Oh taste and see that Yahweh is good. Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him.

      Psalm 34:8 (WEB)

      We are coming up on one of my favorite holidays – July 4th! Like most holidays it involves great food and family. What more could you want? FIREWORKS!!! I am a watcher of fireworks. I will be checking the TV listings to make sure I watch every firework display that is presented. I like seeing them in person but this year I will be at home watching on TV.

      July 4th is a time that we remember the joy and victory of our freedoms. We recite portions of the Declaration of Independence and Constitution like beautiful pieces of poetry. Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address and Kennedy’s Inaugural Address bring tears to the eyes that only truly inspired works can do. It is a feast for the spirit as we share a gastronomic feast among family and friends.

      I hope as we celebrate we also remember our Lord who was there every step of the way. As we celebrate may we also raise our voices in thanksgiving for our Lord who did not leave us on the battlefields nor sleep while we debated and voted our way through presidents, senators, representatives, governors, mayors, and thousands of laws. As we sit around the table and share wonderful memories of picnics passed, may we also share stories of how our Lord fed us when we could not feed ourselves. It is not about preaching or arguing to win a point –

      Hear my teaching, my people. Turn your ears to the words of my mouth.

       I will open my mouth in a parable. I will utter dark sayings of old, which we have heard and known, and our fathers have told us.

       We will not hide them from their children, telling to the generation to come the praises of Yahweh, his strength, and his wondrous works that he has done.

       For he established a testimony in Jacob, and appointed a teaching in Israel, which he commanded our fathers, that they should make them known to their children; that the generation to come might know, even the children who should be born; who should arise and tell their children, that they might set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep his commandments, and might not be as their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation, a generation that didn’t make their hearts loyal, whose spirit was not steadfast with God.

      Psalm 78:1-8 (WEB)

      On July 4th what will you remember about the holiday? Will you be able to know that you shared a piece of your heart as you told the story of how Jesus helped you through the week? Will you dismiss the question because you did not want to offend someone? Will that hold up as you look at Jesus and explain that the truth is – you were ashamed of Him? Will He be ashamed of you? Will He bless you with the rest of one who has “done well, good and faithful servant!”? I pray that it is so – for you and me. God bless America!

      July 4

      Hope

      ...And the mystery is that Christ lives in you, and he is your hope of sharing in God’s glory.

      Colossians 1:27 (CEV)

      Why do we say that our hope is in Jesus Christ? ‘Hope’ is expecting a desire to be fulfilled. If I have ‘hope’, I am optimistic about my future. Before I accepted my need for a savior and that Jesus is my Savior, I had only what I could see with my eyes. I had only this world and what it could give me. Frankly – if THIS is all that there is – I want a refund on my life!

      – Gas prices are climbing – Vacation? Not happening. I want to move closer to my work to save money!

       – War in several countries with young men and women making tremendous sacrifices, including their lives.

       – Health care costs are climbing and insurance coverage is declining. Even those of us who have insurance have to figure out how to afford the co-pay.

       – Violence is no longer something we see in wars and in movies or TV but it is in our workplace, our schools, and on our roads.

       – Marriage is considered an ‘option’ for those in love and children with parents married to each other and leading lives to be imitated are rare.

      Hope is what I see when I look at Jesus. Hope is what I know when I read God’s truth. Hope is what strengthens me when my world is shook with disease, death, and situations I cannot understand. Hope comes when I go to my knees.

      Jesus, God Himself, came to this earth and took on the life that we have here. He walked. He slept on the ground. He was mocked by ignorant people. He put out His hands to help and people wanted to stone Him. He healed ten lepers and only one said, “Thanks”. Jesus came to my life, in this world, and walked so that I would have hope when I had to walk the same roads.

      Paul speaks of hope to the Romans reminding them that hope is expecting something you cannot see. If you can see it, then you don’t hope for it! And Jesus knew that we need help to hope and so He sent us His Spirit to strengthen us in our weakness. (Romans 8:18-39) Take a few minutes today and read the passage in Romans. Soak in the words and allow hope to grow inside of you.

      July 5

      Trust

      In God, I praise his word. In God, I put my trust.

      Psalm 56:4 (WEB)

      Do you trust God? With how much do you trust Him? To trust someone is to rely on them with an assurance that comes from what you know about their character, their strength, and their truth. So how much I trust God is directly affected by how much I know about God! And it’s not a ’theory’ of knowing but an actual ’in practice’ of knowing!

      Did you ever play that game where you are blindfolded and you are to fall backwards into someone’s arms? It is a test of trust. Military personnel, law enforcement, and

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