Letter Forty-From God

 Letter Forty – From God

Dear Child:

I don’t flinch at your ugliness and the dirty rags of your life.
I don’t turn my head from the stench of your past rottenness.

I look beyond all of that and offer you my hand, my heart.

Others may flinch at the thought of your past life, but not me. I don’t flinch. I look beyond all that and see my child in need of his or her Abba God.

I am yours. Rest easy with that.

I am as personal to you as I am to anyone else on this earth. I long to be intimate with you right where you are, misery and all. I’m not turning my head. I’m not pulling back my hand. 

I’m opening my heart to you, for I love you!

Don’t lock the door.
Don’t keep me out.
Open yourself to my presence, my forgiveness, and my cleansing touch.

I am God. I want you, just as you are. 

Your God,

P Michael Biggs 

Hope~Encouragement~Inspiration

Letter Thirty-Nine - from God

Letter THIRTY-NINE – from God

Dear Child:

The moment has arrived. You are facing surgery soon. There are a couple of things I want to tell you as you go through this experience.

You have fears. That is natural. Give me your fears.

~I know your name.

~I count the hairs on your head.

~I made your body.

~I instructed your physicians and nurses. What a marvel you are.

I will be with you wherever you go, even through this.

And I’ll be with your friends and family too. I’ll be present with them just as I will be with you.

Today’s medical world is in the best shape it has been in. Man has created some amazing equipment for monitoring, probing, and seeing the human body from all angles.

Trust in your medical providers.

                    Trust in the love of your family and friends.

And above all, trust in me, the God who loves you more than you could ever know.

I am with you every moment. 

God,

P Michael Biggs

Hope~Encouragement~Inspiration 

Oh, the Places Where God Has Been with Me

 Oh, the Places Where God Has Been with Me

In October 2017, I had my first-ever angiogram so my cardiologist could look at my heart to discover the blockage and damage that had occurred. I was afraid. My blood pressure was high as I lay on that surgery-room table. And God was with me.

In December 2017 I had open heart surgery resulting in three heart bypasses. God was with me through it all.  As I lay in the surgery prep area the attending nursing staff had to shave the front part of my upper body. I was afraid. I was tearful, and God was with me.

I’ve gone through bankruptcy and wondered if I’d ever repair my credit rating again. God was with me through all of that.

I’ve had love go sideways, and God has been with me.

When the creditors called and wanted to repossess my new Ford Taurus, God was there.

In job changes, in job losses, in the pursuit of career paths, God was there.

In the hard decisions – about careers, homes, cities to live in, whether to move or not, and a dozen other decisions that are tough to make; in every situation, God has been the steady hand, the guiding still-small-voice always looking on and always prompting, always impressing me as to which path to take.

There are some giants that I have admired during my years of living – men and women I have and still do look up to. Billy Graham was one. Here’s what I read one day a few years ago.

God spoke and said, “I don’t need Billy Graham more than I need you.”

What? But I’m not a famous person. I’m a nobody in the grand scheme of things. And yet, God said He needed me just as much as Mr. Graham. How can it be?

I’ve read of numerous accounts in the scriptures of how God has used ‘nobodies’ and made them useful.

Mary was a peasant girl, perhaps fourteen, and God used her to birth the Christ-child.

He used a prostitute or two as examples – one of which was the woman about to be stoned. His words were simple – “Neither do I condemn you. Go and sin no more.” (John 8:11)

He used David, a striking, good-looking lad who later committed adultry and then had the woman’s husband killed in battle. That’s a long fall from grace, and David came back and was claimed as, my words, “The apple of God’s eye.”

Peter denied Christ three times and look at the impact he had on Christianity and the spread of the gospel.

Do you see the places where God has been with people down through history? He goes to the depths of the mud and back to bring redemption and grace, forgiveness, and healing. And He gives peace and His presence in the middle of the mundane moments of our lives.

I know what it is like when the presence of God invades an operating room with His peace and settling presence.
I’ve experienced His calm assurance in the middle of trauma, in family crises, in the death of family members, and when in financial need. God has met me in these places, and I am a living witness to His grace, mercy, and peace.

I am nothing special. I’m not famous. I’m not rich or influential, and I don’t own the largest house in the city, and yet, God has been with me in the good and the bad times of life.

And this same grace is available to you, regardless of your name, rank, serial number, bank account balance, skin color, language you speak, or status in society.

You are loved and graced with the presence of God, who watches over you. He never sleeps. He never takes His eyes off you. He never takes a vacation, and He cares for you oh, so much.

One of the strong Bible verses that has stood the test of time in my life is Joshua 1:9.

“Be not afraid nor dismayed, for I the Lord your God

will be with you wherever you go!”

That is indeed an encouraging word for today.

Internet Church

P Michael Biggs 

Hope~Encouragement~Inspiration

The Way I See God

The Way I See God

As I think about God, I picture him exactly like this sign that was posted on St. Clements Church, Leigh-on-the-sea, in Essex, England. It captures the heart and the grace of God for all mankind.

“We extend a special welcome to those who are single, married, divorced, widowed, gay, confused, filthy rich, comfortable, or dirt poor.

We extend a special welcome to those who are crying new-borns, skinny as a rake or could afford to lose a few pounds.

You’re welcome if you are Old Leigh, New Leigh, Not Leigh, or just passing by.

We welcome you if you can sing like Pavarotti or can’t carry a note in a bucket.

You’re welcome here if you’re ‘just browsing,’ just woke up or just got out of prison. We don’t care if you’re more Christian than the Archbishop of Canterbury, or haven’t been in church since little Jack’s christening.

We extend a special welcome to those who are over 60 but not grown up yet, and to teenagers who are growing up too fast. We welcome keep-fit mums, football dads, starving artists, tree-huggers, latte-sippers, vegetarians, junk-food eaters.

We welcome those who are in recovery or still addicted. We welcome you if you’re having problems or you’re down in the dumps or if you don’t like ‘organized religion.’ We’ve been there too!

If you blew all your money on the horses, you’re welcome here. We offer a welcome to those who think the earth is flat, ‘work too hard,’ don’t work, can’t spell, or because grandma is in town and wanted to go to church.

We welcome those who are inked, pierced or both. We offer a special welcome to those who could use a prayer right now, had religion shoved down your throat as a kid or got lost on the London Road and wound up here by mistake. We welcome tourists, seekers and doubters, bleeding hearts… and you!”

Did you read this as if from God? Go back and picture God saying these things to you. It might just blow your mind.

Internet Church Blog Site

P Michael Biggs

Hope~Encouragement~Inspiration

Letter Number Eight ~ Letters from God

Letter Eight

Dear Child

You have secrets; stuff you haven’t told anyone else.  I know.

I also know your fears and regrets over some of these secrets.

Did you know that everyone has secrets?  Some are so terrible they don’t ever want to talk about them or think about them.

I’ll keep your secrets for you.  We can talk in total confidence.  You can trust me.  I won’t blab.  I won’t sell your secrets to the highest bidder. 

When you want to talk, we will talk.  I’ll hold your place.

Have you ever considered writing me a letter about your secrets?  Write it, then burn it, flush it, or do whatever you desire.  No one need see it, read it, or concern themselves with your secrets until you are ready.

I have designed you so that sometimes a good unloading is good for one’s soul.  That unloading can come through human-to-human contact, and it can come through purging your soul by writing your thoughts. 

Either way, I’m listening.

I’m good at keeping secrets.

God

One-Hundred Letters from God,

Offering Hope~Encourgement~Inspiration

P Michael Biggs

From my book – The Letters

Who Can Receive Grace

Who Can Receive Grace

When we experience God, we experience grace.  Ignatius of Loyola said,

The direct experience of God is grace indeed, and basically there is no one to whom it is refused.

I want to focus on the part that says, “there is no one to whom it is refused”.

That is awfully hard to accept for some.

Let’s start with a refresher course in the meaning of grace. 

In our Christian/Theological context, grace refers to

  Favor

    Mercy

      Mercifulness

        Charity

          Benevolence

            Clemency

              Leniency

                Reprieve

And in the words of Ignatius of Loyola, no one is refused GRACE.  No, not one!

Titus 2:11 tells us: “The grace of God appeared for the salvation of all.”

And I love Romans 5:20: “Where sin increased, grace increased all the more.”

And don’t overlook 2 Corinthians 12:9: “God’s grace is sufficient for you, for His power shows up best in weak people.”

If you have doubts and fears that you are perhaps beyond the reach of God’s grace, take heart, my friend.  There is grace enough for you.  Just look at the bolded words above.  They light the way to the God whose heart is full of grace. 

No matter your stated faith or lack of it.

Regardless of your stance on religion, or spirituality, and it matters not if there is murder in your heart, lust eating you inside and out, or if you are living some other kind of altered lifestyle, God’s grace is available for you. 

Your job is to ask for it.  Reach up, or out, or wherever you want to reach and simply say I NEED YOUR GRACE GOD!

And then your answer comes. 

You will receive buckets and bushels full of God’s overflowing grace.

Thanks be to God!

Internet Church Blog Site

P Michael Biggs

Hope~Encouragement~Inspiration