Earthly Trinkets Vs. Heavenly Treasures: February 19th Devotional

      Earthly Trinkets Vs. Heavenly Treasures

Matthew 6:19-21

February 19th Devotional

      “Buy me some peanuts and Cracker Jacks, I don’t care if I ever get back.”  Most of us are familiar with this jingle from an iconic American song about baseball and a famous snack, Cracker Jacks.  What is the big deal with Cracker Jacks and what happened on this day in history that includes them?  Cracker Jacks were simply a snack of popcorn, molasses, and peanuts.  The snack has been around for quite some time.  The Rueckheim brothers had been selling a type of popcorn snack since the 1870’s, until the recipe was perfected in 1893 and sold at the World’s Fair held in Chicago.  The name is rumored to have come from a customer who exclaimed that the product was “Cracker Jack” after tasting it.  The company soared with popularity.  In 1907 Jack Norworth, a famous singer and performer wrote the words of take me out to the ballgame, including the term Cracker Jacks in it.  Ironically Jack had never been to a ballgame and didn’t even know if Cracker Jacks were sold at games.  Nonetheless, the inadvertent advertisement caused the snack to become a household staple at nearly every ballpark.  Many years later the New York Yankees attempted to switch brands only to find an outrage from fans.  Cracker Jacks became famous for something else, prizes.  In 1910 the wax sealed packages included coupons.  The coupons were geared toward women.  They would be for sewing machines, dishware, and other goods for the home. This promotion lasted for about two years until the company introduced toy prizes for the first time on this day in 1913.  Some of the toys over the years have been baseball cards (some of them worth quite a bit of money), stickers, plastic figures, decoder rings, etc.  Prizes continued until 2016 when they were replaced with simple temporary tattoos and jokes. 

      I used to love Cracker Jacks as a child.  Actually, take that back, I don’t remember eating the snack, I remember opening the package for what I thought was the coolest toy ever.  Looking back I can’t remember a single Crack Jack toy that I pulled.  To be honest I probably lost them or broke them within the first few days.  The toys found in this sweet treat were not know for their longevity, they weren’t typically built to last, but nonetheless we desired those cheap trinkets just to have something we could say was our own.  We as humans do this in a similar way.  We collect the “Cracker Jack” toys of this world.  Things that won’t last, things that have monetary value but zero eternal benefit to us spiritually.  Jesus spoke about this in Matthew 6:19-21 when He said “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.  But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; for where you treasure is, there your heart will be also.”  I don’t think Jesus is necessarily condemning the things of this world (so long as they aren’t sinful).  God has created things for us on planet earth for our pleasure.  The problem becomes when we spend our entire life pursing those things.  It’s great to collect baseball cards, Legos, vintage toys, home décor, clothing, etc. It’s wise to have savings accounts and retirement accounts, but none of those treasures are going to last.  They are temporary trinkets for our journey around the sun.  God instead wants us to lay up treasures in heaven.  What does that mean?  It means to faithfully serve Jesus, to use our talents and gifts for His glory and the furtherance of the Gospel, it means living a humble life, it means loving others (even your enemies), it means sacrifice, it means praying and giving, it means forgiving.  Those treasures last.  They are not the cheap Cracker Jack trinkets found in a box, these are the treasures in heaven, won for Jesus.  These are the treasures that cannot be lost or stolen.  What are you laying up?  Earthly trinkets or heavenly treasure?

February 2023 Prayer Letter

  “Mobilizing the Church Through Short-term Mission Trips”

      For some people winter can be a slow-paced, boring season, but not in our house.  Noah and Titus have birthdays in the month of January.  We now have a 7-year-old and an 11-year-old!  Maggie is patiently waiting for her birthday later this month.  Tiffanie and I are extremely grateful for our three kids.  We have had the joy of watching them grow physically, spiritually, and academically.  They have crossed over the first half of the school year and so far, they all maintain a 4.0 on their report card.  Also, Noah has been cast as a main character in a play at the Apollo Theater near our home.  It’s been quite a busy family month.

      We have continued with a fruitful winter of preparing for mission trips.  Our year kicked off with presenting a trip to Waynesboro Grace to Southern West Virginia.  This group has started raising support and is excited to share Christ and make a Gospel-sized impact in Appalachia this summer.  We have also been meeting with Boonsboro Bible Church in regard to their Spring mission trip.  This trip is filled with new opportunities to share the Gospel.  This team will have a community outreach, light construction at a drug rehab center with a Biblical foundation, lead a lady's Bible study, provide basic life skills for ladies at the rehab center, provide lunch for the local teachers, host a community paint night in which a devotional will be shared, and lots more!  It’s going to be a GREAT trip filled with relational opportunities to make Christ known.  We have also started to present a trip for the Fellowship of Bible Churches to Western Maryland and Morgan County West Virginia!

      We did have to change our schedule in regard to our survey of Cortland New York. Our family battled illness and we are currently rescheduling the trip for the Spring season.  We have LOTS of exciting things coming up in the next few weeks.  A group of CiM missionaries is traveling to Welch WV to survey the area for future trips and ministry.  Our family will also be ministering the entire month of February with our friends at Locust Valley Bible Church.  We have a mission conference scheduled in March to Myrtle Beach and at the end of March we will be heading back down to Southern WV to take pictures and film video.  This media will be used to create promotional material for our website, social media, and to present to local churches.

     We had a huge praise to share with you.  A friend of ours from Locust Valley Bible Church donated a van to our family.  We are beyond thankful for this incredible gift of generosity.  This gift provides our family with more time to continue to save for a lower mileage and affordable van for the future.  Also please note that we will be changing our prayer letter updates.  We will be mailing out our letters bimonthly and emailing them monthly (unless you prefer a monthly letter in the mail).  Feel free to email us at mandtcim@gmail.com to let us know which way you prefer to receive your letters.  We do have a few Sundays free.  Let us know if you would like us to come in and share a mission update or share a message in the Word.  We are thankful for your prayers and gifts.  We are constantly amazed by your kindness and gracious spirit.  We couldn’t do this without you!

Gifts sent to:  P.O. Box 51519 Durham, NC 27717

Or give online via www.churchesinmissions.org      

Designate for Matt & Tiffanie Robinson         

mandtcim@gmail.com

CiM Missionaries visiting Southern WV

Success Over Setbacks: February 12th Devotional

Success Over Setbacks

Romans 5:3

February 12th Devotional

      On this day in 1915, the iconic hymn writer Fanny Crosby entered into glory at the age of 94.  Crosby is a household name in Christianity.  She composed over 8000 hymns and gospel songs.  She was hailed as the Queen of Gospel music.  Not only that but she was also an accomplished poet.  Crosby’s childhood was mired with tragedy and heartache.  At six weeks old Frances contracted a simple cold, but it caused an infection in her eyes.  The local doctor was out of town and another man masquerading as a doctor treated her with a  hot mustard poultice.  This treatment left Fanny blind for the rest of her life.  A few months later her dad passed away, leaving her mother to work many hours toiling as a maid just to make ends meet.  One would have assumed that the multitude of tragedies would have destroyed Fanny, but it was quite the opposite.  She was labeled as a happy child.  She was faithful to church and loved Jesus.  She had a passion for the Bible.  She had memorized the four Gospels, the Pentateuch, Proverbs, and countless other books of the Bible before she turned 15!  She attended a school in New York City for the blind.  She excelled while she was there.  She wrote countless poems which were considered masterpieces at her time.  But her greatest love started in 1864.  She started to pen hymns.  Her songs revolutionized church singing during that era.  Most songs were evangelistic in nature, pleading with people to come to Jesus Christ for salvation.  Writing thousands of hymns that are still used today seems like quite an accomplishment, but Fanny found her greatest satisfaction in working alongside the poor in New York City.  Fanny purposefully choose to live in a poor area of town so she could minister to hurting people in rescue missions.  She would regularly speak and serve the hardest of people in places like Hell’s Kitchen and ‘the tenderloin.’ Her song “Rescue the Perishing” was written while working alongside the lost living in the slums.  She continued to reach the perishing until her death in 1915.  

      Fanny didn’t allow the setbacks in her life to unravel the plans that God had set before her.  She even saw God’s providential hand in her blindness.  Fanny once said, “when I get to heaven, the first face that shall ever gladden my sight will be that of my Savior.”  Think of that word setback for a moment.  It’s defined as a reversal of progress, or when your life goes much differently than you originally planned.  Each of us has experienced them multiple times in our life.  We’ve experienced setbacks when we didn’t get the raise we wanted, when we lost our job, when a tragedy strikes our homes, when we have an unexpected result at a doctor’s office, etc.  Setbacks are hard because they seemingly cause us to rearrange our life.  But what if our setbacks are only comebacks?  That setback isn’t meant to derail our faith, but instead, it should cause us to intensely follow after Christ.  The words of the Apostle Paul give us clear direction on how to navigate this area of life.  In Romans 5:3 and 5 Paul writes “we triumph even in our troubles, knowing that trouble produces endurance, endurance produces character, and character produces hope….a hope which never disappoints us since God’s love floods our hearts through the Holy Spirit which has been given to us.”  We can triumph over life’s setbacks knowing that God is in control and everything that comes our way can be viewed through eyes of hope.  Don’t allow the setbacks to set you back spiritually.  Instead, look at it and ask, what is God doing in the midst of this?

The Grip of God: February 6th Devotional

The Grip of God

Isaiah 41:13

February 6th Devotional

      On this day in 1971, astronaut Alan Shepard made space history.  Alan Shepard became a household name in 1961 when he became the first American in space.  Shepard was supposed to be the first person in space but the Russians just barely beat him because of flight cancelations.  His flight was a mere 15 minutes in comparison to Russia’s 108 minutes, and Shepard never actually entered orbit.  It took ten years for him to get another chance to go into space until he was finally put in command of the Apollo 14 mission, which almost didn’t happen because of the complications of the Apollo 13 mission.  Americans had already landed on the moon twice and Shepard was determined to do something that had never been done before.  Alan was an avid golfer and thought it would be a good mixture of pleasure and physics to hit a few balls on the moon.  He kept his plans totally secret.  He designed a custom-made club for his adventure.  It would be a normal 6-iron attached to a collapsible, telescopic tool that was used to collect moon rocks.  He hid the head of the club in his space suit and two golf balls in extra pair of socks.  He didn’t inform the other two crew members, Edgar Mitchell, and Stuart Roosa until after the rocket exited the earth’s atmosphere.  On this day Shepard hit two golf balls on the moon.  Hitting a golf ball on the moon proved to be extremely difficult because of the bulk of the spacesuit.  Alan shanked the first ball, only traveling about forty yards which earned him many jeers from the other  two astronauts, but the second ball was struck solidly and flew for what Shephard said: “for miles and miles.”  The ball actually probably traveled around 200 yards (600ish feet) but had a hangtime of around one minute.  The mission was a success and so was his interstellar golf game. 

      Shepard’s club now is at the USGA museum in New Jersey.  I’m not particularly good at golf on earth, for that matter I’m horrible at miniature golf.  I can’t imagine traveling to the moon would be any better.  Every good golfer learns a valuable lesson, how to grip the golf club.  Shepard struggled with that because of his suit.  The grip is how we hold onto the club.  Years ago Billy Graham was talking about the subject of someone having a grip on our life.  Billy said, “We will all grip something and we will all be gripped by something or someone.”  He’s absolutely right.  We are all gripped by something or someone.  For the believer, we can rest assured that we are gripped, and held closely by the Lord.  Isaiah 41:13 says “For I am the LORD your God, who upholds your right hand, Who says to you, 'Do not fear, I will help you.'  The text provides the image that God is holding onto the children of Israel, even during a time of struggle and doubt, even in the face of hardship and disappointment.  In a chaotic, ever-changing world we can often doubt God’s grip on our life.  But friend, rest assured that God has not loosened His grip on you.  He is holding you close to Himself.  Don’t allow outward circumstances to cause you to question God’s grasp on your life.  He’s not letting go.  He might be asking you to let go of certain things in your life and to hold onto Him, but He is not letting go of you.

Persecution and Courage: February 5th Devotional

Persecution and Courage

Matthew 10:28

February 5th Devotional

      On this day in 1597, 26 Catholic missionaries to Japan were executed via crucifixion.  Originally Catholic missionaries were welcomed by the people of Japan, though Christianity was never looked upon favorably.  The original missionaries arrived roughly fifty years earlier.  The Japanese shogunate only allowed their existence with the hopes that their presence would build trade relations with Western Europe.  The faith grew as thousands came to know Christ.  This culture with zero knowledge of Christ quickly founded newly built churches sitting alongside ancient Buddhist Temples.  It didn’t take long for this position of tolerance to fade away.  Soon the Japanese Imperial government banned Christianity and demanded that those who refused to recant be executed.  The imperialist society of Japan considered Christianity as a threat to their way of life.  Many of those converted were Buddhist.  For many Japanese people, Buddhism was a vital part of their culture.  To leave Buddhism meant not being Japanese; it meant you were abandoning your culture.  Soon Christians were rounded up and murdered for their faith.  26 Catholic missionaries were rounded up in December 1596 by Japanese authorities.  They were tortured and physically beaten.  Many of them had their left ears cut off.  They were paraded for roughly 600 miles through the streets of multiple cities until they arrived at Nagasaki.  It was in Nagasaki that the 26 faithful missionaries were crucified on a hillside for everyone to see.  They were also impaled with lances.  The goal of the Japanese government was to exterminate Christianity from their shores forever.  One would think that the missionaries were terrified, but one missionary named Luis ran to the cross asking which one was his.  When he found out he hugged it with tears in his eyes.  Luis was unique.  Many believe that he was the youngest to die that day, probably around 12 years old.  He had an opportunity to recant, while most of the others were not given the option.  The young Luis refused the offer saying “for it is not reasonable to exchange a life that has no end for one that soon finishes.”  As the crosses were raised one priest, Paul Miki preached his final sermon, inviting the executioners to come to Christ.  The 26 sang before giving up their life with the words “paradise, paradise.”  

     For many of us, persecution is a foreign term.  We couldn’t envision suffering for Jesus, let alone the stark reality of martyrdom.  But for centuries the faith of our fathers endured through suffering and death, refusing to recant and quit on Jesus.  In all reality Christians around the world still suffer for their faith, some even pay the ultimate price.  What would happen if we would face that kind of persecution?  How should we respond?  Jesus gave us an image in Matthew 10:28.  Jesus gazed into the future knowing the anguish that His followers would one day face.  He said “Do not fear those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul, but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell (Matthew 10:28).”  Jesus said to not submit to fear.  Not just a normal seemingly rational fear, but a fear of being killed simply because you are a Christ follower.  He gazes into our eyes and says “do not fear.”  One would imagine we would be granted with a license to fear at least in that situation, but even in this Jesus says, give not give in to fear.  HOW?!  We need to take our eyes off the persecutor and the suffering and put our eyes on Jesus.  Look to Him who goes through life’s valleys and hardships with us.  We can suffer faithfully because He faithfully suffered and paid the ultimate price for our redemption!

The Dilemma of Disappointment: January 30th Devotional

The Dilemma of Disappointment

Philippians 4:6

January 30th Devotional

      On this day in 1994 Super Bowl XXVIII was played at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta Georgia.  It pitted two number-one seeds against each other, the Dallas Cowboys and the Buffalo Bills.  This would be the Bill’s fourth consecutive trip to the Super Bowl and one focusing on redemption.  During the previous three years, the Bills lost to the Giants, the Reskins, and the Cowboys, but this was supposed to be different.  The Bills entered the playoff as a hot team.  They won seven of their last eight games.  Their first opponent was the Los Angeles Raiders, who they lost to during the regular season.  After dismantling them they had a showdown against the Kansas City Chiefs.  The Chiefs were led by Joe Montana and Marcus Allen.  The Bills lost to the chiefs during the regular season.  The game was supposed to showcase two powerful offensive teams but Buffalo soundly defeated the Chiefs.  The Bills entered the game knowing the taste of defeat but they were ready to finally capture the Lombardi Trophy.  They were led by Jim Kelly, Thurman Thomas, Andre Reed, Don Beebe, and Bruce Smith.  The Cowboys were the better team on paper but few people actually expected the seemingly impossible to happen, the Bills losing four straight trips to the Super Bowl.  The Bills were leading with a dominant performance prior to halftime, the score being 13-6 at the time.  Dallas’ explosive offense had yet to find the end zone and the Bills were dominating the game.  But games aren’t won in the first half.  The Cowboys came screaming out with an offensive and defensive flurry in the second half.  Dallas would score 24 unanswered points and go on to win the game by the score of 30-13.  Emmitt Smith was voted the Super Bowl MVP, scoring two touchdowns and having over 150 total yards in the game.   

      I couldn’t imagine being the Buffalo Bills and feeling the sting of disappointment and defeat.  It was especially felt by their quarterback Jim Kelly.  Jim though hasn’t been unfamiliar with hardships.  Jim has battled mouth cancer for years.  He has had his upper jaw removed, all but three of his teeth have been removed (and those three have endured six root canals), and has been regularly in unending pain.  Tragically his son Hunter died from an incurable disease at the age of 8.  If it’s raining somewhere it’s raining on Jim Kelly.  A three-legged dog seems to have more luck than Jim.  But when asked how he felt about all of life’s disappointments Jim responded that he was blessed.  Jim Kelly is a faithful believer and finds unwavering confidence in his faith.  His verse to combat disappointment is Philippians 4:6, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.”  Life can be disappointing at times; for that matter, it can be downright depressing.  But God is faithful and provides us with the avenue to pray to pour our lives out at His feet, even the things that cause us disappointment and discouragement.  We can take anything that we are dealing with to God in prayer.  We can trade our disappointment and pain for God’s peace.  If you find yourself feeling disappointed turn to Jesus in prayer.  Allow that disappointment to make a prayer appointment with the Lord.

The Raven of Grief: January 29th

 

The Raven of Grief

Psalm 34:18

January 29th Devotional

      On this day in 1845 Edgar Allan Poe’s Poem “The Raven” was published in The Evening Mirror newspaper.  Poe was a famous poet and writer in the 1800s.  He is attributed as the founder of the short story (he was the first to coin the phrase).  He was considered the master of the macabre and was a pioneer in the literary world at that time.  He endured a challenging childhood.  His father abandoned him when he was just one year old and his mother died shortly before he turned three.  He was taken in by John and Frances Allen.  Though they never adopted him he decided to take their name.  Allen received a good education and excelled in sports.  He was an excellent rower, swimmer, and boxer. He held multiple records for a brief period of time.  He started to attend the  University of Virginia but dropped out due to a lack of finances.  He then tried to obtain a military career but failed to become a cadet at West Point.  These failures didn’t deter him though.  His heart’s desire was to become a writer.  He published his first book when he was only 18 years old (though it was not a literacy success).  He would move from city to city.  He would become a prominent author and a famous literary critic.  He would spend countless hours writing, often with his Siamese cat sitting on his shoulder (Poe was a lover of cats, his favorite was named Catterina).  Poe is considered to be America’s first professional author, though he struggled with severe depression during his life. Poe wrote many famous pieces of literature during his lifetime, but none were quite as renown as the Raven.  This narrative poem was divided into 108 lines, consisting of 18 six-line stanzas.  The poem focuses on a heartbroken lover who was simply called the student.  He was mourning the loss of his dear love, Lenore.  The ‘student’ was visited by a raven, who tormented his soul with one single word, ‘nevermore.’  The nevermore showcased the fact that he would never see his sweet Lenore again.  The dark, looming, ominous birds symbolized the hopelessness of grief and loss.  

      This short poem speaks of how grief overcomes a person.  It drove the person in the poem to despair and total madness.  Grief does that.  Grief does not have a schedule.  It does not come and go as we would like it to.  It crashes into our life.  It does not have a set time frame.  Grief affects everyone differently.  When we think we are over it, the feeling comes again.  We try to fight against it but often find more defeat than victory.  Grieving is uncomfortable.  Little can quell that inner pain.  It is unavoidable.  We try to juggle the feelings of faith and fear, but it is often a balancing act that is far too hard for us.  Each of us has lost someone dear to us.  Maybe it’s a spouse, a parent, the tragic loss of a child, a pet, etc.  Grief is so unnatural for humans because we were created with eternity in our hearts.  God designed us to live forever.  But what are we to do when we face the dark raven of grief.  How can we respond to such a mighty enemy?  Charles Spurgeon once said that when grief presses you to the ground, worship God there.  But how can we worship God when our heart is broken seemingly beyond repair?  The Psalmist offers us some incredibly comforting words, he writes “The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit (Psalm 34:18).”  We find an unbreakable promise from our reliable heavenly Father.  He is CLOSE to us when our heart is broken.  He is not far from us, He is not aloof, and He is not unaware.  He is near to us.  We might not always ‘feel’ His presence but this promises shows us that He is right there with us.  He goes through the valley of the shadow of death with us, not abandoning us.  He also doesn’t demand that we heal right away.  Grief doesn’t magically disappear overnight, nor will God leave you in those lonely moments.  He treks through life with us not when the sun is shining and life is merry.  He goes through the tears, the pains, the hurts, and the mud.  He will also rescue you from your crushed spirit.  Cry out to Him dear friend.  Cry out to Jesus and ask Him to come alongside you as you grieve.  The raven told the student the lone hopeless word of nevermore, nevermore to see his beloved again.  God’s nevermore is different.  God says nevermore will you grieve alone.  Nevermore will your tears be unseen and unnoticed.  Nevermore will grief overcome you to total despair because He is also there.