Kiss of Betrayal

In 2004 a movie directed by Mel Gibson took the theaters by storm. No one could have imagined the impact this movie would have. This movie was The Passion of The Christ. It has been said that the domestic total gross of the movie was $370,274,604.

I think a person would have to be made of stone to have watched this amazing account and not be broken, challenged and thankful.

The details of the crucifixion is found in several different passages in the scriptures.

I want to focus on a part of the last twelve hours of Christ leading up to the crucifixion, which is not always given a lot of thought. This act is the betrayal of a kiss.

Lets look at Matthew 26:48-49

48: Now he that betrayed him gave them a sign, saying whomsoever I shall kiss, that same is he.Hold him fast.

49: And forthwith he came to Jesus and said hail master; and kissed him.

I mean, Judas was offering up to the enemy the man who was not only his friend, but was also his savior. Why would he call him master? Why would he choose a kiss to point him out?

To be honest, I wanted to go find Judas and hang him myself!

I was forced to look inside myself as I reflected on these actions. I couldn’t get that kiss out of my mind.

We are called to be the bride of Christ. I have been married a long time. I know a little something about what it means to be a bride.

I have had many co-workers, acquaintances and friends. I care about these people. With all of these relationships, I am only a bride to one. What kind of bride would I be if I didn’t share a more intimate, deeper relationship with my husband than I do with others in my life?

Let’s look at this in our spiritual relationship with our heavenly bridegroom, Jesus Christ.

How many times has the Lord tried to draw me into an intimate time of worship with him? How often has he longed for me to take time to sit at His feet and learn of Him through His word? Do I often put those times off and just play a praise song while I go about my business and call it worship? Do I just pick a verse out to quickly read on my way out of the door? In these ways, am I betraying my bridegroom by just offering up a quick “kiss” instead of realizing the importance of my time alone with Him?

The word betray means to prove faithless. Am I proving to be faithless when I don’t take the time to develop into the bride He is calling me to be?

Let’s be honest. There are always times when we must get things done. We can’t always spend as much time with the Lord as we would like. We all have things we must attend to. Like with marriage, some time away focusing on other things won’t hurt. It is when we allow it to become what’s normal for us that our relationship will suffer. I feel that as we determine to set this time aside for Him, He will redeem the time we need for the other day-to-day things we are all responsible for.

The word discipline is where we get the word disciple. We must learn to discipline ourselves to set aside time to read His word, listen to His voice, and worship Him. In this time alone, we will truly learn what it is to become one with Him. Let’s not betray His love with a quick kiss… let’s truly enter into the intimate relationship with Him that He has designed for all of us.

~Connie Robinson

© Andres Rodriguez | Dreamstime.com

Hey, Lord

Hey, Lord. It’s time my prayers were said. After all, it’s time to go to bed.

I’ve been real busy with things today. I haven’t found the time to pray.

Many chances today slipped through my hand.

I didn’t exactly sin though, Lord. I just didn’t do your command.

I spoke to my neighbor when I went out to get the mail.

I wonder if she is saved? Does she know that there’s a hell?

I would ask her, but I wouldn’t want to pry.

What if she got emotional? She may even cry!

There wasn’t time today to read Your Word

Susan’s husband is running around on channel three.

I just had to know if she’s heard!

I haven’t told my family how I have come to know Your son.

I am sure they must’ve noticed that something has been done!

My friend came by and I poured her a cup.

I would have told her about You, but You didn’t come up.

When I mention salvation, folks look at me strange.

If they don’t already know You, they don’t want to hear they need to change.

When I go to church, I listen. When they sing, I sing along.

The people at church know that I am saved.

I must not be too wrong.

I can’t seem to go to sleep. Think I’ll catch the late show.

I will talk to you tomorrow night, Lord. After all, I need to grow!

~Connie Robinson

WOMAN
Image Credit © Abdone | Dreamstime.com

Consider the Miracles

Have you ever been reading a scripture and wished you could ask them what they were thinking?  That recently happened to me while reading the book of Mark chapter six. It is about the wonderful miracles the disciples witnessed Jesus do.  They had seen Him heal a withered hand. He had cast out unclean spirits. They saw a little girl raised from the dead when Jesus spoke to her. They had seen Him heal the woman with the issue of blood. They had witnessed Him calm a storm.  Imagine how they felt seeing Jesus feed five thousand with five loaves of bread and two fish!

Later, Jesus had gone to a mountain to pray. Another storm comes up while the disciples are on a boat. The same men who had been walking with Jesus and witnessing His power become troubled.

~Mark 6:52: “For they considered not the miracle of the loaves: for their hearts were hardened.”

The definition of hardened here means dull, lacking in understanding. I wanted to ask the disciples how this could be possible with all of the miracles they had seen. Had they all just slipped their mind, really? I wished I could give them a piece of my mind!  Then it happened. I had a reality check.  How many times had I been guilty of the same thing?  God has done more miracles for me than I can count.  Over forty lumps in my breast disappeared over night. The Lord healed me of asthma. He miraculously healed me of cataracts. I was also healed of macular degeneration.  There has been much more I have seen Him do. How could I fall into fear and doubt when a new need arises?  I fail to remember the  “miracle of the fish and loaves “ in my own life.

Like the old song says, I will learn to count my blessings. Name them one by one. Count  your many blessings. See what God had done.

~Connie Robinson

Image Credit:

NIGHT STORM 2
©  Yanik Chauvin   | Dreamstime.com

Mama’s In The Kitchen

Most of us are familiar with the story found in John 6. It is about the miracle of the five barley loaves and two small fish. The crowd had been following Jesus, and it was getting late. They were all hungry. The only food there was the lunch of one small lad. The lad gave Jesus the lunch. Jesus took it and fed five thousand men. There was twelve baskets of food left over after. This is just one of the miracles they witnessed done by Jesus. He is still doing amazing miracles today.

The Bible says that the giver of the lunch was a lad. The definition of lad is a child, or a little boy. I want to go behind the scenes of this story.

There is a person who was a big part of this miracle process who is hardly, if ever, mentioned. The preparation for this miracle took place back at this child’s house. I haven’t met any little boys who bake bread or fry fish. I believe Mama was in the kitchen. She was busy cooking lunch for her son to take with him when he went to see Jesus. I can see her praying for her boy as she rolled out the bread. She must have asked God to use her son. Little did she know he would be used greatly that day.

He must have been taught about Jesus and who He was. He trusted Jesus to offer him his only food that day. All of us touch someone’s life. We must do our part to teach them of Jesus. We need to always be mindful to pray for those who are younger than us in The Lord. We may not be the one who is called to bring the word. We may not be the one who lays hands on those in the prayer line, but we all have a part to play. We are all needed to see God’s will accomplished. It doesn’t matter if I am the one frying the fish or a server. It doesn’t matter. I am determined to do my part to help others come to know Jesus. I want to help others see the miracle that HE is. The mother didn’t mind that she was home cleaning when the miracle of the loaves and fish took place. She was praising and thanking God that she had been obedient to do her part. She had helped advance The Kingdom of God!

~Connie Robinson

Image Credit:

COOKING TOOLS
© Michael Levy | Dreamstime.com

Lessons From A Bicycle Shop

I recently found myself taking a trip down memory lane. My mind went back to the mysterious world of second grade.

It has been more years than I care to admit since I was in the second grade. However, I learned some valuable lessons at the ripe old age of seven that I still put to use today.

I learned that the Shirley Temple curls my grandma insisted on putting in my hair every morning were always going to be an embarrassment to me.

I learned that if you are feeling sick, don’t eat the hotdog. It will not end well.

Every morning Mrs. Beatha would begin our class with a story. That was  my favorite time of the  school day.

One story has stuck with me all of these years.  It is the story of an old bicycle shop.

The story tells of a little boy who had a bicycle he loved. One day he discovered it had a flat tire .He pushed  it down the street where the bicycle shop was. His friends told him that the old man there was really good at fixing flat tires, or any other bike emergency.

The little boy pointed out his problem to the old gentleman who assured him he knew just what to do. He even showed the little boy other bikes he had repaired waiting for his friends to pick up.  The little bike owner began his walk home. At first he felt good about leaving his bike with the old man. He was skipping along, thinking about how great it was going to be to be able to enjoy riding again! It was going to be good as new! Then, other thoughts began to come into his mind. What if the man didn’t really know how to fix his bike? Did he really fix all of those other bikes?  Were the stories he had heard of the old man fixing things just made up?

He even began asking himself why his tire went flat. Even if his tire was repaired, would it just go flat again?  Why should he believe it could ever be any different?

He went running back to the bicycle shop before it closed.  The old man tried to convince the little boy to leave the bike with him. He asked him to give him a chance to prove he could in fact fix it.  The little boy refused to listen. His mind was made up.

Reflecting back on this kids story, I found that in it was a valuable lesson for us all.

How many times have we taken things to God, just to turn around and try to fix it in our own fleshly ways?  I am not always patient. I find myself not giving God time to answer my prayers. Not allowing him to move in my behalf.  I have to learn to trust God more to fix my broken situations.

I have to admit that I have been dragging some “flat tires” of my own around for too long.

Who would have thought that such lessons could be learned in the second grade?  I am thankful for Mrs. Beatha, and the story of the old bicycle shop.

~ Connie Robinson

Kiss of Betrayal

In 2004 a movie directed by Mel Gibson took the theaters by storm. No one could have imagined the impact this movie would have. This movie was The Passion of The Christ. It has been said that the domestic total gross of the movie was $370,274,604.

I think a person would have to be made of stone to have watched this amazing account and not be broken, challenged and thankful.

The details of the crucifixion is found in several different passages in the scriptures.

I want to focus on a part of the last twelve hours of Christ leading up to the crucifixion, which is not always given a lot of thought. This act is the betrayal of a kiss.

Lets look at Matthew 26:48-49

48: Now he that betrayed him gave them a sign, saying whomsoever I shall kiss, that same is he.Hold him fast.

49: And forthwith he came to Jesus and said hail master; and kissed him.

I mean, Judas was offering up to the enemy the man who was not only his friend, but was also his savior. Why would he call him master? Why would he choose a kiss to point him out?

To be honest, I wanted to go find Judas and hang him myself!

I was forced to look inside myself as I reflected on these actions. I couldn’t get that kiss out of my mind.

We are called to be the bride of Christ. I have been married a long time. I know a little something about what it means to be a bride.

I have had many co-workers, acquaintances and friends. I care about these people. With all of these relationships, I am only a bride to one. What kind of bride would I be if I didn’t share a more intimate, deeper relationship with my husband than I do with others in my life?

Let’s look at this in our spiritual relationship with our heavenly bridegroom, Jesus Christ.

How many times has the Lord tried to draw me into an intimate time of worship with him? How often has he longed for me to take time to sit at His feet and learn of Him through His word? Do I often put those times off and just play a praise song while I go about my business and call it worship? Do I just pick a verse out to quickly read on my way out of the door? In these ways, am I betraying my bridegroom by just offering up a quick “kiss” instead of realizing the importance of my time alone with Him?

The word betray means to prove faithless. Am I proving to be faithless when I don’t take the time to develop into the bride He is calling me to be?

Let’s be honest. There are always times when we must get things done. We can’t always spend as much time with the Lord as we would like. We all have things we must attend to. Like with marriage, some time away focusing on other things won’t hurt. It is when we allow it to become what’s normal for us that our relationship will suffer. I feel that as we determine to set this time aside for Him, He will redeem the time we need for the other day-to-day things we are all responsible for.

The word discipline is where we get the word disciple. We must learn to discipline ourselves to set aside time to read His word, listen to His voice, and worship Him. In this time alone, we will truly learn what it is to become one with Him. Let’s not betray His love with a quick kiss… let’s truly enter into the intimate relationship with Him that He has designed for all of us.

~Connie Robinson

Back to the Basics

God gave me a revelation while watching the Super Bowl earlier this year. Remember when Pittsburgh had a fourth down with five yards to go near the end of the game? Instead of trying to get just those five yards for a first down, they tried for a big play… and failed. I believe if Pittsburgh had gotten that five yards, they would have had a chance to win that game. They tried to slow down Green Bay’s momentum with a big play, when all they had to do is get five yards to help build their momentum.

I was thinking about that when God asked me, “How many times have you done that?” I was a little shocked, so I said, “What? What do You mean, God?” He answered, “How many times have I told you to get five yards so that you can continue carrying the ball, but instead you tried to go ten to fifteen yards down the field to make a big play.” That’s when I realized… five yards IS a BIG play on fourth down!!

Now, I’m a competitor, so I started thinking about the times I have been able to make a come back when my opponent had the upper hand. During those moments when I was behind and my momentum was kind of slow, I couldn’t stop my opponent’s momentum by trying to steal the show with some awesome play… I just had to work on the small things and then I’d notice how my small steps would become medium steps, then big steps! You get the idea!

God was trying to tell me this: that’s where our momentum comes from…. by going back to the basics!!!

~by guest contributor, Fred Mitchell

Pocket Surprise

I’m currently doing a student teaching at an Elementary School, and when you work in a school you see just about anything and everything.  Well, during this week I was teaching Math to a class.  I thought the lesson went great, because I knew the material and got a lot of feedback from the kids.  I was pumped up thinking I captured ALL my students’ attention!  When the students were leaving the classroom to go into another class, one of the girls came up to me.  I thought she was going to tell me she learned something new from my most awesome of all awesomeness lesson.  She leaned in close to my ear and whispered, “The girl beside me has a caterpillar in her pocket ,and she was playing with it the whole time during Math class.”  BANG!  I came down from my clouds to a crash landing on the ground.  I stood back and looked at the girl with wide eyes, and then I called the girl over that had the caterpillar in her pocket.  She knew what she was coming up to me for and handed over her Math class joy.  I took the caterpillar outside to set him free from his crowded pocket prison.

Then I thought about how many times things that are so small get me distracted in everyday life.  I mean, think about it… there are people you talk to, issues you have to deal with, places that you have to go, and things you have to do.  But, these things we make such a BIG deal about are so small in comparison to what we should be doing, and the sad thing is we don’t see it because we are so focused on what we’re doing.  I was focusing on my lesson and the little girl, her caterpillar.  These things seem to be more important to us because we are focusing more on them.

Sometimes my focus gets distracted from where my focus should be.  Sometimes I am that little girl with the caterpillar in her pocket who is not paying attention as God is trying to teach me something. God is like, “Elyse!  Hello!  I’m trying to teach you something important that will help you.  You need to know this.  FOCUS!”  But, I’m so caught up with my little joy that my attention is taken away from Him and what’s important.  We need to turn loose of those caterpillars in our pockets and put our focus back on the things that ARE important.

Value of Instructions

When I was about 6 years old, I learned a very important lesson. My family went to watch my brother play football over at Rocky Ford park. My parents went to video the game and left my sister in charge. Sister in charge? No way! Stubborn little me decided I wouldn’t stand for that, so I yanked my arm out of her hand and ran off.

I decided to go play on this really big hill, not thinking about all the sharp rocks that were spread out all over the place. What do you think happened? I slipped! My feet went right out from under me and I hit those rocks so hard that I split my knee wide open. I remember thinking, “Oh no! What have I done?” My leg was gushing blood, but I didn’t really feel it. Instead, I was thinking about how badly I was going to catch it from Elyse when I made it back over to the football field. When I walked up to her, she freaked out and ran and got my parents. Needless to say, I ended up in the back of an ambulance and headed to the hospital where I got 24 stitches to sew up that gash.

So, besides a really cool scar, what did I get out of this experience? Well, for one thing, I have a permanent reminder of the consequences of not listening to someone who has been put in charge of me. It didn’t matter that it was my sister, I should have listened to her and done what she said. After all, she was acting on the authority of my parents. When I disobeyed her, I was really being disobedient to my parents. I paid for it and learned a valuable lesson: Do what you’re told and things will go better for you!

“Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long upon the land which the LORD your God is giving you.” ~ Exodus 20:12

~by guest contributor, Nathaniel Brannen

Unkempt

Visions of an unkempt yard brimming with thorny purple wildflowers invaded my thoughts as sleep tried to come.

My mind revolved the image over and over again as I drifted on the brink of sleep. Understanding began to come, as I realized our souls are like that unkempt yard, filled with thorny “weeds” that keep us from God’s best for our lives. Those weeds are the pain of rejection, anger towards someone, or pride. You know the thoughts that you would never dare breathe aloud to another soul? Yeah, those are weeds too.

Those weeds and thorns become rooted deeper as we are filled with pain and resentment. The longer we let those weeds and thorns take root in our souls, the harder it is to get rid of them. There is hope though. God’s grace is more than enough to root the thorny mess out of our lives!

We try to hide those weeds, but after a while it becomes more difficult to maintain our calm exterior. We want others to believe we have tended to our hearts with much time and care, but eventually those weeds take over. Finally, we must make the decision to do some “yard” work saying, “Whatever it takes to get rid of this mess, I’ll do it God!”

Like giving in to the sleep that finally came to me, we must all fully surrender to the Father. We must be willing to let Him root out the thorns and thistles keeping us from pursuing Him.

So, what are you waiting for? Wake up and get to digging!

~Madison Sanders