Prayer

Good Morning,

Matthew 6:5-8 (NKJV)
“And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words."
“Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him.
Luke 18:1-7 (NKJV)
Then He spoke a parable to them, that men always ought to pray and not lose heart, saying: “There was in a certain city a judge who did not fear God nor regard man. Now there was a widow in that city; and she came to him, saying, ‘Get justice for me from my adversary.’ And he would not for a while; but afterward he said within himself, ‘Though I do not fear God nor regard man, yet because this widow troubles me I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.’” Then the Lord said, “Hear what the unjust judge said. And shall God not avenge His own elect who cry out day and night to Him, though He bears long with them?"
Matthew 26:36-39 (NKJV)
Then Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane, and said to the disciples, “Sit here while I go and pray over there.” And He took with Him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and He began to be sorrowful and deeply distressed. Then He said to them, “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch with Me.”
He went a little farther and fell on His face, and prayed, saying, “O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will.”

One of the things, I think, that we do much too little of is to pray. Yes, we do pray when things go badly in our lives. And we do tend to pray when others ask us to. Occasionally we pray for things like "world peace" and the like.

But, not often enough to we simply go to the Lord in prayer and just talk to Him.

So, today I've just sent along a couple of sections of Scripture for us to read what Jesus had to say about praying; about praying in different situations; and about prayer in general.

I guess what God wants us to know today, and what He wants us to put into practice, is that He wants to hear from us. He wants us to get into the habit of prayer. Prayer at any time of the day or night. Prayer at all times of the day or night. He wants us to communicate with Him and then, as a huge part of our prayer times, to listen quietly form Him to answer us.

So, no long drawn out message about the how's or why's or when's of prayer. Just a reminder to us all that we should be praying more.

Love, peace, and blessings,

David

Another Counselor

Good Morning,

John 14:16 (NIV)
And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever—

So, how often do you remember that we have this promise in your life? What I mean is, do you realize that Jesus promised that God the Father would give us the Holy Spirit, in the form of "another Counselor" to help us and be with us at all times?

I know that I often forget, or just don't seem to recall, this promise in my day to day life. So, I sometimes tend to struggle with decisions or how to handle certain circumstances that arise. I would venture to say that my forgetfulness concerning this promise of Jesus is probably shared with a great number of believers.

We go about our daily lives and run into this or that challenge and we just don't remember that we have God, in the form of the Holy Spirit...another Counselor...right there with us to, well, counsel us in our present difficulty. So, instead of taking a few moments to seek the help of this special and holy Counselor, we muddle through as best we can and "hope" for a decent outcome.

Oh, how foolish we can be!

God has given us His own Holy Spirit to be our Counselor! Especially in times of troubles and difficulties. And, we, rather slow witted humans that we can be, simply forget that He is there with us, for us, and available to us in order that we might make a correct and godly decision as to what we might be facing. And the we wonder why we struggle? We wonder why our decisions are sometimes weak or wrong? We can't figure out why our lives seem to be going in the wrong direction?

When we face these questions in our lives, I would ask,"Have we gone to our ever present Counselor for His guidance and assistance? Have we taken a few moments of our precious time before we do or decide on something to seek wisdom from our Counselor?" Of course, as is most often the case, we haven't prayed and asked as we should. Either our forgetfulness or our human stubbornness gets in the way and we just go it alone, so to speak.

Makes on wonder about our general intelligence, doesn't it? I mean, if we have the very Creator of the universe, the Maker of all things, to counsel us, why in the world don't we take advantage of what He has promised us?

Jesus said clearly, "...AND HE WILL GIVE YOU ANOTHER COUNSELOR..." At that time, He was telling those listening that although He, Jesus, might not be with them in the flesh to be the Counselor and helper that He had been to that point, that God would send the Holy Spirit to take that on that job. And, He said, "...TO BE WITH YOU FOREVER..." So, I believe that Jesus meant this promise to be for all who have accepted Him into their lives as Lord and Savior...you and me...for all time and in all times.

Let us not forget that our Counselor is here with us, right now, this very moment, and for all the moments that will follow. He is there to give us knowledge and wisdom when we need it most. We need to call on Him more often and then, here might be the hard part, we need to listen to what He tells us.

Love, peace, and blessings,

David

"Stand firm...be still"

Good Morning,

Exodus 14:10-14 (NIV)
As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up, and there were the Egyptians, marching after them. They were terrified and cried out to the LORD. They said to Moses, "Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die? What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt? Didn't we say to you in Egypt, 'Leave us alone; let us serve the Egyptians'? It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!"
Moses answered the people, "Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the LORD will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still."

Like the Israelites many thousands of years ago, we all face fears and even impending disasters in our lives from time to time. For some of us it's more often than others and for many of us it's much, much more often that we would wish. But, the fact is that living this life on this earth brings problems, troubles, trials, and even some disasters...no matter how hard we try to avoid them. Living, it seams, brings problems.

Now, we can react to things we see possible coming our way and that appear to be totally unavoidable much like the Israelites did when they were faced with the possibility (note, please, the word "possibility" here!) with the possibility of Pharaoh and the Egyptians overtaking them and putting them to death in horrible ways. We can complain and grumble and ask "Why me??!!??" But, what we've got to do is to remember what Moses told the Israelites, "Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today."

You see, much of what we fear...even MOST of what we fear...will never happen to us. Often, even though we might not realize or understand it, God DOES step in and deliver us from what seems to be an inevitable disaster that appears to be totally unavoidable. God not only offers us His deliverance, He also, very often, gives us His deliverance.

So, when we see trouble heading our way and we see no possible escape, we need to do as Moses told the Israelites, "...you need only to be still." And, in our stillness before the Lord, we need to be in prayer, of course, as well.

God IS there for us. Moses said, "The LORD will fight for you..." We need to remember that and we need to believe in that.

Love, peace, and blessings,

David

Precious and Honored

Good Morning,

I'm sorry that this is so tardy. I had an errand to run over at Angel Food Ministries ( http://www.angelfoodministries.com )and just now returned home. I had to get over there fairly early.

Isaiah 43:1-4 (NIV)
But now, this is what the LORD says—
he who created you, O Jacob,
he who formed you, O Israel:
"Fear not, for I have redeemed you;
I have summoned you by name; you are mine.
When you pass through the waters,
I will be with you;
and when you pass through the rivers,
they will not sweep over you.
When you walk through the fire,
you will not be burned;
the flames will not set you ablaze.
For I am the LORD, your God,
the Holy One of Israel, your Savior;
I give Egypt for your ransom,
Cush and Seba in your stead.
Since you are precious and honored in my sight,
and because I love you,
I will give men in exchange for you,
and people in exchange for your life.

After reading these verses today and being touched by them, I thought that I should send them along to you, as well.

God has created each of us, formed us, redeemed us, summoned us by name, and we are His. We should have no fear.

This is what I heard when I read these words today. I heard also that we can do many, many things in this life and on this earth without fear, because God is right there with us every step of the way. Finally, what God said to me clearly is the fact that we, each of us...all of us...are precious and honored and loved by Him, the creator of the universe...LORD of all.

I hope that you hear and feel, as I did, what is clearly in these verses for us.

Love, peace, and blessings,

David

"I am with you always"

Good Morning,

Joshua 1:5 (NIV)
No one will be able to stand up against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you.
Matthew 28:19-20 (NIV)
And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.

Two verses today which remind us...and assure us...that God is with us always and that He will never leave us nor will He every forsake us. As many of you know, I don't often send along things that I get in my e-mail. Today, however, I received a wonderful story (author unknown, I'm afraid) which is an excellent analogy of these verses. So, here it is...

Cherokee Tradition – Author Unknown
Do you know the legend of the Cherokee Indian youth's rite of Passage? His father takes him into the forest, blindfolds him and leaves him alone. He is required to sit on a stump the whole night and not remove the blindfold until the rays of the morning sun shine through it. He cannot cry out for help to anyone. Once he survives the night, he is a MAN.
He cannot tell the other boys of this experience, because each lad must come into manhood on his own. The boy is naturally terrified... He can hear all kinds of noises. Wild beasts must surely be all around him. Maybe even some human might do him harm. The wind blew the grass and earth, and shook his stump, but he sat stoically, never removing the blindfold. It would be the only way he could become a man!
Finally, after a horrific night the sun appeared and he removed his blindfold. It was then that he discovered his father sitting on the stump next to him. He had been at watch the entire night, protecting his son from harm. We, too, are never alone. Even when we don't know it, God is watching over us, sitting on the stump beside us. When trouble comes, all we have to do is reach out to Him. If you liked this story, pass it on. If not, you took off your blindfold before dawn.
Moral of the story:
Just because you can't see God, doesn't mean He is not there.

Yes, there are times that we feel abandoned by God and times when even if we don't feel totally abandoned, we DO feel so very alone. Maybe this little story can help us to remember that no matter how we might FEEL at any particular point in time, God is still there; He's still with us; He will never abandon us or leave us or forsake us.

He said so. I believe it.

Love, peace, and blessings,

David

Have Mercy On Me

Good Morning,

Luke 18:9-14 (NIV)
To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everybody else, Jesus told this parable: "Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself: 'God, I thank you that I am not like other men—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.'
"But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, 'God, have mercy on me, a sinner.'
"I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."

My most favorite prayer in the Bible, I think, we read here today. "God, have mercy on me, a sinner." It's one that I pray often, I'm afraid. But, it's also one that is simple and exactly to the point.

"Oh, Lord! Please, have mercy on me! Forgive me, please, for I have sinned."

The best part about this prayer that comes from my heart and then my mouth, is the fact that God not only hears my prayer, but...without a doubt...He answers my prayer and tells me, "Yes, my child, I will have mercy on you. I forgive you." And, it doesn't matter whether I have to pray this once or a hundred times in a day, the answer is always the same.

But, that being said, let's just take a look at the rest of this short parable for a moment.

The Pharisee is like the person we hear say something like, "Well, at least I didn't do _______ (fill in the blank) like John (or Mike or Pete or....) did. I'm sure better than that!" You know you've heard it. And then it's almost always followed by, "And, you know that I'm faithful with my tithes and I volunteer to help all the time." Maybe, like me, at some point have even said it. Saying something like that, pointing out that you didn't do this sin or that, letting people know that you tithe and give, is exactly like the Pharisees of old, isn't it? And Jesus isn't too kind with them in these verses. When Jesus says, "I tell you that this man (the tax collector), rather than the other (the Pharisee), went home justified before God," He's telling us that true and heart felt contrition is what God wants to hear from us. Why in the world would we expound on our own attributes when, of course, God already knows what we've done, not done, and what's in our hearts. This bragging about our "righteousness" is not only unnecessary, it just shows our pride; our sinful pride.

What we need to remember here is that we need to be much more like the tax collector and much less like the Pharisee. We need to be truly sorry for the sin in our lives and we need to show that true contrition in our prayers when we talk to the Father. And, we need to keep those right things we do close to the vest, so to speak, and simply allow God to see them and recognize them as He will. As Jesus put it so well and so clearly, "For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."

We need to take those words to heart and keep them clearly in our minds.

Love, peace, and blessings,

David

Called

Good Morning,

1 Corinthians 1:26-31 (NIV)
Brothers, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him. It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. Therefore, as it is written: "Let him who boasts boast in the Lord."

Often, when we think about our being called, it's that we then have to go and do something to fulfill that calling. Although that may very well be true, let's not forget that we have first been called simply to accept Jesus as Savior and to walk with Him as His disciple on this earth; sharing the good news about God's plan of salvation.

We are facilitating a Bible Study in our home which, coincidentally, is named "The Call To Follow Christ...Six Disciplines for the New and Growing Believer." In this study we'll learn ways in which we can be more fruitful and understanding about being called by God. I mention this because it's important to realize that, once we've been called, we need to seek out ways to study and learn what it is God would have us do. I mention it also to remind everyone how vital it is to be connected with a small group of believers who will support us, help us, and be there for us in times of need...and for whom we can be there when others have need. A part of being called is being obedient. That obedience includes loving one another. Loving one another can only be truly effective when we gather together and get to know each other. I feel that the best and most effective way to get to know one another and be able to truly love one another is to gather together in our homes. Believe me, it works.

Today's verse tells us that we don't have to be special or learned or in any other way unique or exceptional in order to be called by God to follow Him. Paul tells us that God can and will use any of us, all of us, no matter where we were before we felt that call in our lives to live for Him. That's the important thing about this, I believe. God uses us just as we are, right where we are, right at this time in our lives, to fulfill His will and purposes. Paul writes, "It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God - that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption." You see, God gives us all we need to be effective for Him.

But, let's not forget that first and foremost, we have been called by God. What He has us to do after He has called us to follow Jesus is wonderful, yes, but at least for me, the most important thing is simply the fact that He loved me enough to call me. I guess, that's the point today.

God loves you and has called you.

Love, peace, and blessings,

David

The Wages of Sin

Good Morning,

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

I have often wondered why more people, when exposed to the tenets of Christianity, do not immediately embrace God's love and accept Jesus into their lives as Lord and Savior. I mean, it seems pretty simple to me and very straight forward. Today's Scripture verse covers both the benefits of what being a Christian means and also the reason as to the "why" of more people not accepting what God has offered to us as His free gift of mercy.

So, as to the "why" that people don't want to accept God's gift and forgiveness, we read..."For the wages of sin is death...," and that means that if people accept the teachings of God's Word and what is written in the Bible as truth, then the way they are living means exactly what this verse says; it means death...eternal and everlasting death. So, in order for people to continue in their sinful life and lifestyle, then they just refuse to believe the Bible. It's pretty much as simple as that. People love the sin they are in. People enjoy the sinful pleasures that they embrace. People are, well, short sighted would be a pretty good description of the way they are I guess. You see, if they refuse to believe the Bible and what it teaches, then they can just continue to do as they please, enjoy as they wish and that's that. However, should they believe what it is that God has set down in His Word, then, well, they will understand that the sinful lifestyle they have chosen is wrong. So, the "why" is simply the fact that people want to put their momentary, earthly pleasure and immediate enjoyment above all else.

Now, the benefits of what we read in this verse are really so very, very simple and extremely straight forward. But, we'll go ahead anyway, OK?

If we choose God's way; accept His free gift of salvation by accepting Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior; decide to believe what is so clearly written in the Bible...then, we have eternal life. And, more than that, our eternal life will be with Jesus and all the saints in a heaven that simply cannot be described or explained. Most importantly, we will be with the God of the universe for all time...IN HIS PRESENCE!

So, when we go out and do what we can to evangelize and explain why we choose God instead of the world, let's don't be too depressed about the refusals that we meet. Remember, as we've said so many times in these messages, life is filled with choices. Life itself is a choice. How we live...good or evil...for God or against Him...in sin or in forgiveness...it's all a choice. God has given us that gift, the gift of free will, that we can make our choices. You and I choose Him and we accept His gift of eternal life in our Lord Jesus Christ. Those who turn away from us when we do as we've been commanded to bring the message...they have made their choice, as well.

Let's give thanks, today and every day, that we have made the right choice. Then, let's remember to pray for those who've made a choice that, as we read, leads to death.

Love, peace, and blessings,

David

What God Has Prepared

Good Morning,

1 Corinthians 2:9 (NIV)
However, as it is written:
"No eye has seen,
no ear has heard,
no mind has conceived
what God has prepared for those who love him"

Now, I must admit that my mind is totally overwhelmed by this verse of Scripture. Even having read so many verses in the Bible about heaven and what heaven will be like and all that awaits us there, I then read this verse and realize that I have absolutely no idea at all what God has prepared for us who have chosen to love Him and have accepted Jesus as Lord and Savior.

I'm not even going to attempt any kind of explanation about what God has prepared for us. That, I think, would be ludicrous...and I know that whatever I could come up with would pale so very badly against not only what men have already written about our home, but also completely inadequate as compared to what would be true.

I don't think that our human minds and our human understanding could possibly take in the wonder, beauty, and magnificence of our heavenly home with God. I believe it's impossible for us to even start to comprehend what our loving Father has created for His children. We may understand complicated and marvelous things about this earth that we now inhabit, but our true home? No, there is simply no way that we could possibly get our minds around what is to be for us.

However, there's one thing that I DO know about heaven...and I think it's the most marvelous thing about heaven. That would be the fact that we will spend eternity in the presence of God.

My friends, that, in and of itself, should be enough to make all of humanity want what we have. Why it doesn't, well, that's a true mystery, isn't it?

I'm just overjoyed that we have our place in the presence of God already in place and that He awaits our arrival with Him.

Thank you Lord! Hallelujah! Glory to God!

Love, peace, and blessings,

David

Confession

Good Morning,

1 John 1:9 (NIV)
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

I'm sure that most of us are familiar with this verse of Scripture. I know that these are the words that give so many of us true hope, because they proclaim that God has forgiven us our past sinful life; continues to forgive us the sin we have right now; and will continue to forgive us the sin we will commit as we live this earthly life.

However, I'm also sure that there are many of us who life our lives with sin in our lives that is not confessed, sin that takes away the joy that we could otherwise have.

John is very clear in this verse, I think. "If we confess our sins..." So I ask you what sin do you have in your life that you have not confessed? What sin is there that you live with which keeps you from gaining God's complete forgiveness? What sin do you keep hidden inside that does not allow God to purify you from your unrighteousness? I ask this of you, but, of course, I mean it in the "corporate" you that includes all of us...me included.

It is such a shame that we do not allow ourselves...for whatever reasons, and they are many...to simply confess ALL of the sin in our lives, and thus allow God to purify us and then feel the joy of being totally cleansed from our sin.

I'm not going to get into how nor to whom we should confess. For some of us, I'm sure, confession in our hearts directly to God is sufficient. Then, for others of us, I know, we feel that confession should be to another human being and it should be verbal in nature, as well as in the heart. There are even some who believe that confession should be aloud in a congregation of believers...publicly...in order for there to be true confession. I can't tell you how you should confess, nor will I decide for you to whom that confession should be done. You've got to make up your mind about that, my friend. It is in your heart that you know how you need to confess your "secret" and un confessed sin.

I'll only put here a Scripture from James to help guide us in this area of our walk with Jesus, "Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective." (James 5:16) It's my opinion that it may not be necessary to confess my sin to another human being and that true, heartfelt confession to God is, truly, sufficient. But, it's also my opinion that confessing to a trusted, loving, and caring Christian brother or sister has it's definite benefits. If, for whatever reason, there is no one in your life at this moment to whom you can go and feel free to speak with about whatever sin you have not confessed, I urge you to look around and find that person that you can trust, who loves you enough, to hear your heart and pray with you about your sin. We all need that person, that one special person, to whom we can go and be 100% open and honest about everything and anything...no matter what it might be. Without that person, the weight can become just too much for us individually.

It's been said, I'm sorry I don't know by whom originally, "Confession is good for the soul." That's true, of course, because in our confession comes an unburdening of the weight of sin that can keep us from being all we should be in our Christian life.

"If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness."

More beautiful and reassuring words have never been written, I don't think.
Love, peace, and blessings,


David

Love In Actions

Good Morning,

1 John 3:18 (NIV)
Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth.

"Oh, I love you so very much."..."I've never loved as much as I love you."..."My love for you knows no bounds."

And on...and on...and on...and on.

I think that most of us, if not all of us, have these words...or words much like them...to someone in our lives. We've professed unending and unconditional love with the words we've used to that person in our life who we wanted to know our feelings. It's so very normal to say these kinds of words and to declare our love for another, special person.

Here's the rub, however. Do we, have we, will we actually live out this special love and not just be giving it, for lack of a better term, lip service?

John knew that, for many, the words of love toward others are often just that...words. Words that are not lived out "with actions and in truth," as John wrote. Yes, for the moment we say words of love we mean them...even from the bottom of our hearts and into our very beings. But, when it comes down to the "nitty gritty" of live; when things aren't exactly as we want them to be; when life happens and rubs us the wrong way...well then, those marvelous words aren't always there on our lips, are they? And that's how we are toward our spouse, or child, or brother, or sister, or even a parent. So, if we tend to be that way toward a true "loved one" then, how do we actually SHOW our love, live out our love, toward those people who are NOT special to us?

Here, I feel, is where "the rubber meets the road" so to speak. We know, and we've spoken of from time to time, that we are to love our brothers and sisters in Christ. We know that we are to love our neighbors as ourselves. We know that we are supposed to love people in general. And, we even know that we are supposed to love our enemies! So, with this knowledge, we "profess" our love, as we are supposed to, even toward those who are "un lovely" in some way or other.

The problem here, of course, is that much too often that professed and declared love is not lived out and acted upon.

I ask us all this question, "How do we love with our actions and in the truth that we know we ought to have in our hearts?" Tough question, isn't it? I know that it is often difficult for me, and it's really difficult for me to admit it to others. You know, I want to be seen as that loving, caring, Christian man who truly does love as I'm supposed to...as I have read in my Bible...as Jesus has taught us all. But, well, I don't...always. I'm just as human as everyone else and have the same difficulty in this area as most people.

Now, I can't tell YOU how you should go about loving in actions and in truth in your life. I can't even suggest changes that YOU ought to make in loving as John tells us today. That is, of course, because I don't know for sure exactly how you are living your love for humanity at this time...really living it and not just using pretty words. I have a difficult enough time in answering this question in my own life, never mind telling other what they need to be doing.

We each should read these words from John today and then see how we measure up against what God is telling us in them. If we aren't terribly pleased with what we find, then we need to ask God to show us where we should be making some changes in the way we carry out His commands about love. Your changes won't be what mine are. And, neither will my changes be what are required of you. We all have to be honest with ourselves...and with God. Then, we need to pray for the Holy Spirit to help us in our endeavors to actually loving "with actions and in truth."

Easy? Nope! Possible? Sure. In our own strength? Probably not. But, let's remember what Jesus told us, "Jesus looked at them and said, 'With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.'" (Mat. 19:26)

Love, peace, and blessings,

David

Crooked Made Straight

Good Morning,

Isaiah 40:4 (KJV)
Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain.

Now, this verse speaks of the coming of Jesus, of course, in the context of where it's found in Isaiah. But, sometimes the Holy Spirit says something into our minds about the words we read in the Bible that may, or may not, directly point to the section where we find a particular verse.

Today, what I saw was just the small part of this verse that says, "...and the crooked shall be made straight...", and I heard pretty clearly the Holy Spirit reminding me how crooked I was and how straight God has made me.

Before we come to walk with the Lord, we are crooked and hilly and anything but ready to be the dwelling place of the Lord and to have an intimate relationship with Him. So God takes us and then He does to us what we read in this verse of Scripture when we read, "Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill be made low and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain." What I heard as I saw this verse was how my live, the valley I had lived in, was exalted by God as I gave my life over to Him. I heard that the mountains and hills that had constituted who I was at that time was made low and evened out by God. My crooked life was straightened out by having accepted Jesus as Lord and Savior. And, my "rough places" were made plain because of the grace and glory of God.

You see, we've got to be open to hearing the Holy Spirit when He speaks to us as we read Scripture. Sometimes He will reveal something to us that we've never seen...or even considered...in the past. God does that. Usually it's right when we need it or right when someone else needs to hear what He says through us.

So, please, as you read Scripture, be aware that God will speak through it to you. Don't try to silence that still, small voice which helps us to truly understand what God wants us to know.

Listen, learn, and enjoy the fact that God does, truly, talk to you.

Love, peace, and blessings,

David

Some Life Rules

Good Morning,

Romans 12:9-21 (New Living Translation)
Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good. Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other. Never be lazy, but work hard and serve the Lord enthusiastically. Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying. When God’s people are in need, be ready to help them. Always be eager to practice hospitality.
Bless those who persecute you. Don’t curse them; pray that God will bless them. Be happy with those who are happy, and weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with each other. Don’t be too proud to enjoy the company of ordinary people. And don’t think you know it all!
Never pay back evil with more evil. Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honorable. Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone.
Dear friends, never take revenge. Leave that to the righteous anger of God. For the Scriptures say,
“I will take revenge;
I will pay them back,”
says the Lord.
Instead,
“If your enemies are hungry, feed them.
If they are thirsty, give them something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap
burning coals of shame on their heads.”
Don’t let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by doing good.

Some rules for living a decent, loving, gracious, and righteous life in the Lord.

Very often the Bible doesn't need much explanation or comment from anyone, except that which we hear from the Holy Spirit while we read. Today's verses are just such verses. Paul wrote for us thoughts about how we ought to go about living our lives. What God gave him to write is very clear.

We need to read these words. Then, we need to put them into action and live out what we are being taught in them.

Love, peace, and blessings,

David

All Men Will Know

Good Morning,

John 13:34-35 (NIV)
"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."

I have a question for all of us this morning. Do the people who see us each day recognize that we are disciples of Jesus Christ? According to the Scripture we read today, they should...shouldn't they? Jesus said clearly here in the Book of John that, "By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." Therefore, if we believe what Jesus tells us here, everyone should know that we are Christian believers and true disciples of Jesus.

Why then doesn't every person know? Why, I wonder, do we have to TELL people that we're Christians? Why don't folks recognize that we're different from the "normal" people they see all the time?

Of course, the answer is the fact that, for whatever reasons, we don't really show the love of Jesus in our everyday lives. Okay, yes, some of us do...a few of us...unfortunately, VERY few of us. For the most part, the great percentage of Christian believers aren't much different from those who have not accepted Jesus into their lives as Lord and Savior. Too many of us react exactly as those in and of the world when we find ourselves in situations that make us angry, impatient, or otherwise uncomfortable.

Fact is, we don't really show the love that Jesus tells us of in these verses. Even among ourselves...where it should be not second nature, but FIRST nature. Here's a scary thought for you. How do you know the person that you're berating about something isn't a Christian brother or sister? I mean, you find yourself in the grocery store in the express line with one item and there's this person in front of you with a cart full of groceries. Of course, that person should not be there because it IS the express lane, right? So you, in your righteous indignation, begin to make remarks, rolls of the eyes, giant sighs, and in any other way you can think of, make known that you are, well, let's just say unhappy. That person in front of you could very well BE a Christian. And, if so, then we are to show that person love, just as Jesus told us, correct? But, well, we don't. Sure, this is a kind of an extreme example...but, it isn't beyond the realm of possibility. Surely if a non believer were to observe your actions in this situation, he or she would just think that you are...normal...just like them.

"...all men will know..." My friends, the only way that "all men will know" if it's obvious in the way we treat people and act toward people. "All men" will NOT know if we aren't different. "All men" won't much care to know if we are the same as everyone else.

If we truly want "all men" to know that we are disciples of Christ, then we've got to act and speak differently. If we care that people know we are Christians, then we've got to show true love toward everyone. When we are able to do that, then, truly, "all men" WILL see; "all men" will notice, "all men" will begin to understand.

Love, peace, and blessings,

David

Calming the Storm

Good Morning,

Mark 4:35-41 (NIV)
That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, "Let us go over to the other side." Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him. A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, "Teacher, don't you care if we drown?"
He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, "Quiet! Be still!" Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.
He said to his disciples, "Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?"
They were terrified and asked each other, "Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!"

This morning I'd like to suggest that we are all, each of us individually and even, perhaps, some of us corporately, in our own "boat" attempting to go here or there; to accomplish this or that. Now, in that boat with us is Jesus (remember that He told us, "And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." Mat. 28:20). Yes, He's there. Maybe He's lying back, out of sight, and just observing us as we go about our chores on our journey to, well wherever...because we each have our own destination and our own voyage to sail. Now, on our expedition, in our own boat, we will come upon storms that will frighten us, just as the disciples those 2,000 years ago. But, now remember please, just as Jesus was in that boat with His disciples, He's in our boat with us, as well. When we face our storms...trials and tribulations that seem to want to sink us and capsize the boat we're traveling in...we can do as the disciples did and panic and we can ask God, "God, don't you care that I'm sinking here? Doesn't it matter to you that I'm failing at what I feel you want me to do?" Or, we can have faith that, in Jesus Christ, we have all the help we need and He won't allow us to go under...just as He didn't allow that boat to sink way back then.

Many of us have faced these various challenges, of course, and have learned that Jesus IS with us and that He WILL calm the storms that give us so much fright in our lives. Some of us have witnessed miracles...or what seemed like miracles, anyway...as we went on ON FAITH to do what God called us to do. We've actually had the honor and privilege of experiencing Jesus calming the tempest that we faced...even as we asked if He might not care about what happened to us.

The point today, I think, is to realize that Jesus is, truly, with us. And...He will NOT allow us to sink in the storms we face. You see, we have something that the disciples did not have in that boat those thousands of years ago. We have the absolute proof of who Jesus Christ truly is. We don't have to wonder, as they did, "Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!" No, we don't have to question the identity of Jesus as He sits back in our boat, right there with us, and will rise up to calm the storms we face.

Let's remember to thank Him!

Love, peace, and blessings,

David

Seeking God

Good Morning,

Jeremiah 29:13 (NIV)
You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.

I'm sure that I'm not the only person who has heard people complain and grumble that they don't seem to have God in their lives. And I'm also sure that I'm not the only person who has observed others who obviously don't have God in their lives, even though they might not mention or admit it.

So, what's the answer for those folks? I would contend that the answer is as simple as today's verse of Scripture. God is seeking to come into the lives of people who truly and wholeheartedly want Him in their lives. Just as God told the Israelites of thousands of years ago to seek Him with all there hearts, He also speaks these same words to us, today, right now.

The problem, as I see it, is the fact that many of us...even those who profess a devout Christianity...don't really seek God with ALL of their hearts. For too many people it's sort of a "half hearted" pursuit of God in their lives. Yes, during the weekend worship services or at a home group Bible study people will cry out for God to come into their lives. But, when the next day dawns, they go back to living their lives as they've always done and doing nothing different at all...and, they forget about seeking God with all their hearts.

You see, seeking God and asking His presence in our lives is not just a "weekend" sort of activity. This isn't something that we do when we "feel good" during worship, and then just go back to living as we've always done. No, seeking God with ALL our hearts means that we seek Him daily...and even every hour of every day. We seek Him by reading the Bible. We seek Him by prayer. We seek Him by confessing our sins, repenting of them, and changing our lives. We seek Him by loving one another, just as He loves us. We seek Him by being obedient to His commands. We seek Him, with all our hearts, by giving our lives over to Him in all that we do.

Now, from time to time, we will all feel sort of abandoned by God, I'm sure. There are days when we feel that we simply cannot find God in our lives. That, my friends, is when we really have to remember that it's on us, our responsibility, to seek Him.

"With all your heart."

Love, peace, and blessings,

David

Repayment

Good Morning,

Luke 14:12-14 (NIV)
Then Jesus said to his host, "When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous."

Jesus was telling His "host" (and all of mankind who would read His words) a basic truth that lies in almost all human beings. That would be the fact that too often we, us lowly human beings, do something thinking about "what's in it for me" instead of simply doing out of the pleasure and honor we have in the DOING of it.

This is something that we all tend to fall short in from time to time. Yes, me included...of course! I remember times when we would have people over for a meal at our house and in the back of my mind was that niggling little thought, "Gee, I hope that they serve us a good meal when they invite us to dinner." For much of my life, and even now from time to time (but not often, thankfully!), there is that little speck of a thought about the "payback" for some good deed or favor that I've done. Now, I have to say, that for the most part God has touched us and blessed us in such a way that those kinds of thoughts and feelings are less and less as time goes on. Even as our finances get slimmer all the time, it still makes me feel really good to be able to serve a meal to a friend or loved one or even, sometimes, a stranger that is appreciated and enjoyed.

That's what Jesus was telling us. We need to be doing things for the joy and pleasure we get in the doing! We need to give for the joy and pleasure in the giving! We need to help for the joy and pleasure of helping!

We need to rid ourselves of the "what's in it for me" attitude completely and for all our lives. We can go on and on here about how society has taught us our attitudes and behaviors. Okay. I agree that much of how we act, react, and respond is because of how we have been raised and taught. However...HOWEVER!...we can UNlearn these attitudes and behaviors. We can begin, even today, to remember what Jesus was teaching us in today's verses. We can start doing and giving and helping simply because we know it's the right thing to do and because of the simple joy we get from our efforts. When we reach that attitude in our lives, that's when the doing and giving and helping REALLY gets joyful and more pleasurable, because when our hearts and minds are right, that's when God touches us more firmly and His love seems to be even greater.

Hey, give it a shot! Believe me, it's worth it!

Oh, if you come to my house for a meal, you don't owe me ANYTHING! Well, accept a compliment to the chef???

Love, peace, and blessings,

David

"...offer yourselves to God..."

Good Morning,

Romans 6:13 (NIV)
Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to him as instruments of righteousness.
Romans 6:13 (AMP)
Do not continue offering or yielding your bodily members [and faculties] to sin as instruments (tools) of wickedness. But offer and yield yourselves to God as though you have been raised from the dead to [perpetual] life, and your bodily members [and faculties] to God, presenting them as implements of righteousness.

Today we read, in this verse, what is probably one of the main problems, if not THE major problem, with the world in which we live. That would be, I believe, that too many of us continue in "offering or yielding" our bodies to sin and wickedness. It seems to me that everywhere we look today we see that mankind has learned pretty much nothing about what happens to civilizations that give in to the pleasures of the body...at the cost of giving ourselves over to God. We might say, "Oh, certainly not ME! I don't do that!" But I would ask that we take a look deep down inside ourselves to really see and comprehend if, indeed, we really ARE giving ourselves over to physical pleasures, instead of devoting ourselves to the things of God.

Well, you might say that not ALL of us, or even a majority of us, are looking at things we shouldn't on the internet, in magazines, at the movies, or even on television. You know what? That's true. Some of us, however, ARE giving ourselves over to those things and offering our bodies to sin in sexual ways. But, that's not the only way we give ourselves to wickedness. It's just the easiest to recognize. So, we kind of focus in on that and think it's the only thing we've got to concentrate on and defeat. Well, I tend to differ with that opinion.

How's your attitude toward work and wealth? How do you feel about "creature comforts" that you've accumulated...or are seeking to accumulate? How much time do you spend rooting for your favorite sports team? Well, you know, the list of things that take us away from yielding ourselves to God can go on...and on...and on. Can't it? Unfortunately, we "offer the parts of your (our) body (bodies) to sin" in many ways. Not all of them have to do with infidelity or sexual sin. No, many of the things that we yield our bodies to are things that don't really seem to BE sin...or sinful.

But, I would contend that ANYTHING that takes our focus off of God (in an inordinate way) and anything that keeps us from offering all of the parts of our bodies to Him as "instruments of righteousness" can be, and often are, sin...can be sinful.

God has offered US His free gift that Paul writes here as, "...been brought from death to life...", God's plan of salvation and eternal life by accepting Jesus as Savior. Can we do any less than offer ourselves, our bodies, minds, souls, and our very beings back to HIM, as "instruments of righteousness" that we read here? Don't we think enough of God's gift of eternal life in heaven that we can give Him our physical bodies during this short time here on this earth? Evidently, that answer...sadly...is often "No," to that question. No, we don't. We still go after physical pleasure and physical enjoyment and physical comforts to the detriment of seeking to go after the things of God and offering ourselves over to His righteousness.

Now, lest some get the wrong idea here, let me say simply that it's NOT wrong, or sinful, to seek some of what I've written here...IN MODERATION! As long as our priorities are straight and we're headed in God's directions in our lives, then it's find to work to obtain things that bring us some physical pleasure and enjoyment. When it becomes sin and sinful is when it's to the detriment of God's plan; when it causes us to deviate from what we should be doing for God. What brings us down to the "pagan's" level is when we go after physical pleasures first, and put God on the back burner, so to speak.

Simply put, we need to see what we've been striving for, wanting, and seeking the most in our lives. Are we spending 99% of our time and effort on "sin and wickedness" as we live on this planet? Or, are we offering ourselves to God with more of our time and our efforts?

I hope we all find the answer to this and answer we want to see.

Love, peace, and blessings,

David

Facing Giants

Good Morning,

Ephesians 4:1-2 (NIV)
As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.
Numbers 13:28 (TEV)
The people who live [in Canaan] are powerful, and their cities are very large and well fortified. Even worse, we saw the descendants of the giants there.

At our congregation last week Pastor Bryan spoke of "The Called" and "The Calling." As I hope that we are all aware, those of us who have accepted Jesus as Lord and Savior are "called" by Him. In addition, we also have a "calling," that is...some work, some purpose that has been given to us by God that we are to take on and give our labors to.

Paul tells us in Ephesians that we should be living "a life worthy of the calling you have received." That's pretty powerful, I think. We are to be people who are humble, gentle, patient, and who bear with each other (put up with each other?) in true love, the love that models God's love for us. I'm pretty sure what we're aware of these facts. I mean, we know that God has called us and, I believe, we are aware that we have some special calling that God has put upon us. We don't need to go into detailed, long, dogmatic explanations of those things. I think, deep down inside, we know...we are fully aware.

The challenge is actually fulfilling our calling; going out and DOING what it is we've been called to do by God. Unfortunately, too many of us simply don't go out and do what we really know we should be doing. I wondered why. Then, as God often does, He sent along two unrelated verses to help me understand. That first, in Ephesians, we've already discussed. The second, in Numbers, sort of gives us the "why" of our difficulties in carrying out our purpose, our calling.

You see, just as the Israelite spies thought that they faced impossible odds entering the Promised Land, we also face some challenges along the way in carrying out our purpose and calling. We see in our way "cities...very large and well fortified" which stand in our way and present obstacles in doing what we feel we should be doing. Then, if that isn't enough, many of us face "the descendants of the giants" in our way which stand as impediments to our work.

So, I ask you now: Do you want to be like the millions of Israelites who didn't want to face these obstructions? Or, rather, would you more rather wish to be like Caleb who argued that they should go and face whatever difficulties might come into their way and enter their Promised Land?

Yes, in carrying out whatever calling God has placed upon each of us, we will face various road blocks and hindrances. So, when that happens, we can choose to be like the majority of the Jews and wander around in a "desert" for an extended period of time. Or, we can choose to be like Caleb and be willing to face, and overcome, any stumbling blocks and hurdles that come into our way.

Will it be easy to fulfill our calling? For some, the it will NOT be easy...nor simple...to accomplish that which God has set before them. That's when we call on God to help us and to each other to lift us up above any hindrances that come our way.

Love, peace, and blessings,

David

Consider Your Ways

Good Morning,

Haggai 1:5 (NIV)
Now this is what the LORD Almighty says: "Give careful thought to your ways."

This verse caused me to pause and really think about it this morning. The King James reads, "Consider your ways." Either way, I realized that much too often I don't really give enough "careful thought" nor do I really take the time to "consider" what would be "my ways." I guess there are many of us in a like situation about this, don't you think?

So, what, exactly, are my ways? Simply put, it's just the way I go about living my life each day. God asks us to give thought, careful thought, to the way we are living our lives...right now. Yes, we should also probably take a look at how lived in the past, which has gotten us to this point in our lives, but it is much, much more important to consider what we're doing in the here and now. Also, it goes without saying, we need to think about how we plan on going on FROM this point in our lives.

We may or may not be overjoyed at what we find when we give that careful thought to how we're going about our lives today. We might even be greatly disappointed when we consider how we've lived in the past. But, neither the past, nor the present, should keep us from doing better, living better, being more what God wants of us, in the future.

Yes, we need to give much careful thought and truly consider our ways. Bottom line is that if, when we do think about and consider the ways we're living, we aren't thrilled, well, that would be a pretty good indication that we need to make some alterations as to how we're living. Yes, I know, that's pretty elementary and simple. It's about as obvious as one can imagine, isn't it? The trick is that we've got to obey what God has told us in this short verse. The trick is that we really DO take the time to think about and consider how we're living.

Remember, as we used to say in ancient times (you know, around 1965 or so), "Today is the first day of the rest of your life." Today can be the day that, after careful thought and consideration, we can make changes that we know are necessary.

Love, peace, and blessings,

David

Straight Paths

Good Morning,

Proverbs 3:6 (NIV)
In all your ways acknowledge Him,
and He will make your paths straight.
Proverbs 3:6 (AMP)
In all your ways know, recognize, and acknowledge Him, and He will direct and make straight and plain your paths.

Let me ask you: Am I the only one whose path seems crooked and convoluted from time to time? Am I the only one who seems to be a bit lost and cannot find my way some days? Am I the only one whose path seems anything but plain and straight?

Okay. I'm being a bit facetious here because of course I know that all of us feel this way...some more than others...at times in our lives; in our walk with the Lord. It's a normal part of living this life here on this earth that God created for us. The questions that comes to mind, and I'm sure I'm NOT the only one asking them, are, "Why me Lord?! Why do I seem so lost? Why can't I find my way clearly?"

The answer, as I see it explained in this short, simple verse of Scripture is simple: We haven't done what is suggested here when we read, "In all your ways acknowledge Him, and..." Or, as we read in the Amplified version, "In all your ways know, recognize, and acknowledge Him..."

Pretty simple, isn't it? Seems straightforward to me, anyway. The problem we have...(well, the problem I often have)...is that we don't, truly, acknowledge God in ALL OUR WAYS! Yes, on the weekend when we attend services at our several congregations we openly, and often loudly, acknowledge God; praise God; worship God; and join together in thanks to God. We raise our hands and our voices in unison to "know, recognize, and acknowledge" the Lord God of the universe. And we leave our local worship houses with the best intentions in the world to continue our lives with the exact same sentiments and feelings that we have at that moment. But...(you have to hate that word sometimes, don't you?)...BUT...life happens to us. Often almost from the moment we step outside into "the world." The door of the church sticks. The traffic leaving the parking lot is horrendous and it seems that you are the only one who remembers how to drive. All the lights are red, all the way to the place we'll be eating our lunch. The line at the establishment we've chosen is way long. The waiter is rushed and rude. The food isn't as we thought it should be. The kids are totally out of hand...Well, I guess I can stop there, huh? You see, when all...or even any...of these things happen, we lose that total surrender to God that we had just a few short minutes ago, and we don't truly "acknowledge Him" as we should, and allow His love and presence to shine through us.

Oh, this doesn't even bring into mind all of the things that we sometimes NEVER give over to Him in our daily lives. Are we acknowledging Him in our workplace? Do we acknowledge Him when we go to the grocery store. Often we get up at the very last minute to get ready for our day and we don't even seem to have the time to acknowledge Him, and thank Him, for the day He's given us. Do we, in ALL our ways, really acknowledge Him? Then, we wonder when our paths are NOT straight. Then we wonder when we don't seem to be directed by Him.

Yes, this is a simple, straight forward, and plainly understood verse of Scripture. Notice I didn't say that would be easy to carry out, however. I guess that's because we get so caught up in ourselves. It has to do with the fact that we may not be living completely as we know we should (thus, making it even MORE difficult to acknowledge Him). Perhaps because of the way we were brought up...having no really examples of people how DID acknowledge God. Oh, there are many reasons why we don't acknowledge Him in all our ways, in everything we do. Then, there are also many excuses...but we don't need to go into that in detail, those of us who use them, well, we know who we are and what they are.

Certainly, we can see that if we want God to direct our paths and make them straight for us to walk, well then, we've got to first acknowledge Him in every part of our lives. Very easy to understand...not so simple to carry out, perhaps.

But, it's something we all need to do.

Love, peace, and blessings,

David

Act Justly, Love Mercy, Walk Humbly With God

Good Morning,

Micah 6:1-8 (NIV)
Listen to what the LORD says:
"Stand up, plead your case before the mountains;
let the hills hear what you have to say.
Hear, O mountains, the LORD's accusation;
listen, you everlasting foundations of the earth.
For the LORD has a case against his people;
he is lodging a charge against Israel.
"My people, what have I done to you?
How have I burdened you? Answer me.
I brought you up out of Egypt
and redeemed you from the land of slavery.
I sent Moses to lead you,
also Aaron and Miriam.
My people, remember
what Balak king of Moab counseled
and what Balaam son of Beor answered.
Remember your journey from Shittim to Gilgal,
that you may know the righteous acts of the LORD."
With what shall I come before the LORD
and bow down before the exalted God?
Shall I come before him with burnt offerings,
with calves a year old?
Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams,
with ten thousand rivers of oil?
Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression,
the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?
He has showed you, O man, what is good.
And what does the LORD require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy
and to walk humbly with your God.
(Emphasis mine, DRB)

We read in these verses God telling Israel...God's people...so much of what God had done for them up until that time. But, God was telling them, if I get the tone of this section correct, that He wasn't very happy with them; nor was He happy with all of the "sacrifices" that were offered to Him. Now, someone might say, "Well that's "Old Testament" stuff and what God did for Israel doesn't really apply to Christians today. I guess I could understand that, except...........

So, what has God done for Christians today that could be put in place of some of the things we read in these verses? Well, maybe just the little fact that He came to this earth as a human being, Jesus Christ, in order that we...all of mankind for all the rest of time...would have a Savior. God gave us a plan for this salvation. Jesus taught us innumerable lessons and gave us examples over and over of how to live a decent, Christian life. Then, He suffered and died a horrible death in order to be the Ultimate Sacrifice for mankind's sin. God then raised Him from the dead to show us that He HAD, truly, conquered death and that we, too, would have eternal life with Him when we leave this earth.

Now...wouldn't you say that's probably some pretty good stuff here? At least as good as what we read in these verses today? And, wouldn't you say that the words we read in the last verse (those I highlighted and underlined) would apply to us today? Even if they are from the "Old Testament?" I know I certainly would.

What does God require of us in the way we live our lives? That's what I understand when I read this section of Scripture. He doesn't require sacrifices. He doesn't require money. He doesn't require that we attend this congregation or that. No, He doesn't require anything like that in how we live. He tells us in these verses...remember this section starts, "Listen to what the LORD says," so in my mind this IS God talking directly to me and everyone else who reads these verses...He tells us that we are required "to act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God." I don't really think that these actions, ways to live, need a whole lot of explanation or interpretation, do you?

Act justly...Love mercy...Walk humbly with God.

I think we can do that. The question is: Do we?

Love, peace, and blessings,

David

God's Love

Good Morning,

Romans 8:31-39 (NIV)
What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written: "For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered."
No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

In this section of Scripture we have what I think and feel is one of the most powerful truths in the entire Bible. That simple and straight forward truth is: NOTHING can separate us from the love of God.

Are you troubled today? Maybe feel that the world is sort of crashing down around you? Feeling that no one really and truly loves you? Then, these verses...this fact and truth...are what you need to be hanging on to and have permanently etched into your heart and mind.

God loves you. Nothing anyone can do...including you...can separate you from God's love. I like that word...nothing...because it's so very clear and succinct. It can have no other meaning and can't be misconstrued in any way. It firmly tells us what is meant, without any doubt whatsoever.

We all need to know this in our hearts and minds. We need to grasp onto the huge meaning of what Paul is telling us. We truly need to have these words at the tip of our tongues. All day, every day.

God loves you. God loves me. God loves all of us. "The love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Love, peace, and blessings,

David

His Yoke

Good Morning,

Matthew 11:28-30 (NIV)
"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."

I'm running very late this morning. We're having a "Group Fair" at our church today so Betty and I have to be at all the services as we're facilitating a Small Group this short summer semester. Now, I know that God fully understands where I'm at this morning because He caused these particular verses to cross my desk. Not that I'm all that weary or burdened today, but, well, I believe that we can ALL use the kind of rest that only Jesus can offer.

What I'd ask of all of us today would be to read and then reread these verses and allow the Holy Spirit to give you meaning and understanding that only He can provide. Jesus gives us true and complete rest. The yoke He asks us to take on and the burden that He bids us to carry are, as He said, are easy and light.

Love and caring for one another, I think, would be at least a part of what Jesus is asking of us. We can do that. If we will do that...love and care...we will be doing exactly as God would have us to do and definitely acting just a bit more like Jesus in our actions.

Love, peace, and blessings,

David

Trust In God

Good Morning,

Proverbs 3:5-6 (NIV)
Trust in the LORD with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
in all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make your paths straight.

Today we've been given a bit of true wisdom...yes, and knowledge, as well...to contemplate, think about, and allow to truly enter our very being.

Is there trouble in your life right now? I think that we all have troubles and problems on most days that we live on this earth. So, when you face these trials, where do you turn? Today, my friend, we have an answer as to where we SHOULD turn and in whom we should be putting our trust.

I don't think that a lot of commentary or words from me will make these two verses any clearer for you...or for me.

Trust in God...completely!

Your understanding of what's happening is probably not entirely correct, so don't go there!

Acknowledge God in all that you do!

He will help us and guide us on this journey!

Love, peace, and blessings,

David

His Words

Good Morning,

Isaiah 55:10-11 (NIV)
As the rain and the snow
come down from heaven,
and do not return to it
without watering the earth
and making it bud and flourish,
so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater,
so is my word that goes out from my mouth:
It will not return to me empty,
but will accomplish what I desire
and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.
Acts 1:8 (NIV)
"But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."

These two seemingly unrelated sections of Scripture crossed my desk this morning.

The first section, from Isaiah 55, seemed to be an answer to questions that form in my mind from time to time. Then, as I read all of my e-mails, the second section, from Acts 1, appeared to do exactly the same thing, but it was sort of an extension to those verses in Isaiah.

What I'm trying to convey today is that we have all been given the responsibility to share the Gospel message with the world. Jesus said so. He said, "...and you will be my witnesses...," I have always assumed that when He spoke these words He wasn't just speaking to those who could hear His voice on that day. No, I think that we all believe He was speaking to ALL believers on this. And, He wanted those who could hear His voice, and all of us for all time, to not only speak up with His message locally, "...Judea and Samaria," but wide and far, as well, "...to the ends of the earth." So, we can all agree on that, can't we?

But, sometimes we speak the Gospel message or we openly show God's love in our lives in some way and, well, we wonder if it does any good. Or, we hear that voice in our heads that we should say this or write that, we obey...then, again, we sort of wonder if what we've said or what we've done really makes any difference in the world...in the grand scheme of things.

That's where the verses in Isaiah come in, you see. God is clear...very, very clear...about what happens when "my word that goes out of my mouth" is spoken or used in some way by His children.

God speaks to us. He gives us direction and asks us to speak up or do something or other that is from Him. We don't always realize that it's from God and sometimes we aren't quick to act on what we've heard. Okay, that's human and normal, I believe. But, when we DO act on what we've heard, we should never, ever doubt that what God has asked of us is, truly, bearing fruit and accomplishing exactly what God wants to accomplish.

God gives us the perfect analogy and example in these beautiful verses from Isaiah. His word...what He would ask of us to do or say...does what He wishes, just exactly as the rain and snow fall from the sky to water the earth and grow the food that we eat, so also do God's words that come directly from Him to us "water" people just as He wants.

I know this is a bit rambling this morning. However, I also know that pretty much all of us has the human curiosity about whether or not something we're saying or doing makes any difference in the world. Well, at least I know I do sometime. So, when these verses came my way today, I knew that they should be sent along. I also know, without a doubt at all, that God's words we read today and what He has had to say about them, will, indeed, accomplish exactly what He desires and achieve all of the purposes for which He sent it.

Love, peace, and blessings,

David

An Example?

Good Morning,

1 Timothy 4:12 (NIV)
Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity.

At first blush, this particular verse appears to be aimed at those who might be considered young. After all, Paul says, "Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young..." and that would seem to indicate that this verse WOULD be focused on those who are young. But, those aren't the words that seemed to pop out at me this morning. Yes, of course I saw them, and, again, I was about to sort of just gloss over this verse because of them. However, as I looked a second...and then a third...time at this verse, what spoke to me was at the end of the verse...

"...but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity."

THESE are the words that have been given to us today, I think, that we should realize what they are telling us and, in that vein, how we should live our lives.

Here's the deal (let's be honest now)...Are YOU a good, solid example in these areas for "the believers" to follow? Maybe even more importantly, are YOU a good, solid example in these areas for those who are NOT believers, but who see you and your actions nonetheless? Hey, I'll be honest with you. Too often, I'm afraid, I am certainly not a good example in some...and sometimes ALL...of these areas. I would imagine that you might say the same thing about yourself. Now, of course, we are our own worse critics, I know. And sometimes we tend to lie to ourselves or tell ourselves things like, "Well, that doesn't matter much. I don't think anyone saw or heard _________ anyway." (Feel free to fill in the blank here.) But, if I'm to be obedient to God's Word and truly BE that example Paul is speaking to Timothy about, I must be honest with myself and, this is the hard part, honest with at least one person in my life to whom I can go and be accountable to.

"...set an example..." Those words sometimes seem crushing to me. Do they speak to you in the same way? What I mean is that I am nobody special and my life very often certainly hasn't been a good example for anyone in what I've said, especially in tough times, in the way I've lived often lived my life, in the ways I've loved and either accepted or turned away love, in my faith in the Lord, nor in being the pure person God would have me to be.

Having said that, it doesn't mean that I can't be, from today forward, that example Paul speaks to in this short verse of Scripture. Even though I'm not one of the "young" that Paul seems to be talking about, and I might even be considered by many to be rather old. You see, I can take this verse and apply it to myself, right where I live, exactly as I am and go on from here. Each of us can do that same thing.

Here's the great part of this idea that's sort of been put into my head. Even if you and I have been anything but a good example up to now, and then we make the decision to change some things so that we become that good example, think about what that might speak to people who will observe such a change in behaviors and speech and love and caring and purity and total faith in God! You know, that, I believe, is the point and focus of this today. I can make the changes I need to make in order to set the good, proper example to the believers around me and to the non believers with whom I will come into contact. And, when I'm asked about why I seem different, well, doesn't that give the perfect opportunity to speak to the power of God in my life?

As the fitness guru Tony Little would say, "YOU CAN DO IT!!!" We might need more than a little help from the Holy Spirit, but, yes...we CAN do it!

Love, peace, and blessings,

David

Share? Give???

Good Morning,

1 Timothy 6:17-19 (NIV)
Command those who are rich in this present age not to be haughty, nor to trust in uncertain riches but in the living God, who gives us richly all things to enjoy. Let them do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to give, willing to share, storing up for themselves a good foundation for the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life.

In looking at these verses today, I wondered what, exactly, does "haughty" mean? So, let's see what good, old Webster has to say: haughty adj., tier, tiest. 1. disdainfully proud; snobbish; arrogant. 2. Archaic. lofty or noble; exalted. Now, let's take a quick look at some synonyms for "haughty": arrogant, overly proud, overbearing,high and mighty, high-handed, lordly, aloof, snobbish, conceited, condescending, patronizing, swell-headed.

Okay, now we kind of know what Paul was speaking to, I think. Today we'd say that wealthy people can be, to put it in more common language: stuck up, snooty, uppity.

Now, let's take a look around us. What do we see? Do we see any of these traits in some of the well off people we observe? Unfortunately, the answer seems to be a pretty strong "Yes," doesn't it? I mean, it appears...at least to me very often...that those with wealth like to "lord it over" those of us who do not have similar wealth...or are rich, to put it in Paul's words. Now, if we were only to be seeing such behaviors and attributes in those in and of the world, it wouldn't be too surprising, I don't think. But, the fact that we frequently observe these things in people who attend our local congregations. That, my friends, is a true shame.

Paul warns us about this in these verses. He tells those who have riches, wealth, money to "do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to give, willing to share." Now, that sounds like something that the Lord would want, don't you think? I mean, we read of sharing and giving to the less fortunate over and over, everywhere in the Bible. Jesus speaks of it often. Paul mentions it time and again in his letters to the various churches. It's an ongoing theme that God certainly wants people to take notice of, else, why would it be in so many places and written of by so many different people?

So, with this giving and sharing a fact of the Bible, why in the world do we not see more of it? I mean, why is it that so many well off people, Christian people I'm speaking of here, why don't they take more heed to what is written about their wealth? Why do the rich always need a bigger, better, newer, shinier...well, almost everything? How many diamond bracelets can one wear, for goodness sake? And, correct me if I'm wrong here, it seems that someone can really only drive one car at a time. Is the Hummer in the garage that's driven once a week or even once a month really something that's needed? What these things tell me, and what they show to the world, is just how "haughty" people can be when they obtain riches and wealth. You know, the, "Hey, look at me! I've got it all!" kind of attitude.

Paul ends these few verses by saying, "...storing up for themselves a good foundation for the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life." Now, of course he isn't telling us that this is in any way connected to our salvation, let's not get that wrong. But, what I do think is that God smiles more broadly and thinks more highly of those who ARE willing to be, "ready to give, willing to share," in the world today. I'd like to think that most...no, not most but ALL...of us, if given the opportunity to be truly wealthy, would be obedient to what we read today. Unfortunately, it seems that money sort of changes people.

Love, peace, and blessings,

David

Love for Enemies

Good Morning,

Luke 6:27-36 (NIV)
"But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also. If someone takes your cloak, do not stop him from taking your tunic. Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. Do to others as you would have them do to you.
"If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even 'sinners' love those who love them. And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even 'sinners' do that. And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even 'sinners' lend to 'sinners,' expecting to be repaid in full. But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.

I know that we've discussed these verses in the past. I also know that we'll be led to them again in the future, at some point. I believe that we're led back to these verses time and time again because we all need to learn more from them, to learn more from what Jesus taught in them. I'm not sure most of us will ever reach the perfection that Jesus taught in these verses, but I do know that we need to keep on trying. You see, I believe that in the striving for the perfection of the sentiments we read about today, I believe that we will all be better people. Not perfect, perhaps, but at least much better than we are today.

"Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you."

I wish I could give a solid lesson on exactly how to go about achieving this kind of love, good, blessing, and prayer in your life...in my own life, for that matter. Would only that there would be some "method" or other which could be learned and assimilated into our lives that would result in being the kind of person who is capable of these things. I certainly haven't found one. Other than to simply read and study what Jesus has said and then just try to have Him help me in my struggles with these things. There is no "magic pill", so to speak, that will miraculously change us from being the vengeful human beings we tend to be, into the loving and caring people Jesus would have us to be.

Getting to a place in our lives where we truly can love our enemies, do good to those who wish us ill will, bless the people who would curse the fact that we're alive, and pray for those who would cause us harm, to get to this place is a lifelong process, I'm afraid. It's remembering this section of Scripture and what Jesus said. Then, baby step by baby step, putting a bit of these sentiments and attitudes into action in our everyday lives. What we have to do is start by doing small, simple things that might seem to make no difference at all for people who aren't exactly friends...or friendly. Just a word here and a small prayer there. A helping hand, maybe, at some point. A silent blessing...truly meant and felt.

Remember what Jesus says at the end of these verses, "Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful." That, my friends, I think is the key to this whole matter. If we can actually be merciful and show mercy, then the rest can more easily fall into place.

Easy? No! Doable? Maybe. Over a life time of putting these ideas into action, bit by bit, tiny piece by tiny piece, we can achieve, or at least approach, what it is God would have us to be.

Love, peace, and blessings,

David

Preach, Correct, Rebuke, Encourage

Good Morning,

2 Timothy 4:1-4 (NIV)
In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction. For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.

Paul is telling Timothy...and us, of course...that we are to always be prepared to "Preach the Word." He writes that we are to "Be prepared in season and out of season." This is, truly marvelous advice that all of us ought to be ready to undertake at any given moment. Now, many of us think that this "preaching" that Paul is talking about is what we hear from clergy on a Sunday morning (or maybe Saturday evening) in our local congregations. But, I don't think that's what Paul is talking about here. What he is saying is that we all need to be able to explain our Christian beliefs to those who might ask. He goes on to mention that we should be prepared to "correct, rebuke, and encourage" those around us when that becomes necessary.

So, here we are then. Just regular people. Not educated in preaching. Nor are we really highly knowledgeable in the correcting and rebuking that Paul wrote about. And, we sometimes don't know how to go about encouraging as we ought to. One might ask if maybe, because of our lack of specific education and knowledge of these things that, maybe we should just leave it to the "experts" in our local churches to handle. Let me ask you something. Who might it be easier to approach with some thought or problem? A Pastor of a local church? Or, perhaps, a trusted friend? Yes, many of our pastors are loving, giving, and truly caring people. But they often just don't have the time to drop everything to meet with everyone who wishes some of their attention. On the other hand, our pastors can't always see when correction is needed. Or when someone might need to be rebuked for some action or words. And they surely don't see or know about everyone who needs to be encouraged in their lives.

Well, what that speaks to me is that we, you and I, need to be the ones carrying out the instructions that Paul has written in these verses. Yes, these responsibilities fall on every one of us at some time or other. How do we know how to go about it? I think that it's as simple as knowing our Bibles and what God has set down for us as our "instruction book" to use in these matters. I also believe that we learn how to be better preachers, correctors, rebukers, and encouragers by spending time together in small groups; in a more intimate setting than our local churches on the weekend. As our pastors have said recently, "Small groups are where life happens." That is so very true.

When we begin to meet together in people's homes to learn and to share our lives, then we start to have trust and respect for our brothers and sisters in Christ. When that happens, we find ourselves able to be all that Paul asks of us in today's verses. We are able to see where correction might be needed in someone's thinking and doctrine. We are aware when a person might need to be taken to task about some action they've taken or words they might have spoken. We will understand more fully who needs more encouragement in their lives. And, we will be able to do these things in a very timely manner; do them when they are most needed and most appreciated. Most importantly, in our small, home gatherings, we have the opportunity to preach God's Word in such a way that is simple and direct to people who are comfortable and ready to hear it.

The one other huge benefit to meeting together in home groups is: That is where we learn God's instruction book for us in the most comfortable setting. We get to share our individual knowledge and insight as to what God's words speak to us.

Now let's not forget what Paul writes about preaching, correcting and the rest. He says that we are to go about this "with great patience and careful instruction." We are NOT to do these things in such a way that is better suited to driving people away than it is to bringing them closer to God. We aren't to go about hitting people over the head with a 10 pound Bible thinking that God's Word will fall into their minds simply by it's weight! I've found that doesn't work well, you know?

One last, and huge, reason that we should be together learning and helping one another comes with the last words written in these verses.

"For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths."

How very alarming these words are to me. And how very dangerous their meaning as we can see all around us. But, when we are used to meeting together as friends and neighbors, and not just as "acquaintances" in a large local church setting, that's when we are free to open up, ask questions, and, therefore, not be liable to being driven from the truth and toward myths.

We, you and I, are the ones responsible...I feel...to be undertaking what Paul has written for us in these verses. Let's take this responsibility, and great honor, seriously.

Love, peace, and blessings,

David