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When Grace Extends Beyond Human Blunders

Posted on February 13, 2023 by expressyourself4him

You don’t have to be a Christian to question God’s abounding grace upon those who don’t deserve it, Romans 5:8. The apostle Paul points this fact out in a letter to the Church at Rome. While human blunders continue to occur naturally, Romans 3:9-12, God offers up a free gift, Romans 6:23. Although the wages of sin is death, the reward for accepting God’s gift of Jesus into your heart is eternal life, 1 John 5:12-13.

So Abram went up out of Egypt, he and his wife and all that he had, and Lot with him, into the South [country of Judah, the Negeb]. 2 Now Abram was extremely rich in livestock and in silver and in gold. 3 And he journeyed on from the South [country of Judah, the Negeb] as far as Bethel, to the place where his tent had been at the beginning, between Bethel and Ai, Genesis 13:1-3.

Following his lie to Pharoah, claiming that Sarai was his sister to save his own life, God used Abram’s visit to Egypt to amass his wealth. Despite Abram’s decision to trust in himself rather than God, he left Egypt with vast livestock, gold, and silver. When it comes to grace, God will deal with Abram’s lying at a later date, Genesis 22. The purpose of this initial trip was to clearly show Abram that God will go above and beyond his expectations when it comes to providing daily bread.

And Abimelech said, What is this you have done to us? One of the men might easily have lain with your wife, and you would have brought guilt and sin upon us. 11 Then Abimelech charged all his people, He who touches this man or his wife shall surely be put to death. 12 Then Isaac sowed seed in that land and received in the same year a hundred times as much as he had planted, and the Lord favored him with blessings. 13 And the man became great and gained more and more until he became very wealthy and distinguished; Genesis 26:10-13.

When you apply this lesson to your own life, there are probably numerous mistakes that you and I make daily. None of us have arrived spiritually by living the abundant life that Jesus promised in John 10:10. Yet, faith is a process, starting with baby steps, Galatians 5:25. You can’t run until you first learn how to walk with God, 1 John 1:6-9. As God continues to extend His grace each morning Lamentations 3:19-24, pray that you will draw closer to Jesus in 2023 by overcoming human blunders.

by Jay Mankus

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To Your Posterity

Posted on February 12, 2023 by expressyourself4him

Posterity refers to all future generations of people based upon their descendants. This is much different than posture which is the position in which someone holds their body when standing or sitting. Yet, the Psalmist blends these two terms in Psalm 1:1-3. Human nature influences individuals to copy unwholesome behavior. The friends you chose and make in life will often pressure you to conform to their ways. If you join in and sit down with these individuals, your posterity will change for the worse.

Abram passed through the land to the locality of Shechem, to the oak or terebinth tree of Moreh. And the Canaanite was then in the land. 7 Then the Lord appeared to Abram and said, I will give this land to your posterity. So Abram built an altar there to the Lord, Who had appeared to him, Genesis 12:6-7.

However, if you chose that which brings life, your posterity will result in future blessings like God’s promise to Abram, Deuteronomy 30:15-17. As God continues to reveal himself to Abram in the book of Genesis, Abram is introduced to a vision of a spiritual legacy. To a man married to a woman who is unable to have children, this seems preposterous when God paints a picture of Abraham’s descendants being like countless stars in the sky, Genesis 22:17.

Also I [the angel], in the first year of Darius the Mede, even I, stood up to confirm and to strengthen him [Michael, the angelic prince]. 2 And now I will show you the truth. Behold, there shall arise three more kings in Persia, and a fourth shall be far richer than they all. And when he has become strong through his riches he shall stir up and stake all against the realm of Greece. 3 Then a [a]mighty [warlike, threatening] king shall arise who shall rule with great dominion and do according to his [own] will, Daniel 11:1-3.

Human beings can only do so much to alter their posterity. While talking to a group of relatives last summer on my wife’s side of the family, I was praised for how well the lives of my three children have turned out. Instead of taking credit, I immediately quoted a spiritual mentor from Delaware who encouraged me to daily pray for each of my children. The hours that parents pray for their children annually can alter their path and lead to a successful posterity in the future.

by Jay Mankus

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The Crossover Connection Week 2: A Spiritual Salt n Pepa

Posted on February 11, 2023 by expressyourself4him

At the time I started attending dances in high school, Salt n Pepa’s song Push It was first released. As the intro to this song started playing, everyone flooded the dance floor, even those just there for the slow dances. I searched Christian music for 30 years trying to find a sound similar to Salt n Pepa’s genre. While you’ll never find an identical match as you crossover from secular music to Christian, I believe Group 1 Crew is the spiritual Salt n Pepa to fill this void.

Speak out to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, offering praise with voices [[e]and instruments] and making melody with all your heart to the Lord, 20 At all times and for everything giving thanks in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God the Father, Ephesians 5:19-20.

Although the attached best of tracks doesn’t include songs like Breakdown and Let it Roll, the variety of ballads, hip hop and rap will keep your fingers snapping to the beat. When I taught high school Bible at Red Lion Christian Academy, a couple of students pointed me in the right direction to modernize my music collection. Their insight led me to Group 1 Crew who has become one of my go to’s when I need a spiritual pick me up. I pray that the lyrics of Group 1 Crew’s songs will uplift your heart and soul this week.

by Jay Mankus

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Lying is Like a Boomerang

Posted on February 11, 2023 by expressyourself4him

The oldest boomerang discovered dates back to the Stone Age. Modern designs are constructed with aerofoil sections which enables boomerangs to spin about an axis perpendicular to the direction of its flight. Prior to throwing my first boomerang, I dabbled with an aerobie frisbee which is designed for distance, not meant to return back to you. While studying the life of Abram, I realized that lying is like a boomerang as sooner or later your careless words will come back to hit and haunt you.

And when he was about to enter into Egypt, he said to Sarai his wife, I know that you are beautiful to behold. 12 So when the Egyptians see you, they will say, This is his wife; and they will kill me, but they will let you live. 13 Say, I beg of you, that you are [c]my sister, so that it may go well with me for your sake and my life will be spared because of you. 14 And when Abram came into Egypt, the Egyptians saw that the woman was very beautiful. 15 The princes of Pharaoh also saw her and commended her to Pharaoh, and she was taken into Pharaoh’s house [harem], Genesis 12:11-15.

If integrity is doing what’s right when no one is looking, Abram didn’t begin his journey with God on a good note. According to Moses, Abram was more concerned with saving his own life during a trip to Egypt rather than telling the truth. Rather than adhere to the words of King Solomon in Proverbs 3:5-6, Abram trusted in his own understanding. Meanwhile, Abram encourages his wife Sarai to play along, “you’re my sister,” wink wink. Based upon the passage below, this wasn’t Abram’s only lie.

So Isaac stayed in Gerar. 7 And the men of the place asked him about his wife, and he said, She is my sister; for he was afraid to say, She is my wife—[thinking], Lest the men of the place should kill me for Rebekah, because she is attractive and is beautiful to look upon. 8 When he had been there a long time, Abimelech king of the Philistines looked out of a window and saw Isaac caressing Rebekah his wife. 9 And Abimelech called Isaac and said, See here, she is certainly your wife! How did you [dare] say to me, She is my sister? And Isaac said to him, Because I thought, Lest I die on account of her, Genesis 26:6-9.

Like father, like son as Isaac appears to have adopted Abram’s bad habit of lying. Moses refers to this as generational sins passed down by a father to his children, Exodus 20:4-5. Abram’s sinful tendency led to a life of exaggeration and half-truths. When placed into an identical situation as his father, Isaac tells the Philistine king that Rebekah was his sister. Before Abimelech took Rebekah to be his wife, Isaac’s caressing of Rebekah gave their little secret away. The next time you think about stretching the truth, remember that lying is like a boomerang which will eventually harm you in the future.

by Jay Mankus

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The Lives of the Tried and Tested

Posted on February 10, 2023 by expressyourself4him

Individuals don’t become a finished product after graduating from college or receiving a master’s degree. You need real life experiences to apply what you’ve learned before you can become tried and tested. As a former athlete, I learned more from my failures than any victory. Humility has a way of exposing your weaknesses, making it painfully obvious where you need to improve before you mature into the person God that wants you to become, James 1:2-4.

And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you [with abundant increase of favors] and make your name famous and distinguished, and you will be a blessing [dispensing good to others], Genesis 12:2.

Such is the case of Abraham who initially went by Abram. While Abram immediately departed from his homeland to pursue God’s calling for his life, his actions were far from perfect. Instead of trusting in the God who promised that he would become the father of a great nation, Abram lied to Pharaoh, saying he was Sarai’s sister rather than tell the truth. This sinful tendency was passed down to Isaac. Yet, it was following through with God’s call to sacrifice his one and only son which enabled Abraham to be tried and tested.

[Urged on] by faith Abraham, when he was called, obeyed and went forth to a place which he was destined to receive as an inheritance; and he went, although he did not know or trouble his mind about where he was to go. 9 [Prompted] by faith he dwelt as a temporary resident in the land which was designated in the promise [of God, though he was like a stranger] in a strange country, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, fellow heirs with him of the same promise. 10 For he was [waiting expectantly and confidently] looking forward to the city which has fixed and firm foundations, whose Architect and Builder is God, Hebrews 11:8-10.

The author of Hebrews places Abraham in the Hall of Faith along with several other godly candidates of the Old Testament. Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis refers to success as the process of arriving. Based upon the passage above, Abraham took little steps of faith, not always in the correct direction, but developed into a man of God gradually. Not everyone will have an immediate transformation like Saul who become Paul following his conversion on the Road to Damascus. Most start off like lowly shepherd boys before ascending with God’s help to the lives of the spiritual rich and famous.

by Jay Mankus

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Talk About Bad Timing

Posted on February 9, 2023 by expressyourself4him

Charles Dickens novel The Tale of Two Cities sums up timing in the opening paragraph. This book begins with “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness. Depending upon your perspective of a half full glass of water, you’ll bring optimism or pessimism. Some days at work unfold in a pleasant way while others coincide with Murphy’s Law, “whatever can go wrong, will go wrong causing many to mutter, “talk about bad timing.”

Abram journeyed on, still going toward the South (the Negeb). 10 Now there was a famine in the land, and Abram [b]went down into Egypt to live temporarily, for the famine in the land was oppressive (intense and grievous), Genesis 12:9-10.

Following God’s introduction in Haran, Abram takes a step of faith to pursue a promised land and nation. Yet, Abram’s wife Sarai was unable to have children despite numerous attempts leaving her labeled as barren. Meanwhile, on his way to this land God was going to give to Abram, a severe famine halted the original plans. While there’s never a good time for unforeseen trials to enter your life, God allows this drought to occur to see how Abram will handle faith under pressure.

Hear counsel, receive instruction, and accept correction, that you may be wise in the time to come. 21 Many plans are in a man’s mind, but it is the Lord’s purpose for him that will stand. 22 That which is desired in a man is loyalty and kindness [and his glory and delight are his giving], but a poor man is better than a liar, Proverbs 19:20-22.

My move to South Carolina last summer can also be described as the best and worst of times. Great in the sense as it was the perfect time to sell a house, getting more than my wife and I expected. However, trying to find a new job in the middle of a recession was definitely bad timing. Just as Abram was tested in Egypt, my faith is still being grilled as I’m still waiting for God’s will for my future career to be revealed. As 2023 turns the page on January, don’t let bad timing rattle your faith. Rather, take the advice of Jesus’ earthly brother so maturity and wisdom will come to fruition as you undergo more trials this year, James 1:2-4.

by Jay Mankus

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Discerning God’s Will for 2023

Posted on February 8, 2023 by expressyourself4him

King David compares discernment with waiting and hope in the passage below. From a secular standpoint, discernment is the ability to judge well. However, from a biblical context, discernment is perception in the absence of judgment with a view to obtaining spiritual guidance and understanding. As a former high school teacher, it took me a few years to learn how to read a classroom. Discerning God’s will for your future requires concentration, focus, and patience to wait on the Lord.

[What, what would have become of me] had I not believed that I would see the Lord’s goodness in the land of the living! 14 Wait and hope for and expect the Lord; be brave and of good courage and let your heart be stout and enduring. Yes, wait for and hope for and expect the Lord, Psalm 27:13-14.

Meanwhile, the apostle Paul refers to God’s will as spiritual maturation. This process occurs as believers draw near to God in worship and prayer. Similar to the words of Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount, a living sacrifice includes hungering and thirsting for righteousness. Anyone who makes this their priority won’t be persuaded by a world seeking to follow what’s politically and socially correct. As minds are renewed by God’s Word, discerning God’s will for your life in 2023 becomes attainable.

I appeal to you therefore, brethren, and beg of you in view of [all] the mercies of God, to make a decisive dedication of your bodies [presenting all your members and faculties] as a living sacrifice, holy (devoted, consecrated) and well pleasing to God, which is your reasonable (rational, intelligent) service and spiritual worship. 2 Do not be conformed to this world (this age), [fashioned after and adapted to its external, superficial customs], but be transformed (changed) by the [entire] renewal of your mind [by its new ideals and its new attitude], so that you may prove [for yourselves] what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God, even the thing which is good and acceptable and perfect [in His sight for you], Romans 12:1-2.

Advice to Christians in Galatia points to an internal struggle in Galatians 5:16-25. Paul provides a similar analogy in Romans 8:5-8 as sinful natures are in direct conflict with God’s Holy Spirit. If you want to discern God’s specific will for you in 2023, keeping in step with the God’s Spirit is essential, Galatians 5:25. The more time you spend meditating on the Bible and listening to spirit filled Christian music, keeping in step with God is possible. Once minds become in tune with God, clarity and discernment will follow. May this blog help you be and do what God desires, Philippians 1:6.

by Jay Mankus

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A Spirit of Confusion

Posted on February 7, 2023 by expressyourself4him

The older I get, the more I become aware of senior moments: forgetting why you initially got up, drawing a blank on the name of a close friend or missing a turn while driving in a car. Some people may blame this on confusion, but when minds wander it’s hard to reign in curiosity. Self-help experts have written countless books on overcoming memory loss while drug companies are always pushing the latest miracle pill to cure spirits of confusion.

Come, let Us go down and there confound (mix up, confuse) their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech. 8 So the Lord scattered them abroad from that place upon the face of the whole earth, and they gave up building the city, Genesis 11:7-8.

The first mention of confusion in the Bible occurs during the second industrial revolution in the Old Testament. After the flood erased the Nephilim, a civilization of giants, Nimrod appears to be the architect of Babel and the suburbs which sprawled between two large cities. When God the Father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit came to see the progress of this mighty tower, each agreed that it was time for a change. Subsequently, the winds of change brought in a Spirit of Confusion that ceased and ended all construction.

Therefore the name of it was called Babel—because there the Lord confounded the language of all the earth; and from that place the Lord scattered them abroad upon the face of the whole earth, Genesis 11:9.

The New Testament provides a solution to this Spirit of Confusion, the creation of global languages. The Day of Pentecost offers a reversal of this confusion in the form of the Holy Spirit, Acts 2:1-6. Eyewitness of this supernatural event were astonished that they were able to hear a stranger speak to them in their own dialect. Like the words of Mary following the news that she would conceive a Savior without having intercourse, anything is possible with God, Luke 1:37, even overcoming a Spirit of Confusion.

by Jay Mankus

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The Bible’s Indecent Proposal

Posted on February 6, 2023 by expressyourself4him

The storyline behind the 1993 film Indecent Proposal shocked many married Americans when it debuted in theaters 30 years ago. Unfortunately, the envelope has been pushed so far beyond what is good and decent that it takes a stunning plot like Indecent Proposal to get the attention of Christians. After losing all their money in Las Vegas, a couple is approached by a billionaire who offers a million dollars in exchange for one night with Diana. Yet, the Bible has its own indecent proposal.

And when he was about to enter into Egypt, he said to Sarai his wife, I know that you are beautiful to behold. 12 So when the Egyptians see you, they will say, This is his wife; and they will kill me, but they will let you live. 13 Say, I beg of you, that you are [c]my sister, so that it may go well with me for your sake and my life will be spared because of you. 14 And when Abram came into Egypt, the Egyptians saw that the woman was very beautiful. 15 The princes of Pharaoh also saw her and commended her to Pharaoh, and she was taken into Pharaoh’s house [harem], Genesis 12:11-15.

Moses provides a summary of Abram’s call from God to leave Haran for another land beginning in Genesis 12:1. While a timeline is not mentioned, a famine forces Abram to reside in Egypt until this food shortage subsides. This sets the scene for a man who was called by God, but his action reveals that Abram had not fully trusted God on his way to a promised land. Subsequently, Abram tells Egyptian leaders that Sarai is his sister, lying to save his own life.

But the Lord scourged Pharaoh and his household with serious plagues because of Sarai, Abram’s wife. 18 And Pharaoh called Abram and said, What is this that you have done to me? Why did you not tell me that she was your wife? 19 Why did you say, She is my sister, so that I took her to be my wife? Now then, here is your wife; take her and get away [from here]! 20 And Pharaoh commanded his men concerning him, and they brought him on his way with his wife and all that he had, Genesis 12:17-20.

Abram’s indecent proposal opens the doors for Sarai to be added to Pharoah’s harem. While Moses doesn’t specify if Pharoah had sex with Sarai, he does take her to be his wife. Whatever this ceremony consisted of Abram was powerless to act. If Genesis 12 was made into a movie, Abram would have the same agonizing emptions as David Murphy in Indecent Proposal. As you consider the Bible’s version of Indecent Proposal, may the Holy Spirit guide you to make prudent decisions in the future.

by Jay Mankus

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When Desperation and Prayer Unite

Posted on February 5, 2023 by expressyourself4him

Non-religious individuals tend to turn to prayer during a life altering event. This could be just before a car accident, on a plane enduring extreme turbulence or some other unexpected dire medical diagnosis where even atheists cry out to God. As a child with a severe speech impediment, all I ever wanted was to verbally express what was on my heart and the words on my mind. Yet, my prayer life is usually only effective when desperation and prayer unite on my knees.

And there was a widow in that city who kept coming to him and saying, Protect and defend and give me justice against my adversary. 4 And for a time he would not; but later he said to himself, Though I have neither reverence or fear for God nor respect or consideration for man, 5 Yet because this widow continues to bother me, I will defend and protect and avenge her, lest she give me [b]intolerable annoyance and wear me out by her continual coming or [c]at the last she come and rail on me or [d]assault me or [e]strangle me. 6 Then the Lord said, Listen to what the unjust judge says! 7 And will not [our just] God defend and protect and avenge His elect (His chosen ones), who cry to Him day and night? Will He [f]defer them and [g]delay help on their behalf? – Luke 18:3-7

I was introduced to the Parable of the Persistent Widow in college. While Jesus’ words in Matthew 21:19-22 are often quoted by pastors during sermons on prayer, the persistent widow applies Jesus’ advice. Although desperation may lead you to pray for a miracle, doubt will stop any prayer from being answered. This widow was so persistent in her desperation, she kept on knocking like Jesus’ analogy in his Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 7:7-8.

When Mary came to the place where Jesus was and saw Him, she dropped down at His feet, saying to Him, Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died. 33 When Jesus saw her sobbing, and the Jews who came with her [also] sobbing, He was deeply moved in spirit and troubled. [He chafed in spirit and sighed and was disturbed.] 34 And He said, Where have you laid him? They said to Him, Lord, come and see. 35 Jesus wept. 36 The Jews said, See how [tenderly] He loved him! 37 But some of them said, Could not He Who opened a blind man’s eyes have prevented this man from dying? 38 Now Jesus, again sighing repeatedly and deeply disquieted, approached the tomb. It was a cave (a hole in the rock), and a boulder lay against [the entrance to close] it, John 11:32-38.

The shortest verse in the Bible,” Jesus wept,” is written by the disciple whom Jesus loved. Yet, the context of Jesus’ tears occurs following the death of Lazarus. When Mary blames Jesus’ absence for her brother’s death, desperation and prayer unite. This combination moves Jesus to raise Lazarus from the dead. Of all the miracles Jesus performs, this one should inspire anyone wanting to see a miracle come to a point in your life where desperation and prayer unite.

by Jay Mankus

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