WEDNESDAY'S WORD - RUMINATE - Sadell Bradley- 10/30/2024

WEDNESDAY'S WORD RUMINATE 10/30/2024 “We ruminate on suffering, regret, and sorrow. We chew on them, swallow them, bring them back up, and eat them again and again. If we’re feeding our suffering while we’re walking, working, eating, or talking, we are making ourselves victims of the ghosts of the past, of the future, or our worries in the present. We’re not living our lives.” -Thich Nhat Hanh - Vietnamese Monk   RUMINATION is the act or process of regurgitating and chewing again previously swallowed food. Think about a cow chewing its cud. Cud is partly digested food returned from the first stomach to the mouth for further chewing. Scientists say that dairy cows spend almost 8 hours a day chewing their cuds for a total of almost 30,000 chews daily...and they told us we only had to chew our food 32 times! This enables the cows to take in large quantities at first. Then the rumination process helps them fully digest the food and take in all of its nutrients. Figuratively, rumination is obsessive thinking about an idea, situation, or choice especially when it interferes with normal mental functioning. Pessimistic rumination steals our sleep and disrupts our joy and peace. Specifically, harmful ruminating focuses one's attention on negative or distressing thoughts or feelings. When excessive or prolonged—this may lead to or exacerbate an episode of depression. (Webster's) Do you do a lot of ruminating? Some folks say, "I need to chew over that..." Synonyms are: to consider, mull over, muse about, or meditate. Psalm 1 refers to positive and repetitive rumination on the Word of God as key to a life that has stability, maturity, fruitfulness and prosperity. Perhaps you've listened to a sermon or read a book of the Bible, do you then invest time and energy chewing, contemplating, or examining that Word? The psalmist writes, 1Blessed is the man Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, Nor stands in the path of sinners, Nor sits in the seat of the scornful; 2But his delight is in the law of the Lord, And in His law he meditates day and night. 3He shall be like a tree Planted by the rivers of water, That brings forth its fruit in its season, Whose leaf also shall not wither; And whatever he does shall prosper. Self-help guru Napoleon Hill once said, "What you think most about is who you become." Bills. Inflation. Politics. Wars. Health Issues. If we tracked the last 72 hours of your life...who would your thoughts say you have you been? This question deserves deep reflection because we too often ruminate on our problems and concerns more than we do on the Word of God. Negative RUMINATION is essentially anxiety, brooding, and worry. Unbridled rumination can lead to hopelessness. Jesus asked His disciples in Matthew 6:27, "And who of you by worrying can add one hour to [the length of] his life?" The NKJV says, "Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?" Paul admonished the church at Philippi to always rejoice! If you have joy and you lose it for some reason...JOY, again! He gave them these instructions about anxiety and rumination. 6Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. 7Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. 8And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. 9Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me—everything you heard from me and saw me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you. (Phil 4:6-9)

 

WEDNESDAY'S WORD- INTREPID- Sadell Bradley- 10/23/24

 

WEDNESDAY'S WORD INTREPID 10/23/2024 "Thanks to generations of curious, intrepid explorers of the past, we know enough, soon enough, to chart passage for ourselves far into the future." -Sylvia A. Earle - American Marine Biologist and Oceanographer   I am currently a tri-vocational pastor and doctoral student. I know, I know...Nevertheless, for just this year, I am serving part-time at two churches, and at a secular job at a non-profit called MORTAR Cincinnati. MORTAR was founded in 2014, and also has locations in other states. We primarily support entrepreneurs of color from disenfranchised neighborhoods— offering these daring souls a tightly-knit community, small business education, access to capital and resources, and the connections they need to test out their ideas in real time. Entrepreneurship is not an easy task. Armed with an idea, these dauntless folks defy societal norms to pursue their dreams. The U.S. Small Business Association says only 9.29% of the population can be considered entrepreneurs. That means over 91% of us enjoy the 'safety and security' of working 40 hours for someone else, while just under 10% have chosen the risk and freedom of working sometimes 80 or more hours for themselves. One word that describes these outliers is INTREPID, which means fearless; or adventurous. It derives from the Latin intrepidus which means not alarmed. Webster's Dictionary defines intrepid as bold and brave; characterized by resolute fearlessness, fortitude, and endurance. Entrepreneurs are examples of living by faith. The same INTREPID spirit is found in church planters like us and missionaries. We follow the call of God to start ministries in new places and challenging seasons with a vision to tell the world that Jesus Christ is LORD and King. Our friends Joe and LouAnn Luken left the U.S. to follow a dream they'd had since their 20's. They decided to raise their own financial support each year to minister to human trafficking victims in Thailand in their 60's. The Lukens moved their entire life, and learned Thailand's language and customs to love hurting people in Jesus' name. Paul wrote, "I have made it my aim to preach the gospel, not where Christ was named, lest I should build on another man’s foundation, but as it is written: “To whom He was not announced, they shall see; And those who have not heard shall understand.” (Rom 15:20-21) We underestimate the courage it took to start the New Testament Church, and the boldness, faith, and perseverance it takes to obey the LORD's voice even today. In many places across the world, to identify yourself as a Christ-follower brings persecution, imprisonment, or even death. This is the climate early Believers in Jesus faced when Paul told his protege Timothy, 3I thank God, whom I serve with a pure conscience, as my forefathers did, as without ceasing I remember you in my prayers night and day, 4greatly desiring to see you, being mindful of your tears, that I may be filled with joy, 5when I call to remembrance the genuine faith that is in you, which dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice, and I am persuaded is in you also. 6Therefore I remind you to stir up the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands. Paul's admonitions to Timothy prepared him to be a dauntless and daring leader in the face of trying times. King Solomon wrote, "If you faint in the day of adversity, Your strength is small." (Proverbs 24:10) Paul advised Timothy not to give up, cave in, or quit, but to endure in the face of tribulation. He assured his mentee: 7For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. 8Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me His prisoner, but share with me in the sufferings for the gospel according to the power of God, 9who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began... (2 Tim. 1:3-9) Have you lost or retained your sense of adventure in life? Would you call yourself fearless or fearful? Are you intrepid—willing to risk it all to proclaim and follow Jesus?

WEDNESDAY'S WORD - FIDELITY - Sadell Bradley - 10/16/2024

 

WEDNESDAY'S WORD FIDELITY 10/16/2024 "Total loyalty is possible only when fidelity is emptied of all concrete content from which changes of mind might naturally arise." - Hannah Arendt - German Historian   "Scandal sells books. Fidelity does not." —Coretta Scott King FIDELITY is faithfulness to a person, cause, or belief, demonstrated by continuing loyalty and support; or sexual faithfulness to a spouse or partner. Upon hearing the word fidelity, one might think of the investment company that secures many retirement accounts. Another will remember John Cusack playing a lovelorn Rob Gordon in the movie High Fidelity, which in musical terms is the reproduction of sound with little distortion, giving a result very similar to the original. The French fidelite and the Latin fidelis mean faithful. Sadly, we are more accustomed to the concept of  INFIDELITY - the action or state of being unfaithful—than we are with fidelity. Infidelity also means unbelief in a particular religion, especially Christianity...hence the word infidel. We might say an unbeliever, atheist, or agnostic. The Apostle Paul gives this admonition to the church at Corinth in 2 Corinthians 6:14-18, KJV: 14Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? 15And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? 16And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 17Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, 18And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty. Unequal yoking causes stagnation and conflict in relationships, business alliances, and partnerships as two individuals or entities, with and without faith in God, pull or push in opposite directions. In 1 Timothy 5, the word infidel is used as Paul instructs his protege to ensure the care of widows in the congregation:   3Honour widows that are widows indeed. 4But if any widow have children or nephews, let them learn first to shew piety at home, and to requite their parents: for that is good and acceptable before God. 5Now she that is a widow indeed, and desolate, trusteth in God, and continueth in supplications and prayers night and day. 6But she that liveth in pleasure is dead while she liveth. 7And these things give in charge, that they may be blameless. 8But if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel. God is serious about fidelity. We usually think of infidelity in the context of marriage because one of the Ten Commandments is Thou Shalt Not Commit Adultery (Ex. 20:14). Adulterers in that day were immediately put to death by stoning if they were caught. Jesus said to even lust after a woman who is not your wife is to commit adultery with her in your heart (Matthew 5:27-28). God is not a fan of infidelity and divorce. Malachi 2:16b, NLT says “To divorce your wife is to overwhelm her with cruelty,” says the LORD of Heaven’s Armies. “So guard your heart; do not be unfaithful to your wife.” Faithfulness is a fruit of God's spirit dwelling within the Believer. (Galatians 5:22) Christ followers are covenant people who love and serve the Lord wholeheartedly. We are to be covenant keepers, not breakers. Our lives are to be marked by fidelity, trustworthiness, commitment, and constancy.

WEDNESDAY'S WORD- OPTIMISM - Sadell Bradley - 10/09/2024

 

WEDNESDAY'S WORD OPTIMISM 10/09/2024   "Optimism is the madness of insisting that all is well when we are miserable." - Voltaire, French Philosopher 

Some of us grew up with actor Michael J. Fox. We watched him play Alex P. Keaton on Family Ties. We cheered as he traveled through time as Marty McFly in the Back to the Future movies. Later, we enjoyed his wit on Spin City, where he played Mike Flaherty, the Deputy Mayor of New York, alongside a hilarious cast of characters. We believed Michael J. Fox had lived a charmed life until in 1991, at age 30, he was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease. Parkinson's is a progressive disease of the nervous system marked by tremors, muscular rigidity, and slow, imprecise movements, chiefly affecting middle-aged and elderly people. Fox announced his diagnosis to the public in 1998 at age 37. We've watched him progress with grace through its stages. In the Bible, the word for this disease is palsy—paralysis accompanied by involuntary tremors. Jesus healed a man with this condition in Mark 2, when four friends cut through the roof to bring their companion to Him. Verse 5 says, "When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic (man with palsy), “Son, your sins are forgiven you.” This statement indicated that Jesus had both the power to forgive sins and to heal the man of his condition. Disease is one of the marks of sin being in the earth. Jesus claiming He could absolve and pardon sins for the Jewish leaders was a scandal and blasphemy. Who did He think he was, God?! He told the paralytic in verse 11 “I say to you, arise, take up your bed, and go to your house.” 12Immediately he arose, took up the bed, and went out in the presence of them all, so that all were amazed and glorified God, saying, “We never saw anything like this!” God does miraculous things to demonstrate His power and to turn our attention toward Him. Jesus is all about redeeming hopeless circumstances. He doesn't share His glory. He works when we can't do anything about our situation. The faith of this man's friends to bring Him to Jesus, and his own faith to obey the command of God to arise and walk despite all evidence to the contrary—showed his belief, trust, expectation, and optimism. OPTIMISM is hopefulness and confidence about the future or the successful outcome of something. In philosophy, it is the belief that good must ultimately prevail over evil in the universe. So many trying things are happening all around us right now. It can be difficult to be positive and optimistic with such negative forces in the atmosphere. To feel trapped and unable to move, whether physically like this man, or emotionally, vocationally, spiritually, or in relationships brings all kinds of anguish. When Jesus performed the miracle, it evoked worship and praise from the man and all the witnesses. It is awe inspiring to see individuals who are facing particular hardships like Michael J. Fox persevere and overcome. Some are given grace to endure trials that would cause most of us to succumb to anxiety, hopelessness, and depression. Adversities turn into stepping stones as these individuals lift themselves into positive attitudes and triumphant dispositions. In one video clip, Michael J, Fox said, "I realized that with gratitude...optimism is sustainable. If you can find something to be grateful for, you can find something to look forward to...and you carry on." I love that! Optimism is not just fleeting in a particular moment...it's sustainable: able to be upheld, maintained and defended. Some of us struggle to ward off negativity and pessimism. Do you have sustainable optimism? One Scripture that reflects optimism is Psalm 27:13-14, here king David writes, 13I would have lost heart, unless I had believed That I would see the goodness of the Lord In the land of the living. 14Wait on the Lord; Be of good courage, And He shall strengthen your heart; Wait, I say, on the Lord!