Understand God?

Recently I stood beside the casket of a two month old baby.
There are very few times in my life that I wish I wasn't
a pastor.

This was one of them.

What do you say to a grieving mother and grandmother to
minister to them after a useless, preventable death?

What do you say when they ask the "Why did God allow this?"
question?

I have done some thinking on this matter and I have concluded
that I don't want to understand God.

If I could understand God he wouldn't be much of a God. And
I need a big God. One who is greater and stronger than all
of my troubles.

Buddha can be easily understood by man for he is made by man.
Jehovah God is not a created being. He is just the great
"I Am".

So, the price that we pay for having a God we cannot under
stand is that sometimes he is going to allow things that hurt
us and we don't understand why.

At the point of the end of our understanding, trust must begin.
We must learn how to trust a God whose ways are past finding
out and whose riches are unsearchable.

We must hold tightly to his hand at all times, and trust him
to do His best for our lives.

Isn't trust what living for God is all about anyway?

You need a God you cannot understand.

Crooked Nails

God loves crooked nails.

I recently built a house for my family. What an adventure!

I learned a lot of things, among which is that there is
much waste created when you build.

Especially nails.

I am still finding nails on the ground after a rain. I
suppose that's going to go on for awhile.

Nails are discarded by the carpenter because they are
of no use to him. Crooked nails can't be driven.

They are tossed aside, useless, stepped on and over like
trash.

I was working one day and my stapler jammed. I looked
around for a nail to unjam it and found a straight one.

I quickly learned that a straight one wouldn't work. I
needed a crooked nail.

Since there was no shortage of them, I quickly found one
and it worked perfectly.

Amazing...What the carpenter had tossed aside as useless
actually was useful after all.

Then it hit me. God loves crooked nails. He loves to
take the crooked nails of our society and use them.

People that have been tossed aside, considered useless,
stepped on and over by most are actually valuable to
God.

Of such is the kingdom of heaven. And oh, I'm glad it's
that way.

Today, if you feel useless, don't despair, there is yet
hope for you for when you are weak, He is strong.

Alone

Alone

Do you feel alone?

You are not the first nor will you be the last. We can be in a room full of
people yet still feel as if we're all alone.

Elijah felt that way once. He was alone.

In a cave.

Elijah declared to God that he was the only one left that still served Him.

God quickly set him straight by telling Elijah that there were 7,000
others who had not bowed a knee to Baal.

Imagine...

Elijah thought he was alone and there were 7,000 others just like him.

Elijah was alone because he never connected with those who were just
like him. Why did he not connect?

Was it because he didn't take the time or thought he didn't have time?
Maybe he meant to but never got around to it. Or perhaps he was so
selfishly involved in himself that he failed to see the others.

Or....maybe he knew about the 7,000 but because they didn't meet his
standards he didn't think they were in the church?

Are you alone? Maybe today would be a good day for you to reach out
and connect to someone.

You may find that you will no longer be alone.

Personal

This posting is on a personal matter.

I am six months away from being forty. Doesn't seem possible.

I am feeling a need to take better care of my body. So, I am beginning, not just a diet, but a life change in my eating and exercise habits.

To begin this momentous occasion, I am going to endeavor to lose thirty pounds by September the first. In order to motivate myself, I am asking for sponsers for at least $1 per pound for every pound I lose.

The money raised will go toward Sheaves For Christ. For those of you who may not know, SFC is the youth fundraising arm of the UPCI. Most of the money raised helps missionaries, people who are near and dear to my heart.

Sooooo, will you come on board and help me become a new me and help missionaries all over the world as well?

Sign up today and I will keep you posted on my progress via email.

God Bless You!

Daryl Clenney

Rest

Rest

Picture coming home after a good day's work. Picture yourself in your recliner with a tall, cold, glass of ice tea. A good book in your lap.

Or maybe an Astro's game on the radio.

That's rest. Or at least restful.

But that's not real rest.

Noah sent out a dove from the ark. She flew all over her world and never found rest. When she returned to the ark, Noah took her in. Noah's name means "rest".

You will never find rest in the world. Only in Jesus. "Come unto me," Jesus said. "And I will give you rest."

People look for rest everywhere but in Jesus. They waste their lives trying to satisfy their soul with things that are temporary.

True rest can only be found in Jesus.

Do you need rest today? Try Jesus. You will find...

REST