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Keeping God’s Word

7/28/2022

“Jesus answered him, ‘Those who love me will keep my word, and my Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them.’” John 14: 23

Keeping God’s word in our hearts can come out of our spiritual practices. When we refer to striving for the kingdom of God where we are today, we acknowledge that this spiritual pilgrimage isn’t a one-time event but an everyday one over a person’s lifetime. Jesus said that when we keep his word that we will be loved and that the Lord God and Jesus will make their home with us. Having them make their home with us can be a very comforting thought.

When my late wife, Judy, and I got married we really needed their presence with us. Beside the normal issues that confront young married couples we had several others thrown in. When we got married, I was still working full time in the steel mill and both of us were taking college courses. A significant challenge that we faced was that we were from different faith traditions and ethnic backgrounds. She was raised in a Roman Catholic home, and both her parents were from the Italian heritage. I grew up in an American Baptist Church and my heritage was mostly African American. We got married at a time when this type of marriage wasn’t accepted as it is today.

Despite these differences, we both were very involved in our church traditions, and had a every growing faith as children of God. We had faith that God was with us and would dwell with us, and this helped us through many difficult periods in our married lives. Our life was far from perfect, but our faith in God helped us grow to have more faith in each other. Looking back with what we faced when we started out makes me realize that without the Lord dwelling with us, I am not sure we would have made it. When Judy passed away, we had been married for more than twenty-eight years.

All of us have times in our lives when we aren’t sure if we can make it another day. Please be encouraged to keep the word of God in your heart through taking part in your spiritual practices. This may not keep you from all of the problems in your life, however knowing that you are loved and that you will not be alone, might help you make one day at a time! Peace, Vernon T.

Copyright © 2022 Vernon T. Jones, All Rights Reserved

The pictures are from my wedding to Judy in 1970, at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Youngstown, Ohio. The pictures were slightly damaged by a flood in our basement. Shirley and I celebrated our twenty anniversary this past July 13th. Yes, I have been blessed to have had two Great Marriages---PTL!

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Walking Humbly with God

7/21/2022

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“He has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” Micah 6: 8

This passage has often been used to indicate how humankind should treat other humans, and about how God wants us to live and move in our lives. In the verses just prior to this one Micah is stating what God doesn’t want from us, burnt offerings or any of the material things of this earthly life, but God wants us to do justice, love kindness, and to walk humbly with our God.

When we attempt to walk humbly with our God, we are also attempting to strive for God’s kingdom in our lives in this present time. When we do this, we are trying to put God’s will first in our lives before anything else. As I have stated often, this is a very challenging concept for me that has to be learned over and over. As a fallible human being I daily must turn my focus to walking humbly with God.

When I was going to college part time and working in the steel mill full time, I was thrown out of school twice for having too low of a grade point average for the number of hours I was taking. At that time college work was challenging, and when I tried to take too many courses while working. I didn’t do well. My focus was on my own timetable, and because I trying to look good by over working myself. The issue was that I was doing too much versus walking humbly with God and having my focus on God’s kingdom, and in a time frame that was actually better for my wellbeing.

After almost being thrown out a third and final time, I was very embarrassed and humbled by this and had to take a different approach if I wanted to continue. I had to step back and look at what I had done that hadn’t worked and try to do something new. Thus, over the next three quarters I only took one class each quarter in order to concentrate my efforts on that one course, in order to work my way off of probation. I was able to do that, and after that period I took a more reasonable number of classes and was able to obtain my bachelors’ degree.

Being humbled in this case helped to get my focus off of what I thought I wanted, versus walking with God toward God’s kingdom in my daily life. There may be times in your life when you have to humble yourself before the Lord as you strive to become a lifelong disciple of Jesus Christ, hopefully your spiritual practices will give you the courage and wisdom to do just that! Peace, Vernon T.

Copyright © 2022 Vernon T. Jones, All Rights Reserved

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Time Alone

7/14/2022

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“Now when Jesus heard this, he withdrew from there in a boat to a deserted place by himself. . .” Matthew 14: 13a

In Matthew 14: 1-12 we have the death of John the Baptist described. After Jesus heard this, he was sad and had to get away. Even though he was the Son of God, this event greatly grieved him, and he had to be alone so that he could mourn the death of someone he loved very much.

We may have times in our lives when we have to be alone to think about, grieve, or contemplate something that has happen to us. Like Jesus we want to remove ourselves from the noise and strain of the world around us. However, notice what occurred in the verses that follow this one, Jesus was moved by the crowds and went to them and ministered to them. Thus, at some point after our periods of grief and reflection, and we are the only ones who know when that time is, we ought to think about getting active again in the community that we live in.

I experienced something like this, after my late wife, Judy, died after a long struggle with cancer. We had been married for more than twenty-eight years when she passed away in January, the middle of winter when the days are short. My time of grieving for her was when there wasn’t much day light, and I remember sitting in my living room alone after work, with it being dark outside, it really was a very trying and painful period for me. I was alone a great deal in the evenings, for I needed to grieve and process what had happened. Of course, she was missed, and I didn’t know how my life would unfold. It took all my energy to make it each day. Spring did come, and I began to feel somewhat better. Looking back that time away from doing a lot of extra activity was important for my healing, and for my moving on. In time I was able to get more involved in things in life, but that quiet period was so needed.

On your spiritual pilgrimage you may have the occasion when you need to get away to pray, grieve, or reflect on events in your life. If that is needed, please do so, remember Jesus did the same thing. However, realize that just as Jesus did, at some point we may need to get back into our surroundings in order to do the ministry that we have been called to do, and to continue with our healing! Peace, Vernon T.

Copyright © 2022 Vernon T. Jones, All Rights Reserved

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Following Instructions

7/7/2022

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“When he [Jesus] had finished speaking, he said to Simon, ‘Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch.’ Simon answered, ‘Master, we have worked all night long but have caught nothing. Yet if you say so, I will let down the nets.’ When they had done this, they caught so many fish that their nets were beginning to break.” Luke 5: 4-6

In this passage we have Jesus calling his first disciples. Jesus tells Simon (Peter) to go out into the deep water and let his nets now again. Even though Simon had fished all night and came up empty, he did what he was told. The catch was so big that his nets were strained, and Simon had to get his partners to help out with the haul. Simon and the others were in awe at what had just happened. After this passage Jesus tells these individuals that they would be soon fishing for people. After getting to shore, all of them left their boats and followed Jesus.

As you take part in this spiritual pilgrimage, you may also be asked to do something that in human terns maybe quite remarkable. However, if the instructions and discernment come from the Lord through the Holy Spirit hopefully, we will be like the first disciples and do as we are guided.

Something like this happened to me the summer after I got out of high school. I didn’t quite know what to do afterwards, I wasn’t guided to go to college, or enter the military. I worked for a time at a few odd jobs. I didn’t have a lot of self-confidence at that time and was somewhat shy. So going out and trying to find a full-time job or find out what I was meant to get involved with, was a very frightening task. A couple of men at my church helped me get interviews with two of the steel mills that were in town. I lived in Youngstown, Ohio and the steel mills were still a going concern for the community. However, this was an industry that I knew very little about and had never been in one before. So, it took a lot of strength and faith on my part to enter this world.

I applied at one mill called Republic Steel, and they told me that they would call me later on if they wanted to hire me. I also applied at Youngstown Sheet & Tube Company, and they offered me a job on the spot and said I could start in a few days. A few days later Republic Steel called back and offered a job as well. I thought about it and decided to go with Youngstown Sheet & Tube.

That really worked out for me in the long run. I was laid off less working for them, rather than for Republic over the next eight years. I was also able over time to work shifts, which allowed me to go to college part time, and eventually leave after getting my college degree. I became somewhat comfortable in those surroundings; however, it wasn’t very easy at first and took a long time before I got used to going to work every day. The mill environment could be very daunting and sometimes dangerous. Thus, interviewing for the steel mills and then staying with that job took me way out of my comfort zone.

I didn’t fully know of the importance of that decision, however for my journey it was extremely significant. My life has been far from being perfect, and I have made my share of mistakes both large and small, however, over the years I have increasingly sought the instruction and discernment of the Holy Spirit on my daily walk.

As you take part in this pilgrimage, and through your spiritual practices, may you like the early disciples and listen for Jesus’ voice coming through the Holy Spirit calling you to do things for the kingdom of God, that you never thought you could do before! Peace, Vernon T.

Copyright © 2022 Vernon T. Jones, All Rights Reserved

(This picture is from the Youngstown Steel Museum, and this door is like the Open Hearth Doors I used to work with, when I worked in the mill.)

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Keeping God’s Word

Walking Humbly with God

Time Alone

Following Instructions

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Walking Humbly with God

Time Alone

Following Instructions

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Keeping God’s Word