days when he played a lot of hoops.  So much in fact, that he often developed large blisters on the soles of his feet.

He would meticulously cut away the dead skin and apply ointment to his wounds.  But one day he looked at an excised patch of skin and wondered. 

He placed it between some books for a few days, where it dried out and became perfectly hard and flat.  He then trimmed it into the shape of a guitar pick. 

Pleased with his new economical creation, he began to strum his guitar.  Unfortunately, his organic guitar pick, quickly disintegrated into a puff.  The skin of his foot turned to dust in his hands. 

What a great reminder of the truth in Genesis 3:19. Adam and Eve had forfeited everlasting life in the garden when they chose to snub the will of God.   God detailed their consequences in this way, “By the sweat of your brow you will eat food, until you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you will return.”    

Dust from whence we came, and dust to where we’ll all go.   From Adam to the present day, the number crunchers believe that about 109 billion people have lived and died.  That’s a pretty big dust heap, isn’t it? 

The fine folks of the funeral industry tell us that “dust to dust” is not just a poetic expression.  It takes considerable time, but the final remains of a person are eventually reduced to a handful of dust. 

This stark reality prompted Job, the Old Testament Patriarch to ask the question, “If a man dies, will he live again?” – Job 14:14

Good question!  Will he?  Will a person who dies ever live again? 

Jesus must have thinking of Job when He spoke these words in John 11:25. He said, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live even if he dies…”

Yes, a person can overcome death and live again IF they have believed in Jesus. 

This life comes to us in at least two installments. In John 10:10 the Savior said, “I have come so that they may have life and may have it abundantly.”

He assumes what many of us experience.  We wander through life like zombies.  There is a deadness that grips our emotions and strangles our hopes and dreams.  It is a shallowness that cheats our relationships with others and with God.  We often feel like a soda that’s lost its fizz! 

But Jesus promised to resurrect us from this soul death with new life – abundant life.  A life worth living and wonderfully rewarding. 

The second installment comes later.  In 1 Cor 15:51-52 Paul wrote, “Listen, I will tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed— in a moment, in the blinking of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.” 

A time will come when the dust of those 109 billion will be stirred and the saved will be raised to everlasting life. 

But how can we be sure?  There are other isms that hold to some form of resurrection.  They may believe it, but only one faith leader has died and has been raised to life again – and that would be Jesus.

On the third day He arose again according to the Scripture and there were over 500 skeptics who saw Him, spoke with Him and were convinced.  (1 Corinthians 15:6)  We shall be raised by that same almighty power.

It’s good to know that no dust cloth will be needed in heaven.

A Prayer: Lord what a wonderful hope you have given us.   Help us be generous enough to share the news of it with others.

This has been Jim Johnson and pickleheavenpress.com

May the grace of our Lord be with you always.

Scripture passages are from the NET Bible ®

the way we drive — May 15, 2024

the way we drive

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It occurred to me the other day that the way we drive a car tends to reflect the way we do life in general.  The reckless teenage boy screams around the corner assuming he is all but immortal.  The cautious elderly lady motors along a good ten miles below the speed limit.   We really do tend to express our personalities by the way we drive.

So, what if they traveled by car in the first century?  What if Jesus had entered Jerusalem in a Mustang convertible instead of on the foal of a donkey? 

Let’s start with Paul. I picture him in an ambulance, screaming along at 120 miles per hour, passing through town after town with the life-saving message of the Gospel.  He actually was quite a driven individual.

Peter, we might find pulled over by a car with red flashing lights.  The patrol officer says, “You were going 70 in a 50 mile an hour zone.  Peter says, “I did not!” “Yes, you did!” says the officer.”  “It wasn’t me!”  “Yes it was,” says the officer.  To which Peter replies, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”  Then suddenly a song from Sheryl Crow begins to play on the car radio.

Clueless Philip, he would be the guy driving the wrong way on a one-way street. 

You might find doubting Thomas arguing with his wife in the car.  “Thomas the GPS says turn here!”  “I don’t believe it,” he says.

Diabolical Judas, he would be the guy who bypasses the traffic jam by driving on the shoulder of the road.  Ooh I detest that guy.

We might find the sons of thunder, James and John, duking it out over a parking spot.  

And Jesus, well He might just pick up every hitchhiker He saw.  And when they left His car He might say, “Go and hike no more.”

Goofy thoughts for sure, but it illustrates the fact that we express our personalities by the way we drive.

And I am ashamed to admit this – because my driving has often sent the wrong message.  When I was a young Christian, there was a bumper sticker that was popular with believers.  It said, “Honk if you love Jesus.”   People assumed I was a passionate Christian because I honked all the time – but it was out of frustration rather than a love for my Lord. 

I have been challenged by words like these in Titus 2:7-8.  There Paul encouraged Titus to… “be an example of good works in every way. In your teaching show integrity, dignity, and a sound message that cannot be criticized, so that any opponent will be at a loss because he has nothing evil to say about us.”  

Titus was to be a good example in, “every way.”  This surely would have included his driving habits!  For him it possibly meant, “make sure you maintain a safe distance from the donkey ahead of you.” 

For us it means to be polite on the road.  If you are cut off don’t go racing after the perpetrator in rage.    Yield that parking spot to the elderly man in the station wagon.   Respect the laws including the speed limit. 

Paul told him that a good example should especially permeate the way that Titus delivered the Gospel message.   To do anything less would open the door to criticism and provide fodder for the Gospel foes. 

Oh my!  I know there were times when I had just taught a Bible study and then drove home in a way that tarnished the message I had just delivered.  Sometimes I would honk at someone and then hope that they were not from my church.

Well, I am glad to say that as the Word of God has taken root in my life, I am far more patient and attentive to the rules of the road than I once was.  I hope the same can be said of you. 

A Prayer: Lord I know I’ll be tested again in this area.  Help me to respond well!

This has been Jim Johnson and pickleheavenpress.com

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

Scripture quotations are from the NETBible ®

we want to go camping!  — May 8, 2024

we want to go camping! 

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We were hopelessly motoring around Custer State Park in South Dakota.  It had already been a long day when we finally realized that we were lost.   The park was a vast expanse – roughly 10 miles wide by 10 miles deep and our campsite was playing hide and seek with us. 

In the spirit of General Custer, I was ready to make my last stand.  So, I suddenly pulled the car up next to a construction crew and strongly exhorted my wife to ask for directions.   I wasn’t going to do it of course.

She was quite flustered, and it showed, but she stuck her head out the window and said, “Uh, we want to go camping!”  (Hmm an interesting way to ask for directions!)

Well, the man leaned back on his shovel and pondered his answer.  He said, “O really?”   Awkward!  She was embarrassed and the rest of us were entertained.

We didn’t know where we were headed.  Some of us experience that kind of confusion in the spiritual realm.

We believe that God is sovereign, and has a plan for our lives, but what we experience day-to-day doesn’t always make sense to us. 

There have been the good times which we have counted as blessings.  But there have also been some hard times sandwiched in between.  There have been seasons of plenty, but also seasons of want. 

There was that job that opened just when it was needed but it ended up in a lay off just 5 years later.  There were spans of time when the nearness of God was incredible, and other times when He seemed to be absent.

It makes us wonder, ”Lord, where are you taking me?  Help me to understand!”

Paul answered that question in Romans 8:28-29.  He wrote, “And we know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose, because those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son…”  NETBible ®

Many of us have verse 28 memorized.  It’s of priceless encouragement, but it’s verse 29 that we need to consider here.  It says that “he also predestined (us) to be conformed to the image of his Son.”

The word “predestined” tells us that God’s plan for us reaches back to before we were ever born.  The word “conform” tells us that we are still an imperfect work in the process of development. 

This is His roadmap for us– a plan to conform us to the likeness of His most wonderful Son, so that we reflect His character, and operate by His ethics.  It is to value what He values, and to disdain what He rejects. The result is what the Scripture refers to as “godliness.” (1 Timothy 6:11)

It is a work that God started the day we were saved and will continue till we meet Jesus face-to-face.  Paul put it this way, “For I am sure of this very thing, that the one who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.” –  Philippians 1:6.

In the meantime, He uses the multifaceted experiences of life to mold and make us; to sharpen us and shape us so that we resemble Jesus more today than we did yesterday.   Our character is like clay in the supple hands of The Potter. 

So, know that the issues that you face, even today are being used by God to fulfill His plan for you.

I once sat in my office with a married couple who disagreed with a pastoral decision that I had made.  She went for my jugular when she said, “We thought this church had a “godly” pastor!”   That deeply wounded me!  Fortunately, most did not share her opinion. 

But, the opinion I value the best and the character I covet the most – is that of my Savior and I am so glad He is busy producing godliness in me.

A PRAYER: Have your way in my life Lord.

This has been Jim Johnson and pickleheavenpress.com

May the grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.

Scripture references are from the NETBible.com

an encouraging word — May 1, 2024

an encouraging word

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My wife has taken up the palette and easel to become a painter.   She is doing pretty well!  In fact, I encouraged her to send her finished art to our adult children to hang on their refrigerators.

I’m funnin’ ya’ of course, but that is certainly one way they could encourage her artistic endeavors.

Encouragement can come in the form of pictures on the ice box and other helpful activities, but let’s focus on verbal encouragement for now. 

Hebrews 3:13 tells us we all need a daily dose of it.  It says, “But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness.”

This is a command directed to us and it is something that we should offer to those around us on a daily basis.

Most encouragement is kind of like milk.  It has a short shelf life.  It expires and then we have to run to the store to get more.  So, we need to encourage each other regularly.

The author tells us why.  He says, “so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness.”   There is a sin principle which is at work in this world.  Think of it as the sun at work on your skin.  The UV rays penetrate and damage your skin.  Get enough of it over time and you’ll end up with a leathery look.

Likewise, we are bombarded by the destructive lies and the lusts of this world.  It erodes our ego.  Over time it harms our souls and causes us to become insensitive and indifferent to spiritual things.

Encouragement is like sun block.  It keeps the UV rays of sin from penetrating and protects us from damage.

To experience encouragement, we need to be together.  Hebrews 10:25 says, “Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another…”

The author spoke of people who gave up the habit of church.  He pleads – don’t do that because being with other Christians is where encouragement is found.   

Sunday worship lifts us up, the message challenges us, the classes provide personal interaction and the casual conversation at the coffee table is sweet (especially if your church serves donuts as mine does). 

But Sunday worship is not enough. We need to be in relationship with people whom we know, love and trust. I have a friend who was chronically depressed.  He told me that he would often go to small group discouraged but leave feeling great.

So how do we speak encouragement to one another?

– Make it positive.  Sarcasm and encouragement do not get along.  A compliment bathed in sarcasm, is like a chocolate covered olive.

– Make sure what you say is true.  Flattery falls flat.  Don’t tell her she looks like a model when she doesn’t.  When we lie, we imply that the truth may be painful for them to handle – and they sense it.

– Our words should have substance.  To say you look nice – is nice, but insufficient.   Focus on issues of character and virtue and service.   Tell her that you are proud of the way she handled her surly boss.  Tell him that he did well when he shared his faith with his uncle.

It would be nice if we all lived home on the range where seldom is heard a discouraging word.  Ah, but we do not.

But we can change that.  We can start by being the first and most frequent to encourage others.  It’s crazy how the encouraged, will reciprocate.

My grandson was in the midst of potty training.  He would occassionally fail to succeed, but he always ended those sessions by saying out loud, “Good try.” 

I suppose that we could encourage ourselves, as he did – but it is so much more meaningful and powerful when it comes from someone else.

A PRAYER: Lord my own soul feels a little leathery, help me to create an encouraging community.

This has been Jim Johnson and pickleheavenpress.com

May the grace of our Lord Jesus be with you!

Scripture references are from the New International Version.

the journey of the soul — April 24, 2024

the journey of the soul

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I bought a new cell phone.  My old one was having memory issues, it garbled messages and it was having a rough time recharging.  Which ironically is also how my wife describes me.

The girl at the store opened the phone case and took out the SIM card.  That card contains the essence of my virtual identity.  She slipped the card into the new phone, and I was good to go.

Hooray, my virtual identify was not lost, it was just transferred to a new home.

Believe it or not, this helps me to understand a big existential question – What happens to a person when they die?

Well let’s discuss the soul.  When your parents put your birth on the calendar, God did not withdraw a soul from an existing repository.  Your soul was conceived right along with the rest of you.  It came into being at that moment, but it became an everlasting entity from then on. 

Your soul essence was placed in your body.  I am somewhat disappointed because I feel like my soul should have been placed in athletic body.  But the Lord knows best. 

Anyway, the soul remains in the body until death occurs.  At that time, the body is vacated, and the soul of the Christian goes to be with the Lord.  Like a hermit crab that seeks a bigger shell to inhabit, our soul longs for bigger things.

Paul wrote, “Therefore we are always full of courage, and we know that as long as we are alive here on earth, we are absent from the Lord for we live by faith, not by sight. Thus we are full of courage and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord.” – 2 Corinthians 5:6-8

He argued that the Christian can only be in one of two places – either on earth confined to our mortal bodies, or in heaven with the Lord.   There is no “time out” in Purgatory for bad behavior, nor does the soul ever sleep.  It’s either fixed in our functional earthly body or in heaven.  Jesus said to converted thief on the cross as he was dying, “Today you will be with me in paradise.”  – Luke 23:43.

The soul of the person who fails to trust in Jesus is also separated from their body at death and immediately placed into a situation that the Bible describes as being one of eternal torment. 

Jesus described it when told the parable of the rich man and Lazarus.  Both men died.  Humble Lazarus was pictured as being carried off to a blissful heaven, whereas the miserly rich man was carried to a painful place.  From there he cried up to heaven, “…send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue because I am in anguish in this fire.”  – Luke 16:19-31

So, what happens to the soul after all this?   

One day Jesus will return to this earth, and the souls of the faithful will return with Him.  Paul wrote, “God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep as Christians.”  – 1 Thessalonians 4:14. 

Then their interred bodies will be raised and be made new and imperishable – an eternal body fit to house an eternal soul.   Paul went on to say, “For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a shout of command, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.” – 4:16

And that is the journey of the soul.  When our bodies fail us, the essence of who we are does not die.  It just gets inserted into a new eternally fit habitation.  It’s a little more complicated than transferring a SIM card, but God gets the job done.   

So be warmed if you belong to Him.  Be warned if you don’t!  

A prayer: Lord this truth enables us to face the future without fear.  Thank You

This has been Jim Johnson and pickleheavenpress.com.

May the grace of our Lord Jesus be with you!

Scripture passages are from the NETBible ®

an offensive gift — April 17, 2024

an offensive gift

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I have a sweet friend who happily teaches at an elementary school.  Ladonna posted a note, not long ago on Facebook.  She said, “Throughout my years of teaching, my students have brought me little gifts from time to time. It may be a rock, a picture they’ve drawn, or a bracelet made from a pipe cleaner.”

“Today I received another sweet gift.”  She included a picture of this gift.  It was a container of Secret deodorant!  She concluded by asking, “Do you think this student is trying to tell me something?” 

I bet you a hundred bucks she smelled her pits that day just to be sure. 

I’m sure he meant well, but regardless it was kind of a goofy, maybe even an offensive gift.

Ironically, Jesus also lacks tact when He gives His gift. 

He offers us the gift of salvation, but He first must make us aware at how desperately we need it.  He lets us know that…

– Without Him we are incapable of doing what He considers to be good. 

He said, “Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it remains in the vine, so neither can you unless you remain in me.” – John 15:4. 

– Without Him we don’t even have a desire to be good.

Again, He said, “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him.” – John 6:44

– and without Him we don’t even understand what that good is.

Jesus said, “Although they see they do not see, and although they hear they do not hear, nor do they understand.” – Matthew 13:13

We have proven Him correct by the many and varied ways we have chosen to sin.  It’s as Paul said, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” – Romans 3:23.   

We treasure the idea that Jesus loves us.  But this same Jesus regards people as being totally corrupt and possessing nothing that makes us attractive or acceptable to God.  Basically, He says, “We stink!”

We mock the preacher in dowdy dress, who stands on the corner with a sign that says “repent.”  And yet Jesus freely used the word as well.

– He said, “I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” –   Luke 5:32

– He held people responsible for failing to repent.  “Then Jesus began to criticize openly the cities in which he had done many of his miracles because they did not repent.”  – Matthew 11:20

– He predicted a terrible outcome for those who did not repent. He said, “Unless you repent, you will all perish….!  – Luke 13:3

OK Jesus we get the message: we stink. Though we don’t usually think of ourselves as being sinners – You do.  And in the end its your judgment that matters. 

So, what do we do?  I was a lazy teenager, I didn’t shower as often as I should have, but I frequently slathered on deodorant.  Is that TMI?

We need more than that.  Paul said, “You were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, and by the Spirit of our God.”  – 1 Corinthians 6:11.

That will take away the stink – a good washing.  Jesus provides it for those who go to Him.  Our sinful past is washed away by the flow of His blood shed at Calvary.

He then gives us His Spirit – His version of Ice Blue Secret.  The Spirit helps to keep the stink from returning. 

Are you aware at how desperately you need Jesus’ gift?  Have you noticed the odor yet?   Jesus has, and He offers you the help you need.

It’s not too late to acknowledge that you are a sinner in need of a Savior.  Whisper that to Him in a prayer.  He will hear and He will save.

A Prayer: Save me Lord – from my sins and myself.

This has been Jim Johnson and pickleheavenpress.com

May the grace of our Lord Jesus be with you

Scripture passages are from the NETBible ®

shoe pile — April 10, 2024

shoe pile

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For 12 hours each day I taught the Bible to house church leaders in Beijing.  Sunday was my last day in China, and I was to bring the message at a clandestine house church meeting. 

My translator and I were the first to arrive.  Following the custom, we removed our athletic shoes and left them outside the apartment door.  My schedule was intense: preach, then quickly exit to drive to the airport to ride a 747 on home.  A tight schedule.

Folks began to show up.  Their arrival times were staggered so as not to draw attention from the authorities.  Eventually, about 100 of us were jammed together for a glorious time of worship. 

After the last Amen, I was alarmed to realize that I was seriously behind schedule.  I snatched my stuff and exited – only to run into a mountain.    

I found a pile athletic shoes that looked much like mine (maybe because they were all manufactured in China.)  I tore into them looking for my pair.  Shoes were flying around like it was the BOGO sale at the shoe store.   

I rifled through them and even gave a couple of pairs the smell test.

After 5 eternal minutes I remembered some wise advice that I once heard, “If the shoe fits, wear it.” 

Ah but they were all 2 to 3 sizes too small.  And then it hit me: look for the clown- sized shoes.  Found em – and I was on my way. 

Now I wonder if you might join me in my shoe search?  In Ephesians 6, Paul described for us the spiritual armor that God has supplied for the Christian.  Most of us understand the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit.

But our footwear is a little more puzzling. Paul told us to prepare for spiritual battle by “…by fitting your feet with the preparation that comes from the good news of peace.”  – Ephesians 6:15  NETBible ®

He used the sandal of the Roman soldier as his model.   His “caliga” was a thickly-soled sandal that was strapped around the ankle in several places.   Nails studded the sole much like golf cleats.

Those shoes were not made for running but for standing.  The soldier needed stability for hand-to-hand combat. 

Paul tells us that the Gospel gives us that kind of spiritual stability and confidence.  It’s the “good news of peace” – a promise of being at peace with God. (Romans 5:1)

The shoes of the Gospel is the confidence that we who believe now belong to God, through placing our faith in the finished work of Christ on the cross.  It is the conviction that Jesus is the way the truth and the life and that our eternal future is determined by what we do with Him.

The Gospel enables us to stand unwavering in our faith even while it is besieged.  And it is, isn’t it?  As always, we face a myriad of theological frontal attacks on our faith.   

Our culture insists on reshaping our theology.   We are pressed to transfer our faith from what the Scripture says, to what culture wants the Scripture to say.   Current statistics, in fact, indicate that the majority of younger Christians today reject the idea that salvation comes through Christ alone.  Looks like our inferior shoes are slipping.

My time in China was intimidating.  I was in hostile territory, speaking to people who had been indoctrinated from birth with Mao’s anti-God teaching.

I could have been arrested at any moment, but I was there anyway because I believed the Gospel with all my heart – that it was absolute truth, so desperately needed to spiritually liberate the Chinese.

I urgently needed my Gospel shoes in China, and thank God, I didn’t have to frantically hunt for them at the door.

The battle for the mind also rages in your community.  God, therefore, has provided shoes for you too – just your size.  Put em on and take your stand.

A prayer: Lord when the world pushes on us, may we stand immovable!

This has been Jim Johnson and pickleheavenpress.com

May the grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.

step on the crack — April 3, 2024

step on the crack

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I was walking recently when it occurred to me – since my mom is now secure in heaven, I am now free to step on the cracks in the sidewalk.  What a relief!  

That is a crazy superstition – probably generated by an ancient obsessive compulsive.  And yet most of us once cautiously hopped over many a crack on the way to school.

So, what is a superstition anyway?  It is a belief or behavior which is irrational and grounded in the fear of the unknown.  It’s the understanding that certain events or things will bring either good or bad luck. 

Now did you know that there is superstition in the Scripture?  Wait a second!  Let me explain. What I mean is that the Scripture sometimes tells stories about superstitious people. 

Consider Acts 28:3-6, “When Paul had gathered a bundle of brushwood and was putting it on the fire, a viper came out because of the heat and fastened itself on his hand.  When the local people saw the creature hanging from Paul’s hand, they said to one another, “No doubt this man is a murderer! Although he has escaped from the sea, Justice herself has not allowed him to live!”  However, Paul shook the creature off into the fire and suffered no harm. But they were expecting that he was going to swell up or suddenly drop dead. So after they had waited a long time and had seen nothing unusual happen to him, they changed their minds and said he was a god.” – NETBible ®

Paul became a snake handler – not by choice.  The Maltese natives regarded the snake as a sign that fate was meting out justice to Paul for a former crime.  When he shook it off unscathed, they changed their minds and promoted him to a god.

At another time the people of Israel turned the Ark of the Covenant into a rabbit’s foot.  They believed that by carrying the Ark into battle, victory would be guaranteed. (1 Samuel 4:3)

Judge not, because we also have our little superstitions.  Some of us believe a four-leaf clover will give us fantastic luck.

I recently watched a basketball team of Christians duke it out on the court.  One player stepped up to the free throw line and put an unusual spin on the ball before he took his shot as if it would help him score.  He performed this ritual with every free throw.

Some of us have a lucky shirt, or pair of shoes that must be worn to seal a business deal, or to golf a respectable game.

At other times we are concerned that we might accidentally do something to put ourselves in jeopardy like have a black cat cross our path or pass beneath a ladder. 

Shayna refuses to talk about her mother’s cancer because she believes it will hasten her death.

The truth is this: God is in complete control of all things.  Fate, chance and luck have no power over us or impact on us.  They are concepts that do not exist.  Proverbs 16:33 states a liberating principle: “The dice are thrown into the lap, but their every decision is from the Lord.”  

If ever fate had power to impact us, it would be in throwing of the dice.  But Solomon tells us that the Lord even controls how the dice roll.

Romans 8:28 tells us that “He works all things together.”  He commands everything in our world and the universe at a large.  He is behind it all, working it all together. 

So, what then does God think about our superstitions?  He says this, “reject those myths fit only for the godless and gullible and train yourself for godliness.” – 1 Timothy 4:7.

Forgettaboutit!  When things are good, know that God is refreshing you. When they are difficult, know that He is refining you.  Either way it’s all God – the same God who so thoroughly loves you.

A Prayer: O God help us to transfer our faith from the frivolous to You.

This has been Jim Johnson and pickleheavenpress.com

May the grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.

Scripture passages are from the NETBible (R)

a full cup — March 28, 2024

a full cup

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Our church was participating in communion.  A group of us stood at a table.  The bread had been received and we were preparing to drink the grape juice.  The pastor held up a tiny cup and said to us, “This is the cup of His blood shed for the forgiveness of sins. Take and drink.” 

And we did – except for the guy standing right next to me.  His cup was empty – dry as a bone.  Wow!  I wondered, “What sin did this guy commit that was so bad that he was denied communion?”   

Or maybe this was still another evidence of “shrinkflation.”  Just not enough Welch’s in the bottle to serve everyone.  

Well, it’s most likely that the juice in the cup had leaked out or those who had pre-filled the cups accidentally skipped over that one.

Regardless of why, the pastor quickly handed the confused guy a replacement – and he was able to commune with the Lord and us.

The Lord’s Supper is a symbolic rite, but our little service made me wonder, “Is it possible for an individual to stand before God one day, and find that he too is holding an empty cup?”

Communion was given to perpetually remind us that Christ shed His blood on a cross to cleanse us from sin and put us in good standing with God. 

So, I suppose the question here is, “Did Jesus shed His blood for some and not all?”  John the Baptist said no.  He saw Jesus and said, “Look, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” – John 1:29. According to John there is a cup for everyone – world-wide.

Jesus also told us that His sacrifice was for all.  He said in John 6:51, “I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats from this bread, he will live forever. The bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”  He gave Himself for the lives of those in the entire world!

Paul agreed in 1 Timothy 2:6 where he told us that Jesus gave himself as a “ransom for all.”

Evidently there is a cup of redemption poured out and prepared for every individual who will have ever lived.  No one will ever peer into an empty cup when they stand before the Lord.

But – not all will be redeemed!   Though Christ died for the whole world, many in the world will nevertheless perish in their sins.

I have officiated at many communion services, and inevitably there have always been some present who have declined to participate.   Their reasons varied, but for some, they chose to let the tray pass, because they did not identify with Christ.  They had never come to believe in Him and trust Him as their Savior.

Maybe they came to church out of curiosity.  Or maybe they were grandparents who were visiting family and the family asked them to go to church with them.

But the tray is passed to grandpa, and grandpa quickly passes it on.  There was a full cup prepared for him in that tray, but he let it slip by – a tragedy.

Equally tragic – I recently sat down and spoke with a mother, who had come to faith late in life.  But she was passionate about Jesus and wanted her adult son to have his chance to meet the Lord. 

So, she set the cup before him, but he refused to drink.   This mom is now profoundly sad, because her boy was recently involved in a car accident which took his life.

She is inconsolable now because he is gone and because he had never come to Jesus.  She doesn’t expect to ever see him again. 

The cup is full!  Continue to drink from its lifegiving flow if you know Him.  Take your first sip if you don’t.   

A Prayer: Lord thank you that there is a cup of redemption for each one of us.

This has been Jim Johnson and pickleheavenpress.com

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

Biblical references from the NET Bible ®

what’s the plan? — March 20, 2024

what’s the plan?

/pickleheavenpress

My wife and I are still reasonably healthy and yet – we recently moved into a nursing home.  We bought a house that was originally designed to be the last home of an aging couple. 

So, they built for themselves a practical one-level ranch.  Included were grab bars positioned next to the toilet and the bathtub for the day that their legs would lose their lift. 

There is a nice bench in the walk-in shower for a mid-shower rest.  And the halls in the house are wide enough to accommodate a king-sized wheelchair or a dump truck if needed.

They were thinking ahead and were therefore able to comfortably live out their last days in the home that they had built. 

The Lord applauds that kind of planning and preparation for the future.

For instance, Proverbs 21:5 says, “Careful planning puts you ahead in the long run.”   I believe ahead is quite a bit better than behind.”

Consider the ant for example. Solomon wrote, “Watch it closely; let it teach you a thing or two. Nobody has to tell it what to do.  All summer it stores up food; at harvest it stockpiles provisions.”  – Proverbs 6:6-8

The ant plans for the future.  He gathers and stores when he can, so he will have food when it is needed.

There will certainly be someone who would object saying, “Planning is contrary to believing.  We need to walk by faith and trust God for the future.”

Well, we certainly do need to trust God.   Proverbs 16:9 says, “We plan the way we want to live, but only God makes us able to live it.”  Our plans need to be made on our knees.  

But planning is not at odds with our faith.  Jesus said, “Is there anyone here who, planning to build a new house, doesn’t first sit down and figure the cost so you’ll know if you can complete it? If you only get the foundation laid and then run out of money, you’re going to look pretty foolish. Everyone passing by will poke fun at you…” –  Luke 14:28-30  Jesus clearly understood the need to plan.

So for what do we plan?

Sarah is headed off to college, – but she needs to check out the job market before she gets that degree in bagpipe technology. 

Lamar is so excited about his beautiful brand-new baby girl.  Oh, but there will be an expensive wedding in her future.  He may need to start setting aside a little money for that. 

I have friends who do a yearly inventory of their marriage, and then make specific plans for dates, trips and so on to help strengthen their marriage in the year to come.

Terrell and Tammy are in their fifties now.  They are finally starting to plan for retirement, but the projections are not looking so good.  They really regret not having started to save when they were younger.

Planning works with lesser things as well.  Who hasn’t gone on a trip and forgotten their toothbrush?  Consider downloading a travel checklist app or create your own.

Store the list in your computer and print it out and use it each time you pack for a trip.  You’ll never forget your toothbrush again, and the airline passenger next to you will thank you for it.

And what about your forever future?  We can plan and prepare for that as well.  John 3:16 says, “For this is the way God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.”  NETBible ®

How does the old adage go, “When we fail to plan, we plan to fail.” Seems true enough to be in the Bible.  

As for me I am planning to go sit down and take a shower!

A PRAYER: Lord pry us from the present to help us plan for what’s ahead.

This has been Jim Johnson and pickleheavenpress.com

May the grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.

(Unless otherwise noted, Scripture is from THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language © 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson. All rights reserved.)