EMERGENCY!!!!

December 28, 2009 

 Emergency! Emergency! 

 Sharon Jaynes Today's Truth  

"Look to the LORD and his strength; seek his face always" (Psalm 105:4NIV).

Friend To Friend
My husband, Steve, graduated from dental school in 1981. For the first two years, I was his only employee:  his dental hygienist, dental assistant, receptionist, and insurance clerk.  On the days that I was not helping him, I worked for another dentist in town.  I was so exhausted most of the time that our joke became, "Sharon works six days a week and cries on the seventh." 

One thing that amazed me, in starting a new practice, was all the emergency phone calls that Steve received on nights and weekends.  I usually answered the phone and asked the caller several questions, one of which was, "Mrs. Jones, how long have you been having this problem?"   Invariably the patient would say, "three days," "two weeks," "a month."  I always thought, "So why did you wait until Saturday to call?"  Of course, being the sweet person that I am, I never said that.

One night the phone rang at about 2:00 a.m.  I groggily picked up the phone and managed a weak, "Hello."

"Hello," the woman on the other end stated.  "My son is having a terrible toothache.  Is the doctor in?"

Where did she think he would be, other than "in" at 2:00 in the morning?   "Yes ma'am, he is.  How long has this tooth been bothering your son?"

"Oh, I'd say for about two weeks," she answered.

So why did you wait until now to call (thought, not said, of course). I spoke with this mother for a few more minutes. Something about this call signaled a red flag in my mind. Then I asked,

"Ma'am, how old is your son?"

"Twenty-seven," She answered.  "My son is twenty-seven-years- old." 

I was so shocked that I quickly sat up in the bed, accidentally jerking the phone cord out of the wall, and disconnecting the caller.  She did not call back.  I had envisioned a distraught mother with a crying five year old.  But twenty-seven?  Oh my.

I laid back down complaining and grumbling.  "Lord, why is it that people won't go to the doctor regularly but only want help on demand when they have an emergency?"

When I got quiet enough to listen, I heard God's still small voice whisper to my heart -

"Now you know how I feel."

Let's Pray
Dear Father, I am so sorry that I tend to come to You only when I have an emergency.  I know that You long for me to come to You every day simply to tell you how much I love You and how thankful I am for all You do for me.  Today, I want to say just that...I love You.  Thank You for Your loving kindness toward me, Your little child.
In Jesus' Name,
Amen.

Now It's Your Turn
I hope you laughed at today's devotion...at least cracked a smile.  Doesn't God have a wonderful sense of humor?  Now let's think about the lessons learned.
Do you tend to pray more often when you are in need?

If you are a parent, how would you feel if your child only talked to you when he or she needed something?

As a parent, what sort of conversations do you long for?  What does your heart good?
Now, what do you think Your Heavenly Father longs to hear from you?
I always love to hear your thoughts.  Come by for a visit at www.facebook.com/sharonjaynes

Christianity Is Simple

 
I fear that somehow you will be led away from your pure and simple devotion to Christ (2 Corinthians 11:3, NLT).

Dear Friends,

Christianity is really very simple. Many people try to complicate it in all manner of ways.

Much of what we call Christianity today is nothing more than the tradition of men. Paul wrote, "I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtlety, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ" (2 Corinthians 11:3, KJV).

After five years as a student of Princeton and Fuller theological seminaries and 58 years of walking with the Lord, my faith is very simple. I just seek to love God with all my heart, soul, mind and strength, trust His promises, and obey His commands.

In all my writing and whatever I do, I try to make that central. It took me years to figure out that the true Christian life is not complicated. It is just like the Lord to make His way so simple that a child would understand and comprehend -- but we are so prone to complicate God's ways.

Nobody sat down with me and explained most of the things that we are teaching at Campus Crusade for Christ. My associates and I have learned by doing it. Most of the truths which I have spoken and written about are from the front line of spiritual warfare. The important truths which I learned in seminary were a confirmation of what I already believed, mainly a profound respect for and the divine inspiration, authority and inerrancy of God's Word, the Bible.

The God who created the universe did not make it difficult to know Him. He came to earth disguised as a slave -- the God-man, Jesus of Nazareth -- not as a grand, ceremonial religious leader with pomp and circumstance, such as an exalted member of the Sanhedrin. Of course, before Christ came, the ancient Israelites lived under a complicated religious system God had given them, but that was for a special purpose, to point to our Lord's coming and grace in the future. "So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith" (Galatians 3:24, NIV). Peter later called that religious system, "A yoke that neither we nor our fathers have been able to bear." (Acts 15:10, NIV).

"And this is his commandment, That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment" (1 John 3:23, NLT).

Yours for helping to fulfill the Great Commission each year until our Lord returns,

Bill Bright

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The late Dr. Bill Bright was Founder and President/Chairman Emeritus of Campus Crusade for Christ, an organization which began as a campus ministry in 1951 and now has more than 27,000 full-time staff and up to 500,000 trained volunteer staff in 196 countries in areas representing 99.6 percent of the world's population. In the past 50 years, Campus Crusade for Christ has seen approximately 6 billion exposures to the gospel worldwide. The film, "JESUS," which Bright conceived and funded through Campus Crusade for Christ, is the most widely translated and viewed film of any type ever produced. Since its use began in 1980, the film has been translated into 839 languages and viewed or listened to by over 5.7 billion people in 228 countries. Dr. Bright was also the author of more than fifty books. Dr. Bright recently co-founded Global Pastors Network to "Touch, Teach and Train" a group of 5 million new house churches around the world 24/7/365 at http://www.globalpastorsnetwork.org.

Copyright (c) 2003, Bill Bright. All rights reserved. However, readers may copy and distribute this message as desired, without restrictions in number, as long as the content is not altered. Forwarding this e-mail to friends is encouraged. For many evangelistic and spiritual growth materials, visit the Campus Crusade for Christ Web site at http://www.ccci.org. See http://www.campuscrusade.org for Bill Bright's own materials.

Christmas Treats

'Twas the month after Christmas, and all through the house
Nothing would fit me, not even a blouse.
The cookies I'd nibbled, the eggnog I'd taste
At the holiday parties had gone to my waist.
When I got on the scales there arose such a number!
When I walked to the store (less a walk than a lumber).
I'd remember the marvelous meals I'd prepared;
The gravies and sauces and beef nicely rared,
The wine and the rum balls, the bread and the cheese
And the way I'd not said, "No thank you, please."
As I dressed myself in my husband's old shirt
And prepared once again to do battle with dirt---
I said to myself, as I only can
"You can't spend a winter disguised as a man!"
So--away with the last of the sour cream dip,
Get rid of the fruit cake, every cracker and chip
Every last bit of food that I like must be banished
"Till all the additional ounces have vanished.
I won't have a cookie--not even a lick.
I'll want only to chew on a long celery stick.
I won't have hot biscuits, or corn bread, or pie,
I'll munch on a carrot and quietly cry.
I'm hungry, I'm lonesome, and life is a bore---
But isn't that what January is for?
Unable to giggle, no longer a riot.
Happy New Year to all and to all a good diet!