Years ago, when I was a teenager, my grandmother would ask me to take her to visit her sister-in-law sometimes on Saturdays.  I would take her and sit with the two elderly ladies for a brief visit.  As my grandma aged, she lost the ability to speak even at a normal conversational volume, and she didn’t hear very well, either.  Her sister-in law, my great aunt, was losing her hearing, too - but they loved each other’s company, and I’m not sure they realized the communication barriers.  During one visit, I recall a conversation like this:  My grandma asked, “Liza, you going to church tomorrow?”   Aunt Liza said, “Yeah, I picked up some pecans yesterday, you want some?”  My grandma answered, “Oh, you ain’t got no stockings for tomorrow?  I got some extra, you want me to send them back over here with Kim?”   My Aunt Liza said, “Yeah, I’ll get you some pecans!”  She would get up and go to her kitchen and come back with a brown paper bag of pecans.   My grandma, now confused, would say, “What’s this?”  She would look inside the bag seeing pecans, she would say, “Oh thank you, you didn’t have to give me any pecans, I was just gonna give you the stockings!”  And Aunt Liza would go back into the kitchen and bring back a glass of ice water, a nutcracker, and some napkins.  By that time, I just went outside because this was hilarious to me!

I was reminded of these visits as I pondered how to explain the communication issues Jesus experienced in teaching the people of His day.  He would frequently be speaking of Spiritual things, heart matters, but they lacked the ability to understand, because they were still in their flesh.  We may not understand either!

In John 3, in the conversation with Nicodemus,  He tells him, “ No one can enter into the kingdom of God unless they are born again.  Confused, Nicodemus asks, “How can someone be born when they are old?  Surely they cannot enter a second time into their mother’s womb to be born!”  Jesus is speaking figuratively, but Nicodemus’s comprehends Him literally.  Jesus is talking about the new life, the new creature we become once we begin to believe in Him, but Nicodemus only knows of birth as from a mother’s womb.   

In John 4, when Jesus spoke to the woman at the well, He spoke figuratively in verse 10. “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.” The woman, not understanding, responds, “Sir, you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water?” (v. 11)  Jesus tries to explain again, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, 14but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” (v. 13-14). Then v. 5, The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water so that I won’t get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water.”  The woman doesn’t have a clear understanding or acceptance of what Jesus said to her, but when he asked about her husband, or lack thereof, she realizes that he is no ordinary man, she concludes He must be a prophet, and she goes about telling others they should meet Him saying, “He told me everything I ever did!” (v. 39)

In Chapter 6, the communication misalignment seems to peak, causing many followers to say, “This is a hard teaching,” and they decided to stop following Him.

~John 6:53-59
Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. 54Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day. 55For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. 56Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in them. 57Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me. 58This is the bread that came down from heaven. Your ancestors ate manna and died, but whoever feeds on this bread will live forever.” 59He said this while teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum.    

These words dismayed many of this disciples, not the twelve, but those in the crowds following Him.   Maybe they were grossed out, or they may have thought He was suggesting they become cannibals!  They said, “This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?” (v. 60). At this point, many of the people who had been following Him decided it was of no use anymore so they stopped following Him. (v. 66).

I must agree, this is a hard teaching!  But we must accept it!   In the previous conversations, with Nicodemus and the woman at the well, He was speaking Spiritually, or figuratively, if you will, but they were trying to understand Him in the flesh or literally.  With Nicodemus, He was talking about being born again in the Spirit, and Nicodemus was thinking about obstetrics!   With the woman at the well, He told her about Living Water, but her mind was on well water.  Scripture doesn’t say this, but maybe by chapter 6, He decided to try a slightly different approach.  Rather than speak Spiritually, or figuratively, He spoke plainly, and the people found it too literal!  When He spoke in the Spirit, they didn’t understand because they were listening in the flesh.  Now he is speaking of the flesh as flesh and they understand in the flesh, but totally miss the Spiritual truth!

Jesus is not suggesting that we grab a fork and knife when we see Him.  He is explaining that He must be our primary sustenance.  Just like we need water daily, He is the source of Living Water.  Living Water is a reference to the Eternal Life only He makes possible.  Living Water is fresh, constantly renewed, it springs up from inside giving life to others!   In chapter 6, He compares Himself to the manna God provided to the Israelis to sustain them on their journey to the Promised Land.  Manna was a need, and Jesus is a need if we want to have Eternal Life.  And don’t be confused, Eternal Life doesn’t start when we physically die, it begins when we make the decision to live for Him!  When we believe in Him we are born again and share Living Water with everyone we meet.
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Participating in communion, regularly, is our reminder that He is our portion, that we need Him daily, and He is a part of everything we do and think.  If these truths are hard for you to understand or accept, be in prayer that God will enable you to understand and believe in His one and only Son.  Amen.


Thank you for reading! 
Please share with others!
​Kim

“You're not a natural being, having a spiritual experience; but you’re a spiritual being living this natural experience.” This is the first line of a gospel song I enjoy, by Donald Lawrence.  It was released in 2011, but every time I hear it, it is a good reminder for me to check my perspective.  We all experience the natural, but we should not neglect to consider the spiritual lessons and meaning that our natural experiences have. 

Last year, I applied for a new job, I thought I was qualified and thought I could perform the job extremely well.  I was selected for an interview and it went very well, I was even interviewed twice more.  I kept expecting to hear that I was the new hire, because naturally…if someone makes it through three separate interviews, they must be the new hire, right?  Well, no, someone else was hired instead.  Naturally, I was surprised and disappointed, but I believed in my spirit, that God had reasons for this outcome and I trusted Him to help me understand.  He has.  I didn’t know, at that time, that my brother would have a stroke and need me to be available to travel to and from Atlanta multiple times.  By leaving me in the current role, I had the flexibility to do what my brother needed without the additional burden of a new job.  We live in the natural, but the spiritual is always operating.  

Our Bible study group is reading the Gospel of John and we see this conflict of the Spirit and the natural mind multiple times.  John 1:10-12 states, ”He [Jesus] was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. 11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God,” 

In John 3 a Pharisee named Nicodemus came to Jesus to have a conversation.  He, clearly, could only understand the natural.  He had seen the signs and wonders Jesus had performed, and believed Jesus must be from God, but that was the limit to his understanding.  Jesus tells Nicodemus in John 3:3, “No one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.” This statement confuses Nicodmeus, so he asks, “How can someone be born when they are old - surely they cannot enter a second time into their mother’s womb!”  Jesus explains more, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit”  Nicodemus asks, “How can this be?”  Clearly, there is something hindering his understanding.  

I would say Nicodemus, like many people, believe what they can see, but lack the faith to believe what they don’t first understand.  I will admit, as someone who has been in church her whole life, there’s plenty that I don’t understand.  But I believe it because I have faith.  My faith tells me that God did, in fact, create the heavens and the earth from nothing.  If He created the heavens and the hearth in the beginning, then nothing was before it and He created from nothing but an idea to create.  Yes, I am a certified Science teacher.  Yes, I know the Law of Conservation of Mass, and I believe it, and I’ve seen proof of it.  However, I believe that while this is a law of nature, God is Spirit.  What He created generally operates by the natural laws, but He is not bound by such laws, theories, hypotheses, findings or data.  People of faith must believe what they cannot see or measure.  In John, we see Jesus performing miracles the people could see in the natural, but it was for the purpose of growing their faith in the spiritual.  “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.”  Hebrews 11:1

If you are someone who lives in the natural, but needs help with accessing your spiritual beliefs, please reach out to me or a faith leader you know.  Pray that God will help you to understand, to grow in faith and understanding. Join a Bible study group, ask them to pray with you.  I can say that letting go of my need for understanding first, a whole new level of faith and understanding has been shown to me.  I am always happy to speak with someone who wants to discuss their understanding, their faith, or their salvation.  Don’t hesitate.  Amen.  

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Someone gifted my family an arrangement of flowers in sympathy for the loss of my brother.  After a couple of days, unsure of how to water the flowers properly in the basket, I decided to take them out and make bouquets in vases.  As I made the arrangements, thinking about the height and color of which flowers and bundles and leaves to place first, I was reminded of 2001.  

In 2001, a florist in my hometown wanted to sell her business so that she could retire.  My dad was going to help me purchase it and I would run the operations.  I was excited about the change of career, owning my own business, and making people happy with flowers!  But…I was a new resident of Rock Hill, SC, I was a new Science teacher, working in my college major, and enjoying it.  I was a newlywed, a new homeowner, and had just purchased a new car!  While my salary was only about $30,000 (if that) per year, it paid the bills, and it was steady and sure.  After some discussion about becoming a florist I began to think it unwise to trade my steady salary for the uncertainty of entrepreneurship.  I told the owner of the florist that I would not be able to purchase her business.  

As I thought about it the other night, if I had purchased that floral business, life would have been very different, even today 25 years later!  I don’t mean different with a judgement attached to it.  I’m not saying it would have been better or worse, just different.  I would not have remained in Rock Hill for sure, but other than that who knows!  In 2001, I wasn’t such a praying woman, so the decision not to purchase the business was not likely a prayerful decision, but a decision of my logic and experience.  I don’t regret the decision I made back then.  I did what I thought was best for me, my foreseeable future, and my stress level.  

As He always does, God allows us to use our freewill in our decision-making.  While it’s true, He has a plan for our lives, that He knitted us together in our mother’s womb, He doesn’t control our actions or decisions.  Nor do our actions and decisions change His will.  They may change our immediate outcomes, but ultimately, His good, pleasing and perfect will results.  I could have chosen to purchase the business, but I believe that somehow I still would have had two sons, and married Troy Massey.  I still think I would have written my books, I would be leading Bible study in my home on Thursday evenings - maybe not in this house, but in whatever home I lived in.  I may not have been driving the same cars, and all the minor details, but the big things were predestined and bound to happen.  

Please don’t misunderstand this message.  I have no regrets!  And you should not either.  Whatever has happened due to your decisions or what seemed to be by chance, all of it falls within God’s purview.  There is no need to fret or fear or regret, you are where you are supposed to be.  If you don’t believe this is true, pray and ask Him to guide you into His will.  You won’t wake up in a different city or home, but by opening your heart to His will, you make yourself more pliable, more obedient, and our willingness to be obedient can make all the difference. Amen. 

~Proverbs 16:9
In their hearts humans plan their course, but the LORD establishes their steps.

~Isaiah 46:10
I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say, ‘My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please.’

~Psalm 139:7-8
7 Where can I go from your Spirit?
    Where can I flee from your presence?
8If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
    if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.​

I don't have to be a florist to enjoy arranging flowers!  Amen!  These are some of my arrangements!

Jesus tells this parable along with two others to illustrate how God the Father will welcome those formerly lost in sin, into His family and their soul into Heaven once they have confessed their sins and become followers of Jesus.  With some of the parables, Jesus offers further explanation after telling it, but not this one.  This story reminds me of the issues faced by many families with an estranged loved one.   Time passes, and often it’s lots of time, and then something happens that brings everyone together.  At that time we must make a choice - we can either accept the estranged person or continue to be upset and bitter about what they did, why they didn’t call, why they didn’t seem to care, what they said 20 years ago, their attitude, and the list goes on.  We can either leave the past in the past or reconcile and make a better future.  

In this parable, we know what happened with the lost son, but with our loved ones we may not know what’s happening in their absence.  We may see them on social media or hear from others, but we don’t have the insight we have here.  Imagine being that son who thought he had it made when he received his inheritance early!  He probably thought his money and fun would last forever!  When it didn’t, he found himself broke, poor, and working the fields of a harsh master.  Scripture tells us he was so destitute that the feed given to the pigs was better than what he had to eat - imagine that!  He reached a level of desperation that may have made him call on the name of the Lord! (v. 21)  With all of his troubles, he began to consider going back to his father.  And he didn’t return expecting even a hug.  He went back in full humility with just the hope that his father would have enough love left that he might let him work in his fields.  HIs words, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.”
  
Both the father and older brother had a choice - accept him or reject.  Make it simple or make it hard.  We see that they each chose differently.  The father didn’t just accept his son, he celebrated him!  The brother chose not to accept him, but to maintain the rejection he felt during the time his brother was away.  He chose to make reconciliation hard.  He didn’t even listen for an explanation, his heart had hardened towards his brother and he wanted no part of a reconciled relationship. 

Jesus tells this parable to illustrate that even those of us who wander out of relationship with him for years upon years will be welcomed back with open arms and joyful celebration if we decide that we want to return.  Those who live in the world for decades never knowing Him will be welcomed to the kingdom of Heaven if they decide to believe and trade their worldly beliefs for faith in Jesus.  When we have the opportunity to reconcile with our loved ones, we always have a choice.  We can make it hard for them, failing to consider how hard it may have been for them to come forward, and neglecting the fact that they may be trying to live a changed life; or we can treat them like Jesus taught us to welcome those who desire to be in relationship with Him, with love and open arms.  Amen.  

​Thank you for reading!  
Please share with someone you love!
Kim

As we set the clocks forward a few weeks ago, I felt as if the Holy Spirit was prompting me to restart my living room Bible study.  Multiple people had asked me about it and I even mentioned it in my weekly blog, so we started on March 12 reading the New Testament book of James. I was intrigued to read this particular book because James is believed to have been the brother of Jesus.  He is mentioned in Matthew 13:55 as the people questioned how and where Jesus gained His ability to teach, “Isn’t this the carpenter’s son? Isn’t his mother’s name Mary, and aren’t his brothers James, Joseph, Simon and Judas?”  James is comprised of five brief chapters that I summarize as “Watch Yourself.”  

James’ writing voice reminds me of Paul, but I think James is a much more direct Christian advisor.  Paul is more wordy, while James’ illustrations are more concise.  Following a short illustration, James says in 2:17, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.  In other words, it’s not just what’s in our heart that makes us a Christian, but in the actions that flow from our heart.  Anyone can say they believe in Jesus, but not everyone lives a life that produces fruit like Jesus taught. Our Bible study group is called Word to Practice Ministries based on Philippians 4:9, “Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.”  I chose this name because I don’t think it’s enough just to study the Word of God, we as a group, must be putting it into practice.  It’s not enough to know it, but we must live it in our everyday lives as we serve in our churches and in our community. 

Twice, James uses the phrase double-minded, but he alludes to it even more. A double-minded person is one who operates on two opposing sets of beliefs.  James 1:5-8 “If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. 6But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. 7That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. 8Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do.”  The two opposing sets of beliefs here are faith and unbelief. These concepts are mutually exclusive, yet many people operate on both principles, double-minded.  In James 4:8 he uses double-minded again, but earlier in the passage (verse 4) he states, “You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God.”  Believers are double-minded by participating in worldly activities and methods of thinking.  The world and the ways of God are mutually exclusive, but sometimes we do find ourselves living in a grey area - which is not Biblical. 

James begins and ends advising that we trust God’s timing and not be anxious while we wait. In Chapter 1:2, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. In Chapter 5 he says, “Be patient, then, brothers and sisters, until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop, patiently waiting for the autumn and spring rains. 8You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near.”  No one enjoys trials, or maybe I should speak for myself alone. I don’t enjoy trials, I always feel like they are going to last forever. I can’t envision life on the other side of the trial.  I am a planner by nature, and in the midst of a trial, I can’t plan anything - which may be the point!  James tells us in 4:13-17, that when we make plans and do not submit them unto the Lord saying, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that,” then we are boasting.  Chapter 5 says, we should be patient until the Lord comes. James doesn’t say it will be soon, but John does! 

James finishes his writing with, 5:19 “My brothers and sisters, if one of you should wander from the truth and someone should bring that person back, 20remember this: Whoever turns a sinner from the error of their way will save them from death and cover over a multitude of sins.”  This brings me to my final point.  There is space for more people at Bible study.  I’m not suggesting that you call someone a sinner then invite them to Bible study, I’m just saying I have more chairs and we can move to a bigger room when needed, it’s beneficial for all!  Amen. ​

If you’ve been to our home, you have seen the Scriptures in the living room and kitchen. But what you may not have noticed, and your home probably has it, too, are the crosses on the 6-panel doors.  Whether you are decorated with Scripture art, or not, 6-panel doors bear a cross about eye-level for most adults.  When we see the cross, it should make us think of Jesus, the sacrifice He made for you and me.  This is the weekend we celebrate and remember the cross as a crossroad.
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The cross represents the crossroad of death to life.  While Jesus was crucified there and gave up His life, if he had not died on the cross, the miracle of being raised from the dead, defeating death could not have happened.  “For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive.” ~1 Corinthians 15:22

The cross represents the crossroad of condemnation to salvation.  All people are sinners, we were born as sinners, but must make the decision to believe in Jesus and follow the Word of God in order to receive eternal life.  “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”  ~John 3:17

The cross represents the crossroad of sacrifice and love.  Jesus had a choice, and it was not an easy choice to make.  He, himself never sinned, but his sacrifice was to become sin for us.  “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.”  39Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.”  ~Matthew 26:38-39  

As you move through your home, not just today, but every day, notice the crosses and think of Jesus’s sacrifice.  Think of His love for you.  Think of the insults He endured and the pain He suffered.  Think of your sin, and know that He suffered and died so that you don’t have to.  And when you think of those things, “Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? 2By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?” ~Romans 6:1-2  Let the doors in your home remind you of the life Jesus demonstrated - a life that was completely aligned with God the Father.  James 1:22 tells us, “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.”  Amen.

I hope you and your family have had a wonderful time together today - at church in worship!
Thank you for reading! 
Please take a moment to share with someone you know and love. 
Kim​

In grade-school, and even last semester when I was enrolled in the CNA program, I learned that life’s stages included infant, toddler, childhood, adolescence, and adulthood.  As I live through these myself, I’m realizing that adulthood isn’t just a single stage - it has stages, too!  Think about it, if we consider adulthood as beginning at age 18 or 21, life expectancy in the United States is over 70 years!  That’s fifty years of adulthood - how can that be a single stage?

I graduated college and married at age 22, then bought my first home at 23, then had children at 28 and 31, and to me all of that was a single stage (and a blur)!  The first time I gave any thought to adulthood stages was following my tubal ligation in 2007, at age 31 - that represented the end of my reproductive years/stage. 
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In 2011-12, I lamented the end of another stage - marriage.  I was raised to think marriage was forever, until death, but my marriage was impossible to continue.  In fact, I may have stayed longer than even God intended for me to stay…imagine that!  In September 2011, He spoke to me saying, “You are staying in this marriage for you, not for Me.”  What a way to end a stage - it still took me months to come to grips with my pending single-parenthood, but God’s own words told me that the marriage I was trying to hold onto was not honoring Him, so why would I try to remain in that stage so desperately?  Next was the “all-me” stage, (which it really already was) in which I raised my children without their father’s input - not that he wasn’t allowed, he chose not to intervene.  It was during that stage that I started attending Bible Study Fellowship, and really began to understand God’s Holy Word, which began a new stage - a stage of true prayer, and reliance upon God’s plan that is unknown to us, but revealed according to His purposes. ​

Last week, in my message, Daylight Savings Time, I talked about how with the longer days, we have more time to do the Lord’s work.  In June 2024, the Lord told me to start hosting a no pressure, no judgement Bible study in our home.  Admittedly, I wasn’t immediately obedient - but I did do it.  I wrestled with hosting a Bible study outside of a church, but I have had formal training in leading Bible studies, I have experience with it, and I enjoy it, so…it wasn’t as far-fetched, in hindsight as I made it out to be at the time.  It was constantly on my mind for several weeks and I knew it wasn’t one of Kim’s original thoughts because if it were my idea, I wouldn’t have been so reluctant.  Finally, I was cooking dinner after work one evening, and arguing with God.  
I said, “And where am I supposed to hold this Bible study?”  
He said, “In this house I gave you!”  
I said, “And how am I supposed to tell people about it - just put it on Facebook?”  
And He said, “Like you do everything else!”  

So I did it, and it was GOOD!  We started with the book of Jonah, then Matthew, and more.  Once we set the clocks back and it was dark at 6pm, attendance began to wane.  Then after the Christmas break, we never got back on track.  It’s been on my mind this year to start again.  At least 20 people have asked me if I had plans to start again in 2026.  I started Bible study again on Thursday - and you are invited for this Thursday!

I wrote, in a message back in October, that in the time I wasn’t writing and sharing this weekly message, I was convicted nearly every week at church.  That is not a good feeling.  I started writing again.  

I wrote a few weeks ago that I had made the decision to become an active realtor, again.  It had been on my mind, I thought I was seeing signs, then I received an award at work which was accompanied by a financial bonus - about the amount required to pay my Realtor Association and MLS fees…so I thought that was the Lord!  I texted my former Broker In Charge to ask him what I would need to do to return to active, and I was also kind of asking if he would have me back.  I wasn’t sure he would even remember me.  He remembered me!  The other BIC started texting me balloons, other agents sent congratulatory texts, emails from the MLS and Association flooded my inbox - I was like - WOW! 

So, how do you know if the things you feel inclined to do are from the Lord or if they are just your own desires.  Here’s how I see it:

• It keeps coming up.  It nags at you and will not leave you alone!
• You dream of doing it, even if you don't want to do it. I have found that when the Holy Spirit is trying to tell me something, my state of consciousness is irrelevant.  He will tell me day-in and day-out until I do it. 

• Other people, not knowing, mention it.  I do believe God sends messengers to confirm His plans for our lives. 
• He may give a confirmation.  Some people call it a “God-wink” to help us decide, or immediately after we decide to be obedient.  Something happens that confirms we made the decision He wanted us to make. 
• You feel guilty for not doing it.  This may come in the form of a conviction.  God doesn’t make us feel guilty, but because we are His children, we should be seeking to do His will.  When we knowingly are not doing His will, guilt is the result. 

Finally, if there is something you want to do, but you’re still not sure if it’s the Lord telling you to do it or if it’s just on your mind, ask yourself the questions below. 

• Is it good?   
• Does it help other people?  
• Will it point others to Christ?  

If you answered YES to the questions above, then you should definitely do it.  Someone’s salvation may be dependent upon your obedience - that gets me every time!!!  Amen!!!​