Chrome-Shining Faith

Barbara Derksen

Chrome Shining Faith

 

 

 

Please enjoy this excerpt from

Chrome-Shining Faith

by Barbara Derksen

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PROPITIATION

is a big word that means appeasing another person’s anger by the offering of a gift. The human race,

because of Adam’s sin, is judged by God’s perfect standards, the standards that define sin in the

first place. We fall short of that standard. The sin we commit against each other and against God is in

 

direct opposition to His holy nature. The Bible says that this makes God angry because He cannot

 

look on the very thing He created to have fellowship with Him. He misses us. God’s anger is not an

 

irrational lack of selfcontrol, as it so often is with humans.  However, God’s opposition to sin cannot

 

be dismissed with a wave of the hand. It requires something much more substantial

to appease it, to pay the debt we owe handed down as a judgment when Adam was tossed out of the

garden. And the Bible states that it was only the cross that did this.  Jesus willingly became “the

 

propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world”. When the

 

New Testament speaks of “propitiation,” it means that Jesus’ death on the cross for the sins of

 

mankind put away God’s wrath against his people once and for all.

 

And He is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole

 

world

1 John 2:2 (KJV)

Droplets of sweat dotted his cold damp forehead.  Crater sat on the lumpy cot, cringing inside,

contemplating his death. He was innocent but that didn't seem to matter to these people:

 

the prison guards, prison warden, the prosecutor and the judge who had sentenced him. They

believed he was guilty and deserved their harshest punishment. Crater knew who should

be there instead of him. He loved the man.

He’d never squeal on him. So he waited.  The inmates on either side of him, waiting with

him, seemed to sense his preoccupation with the next steps in his life, the steps that would

take him, and someday them, to the gas chamber.  They tried to distract him but they, too,

were preoccupied with the clock ticking nearby.  Each tick grew louder as time rushed towards

completion of the sentence handed down by the judge, a righteous man, who believed he

 

was doing the right thing.  Jesus Christ walked this path for you and me.  He knew we were guilty of

 

the sin He was going to be executed for and yet He said nothing.

His heart did not feel anger towards us for the position we’d put Him in. He extends to us

LOVE, unconditional. He walked the Via Delarosa to hang on a cross. Someone had to pay

the price exacted by God for the sin we committed.  We turn our backs on God’s perfect

standards every day. Jesus was the appeasement that would bring us into right fellowship

with our Creator.

If you have not done so already, accept that Jesus died in your place, for your sins. Feel the

emotional impact of those words and His deed.  Repent. Begin life anew. Place your trust in the

Holy Spirit to teach and guide you as you walk toward eternity.

Father, thank You for providing a way that I can sit before Your throne in heaven some day.  Thank you for loving me so much that You willingly went to that cross.  Help me to be worthy of Your sacrifice from this day forward.  Amen

Two Up

Barbara Derksen

Two Up

 Two Up is a devotional book especially for bikers by Barbara Derksen.  The following is an excerpt:

Yet to all who received Him, to those
who believed in His name, He gave the
right to become children of God. John 1:12

Accepted as God’s Child

Jenny looked at her birth certificate. For some
reason, her father’s name was not on it. She
decided to ask her mother about it.
For three days, Jenny’s mom avoided the conversation 

but then one morning, she sat down
at the kitchen table just as Jenny was about to
leave for work. “Your father and I were never
married. He was just a date, someone I hardly
knew. He got drunk and… I never saw him
again.” Jenny’s mom hung her head. A lone
tear trickled down her cheek. “Nine months
later you were born.”
Jenny’s insides felt as if she were on the downward
ride on a rollercoaster. She searched her
mother’s face looking for some sign that she’d
heard wrong but her mom’s expression
said it all. My mom was raped,
Women who are raped today, are
pressured to abort their babies.
Before Jenny could say anything, her
mother stood. She wrapped her arms
around her only daughter and
said, “You were a gift to me from
God Himself. I have loved you
since the moment I saw you.
When I met your father, he fell in
love with the two of us. When we
married, he adopted you right
away.”
Being adopted, for Jenny, meant
she had a family. She had a father
who loved her and two younger
brothers who teased relentlessly
but were fun to be around anyway.
The fact that her father had
adopted her as a baby never made
her relationship with him any
different than the one he had with
her brothers. Jenny was taken care
of as if she had been born to her dad.

If you have asked Jesus to be the
center of your life, you have the
privilege of being adopted by the
King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
You have a Father who loves you,
who cares about your deepest
desires and who always has me
to listen when you talk to Him. You
can call Him “Abba” just as if He
were your very own daddy.
Hold your head up this day. No
matter what your circumstances

are, you have a Father who loves you. Under
difficult circumstances, or when you are challenged
to step out of your comfort zone, He
walks beside you and gives you the power to
overcome whatever tries to defeat you or
mess you up.

If you have never asked Jesus to be the center
of your life, you have the opportunity to receive
Him now. Pray this simple prayer acknowledging
your need for a Savior, and your need for a Father 

who will love you unconditionally.
Father God, thank you for loving me. I am so
sorry I have acted independently from you.
Please come into my life and make me your
child. Adopt me into your family, Lord.
AMEN..

Fit For Faith

Excerpt from Fit for Faith – 

7 weeks to improved spiritual & physical health

by Kimberley Payne

WELCOME

Fit for Faith is a unique workbook program. In addition to learning about the three components of fitness – cardiovascular exercise, strength training and stretching – your relationship with God will be strengthened through daily prayer, Scripture reading and daily journal writing.

God created you as a whole person, therefore take care of your whole self, not just the individual parts. A direct relationship exists between physical, emotional and spiritual health. A healthy body gives you the energy and enthusiasm to carry out the purposes that God has for your life. Practicing healthy living glorifies God.

This workbook is an invitation for you to discover for yourself the joys of treating your body with respect, learning to love yourself and connecting with God on a deeper level. You are invited to take a fresh physical and spiritual attitude on a daily basis.

You will learn that God truly cares. He is personal and He is intimate. God does listen to your prayers and is there for you. When you rely on God totally, for everything – including such things as losing a few pounds – He will bless you. God loves you and He wants you to love yourself. He did not create you to look at your body in disgust, but rather God saw all that He had made, and it was very good. (Genesis 1:31)

Each day, follow the outline provided and start with a simple prayer. Read the question in the reflection section and write your own response. At the end of the day, answer the three questions about your activity and healthy eating habits. Test your knowledge with the myth. Finally, close each day by meditating on the scripture verse.

The Fit for Faith Review is a personal record of your week. It is a self-evaluation tool that reflects your strengths and defines areas that need improvement.

You need to be faithful about doing something each day in order to realize the full potential of God’s plan for you. You are invited to develop physical well-being and grow spiritually to deepen your relationship with God. Prayer, Bible study and journal writing are to your spirit what exercise, healthy eating and stretching are to your body. 

Blessings on your journey to health!

ACTION PLAN

PART I: EXERCISE YOUR BODY & EXERCISE YOUR SPIRIT

Cardiovascular exercise & Strength training + Prayer

Think of exercise as either cardiovascular activity or strength training. Cardiovascular activity helps you to increase energy and keep moving. It is good for your heart, lungs and circulatory system. Strength training (also known as weightlifting) helps you keep your bones and muscles strong, reduces bone loss and improves balance and posture.

Prayer helps you to enter into a spiritual communion with God.

What cardiovascular exercise and strength training do for building a strong body, prayer does to build spiritual strength. Your body requires exercise and food, and it needs these things regularly. You cannot just take care of it at the beginning of the week and forget about it. Your spiritual life is similar to your physical body in that way. You cannot pray just once and have a healthy, growing spiritual life.

In strength training, you start by lifting small weights, and as you grow stronger, you can lift heavier weights. It is the same with prayer. You start by praying a short amount of time, and then as your desire grows you can spend time in prayer every day.

Just as exercise strengthens your body, prayer strengthens your spirit. Similarities between exercise and prayer include:

To be physically and spiritually healthy requires discipline. You need to practice both daily and use this strength or you will lose it.

The effects can be both immediate and/or long term. You may see the results right away or the effects can be cumulative.

Both exercise and prayer improve balance in your life, improve your quality of life and boost your mood.

With a pure motive, both delight God.

Women of Strength

Women of Strength – a devotional to improved spiritual & physical health

Kimberley Payne

Women of Strength

Just Do It

It looked like a gorgeous day outside. Fresh snow covered the landscape and trees were heavy with a blanket of white. The sun reflected off the field in a splash of sparkles – it appeared to be another beautiful winter day. But the thermometer stood at minus 20 in the sunshine. I cancelled my walk (yet again) because of the cold.

For months, my routine was to get my children ready in the morning, walk them to the bus stop and then walk around the neighborhood by myself. However, my routine became interrupted when I started a new work schedule and so instead of walking to the bus stop I drove the children. Then other days in the week seemed to become busier and I found myself itching to get to my office to clear away the things of the day. Instead of starting my day with a walk around the block, I started to weigh it up against other conflicting priorities. Now, the act of walking had to convince me of its worth. Each day a battle raged – walk or not walk?

What I learned is that when I didn’t give myself the choice, I went for a walk regardless of temperature or mood. However, when I made walking an option, I had to think each day, “Am I up to it? Do I have time for it? Is it warm enough or cool enough or dry enough?” Each day I put myself through a dance of questions, instead of just doing it. “Just do it” (the saying made famous by Nike) has tremendous impact. If I would walk in the morning, instead of giving myself the option, I wouldn’t have to worry about what’s more important on my list of things to do. I would return from my walk refreshed and ready to face the day.

This reminds me of time spent in prayer and Bible study. When I make it a regular part of my routine then there is no question that I’ll do it. For months, I had dedicated thirty minutes from 4:00-4:30 p.m. to quiet time with God. The kids were home from school; I reviewed their homework and fed them a snack. Then while they had free time to play – before chores, supper and evening extracurricular activities – I’d steal away to read my Bible. The kids knew that this was, “Mommy’s time with God.” And they left me alone for thirty minutes. However, now my job requires that on some days I’m not home until after 4:30. My routine has changed. On days that I am home I’m no longer disciplined to take the time in prayer. Instead, I wonder about what to make for supper. I tidy up the house and finish up details on the computer. My quiet time with God is now competing against my to-do list. Whereas before I would “just do it” now each day becomes a battle of what I feel is more important at the moment.

My lesson? Just do it! I need to plan out my week in advance knowing my work schedule and my “to do” list; make contingencies for those days that my regular walking and devotion time gets interrupted, and then do it without further thought.

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline” (Proverbs 1:7 NIV).

Exercise Your Funny Bone

When down in the mouth, remember Jonah. He came out all right.

You Asked

Q: My heart rate is 50 bpm. Is it better to have a higher resting heart rate?

A: A normal resting heart rate can vary from as low as 40 beats per minute (bpm) to as high as 100 bpm, with an average of 75 bpm for women. Physical activity helps the heart muscle to pump more efficiently for an optimal resting heart rate.

Faith Lift

Dear God – I pray that You will help me to see myself as You do, to see my own worth and respect myself. In Jesus’ name, I pray.

Reflection

I’m an avid walker and love to hike through our local woods. But recently I tried some interval training. I walked for a bit, then jogged for a bit. I did this the whole way of my regular walk for 45-minutes. My heart and lungs handled it well. But I felt as if I weighed 800 pounds -- my calves were on fire, my hips ached, my upper body itched from the bouncing. Not a pleasant experience. When I told a friend, she encouraged me to continue practicing and said that it'll only get better. I’ll take her word for it and continue with my new routine.

What new activity would you consider trying?

Top Tip

Create space – Create an area to call your own and make exercise so accessible that you have no excuse. Buy some low-priced equipment: an exercise bike, a resistance band, a set of dumbbells, a stretching mat, a jump rope and an exercise video.

Bible Truth

“The bolts of your gates will be iron and bronze, and your strength will equal your days” (Deuteronomy 33:25 NIV).

Challenge

Try a new routine, a new exercise, and/or a new time of the day to exercise.

Praise Move: Shoulder - Side Raise

Stand holding a dumbbell in each hand, arms by your sides, palms facing side leg.

Lead with bent elbows and slowly raise the weight out to your sides to shoulder height without rotating the arms.

Your palms should face the floor at the top position with arms parallel to the floor.

Pause briefly at the top of the move, than slowly lower the weights to the starting position.

Repeat 10 times.

Tips:

1. Keep your arms straight without locking your elbows.

2. Avoid swinging the arms up using momentum to lift the weight.

3. Keep your neck relaxed and your shoulders stationary.

Straight Pipes

Rally Near Him

Straight Pipes

What other nation is so great as to have their gods near them the way the Lord
our God is near us whenever we pray to him (Deut. 4:7).

Christians have an awesome privilege. God is listening. Jesus is intervening… when we pray, seeking His answers for life situations. Each morning, before the hustle and bustle of daily life gets in the way, we have the opportunity to sit down with the God of the Universe, our Creator, and visit about the situations, pressures, trials, and burdens we face.

An easy formula to follow is the word ACTS (Adore, Confession, Thanksgiving, and Supplication). Before we rev up the motorcycle, we can worship Him

(Adore)from the sanctity of our home, renewing our relationship with His Holy Spirit for the day ahead.

We can (Confess) the mistakes we’ve made and take care of anything that might stand in the way of God hearing our pleas. We can seek His forgiveness.

We can (Thank) Him personally, for everything about our life is pure pleasure, balm for a believing heart.

Then we seek His answers for ourselves and others (Supplication), leaving burdensome worries at His feet. That takes the pressure off, as long as we’re truly willing to accept His solutions.

Motorcycle riders have no idea where God will use their bikes to open doors of ministry. We enjoy the freedom of the wind touching our bodies, the freedom from the four-wheel cage. But, as Christians, we know that Jesus commanded us to “Go out into all the world. …” The first step is to listen for God’s plan. Listen to see where He wants us, and where He is already working. We aren’t in a position to listen if we’re not allowing His Holy Spirit to work in our heart through daily prayer and Bible study. Begin this morning. Set aside a short time, in a quiet place, to seek God’s
face. Then listen and ride.