Holiness is the very character of God.
And God says to us…”Be holy, because I am holy.”

I’m not sure we get it.

Holiness in us can only come as the result of a right relationship with God. And, a right
relationship with God can only happen by believing in and accepting Jesus Christ as
our Savior. It really is all about Jesus!

We need to recognize that our position in Christ automatically sets us apart from the
world. Peter calls us a “Holy Nation and the people of God”. He also tells us how to
live holy lives in I Pet. 1:13-16.

I’m just not sure we get it.

On Monday we are going to celebrate the life of my Mother-in-Law.

Opal Payne was an awesome lady who loved the Lord and followed Christ with her living.

She was holy!
Yesterday, Charlotte found a 3×5 card in one of her Mom’s Bibles. It had these words
typed on it: “Holiness is not the way to Christ – Christ is the way to holiness.”

She got it!

Let’s get it.

I’ve been talking to a lot of frightened people recently.
They’ve seen their retirement funds shrink, or they are
struggling to make their mortgage payments. Many of
them are losing hope.

Now there is an interesting word…HOPE. When the
Apostle Paul opened his letter to Timothy, he said,
“…by the command of God our Savior and of Christ
Jesus our hope.” I Timothy 1:1

Everything in life changes – Except Jesus
Everything in life ends – Except Jesus
We leave everything behind at death – Exept Jesus

Our hope is not in our bank accounts or posessions.
Our hope is not in our relationships with people.
Our eternal hope is only in Jesus – He is the Hope of Glory!

Paul said it so well in writing to the Colossians: “And this
is the secret: that Christ in your hearts is your only hope
of glory.” We are more than hopeful, our hope is certain.

Missions is a priority at Crossroads Church…which makes this old missionary very happy. Last year we took a team to El Salvador and worked closely with ENLACE (Equipping churches to transform communities). Let me share a recent report from ENLACE about the impact of their ministry in the remote area of Los Abelines. More than 75 percent of the villagers (11 villages) live in extreme poverty and earn less than one dollar per day. Three churches have installed 300 latrines and clean water has been brought to 271 households for the first time.

Here is the fruit of the impact being made:

Infant mortality rates have dropped from 47 per 1,000 to 2 per 1,000 per year!

Insecure housing rates have decreased from 32% (110 of 341 houses were unsafe) to 14% (48 of 341 houses are unsafe).

Access to clean water has increased from 1% (4 of 341 households) to 79% (271 of 341 households hve access to clean water).

Access and use of latrines has increased from 33% to 93%.

Access to electricity has increased from 0% to 95%

And all of this is done in the Name of Jesus! We are thrilled to be partners with ENLACE, touching El Salvador with the love of Christ.

Way to go CROSSROADS! Taking the message of hope to a hopeless world…that’s what we do!

April 1st is April fools day. The day we avoid being made to look like a fool. That should be every day…and we should avoid being associated with fools.

The wise man, Solomon, warned us to “stay away from a foolish man and said it is “better to meet a bear robbed of her cubs than a fool in his folly.” 14:7, 17:12

Here is what the Book of Proverbs teaches us about fools:

The fool is unrighteous and unwise. 13:19, 10:21

The fool is incapable of gaining wisdom. 14:6

The fool has no desire for wisdom. 1:7,22

The fool is unrealistic about himself. 21:24

And unrealistic about present realities, thinking my ship is about to come in!

The fool is undisciplined with his temper and his mouth. 12:23, 15:2

The fool is unreliable. 26:6

A fool is unteachable, unpleasant, unliked and undesirable.

A wise man is teachable, pleasant, liked and desirable.

Be Wise – Love God – Serve God – Follow God

Don’t be a fool!

A Wise Guy,

Jim Grams

French philosopher Voltaire said that the Bible and Christianity would disappear within a hundred years. He died in 1778. The Christian Church marches on.

Friedrich Nietzsche said in 1882. “God is dead” He believed that the dawn of science would be the doom of faith. Science dawned and faith leaps forward.

A Communist dictionary defined the Bible this way. “It is a collection of fantastic legends without any scientific support.” Communism is fast diminishing while the Bible remains the number one seller on every list.

Every person or belief system that has tried to bury the Christian faith has discoverd the same thing as those who tried to bury its Founder…HE WON’T STAY IN THE TOMB! Jesus Christ is alive and well, seated at the right hand of the Father in Heaven, and at this Easter season we celebrate His Resurrection with joy and victory. And this Living Savior is coming back to gather His church one day. He comes for those who have accepted His offer of a free Salvation. You can’t buy it or earn it…you can’t be good enough to gain it. It is free to all who confess their sins and believe that He is the Son of God and that His death on the cross provided the sacrifice to take away all sins. It really is that simple.

Let us all enjoy Resurrection weekend with the knowledge that we’ve been forgiven and we are now on our way to Heaven! And, let us thank the Lord for that great gift!

Don’t you just love the way Jesus was straightforward with His words? He wasn’t bragging when He said, “I am the light of the world” or when He said, “I am the way, the truth and the life”. He was simply stating the facts. As the Son of God, He had come to bring light and life to our dark world.

I read these words awhile back: “Brush your mind with God’s word…It will help prevent truth decay”. I smiled as I read those words and then got to thinking about it. We live in a world of ‘truth decay’. We’ve replaced hand-shakes with pages of legal protection. Our world lacks trust, which fills many with fear and hopelessness.

The world’s chaos and challenges must drive us to God’s word. We do need to brush our mind, bathe our hearts, and sit and soak in God’s Holy Word. Let’s join the Psalmist and declare: “Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion, which cannot be shaken but endures forevermore”.

Walking in the Light,

Jim Grams

“Some of you set sail in big ships; you put to sea to do business in faraway ports.  Out at sea you saw God in action, saw his breathtaking ways with the ocean: With a word he called up the wind–an ocean storm, towering waves! You shot high in the sky, then the bottom dropped out; your hearts were stuck in your throats. You were spun like a top, you reeled like a drunk, you didn’t know which end was up. Then you called out to God in your desperate condition; he got you out in the nick of time. He quieted the wind down to a whisper, put a muzzle on all the big waves. And you were so glad when the storm died down, and led you safely back to harbor. So thank God for his marvelous love, for his miracle mercy to the children he loves.” From Psalm 107 in The Message

That’s what God gives us…He quiets the storms in our lives to a whisper and leads us to a perfectly safe harbor. He puts us at rest in safety so we can look up and Praise His Name!

I Love God,

Jim

Isaiah wrote…”Who out there fears God, actually listens to the voice of his servant? For anyone out there who doesn’t know where you’re going, Here’s what: Trust in God. Lean on your God!” Isaiah 50:10 The Message We don’t need to be afraid of the world’s darkness or their confusion. Putting our total trust in God and leaning hard on Him will carry us through whatever the world throws at us! That is a certainty. Let’s just Trust HIM!

Some things we don’t talk about….like right now I’m waiting for the Rescue Rooter man to rescue us. Both toilets and showers are backed up, plugged up, and it’s a mess! Life gets like that sometimes…everything backs us into a real mess. That’s when we cry out to God for rescue…and He’s right there, instantly to help us. I’m already dreading handing my credit card to the rooterman…God fixes my life for free!
P.S. God just reminded me that all the toilets in Haiti are plugged. And there are no showers with water. And I thanked God for Rescue Rooter and I will patiently wait.

There I stood…early in the morning, after a fresh snowfall. My entire world was white and there wasn’t one blemish. Not a footprint from man or beast…the snow was perfect.

As I look at 2010 this morning, it is perfect, without blemish of any kind. When I was a kid in Wisconsin, I loved being the first one to walk on the sidewalk after a snowfall. I’d take big strides, and baby steps, stomp my feet to make the prints look humongous, and then wonder what those who would follow, would think.

The New Year has begun and it has arrived for all of us, as a clean slate. We will all have the same opportunity to make our marks. Others will see, will follow, will wonder.

I asked the Lord to give me a verse for 2010. I don’t like the verse He gave me very much. I would not have chosen it. I expect I will discover His reason as the year unfolds. Perhaps it will help me make good tracks in the snow, write pure and holy marks on the slate, and live better than last year.

Why is God asking me to wait for Him? I’m almost 71, doesn’t He know that? I’ve lived a long time, served Him forever. I know how to stride into the unblemished snow. I preach on Sundays, teach on Wednesdays and often on Thursdays. I’m a together woo-hoo kinda guy.

Here is your verse, Jim. Quit yapping and pay attention…you asked for it!
“Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.” Psalm 27:14

Yes Lord, thank you, I’ll need your help. How long will I have to wait?

Join me as I walk softly into the New Year,

Jim Grams