Orange Moon Tuesday, June 30, 2026 "Can Any Good Thing?"

The Special of the Day… From the Orange Moon Cafe

“Can Any Good Thing?”

      

    “Philip findeth Nathanael, and saith unto him, We have found Him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, did write, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph. And Nathanael said unto him, Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth?  Philip saith unto him, Come and see” (John 1:45-46).

    Clearly, Nathaniel held Nazareth in ill repute, for reasons Scripture does not record.  He expected no good thing to come from a place that to him seemed impossible to serve as a means of blessing.

   “For He shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: He hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see Him, there is no beauty that we should desire Him” (Isaiah 53:2).

   The Lord Jesus Christ often comes to us in circumstances, situations, conditions, and people that seem unlikely or even impossible to serve as His means of approach.  In a lifetime, however, wherein God works in all things for those who trust Him, we must expect Him to often come from the Nazareths of our experience.  Indeed, one does not have to be a believer for long before discovering that many of God’s greatest blessings first appear as anything but.   Like Nathaniel, we can be tempted to wonder, “Can any good thing come from this challenge, problem, sorrow, suffering, perplexity, and pain?”  

    The answer?  “Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by Him in the midst of you” (Acts 2:22).  This raises the question: what might our Lord do when we overcome our native temptations regarding our particular Nazareths, trusting Him that all things "work together for good to them that love Him?” (Romans 8:28).  What if by faith we “come and see,” as did Nathaniel, discovering that a “good thing” can come from a seemingly impossible venue?  Our brother of old discovered that the very essence and source of all goodness could come a most unexpected place.  “The light shineth in darkness” (John 1:5).

   Nathaniel would one day discover that a far more unlikely venue than Nazareth could serve as the venue of a good thing.  “And when they were come to the place, which is called Calvary, there they crucified Him” (Luke 23:33).  All else pales in comparison to this, that is, God bringing to us the best thing from the worst of all depravities, horrors, and sins.  Our very salvation lies in the reality that the crime of the cross made possible the pardon of those who made it necessary.  This includes us all, and this informs us that when a Nazareth, or even more, a Calvary, seems to portend of “no good thing,” the Lord Jesus will be found where it seems He could not be.  Let us apply such grace and truth to the challenges of our lives, including those that presently confront us.  Can any good thing come from this?  Yes, goodness Himself can and will be found in our Nazareths, and even more, in our Lord’s Calvary as we heed the call to “Come and see.”

“Unto the upright there ariseth light in the darkness, He is gracious, and full of compassion, and righteous.”

(Psalm 112:4)

Weekly Memory Verse

      My son, despise not the chastening of the Lord; neither be weary of His correction.  For whom the Lord loveth He correcteth; even as a father the son in whom He delighteth. 

(Proverbs 3:11-12).

 

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Orange Moon Monday, June 29, 2026 “Change, Now and Forever”

The Special of the Day… From the Orange Moon Cafe

“Change, Now and Forever”

      

    Born again believers in the Lord Jesus Christ require change throughout our earthly lifetime (as we will throughout eternity). 

   The issue involves growth and correction.  Growth involves the fact that we are related to an infinite God, whose character, nature, and way transcend measure.  We will forever discover new aspects of who He is and how He works.

   “O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God!  How unsearchable are His judgments, and His ways past finding out!” (Romans 11:33).

     We can ponder no more thrilling thought than the truth that we will never reach the end of our journey into the heart and mind of our glorious Lord.  Forever we will ask…

      “Who are You, Lord?  What have You done according to Your eternal purpose in the Lord Jesus?  What are You doing?  What will You do forevermore?”  

     We presently seek the answers that result in the change of growth and maturing.   We will continue to ask the questions in eternity, even after our deliverance from the present realm of sin and death.  By definition, an infinite God can never be fully known, nor His truth completely understood. The One for whom our hearts were made will never fail to reveal new “wonders without number,” or enhance glories already known.  We will forever grow in His glorious light. “His greatness is unsearchable” (Job 9:10; Psalm 145:3).  

    In our present lifetime, we also require the change of correction.

    “My son, despise not the chastening of the Lord; neither be weary of His correction.  For whom the Lord loveth He correcteth; even as a father the son in whom He delighteth” (Proverbs 3:11-12).

    In this moment, every believer on the earth is wrong about something(s).  Hopefully, the matter does not involve major tenets of God’s Biblical truth, although it can (as the New Testament epistles clearly confirm).  The detours may be relatively minor in our understanding of His truth, involving nuances of perspective.  They require addressing nonetheless.  Our role begins with the acknowledgement that knowing nothing yet as we “ought to know” includes matters of error (I Corinthians 8:2).  “Cleanse Thou me from secret faults” wisely prayed the Psalmist, whose example we should and must follow (Psalm 19:12).  

     Certainly, we keep our hearts and minds near the Word of God, declared by the Apostle Paul as a vital tool of correction (II Timothy 3:16).  Fellow believers also serve as agents of change regarding correction when we are “overtaken in a fault” (Galatians 6:1).  Finally, humility serves as the door that must remain open for the change of both growth and correction to have consistent access.  Indeed, let us acknowledge to our Lord in this moment that however we may have progressed along the path of righteousness, the journey has just begun.  How could it be otherwise as we relate to an infinite God and His eternal truth?  Yes, our need for change humbles us.  But how it should far more thrill us as the Holy Spirit ever works to mature us, correct us, and reveal to us the God far more glorious than even eternity will fully reveal.  

“Beholding a in a glass the glory of the Lord, we are changed into the same image, from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.”

(II Corinthians 3:18)

“Being confident of this very thing, that He which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.”

(Philippians 1:6)

Weekly Memory Verse

      My son, despise not the chastening of the Lord; neither be weary of His correction.  For whom the Lord loveth He correcteth; even as a father the son in whom He delighteth. 

(Proverbs 3:11-12).

 

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Orange Moon Saturday, June 27, 2026 "Get To"

The Special of the Day… From the Orange Moon Cafe

“Get To”

      

    I’ll never forget the moment many years ago when I mentioned to Frances about our service schedule for the day.  “We have to go to…”

     Instantly, a corrective thought occurred to me.  “No, Frances, we get to go to…”  

    Scripture confirms.

   “And they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for His name” (Acts 5:41).

    Certainly, our privileged responsibility that day did not compare with the Lord’s first century followers’ challenge and suffering.  It did, however, grant opportunity to realize the blessing and power of “We get to” rather than “We have to.”  This truth applies to all done in God's vineyard, be it everyday duties and chores, or opportunities for ministry and service in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.  If what we do occurs in His presence and by His leading and enabling, everything in our life becomes both privilege first, and then responsibility.  In Biblical terms, this means grace first, and then the response of faith and obedience.   “Let us have grace, that we may serve God acceptably, with reverence and godly fear” (Hebrews 12:28).

   Excepting sin, let us apply this to everything in our lives.  Perhaps the best way to plant and nurture the truth in our hearts involves the remembrance of what we all rightly deserve.  “The soul that sinneth, it shall die” (Ezekiel 18:4).   Anything that does not involve the wrath and judgment of God we all rightly deserve must be viewed in terms of the most undeserved grace, especially when we consider the cost that made it possible.    “For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh” (Peter 3:18).   As a good friend responds when asked how he is doing,  “Better than I deserve!”  “I get to” coincides well with this response that bears witness to God’s wondrous mercy bestowed upon us through the Lord Jesus.

   “I get to” serves as one of the most life changing sensibilities our hearts can embrace.  We will not remember it always, and many challenges will confront the truth of responsibility viewed first as privilege.  However, nothing could more align with Biblical truth or our proper response of faith.  Moreover, nothing will more reveal the peace and joy of Christ in our hearts as we remember how His acknowledged presence changes everything we do in Him, by Him, with Him, and through Him.  “Whatsoever ye do, do it heartily as unto the Lord, and not to men” (Colossians 3:23).   Yes, we get to.

“Ye serve the Lord Christ.”

(Colossians 3:24)

Weekly Memory Verse

      And He did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief.

(Matthew 13:58)

    

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