An Empty Package

Imagine arriving home and discovering someone had left you a gift.

You try to remember what the occasion might be.

Nothing comes to mind.

You try to remember what you did to earn it.

Again, nothing comes to mind.

You even try to remember what you did to deserve a gift.

Still, nothing comes to mind.

You decide to read the note attached.

It is simply signed: “From the One Who Loves You the Most”.

At a loss, you open the gift.

You discover the package is completely empty.

How would you react?

Would you be confused?

Would you be upset?

This scenario might seem farfetched, but something similar happened about 2,000 years ago.

Jesus had been tried, convicted and executed.

He was then buried in a borrowed tomb.

Three days later a group of women who followed Jesus in life went there.

As they walked, they wondered who would open the tomb for them.

When they arrived, they found the tomb had been unsealed.

What is more, they discovered Jesus was no longer there.

The disciples were then informed.

Although in hiding, two came to see for themselves.

Afterward, one of the women remained.

John 20:11 (NET) - But Mary stood outside the tomb weeping. As she wept, she bent down and looked into the tomb.

At that instant, no one realized the magnitude of the moment.

The disciples had gone back into hiding.

Mary was still upset

All involved were confused.

Not one of them realized that this was a gift.

It was the most precious gift imaginable.

It was a gift that was neither earned nor deserved.

It was a gift that completely changed everything forever!

Jesus was exactly who He claimed to be.

Jesus did exactly what He promised to do.

Ephesians 2:8 (NET) - For by grace you are saved through faith, and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God;

When you think about it, the very best gift you and I ever received was discovered in an empty package.

Blessings,

Jim Pokorny

The Other Brother Jim

Look for me at http://faithfulfeetteam.blogspot.com/ on Friday, April 19, 2019.

I’ll be back here on Friday, April 26, 2019

The Original Black Friday

I always look forward to Thanksgiving Day.

Not only is it a great time for personal reflection, it also means spending time with family and friends.

It is also a rather ironic time.

One day, we gather around the table and share with each other reasons why we are grateful.

The next day, many of us will hit the stores the moment the doors open to shop for material thongs.

In fact, the day after Thanksgiving Day has turned into the busiest shopping day of the year.

It even has earned its own name – Black Friday.

The shopping frenzy continues into Saturday which has earned its own title, that of Small Business Saturday.

Even the following Monday has claimed its own title – Cyber Monday.

Human beings are a funny lot.

One day we say we are grateful, the next days are about continued consuming of more and more and more.

As for me, I plan to avoid all the stores this weekend.

I even stocked up on necessities the week before so as not to get caught up in the madness.

What is most ironic is that the very best gift we can receive cannot be found in any store anywhere.

It was a gift first given about 2,000 years ago.

It was given on a Friday as well.

In some respects, on the blackest Friday of them all.

It was the day Jesus gave His all for all.

Mark 15:33 (NET) - Now when it was noon, darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon.

His gift that day is still available to us today.

All we need to do is accept it.

Romans 6:23 (NET) - For the payoff of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

That is certainly something for which to give thanks,

Blessings,

Jim Pokorny

The Other Brother Jim

Look for me at http://faithfulfeetteam.blogspot.com/ on Friday, December 7, 2018.

I will be back here on Friday, December 14, 2018

Say It Like You Mean It

I went to the post office to buy some stamps.

There were several people ahead of me in line each with packages to ship.

With each transaction, a receipt was printed.

Each time the clerk pointed to a spot on the receipt and said to the customer, “Here is your tracking number.”

When my turn came, I requested my stamps and paid for them.

A receipt was printed for me as well.

The clerk paused before handing it to me.

“Is there a problem?” I asked.

“I don’t see your tracking number,” she stated.

As my transaction was a purchase, there was no tracking number.

Knowing how busy she is this time of year I thought she could use a laugh.

“That’s okay,” I replied, “I’ll try to remember where I put them.”

We shared the laugh and I departed.

As humorous as this event was, it did force me to think about how much of the season becomes routine.

Routines are things we do automatically.

They require little thought.

They are comfortable.

Even wishing someone “Merry Christmas” or “Happy Christmas” can become automatic.

As we continue our journey through Advent, perhaps we should turn the autopilot off.

We should consider just why it is that Christmas makes us merry and happy.

Christmas celebrates the birth of a baby born to humble parents in an obscure village.

A baby who was born in a stable instead of a palace.

Even the first to hear the news were but simple shepherds, not the rich and powerful.

This is how He came into the world.

This was His first step in His journey among us.

It was a journey that began in a stable and ended at a cross.

How could this possibly make us merry or happy?

There is no simple, easy cookie cutter answer.

The fact that He took this journey willingly for our benefit is part of it.

The fact that this was the only way to make us right with God is another.

The fact that this is a reminder that He is coming again is the best reason of all.

We celebrate Christmas because it was the defining moment when God reached down to a fallen world.

And He did so in the most remarkable way.

Luke 2:10-11 (NET) - But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid! Listen carefully, for I proclaim to you good news that brings great joy to all the people: Today your Savior is born in the city of David. He is Christ the Lord.

Go ahead and say “Merry Christmas!”

Just make certain that you mean it.

Blessings,

Jim Pokorny

The Other Brother Jim

Look for me at http://faithfulfeetteam.blogspot.com/ on Friday, December 16, 2016.

I will be back here on Friday, December 23, 2016

With Gratitude

Reflection is always a good thing.

There is perhaps no better time than Thanksgiving for it.

It would be easy for me from a writing standpoint to simply list all for which I am thankful.

There are two reasons I will not.

First, it would not make for very interesting reading.

Second, reflection is much more than a simple cataloging process.

What I am most grateful for is summed up by John 3:16.

John 3:16 (NET) - For this is the way God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.

In all my years, one thing still amazes me.

Some people still refuse to accept God’s precious gift.

Some think this is just too easy.

Experience has taught me that life as Christian is often anything but easy.

Being a Christian means putting the needs of others before your own desires.

In some parts of the world being a Christian even means risking life and limb.

Some think that we should have to do something to earn God’s gift.

Truthfully speaking, there is nothing we can either say or do that can make us worthy of this gift.

Perhaps saddest of all, some think God’s way is just too exclusive.

They simply refuse to believe that God would provide only one way to salvation.

Why not two, or ten, or one hundred?

Why would an omnipotent God provide only one means of salvation?

I have studied a great deal of history through the years.

I have considered the evils that man has committed throughout the centuries.

Heartless regimes, genocide, torture and greed merely begin to list what man is capable of.

Considering this, isn’t it remarkable that God chose to provide us with even one way let alone more?

Besides, how can a way available to everyone possibly be thought of as exclusive?

So, after careful reflection, it is God’s gift for which I am most grateful.

God provided for our salvation.

He did so in the one and only way possible.

I guess what really makes this hard for some to believe is that God considers this a gift.

It is a gift we did not earn.

It is a gift we certainly did not deserve.

It is a gift born of divine love and one that should be accepted with gratitude.

Blessings,

Jim Pokorny

The Other Brother Jim

Look for me at http://faithfulfeetteam.blogspot.com/ on Friday, December 2, 2016.

I will be back here on Friday, December 9, 2016

Behind the Lens

Photography is something I got into later in life.

It certainly seemed born out of necessity rather than desire.

One day, I found myself serving on a committee.

Before I knew it, I found myself acting as its historian.

I thought it might be a good idea to supplement the documentation with photographs.

I knew nothing about cameras and even less about photography.

Ten years and literally thousands of photographs later, photography has become an integral part of both my life and my ministry.

It has also taught me some truly valuable lessons along the way.

Perhaps the biggest lesson it has taught me is patience.

I learned that if I patiently waited for the moment to unfold I would have a much better photo.

It has also taught me that candid shots are preferable to posed ones.

My favorite photos are of people actively serving the Lord with smiles on their faces.

It has also taught me about the importance of timing.

This is especially true of God’s timing.

Earlier this month I captured a breathtaking sunset.

A minute sooner and my view would not have been as beautiful.

A minute later and the opportunity God offered would have been gone altogether.

It has also taught me to be grateful for the smallest of miracles.

The other day I was walking past a beautiful bush with tiny orange blossoms when a tiny flash of movement caught my eye.

A closer examination revealed that a butterfly with black and yellow wings was taking advantage of the blossoms.

I must have taken two dozen photographs of this tiny miracle.

It showed no fear of me.

Although it flew from blossom to blossom, it never flew away.

When I examined the photographs later, I felt that God had given me a very special gift that day.

I was reminded of the time when Moses desired to see God more than anything else.

God had a warning for Moses.

Exodus 33:20 (NET) - But He added, “You cannot see My face, for no one can see Me and live.”

We may not currently be able to see God face to face.

Yet God does grant us precious glimpses of Himself from time to time.

So often, we just need to slow down pay more attention.

Photography has taught me that as well.

Blessings,

Jim Pokorny

The Other Brother Jim

Look for me at http://faithfulfeetteam.blogspot.com/ on Friday, November 4, 2016.

I will be back here on Friday, November 11, 2016

Custom Made

Psalm 139:14 (KJV) - I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvelous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.

Each of us began life in the womb as a single cell.

Biology teaches us that this single cell divided and became two.

Those two, in turn, divided and became four and so on.

The Psalmist understood that there was more at work than just mere biology.

He understood that God played a major role in our development as well.

Consider the various organs of the body.

Heart, brain, kidneys and eyes just begin a list of all the complex organs in the body.

Every organ in the body has a special purpose.

The cells that make up each organ must be specialized,

A heart cell is different from a brain cell.

A kidney cell is different from an eye cell.

Each of our organs develops in the womb.

Somewhere along the way each organ must begin with its first specialized cell.

Question: How does the first heart or brain or kidney or eye cell know it has to be the first cell of its kind?

The Psalmist understood that we are fearfully and wonderfully made.

He understood that God was at work creating him in the womb.

Yet this is only a part of a bigger picture,

God knows each of us intimately.

God knit us together cell by cell.

He even knew what we would be capable of in the future.

In fact, He knew all these things before we were capable of knowing anything at all.

God explained this to the prophet Jeremiah.

Jeremiah 1:5 (KJV) - Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.

God not only created Jeremiah, He created Jeremiah for a very special purpose.

The best part is God has done this for each and every one of us.

God created us just as fearfully and wonderfully as He created the Psalmist.

He sanctified us for a purpose just as He sanctified Jeremiah for a purpose.

Question: Do you know the purpose for which you were created?

If not, could there possibly be anyone better to ask than the Creator Himself?

Blessings,

Jim Pokorny

The Other Brother Jim

Look for me at http://faithfulfeetteam.blogspot.com/ on Friday, October 7, 2016.

I will be back here on Friday, October 14, 2016

Why Sunday School?

It is difficult enough trying to get grown people to go to church these days.

It seems even more difficult to get them to even think of going to Sunday School,

Believe it or not, there are real benefits in attending an adult Sunday School class.

First of all, Sunday School is not just for children.

If a church has a Sunday School program for children it is very likely that it provides classes for adults.

Learning, after all, should be a lifelong experience.

Second, an adult Sunday School class is generally a small group.

Church should feel like family as we grow closer to those with whom we worship.

That being true, a small group like an adult Sunday School class begins to feel more like immediate family to those who attend.

This special sense of family is fostered simply by being a part of the group.

Another benefit of attending an adult Sunday School class is that you cannot help but learn more about the Bible.

Everyone in the class has passages of scripture that are important to them.

As the class studies together people will often share these passages of scripture with their fellow students.

At other times a student may recall a portion of scripture which the class then looks up in the Bible.

Another benefit of attending an adult Sunday School class is that each person is different,

Each brings his particular strengths that helps others.

Each also bring his weaknesses in order that they may be helped by those who are stronger.

Attending an adult Sunday School class also helps one get better at prayer.

When time in class is set aside for this purpose, students learn to pray more effectively.

They also raise specific people and circumstances up in prayer.

Their classmates then often pray for these people and circumstances outside the classroom as well.

In an adult Sunday School class, the students tend to become more involved individuals.

They may serve the church in other areas and quite often they have or develop ministries outside the church.

One thing I would recommend to any adult Sunday School class is that they take up an offering and prayerfully consider how to use those funds to benefit others.

Speaking from experience, you will be absolutely amazed by what God can do with a handful of dedicated people and a few dollars every week.

There is another great thing about being in a Sunday School class.

You really feel God’s presence there.

Scripture bears this out!

Matthew 18:20 (NET) - For where two or three are assembled in my name, I am there among them.

These are merely some of the benefits of attending an adult Sunday School class.

There are many more.

There are even benefits to teaching such a class.

But those I will save for another time.

Blessings,

Jim Pokorny

The Other Brother Jim

Look for me at http://faithfulfeetteam.blogspot.com/ on Friday, February 5, 2016.

I’ll be back here on Friday, February 12, 2016

Don’t Limit Christmas to One Day

I chose to write this the very moment that Christmas Eve turned into Christmas Day.

While Christmas is always special, I feel especially blessed this Christmas.

God continues to surround me with wonderful people who both love me and encourage me.

Some of these people I see daily in the workplace.

Some I see weekly in the Sunday school class I teach and the church in which I worship.

With the assistance of technology and social media I am surrounded by still more.

Many of these people I will never be fortunate enough to meet face to face in this world.

It is both comforting and amazing to think that I will be able to do so in the next.

It is comforting in the sense that heaven is a reality in which no one will be a stranger.

It is amazing in the sense this is only possible because of the One whose birth we celebrate at this time of year.

This sense of amazement is multiplied when one really contemplates the significance of that birth.

That is one of the things that truly separates Christianity from all other religions.

Christianity is not about how a fallen man attempts to reach up to God.

Christianity is about how God reached down to a fallen man through Jesus Christ.

It is about how God planned for our salvation from the very beginning.

The Son of God had to be born into this fallen world.

He then had to live among us.

He had to be subjected to hunger, thirst and temptation.

He had to be subjected to ridicule and rejection.

He had to be subjected to abandonment, torture and, yes, even death.

Yet never once did He sin.

Always, He forgave.

During His time among us, He taught us how to live.

He taught that it was important that we have a good relationship with God.

He also emphasized that it was important for us to have a good relationship with others.

In the coming days, we will take down all of the decorations we put up for Christmas.

We will pack them into boxes and relegate them to attics and storage rooms to lie all but forgotten for another year.

Please, let us not do that with Jesus.

Let us continue to celebrate all that He continues to be each and every day of the year.

Let us do that as we reach out to a world that chooses to live in darkness rather than step into His light.

Let us forge now the relationships that will last throughout eternity.

John 3:17 (NET) – For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world should be saved through Him.

Blessings,

Jim Pokorny

The Other Brother Jim

Look for me at http://faithfulfeetteam.blogspot.com/ on Friday, January 2, 2014.

I’ll be back here on Friday, January 9, 2014

You Give Them Something to Eat

The feeding of the 5,000 has occupied my thoughts a great deal lately.

This is the only one of the many miracles of Jesus that is recorded in all four gospels.

Matthew's account is in chapter 14.

Mark records this in chapter 6.

Luke documents this in chapter 9.

Finally, John describes this miracle in chapter 6.

All four accounts are remarkably similar.

Jesus ministers to a very large crowd.

Feeling compassion for them, He heals their sick.

His followers then want to send them away so they can buy food for themselves.

Jesus surprises His followers and says to them, "You give them something to eat."

His followers protest and reply, "We have here only five loaves and two fish."

John's gospel states that these were barley loaves and belonged to a boy as did the two fish.

It is reasonable to assume that these loaves were probably more like buns and the two fish were not very large.

In other words, this was probably the boy's lunch and surely not enough to feed thousands of adults.

Jesus instructs His followers to bring the loaves and the fish to Him.

He then tells His followers to have the people sit down.

Before anything else happens, Jesus gives thanks!

He then distributes the food to the masses and all 5,000 eat their fill.

Jesus then instructs His followers to collect the leftovers so that nothing is wasted.

The leftovers are collected and fill twelve baskets.

This miracle must have made a great impression upon Matthew, Mark, Luke and John as each included it in his gospel.

In reflecting upon it, three things stand out in my mind.

The first is that before the multitude was fed, Jesus gave thanks.

The second is that Jesus initially told His followers, "You give them something to eat."

Everything we have belongs to God.

Whenever we give we are, in essence, giving back to God what already belongs to Him.

Jesus reminded His followers that the poor would always be among us.

John 12:8 (NET) - "For you will always have the poor with you, but you will not always have Me!"

This is still the case and the words of Jesus ring truer than ever.

"You give them something to eat."

When we do, we should first give thanks and remember that what we give belongs to God already.

2 Corinthians 9:7 (NET) - Each of you should give just as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, because God loves a cheerful giver.

What is the third thing?

As abundant as His blessing was, He wanted none of it wasted.


Blessings,
Jim Pokorny
The  Other Brother Jim
Look for me at http://faithfulfeetteam.blogspot.com/ on Friday, August 1, 2014.
I’All be back here on Friday, August 8, 2014

Exchange Policy

The other day, my air conditioner stopped working and I had to schedule a repair.

I was going to have to wait at least two days as the repairman had a number of calls ahead of mine.

With the forecast calling for unseasonably warm temperatures I decided to purchase a new fan.

I felt I would be more comfortable with at least some air circulating in the room.

I stopped by the store and looked over the selection of fans that they had in stock.

One model in particular caught my eye because of both its features and its price.

It happened to be the only one like it that they had in stock.

When I picked the box up from the shelf I noticed that it had been opened before and very carefully taped back shut.

There was a sales clerk in that department so I asked him about it.

He apologized for the box having been opened and he was nice enough to explain the situation to me.

It turns out that someone had purchased the fan and taken it home.

They opened the box and saw the amount of assembly required and the size of the instruction booklet that came with it.

They decided not to invest this amount of effort.

They promptly returned it to the store and exchanged it for a simpler model.

The clerk assured me that every component originally in the box was accounted for.

I purchased the fan and took it home.

I unpacked all the parts and got out my tools.

Then, before I so much as turned a single screw, I did something very important.

I read the assembly instructions.

Once I had familiarized myself with them I began to assemble the fan.

I kept the instructions close at hand and within an hour I had it assembled.

I plugged it in and tested it to make certain that it worked.

Having done that, I next read the operating instructions in order to familiarize myself with all its features.

As I write this in the comfort of its cool and refreshing breeze I am struck by the similarity this has to our faith.

Salvation is God's gift of grace to us but after we accept it there comes a certain amount of effort on our part.

We are to do the things which please Him.

We are also to refrain from doing those things which displease Him.

Fortunately for us, He gives us the tools we need to do this.

He also gives us a marvelous instruction book to help us make sense of it all.

That book is the Bible and we should make reading it a regular part of our lives.

2 Timothy 3:16 (NIV) - All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.

It is said that the Bible is the best selling book of all time.

It does not fulfill its purpose when it sits on a shelf unread.

We have choices.

We can accept God's gift and all that comes with it, or, we take one quick glance inside the box and return it.

The hardest and most painful work has already been done for us.

Shouldn't we be willing to do our small part in return?


Blessings,
Jim Pokorny
The  Other Brother Jim
Look for me at http://faithfulfeetteam.blogspot.com/ on Friday, May 2, 2014.
I’ll be back here on Friday, May 9, 2014

What Is Your Gift?

Every believer is gifted by God so that he or she can use those gifts to glorify Him.

Scripture describes some of those gifts in Romans 12.

The gifts listed there are prophecy, service, teaching, exhortation, contributing, leadership and the showing of mercy.

It also describes how those gifts are to be used.

It really is a wonderful feeling to know both what your gift is and that you are putting it to use.

But what if you are not sure about what your gift is?

How do you go about finding out?

The best place to begin is with prayer.

Mathew 21:22 (NET) - And whatever you ask in prayer, if you believe, you will receive.

Bear in mind that this does not necessarily mean asking for a particular gift.

The better approach is to prayerfully ask God to reveal to you the gift He has in mind for you.

Also, be prepared for the subtle ways in which God sometimes reveals Himself.

While God revealed Himself to Moses through a burning bush, He also revealed Himself to Elijah in a whisper.

Elijah witnessed a powerful wind which caused landslides on the very mountain upon which he stood.

After that, he witnessed an earthquake.

Elijah witnessed still more.

1 Kings 19:22 (NET) - After the earthquake, there was a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. After the fire there was a soft whisper.

Elijah recognized that God was in the whisper.

How can we be sure to hear something as subtle as a whisper?

Scripture even provides us with an answer to that question.

Be still.

Psalm 46:10 (KJV) - Be still and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen. I will be exalted in the earth.

It is important to spend time with God in a quiet place that is free from noise and distractions.

There is one more thing to keep in mind.

When He reveals the gift He has given to you it may not be one you expected.

It may not be the one you would have chosen for yourself.

If that happens, do not worry.

He knows what He has planned for you and He will equip you to use it.

That is a big part of what having faith is all about.



Blessings,
Jim Pokorny
The  Other Brother Jim
Look for me at http://faithfulfeetteam.blogspot.com/ on Friday, April 4, 2014.
I’ll be back here on Friday, April 11, 2014