by Pastor Cecil | Oct 4, 2010 | 2 Corinthians
II Corinthians 4:6-7
“For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.”
Back in the late 70’s I pastored a church in Burns, Oregon. We were having a church party and each family was to bring a “white elephant” gift. For those of you who are in the dark, a “white elephant” gift is an inexpensive, humorous item which has little or no value.
We searched around for something to take. I found an old brass pot in the back yard that someone had thrown away long before we moved into the house. It was covered with dirt and grime which testified of its long life exposed to the elements.
Against Joyce’s objections, I brushed away some of the grime (not all, so it could be seen in all of its miserable condition). We wrapped it up in beautiful wrapping paper and away we went to the party.
The couple who chose that gift at random acted pleased as punch. They held it up and people howled with amusement at the silly old pot. That was just the start of a great adventure for the pot. The next holiday that arrived, we received a gift package and when we opened it, there was the brass pot. Back and forth it went between the two families. Any excuse to send the pot was used.
It has been over 30 years ago and still those wonderful memories remain. It was not the silly pot that created the memories, but the thought behind using it to transmit the message that we were thinking of each other.
I think it would be a terrific idea if we were to think of our self as something like an old brass pot that is covered with dirt and grime. The Lord is able use us in spite of our dirt and grime. It is not what is on the outside that matters, but the love of God that transmits His love and concern.
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
360-570-0074
PastorCecil@Daily-E-Votional.com
by Pastor Cecil | Aug 31, 2010 | 2 Corinthians
II Corinthians 5:18-19
“Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation.”
Do you ever feel hopeless and helpless when trying to help others? Across the years I have been chosen to attempt to reconcile differences between people. As I read today’s Scripture I note that this is a ministry. I have had many situations that I was unable to restore, but some were successful.
There was the couple who, on their way to see a divorce lawyer, decided to stop by my office first. It was almost a hopeless case, and I held out little hope for reconciliation since they said they argued constantly and about everything.
I asked them to turn their chairs facing each other and hold hands and begin to talk. They asked, “About what?” I said, “Anything.” So off they went. It was not over five minutes later that they were raging at each other as if I were not in the room. They turned and said, “See, that’s what we were telling you about.”
I had been praying to know what to say when it dawned on me what I had heard. They had repeatedly said “Why don’t you?!” Then the other would repeat it back. I had them carry on a second conversation, but they could not say “Why don’t you?” . . . this time they could only say “How can I?”
My advice to all who want to be reconciled to another person is to “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul and mind” and ask the question, “How can I?”
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
360-570-0074
PastorCecil@Daily-E-Votional.com
by Pastor Cecil | Aug 26, 2010 | 2 Corinthians
II Corinthians 1:3-4
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.”
I recall once sitting in a dentist’s chair and hearing him say, “You will only feel a little stick and then some burning.” Suddenly there was fire on the mountain! It might be just a little stick to him, but to me it was agony! I would have argued the point but his hand was in my mouth and then it was so numb I could only manage , “Hoennt glub feoee.” Or something like that.
In contrast with that incident was another trip to a dentist in Ontario, Oregon. As he was about to start he asked if I wanted deadening? I thought he was kidding, but he shared how he never used deadening himself when he had his teeth filled. He said the pain was less from the drill than from the needle. I tried it and even though there was pain, I could tolerate it. I could also talk without slobbering afterward. I have never asked for deadening since.
Comfort does not necessarily mean comfortable! Let me say it in a different way. Comfort can often be given even though the pain remains. There is no way we can remove another person’s pain, but we can be there beside them, remaining silent until they speak.
Wow! That is so very important. We often feel that we have the right or even responsibility to speak when silence is called for. Words of comfort can often be rash and brash. Comfort is most often afforded by presence not presentations.
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
360-570-0074
PastorCecil@Daily-E-Votional.com
by Pastor Cecil | Jul 29, 2010 | 2 Corinthians
II Corinthians 5:1
“Now we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands.”
One of my most agonizing times was being separated from my wife, Joyce, and our three children for an entire year. I was assigned duty at a radar station in extreme northern Newfoundland.
The days, weeks, and months seemed to drag by during this period of separation. Each letter I received became a prized possession and I relished every word. The phone calls home once a week were fantastic, but left me with tears in my eyes and a lump in my throat when the call ended. Let’s face it—I was homesick!
Homesickness is a funny thing (except when you are experiencing it). It can blind you to the things that irritated you when you were home, or it can create a determination to not be such an irritation yourself when you return.
When I was in Newfoundland I was busy about the Lord’s business. I was not a minister, chaplain or anything of the sort, but I preached and taught and counseled as the Lord opened the doors. I tried to be the Lord’s faithful servant. But my heart was always on home.
Back when I was a young boy, I knelt at an altar in Camas, Washington, and changed my citizenship forever. From that very moment this world stopped being my home. My permanent home address is Cecil A. Thompson, Heaven, Eternity. I have never been to heaven. Surprise! Surprise! Even though I have never been there, it is my home and I am homesick for heaven!
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
360-570-0074
PastorCecil@Daily-E-Votional.com
by Pastor Cecil | Jun 7, 2010 | 2 Corinthians
2 Corinthians 11:13-14
“For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, masquerading as apostles of Christ. And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light.”
I have to confess that back when I was a police officer, our patrol cars were much different than modern day patrol officers’ experience. For one thing we had analog radios. I really am not sure what that means, but during certain times of the year and when conditions were right, we had radio skips.
Let me explain that I was serving in Nampa, Idaho. Each car had a numeric designation and when a call came into the Control Center our car number was called to respond to the call. It is hard to believe, but the patrol cars in Lakeland, Florida―thousands of miles away had exactly the same numbers for their patrol cars. Some calls were very confusing, but when a call came to check out an alligator in someone’s yard we figured it was a Florida call and not one of ours.
Perhaps you can guess where I am going with this illustration from a spiritual point of view. There are many religious sounding voices out there that appear to be one thing, but a closer examination will show that they are not in accordance with God’s Word.
To determine if something is spiritually true or not, we must inquire of the Lord and seek to discover from the Bible what is true and what is false. Dare I say it―there are some so-called Bible study groups that are nothing but gossip sessions and/or spending time reading what someone else has to say about a spiritual issue. Be suspicious! Be very suspicious! You may be receiving a call from the wrong “dispatcher”!
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
360-570-0074
PastorCecil@Daily-E-Votional.com
by Pastor Cecil | May 27, 2010 | 2 Corinthians
2 Corinthians 4:6-7
“For God, who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ made His light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.”
I wonder why we recall the things we do. There was an event that took place almost fifty years ago. I cannot remember the name of the pastor or his wife, but I remember that they were both gracious and loving to all they met.
We had been invited to their home for a meal and the crowning touch was one of the wife’s homemade pies. As I recall it was a cream pie in a graham cracker crust. It looked so good that we could hardly wait to taste it.
The wife was stunned when she tried to cut the pie. For some reason the crust was so hard she could hardly cut it. She did not want to serve it, but we begged her to bring it on. She almost had to saw each piece out. We laughed as we crunched our way through. The filling was delightfully ― but, oh, that crust!
Sometimes we question why our earthen vessels are so crunchy and hard. When we do, we need to remind ourselves that it is not our crunchy crusts that matter, but the Jesus inside of us. He is the One who is sweeter than honey!
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
360-570-0074
PastorCecil@Daily-E-Votional.com
