Finish Well

 

There is a song by the McKameys entitled, “Finish Well”.  Hey, it doesn’t matter what the score is at the half or even at the third quarter, but it does matter what the score is at the end of the game!  In 1969 I ran cross country for Tennessee Temple College.  We were running on the top of Lookout mountain against Covenant College.  I was in fifth place running head-to-head with a young man from Covenant.  He would get ahead of me for a few steps, but I would doggedly catch him and push ahead.  We challenged each other the whole race, but in the end, he beat me by two steps!  I have thought of that race many times since then.  If I would have just gained three steps anytime in the 3 ½ miles, I would have beaten him.  But I didn’t.  And he beat me.  Hey, let me encourage you to finish well in the race of life.  II Peter 3:11-14, “Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness, Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat? Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness. Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot, and blameless.”  

Problem Solving

 

My wife has a dear friend who bought us two new entrance rugs.  I think she saw that I was tacking in sawdust from my woodworking and took pity on my wife.  At any rate, we got two new rugs.  Yeah!  The old backdoor rug was still good, so I appropriated it for the basement doorway.  But I immediately had a problem: the sweep on the bottom of the door left no room for the rug to lay in front of the door.  I wiggled and wiggled the rug and finally got the door closed over it, but as soon as I opened the door and tried to shut it again, the rug wrinkled up again.  I thought of removing the sweep from the bottom of the door, but the sweep keeps out cold air and opportunistic bugs.  As I pondered the problem, the answer finally came to me: just switch a thinner rug with the thick rug.  Problem solved!  Hey, often it helps to “think outside of the box”.  Look at the problem in a novel way.  Sometimes it helps to put the problem aside and tackle it the next day with a fresh mind.  Hey, we can work and work at solving life’s problems, but we miss the obvious solution: turn our problems over to Jesus Christ.  Jesus said in Luke 18:27, “… The things which are impossible with men are possible with God.”  Who better to solve your problems than the One Who knows everything and is capable of solving difficult problems as easy as easy problems?!  Trust Jesus with your problems.  He will never let you down.

Another Point of View

 

I was frustrated yesterday for the third time this week.  Let me explain.  I work on four exercise machines at cardiac rehab, and the hardest of the four is the rowing machine.  And because of that, I dread the rowing machine.  I do the stationary bicycle to warm up and then go to the feared rowing machine to get it out of the way.  (At suppertime, I used to tell my children, “The last the best, the first the worst”.)  But every day this past week, some little person used my rowing machine and changed the settings.  They tightened the foot straps and shortened the tread to fit their little feet.  So I had to handle that nasty foot tread to move it back to the second hole and loosen the straps so that my size eleven feet could get into the straps.  It frustrated me to no end!  But Friday, on the way home, I realized that the little person must have been frustrated three times this week too!  They got onto “their” rowing machine and had to tighten the straps and shorten the tread because some big oaf had changed their settings!  Hey, it’s all in your perspective; it’s how you view things.  I’m so glad that the dear Lord is patient with me!  I’m glad that God is not frustrated when I fail again and again!  God loves me and gives me a second chance, and a third, and a fourth and …  II Peter 3:9, “The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.”  Hey, the Lord doesn’t just let me slide; God doesn’t look the other way when I sin; God sent His dear Son, Jesus Christ to pay for my sins!  I am forgiven and redeemed!  Praise the Lord!  And since God has forgiven me, I need to be a little more forgiving towards some little person who uses “my” rowing machine at cardiac rehab.

Point of View

 

I was at my daughter’s a few years ago enjoying supper.  I had just loaded up my fork and was balancing an oversized bite on the way to my waiting mouth.  But I had miscalculated.  Too much food or too small of a fork.  As I began to lose control of the load, I moved faster towards my mouth.  A rookie move.  I should have known better.  The wonderful morsel rolled off of the fork, hit my chest, and fell to the floor.  I was contemplating the “five second rule,” but I had three problems: first, the food was too gooey and splatted on the floor when it landed.  Second, everyone had seen me drop it.  And third, Sophie’s little dog, Rosy was already enjoying my mishap.  As my emotions sank, Rosie’s emotions went up.  My disaster was her delight.  Hey, that’s how it is in life.  God uses a disaster to accomplish His perfect will.  He sees the end from the beginning.  My loving heavenly Father will turn my tragedy into His delight.  God knows what He is about, and He is working everything out for my good and for His glory.  I am so glad God is in control.  Yes, He is.  Paul said it best in Romans 8:28, “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.”

A.I.

 

A.I. (artificial intelligence) is popping up everywhere.  I always forget, but I can ask Alexa anything.  I can ask her to play a favorite song or ask her what the weather is going to be tomorrow.  My son was searching for his TV remote at his house, frustrated that he couldn’t find it.  So he said out loud, “Alexa, where is my remote?”  Alexia answered, “Have you looked between the couch cushions?”  John paused a moment, slid his hand between the couch cushions and … there it was!  How did Alexa know where the remote was?!  Well actually, she didn’t.  She was programed by someone who had lost his remote before and knew where it probably was.  Hey, God is like that programmer, except infinitely wiser.  Does God know everything?  Yes, He does.  Does God know what is coming our way tomorrow?  Of course, He does.  So, doesn’t it make sense to put our trust in Someone Who knows the future?  Of course, it does!  Solomon, the wisest man that ever lived, said it best in Proverbs 3:5 &6, “Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.”  Don’t put your trust in A.I.; put your trust in God, and you’ll never be sorry that you did.

DNA

 

One molecule of human DNA is about three billion nucleotides long.  Rather huge!  I haven’t counted them myself for two reasons: first, they are too small to see, and second, I haven’t the time to do it.  So, I’ll take the expert’s word on it.  The DNA coils up to duplicate itself and can be seen as the chromosomes during this cell division, but normally, the DNA molecule, if stretched out would be about six feet long!  We get half of our DNA from our father (sperm) and half from our mother (ovum).  David said in Psalm 139:14, “I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.”  What a thrilling statement, because God has three billion choices to use as He is putting you together in that first unique cell that forms you!  The dear Lord’s choices are truly “marvelous” and He makes no mistakes in making you!  Bask in the Lord’s goodness today and use your day for your Creator’s glory.

Heaven or Hell?

 

Jesus Christ Himself spoke of hell more often than heaven.  In Mark 9, three times Jesus said, word perfect, “Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.”  (44, 46, 48)  Hey, if Jesus said it once, we should take heed, but three times … duh!  And, interestingly, in verses 43 and 45, Jesus said, “… the fire that never shall be quenched.”  The word for “quenched” in the Greek is ἄσβεστος and is literally “asbestos”.  Sound familiar?!  In hell, the unrepentant sinner will be suffering, but his body will be “fireproof”.  They will live in torment forever.  That is not my opinion; that is what Jesus said Himself.  Hey, as long as the followers of Jesus live in heaven, the rejecters of Jesus will live in hell.  A sobering thought for those who are not saved, and a serious responsibility for those of us who are saved.  Trust Jesus now, and you’ll never be sorry that you did … and take others with you!

Study to Be Quiet

 

Our pastor mentioned a verse Sunday night at church that got me to thinking: I Thessalonians 4:11, “And that ye study to be quiet, and to do your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you.”  Brother Jamie went on to say that we must “study” to be quiet.  An interesting word in the verse.  The fact that we must study to be quiet means that being quiet doesn’t come easy.  You must work on it.  Little children have no filter; they say what they are thinking.  They say the first thing that comes to their little minds.  They must be taught to weigh their words before they speak.  Hey, that sounds like good advice for us adults too!  When I was young, my brothers and I would hurry home from school in the afternoons to watch Art Linkletter’s “House Party” television show.  One of the segments on the variety show was when Linkletter interviewed four children.  One of the questions that he asked was, “What did your parents tell you not to talk about?”  And the innocent child would tell all.  Hey, today, before you say something that might be unkind or negative, stop and think.  Weigh your words and then “study to be quiet”.

Joseph

 

Genesis 45:1-8 is the most tender passage in the whole Bible.  Just my opinion, mind you, but let me defend my claim.  Joseph’s brothers had done him evil.  How could they sell their own brother into slavery and then lie to their own father about it?!  But they did.  Joseph was only 17 years old when this terrible travesty unfolded.  But Joseph remained true to God.  Things got worse.  Joseph was faithful to his new master, but his master’s sleazy wife slandered Joseph, and Joseph was thrown into prison.  There he languished another two whole years … still faithful to God.  But when Pharoah had a dream and needed interpretation, Joseph was remembered and brought up.  God gave Joseph supernatural powers of interpretation, and Joseph was soon the second in command of the most powerful nation of the ancient world!  And when Joseph’s brothers came to Egypt to buy grain, they had no idea that it was Joseph who they were dealing with!  Joseph could have taken revenge, but he did not.  Joseph tested his repentant brothers finally revealing to them who he really was.  Joseph said in Genesis 45:5, “Now therefore be not grieved, nor angry with yourselves, that ye sold me hither: for God did send me before you to preserve life.”  And in verse 8 Joseph said, “So now it was not you that sent me hither, but God …”  Did you get that?!  It was not the brothers mistake that sent Joseph to Egypt; it was God’s divine hand!  Hey, when you come to the realization that God is behind every event in your life, you have just grown up in the Christian life!  Hey, things don’t just accidentally happen to you.  God is moving you around on His giant chess board making everything work out for His master scheme of things.  Paul said it best in Romans Rom 8:28, “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.”  And when you realize that, you are finally at one with the Almighty.  And what a wonderful place to be!

Wisdom and Understanding

 

I have been going to cardiac rehab for six months now, and the good Lord has reminded me to count my blessings.  As I go into Memorial Hospital MWF and up the stairs (of course, I do not take the elevator), I pass the cardiac surgery waiting area.  And since I arrive at 6 am, I see folk waiting for their heart procedure, just like I did six months ago.  No one is smiling or laughing because they are facing heart surgery.  But the good Lord reminds me that I am on the other side of that surgery.  And as I begin my morning exercises, I see the newbies come in to the 6:45 am class.  They have just had heart surgery and are getting their strength back at cardiac rehab.  They wait for the nurse to take their blood pressure and show them where to place the 3 contacts for their heart monitor.  The nurse shows them how to take their Oxygen level, pulse, and weight.  The nurse explains the speed of the treadmill, the incline of the treadmill, and the time on the treadmill.  And the treadmill is only one of the twenty machines in the room!  But I have been in cardiac rehab for six months and I know all about them.  Hey, I am an old hand at cardiac rehab, and I am an old hand at the Christian life.  And the Lord reminds me of my responsibility as an older Christian to teach younger Christians.  Us older folk should not intimidate new Christians; we should bring them along in the faith.  Paul reminds older men and women to be teachers in Titus 2:2-4.  Job said in Job 12:12, “With the ancient is wisdom; and in length of days understanding.”  I praise the Lord for taking me through heart surgery, and I praise the Lord for taking me through 68 years of the Christian life.  May I encourage others along the way, is my prayer.

Use Life's Tragedies

 

When I was a youngster, my dad built our home.  But before he did, we lived in a 40 ft. trailer.  First, dad bought property in the country and moved the trailer onto the site.  When the property was paid for, he built the front part of the house with the trailer connected to the back.  Finally, he moved the trailer finishing the back half of the house.  The back had a full basement under it made of concrete blocks.  The week before my dad poured the basement floor, we had a big rainstorm.  I was so disappointed to see our new basement full of water.  But dad was not disappointed at all.  He said, “The dear Lord sent the rain so that I could level up the floor.  Gerald, go get some wooden stakes, my big hammer, and meet me downstairs.”  I gathered up the materials and we waded into the water.  Dad drove in the grade stakes all around the basement exactly to the top of the water, which was perfectly level throughout the whole basement!  When the water dried up, he poured a perfectly level basement floor.  Hey, do you have what you think are disasters in your life?  God could be using your so-called disasters to teach you valuable lessons.  Hey, don’t look at problems, look for what God is teaching you through your problems.  Joseph had it right in Genesis 50:20.  His brothers had sold him into slavery, but God had used it to put Joseph where he could eventually be in charge of all of the land of Egypt!  Joseph told his brothers, “But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.” Hey, God will take care of you … if you let Him.

A Brother

 

My younger brother was a character.  Phillip was impetuous and full of life.  I still have a necktie that belonged to him.  He tied it and the small end of the tie was too long, but instead of retying the tie, he cut the small end off to match the front.  That was Phillip.  Phillip and I slept in twin beds in the back bedroom of our house in Maryland.  One night, on a lark, he got out of bed in the wee hours of the morning, crept over to my bed, slugged me in the shoulder, and jumped back into his bed.  I woke up, disoriented, and saw Phillip sleeping.  I thought that I had had a bad dream, but my shoulder was hurting.  As I was rubbing my eyes trying to think, I heard Phillip snicker under his covers.  I jumped on him, and the fight was on!  Twice in high school, I had to finish fights that he had started.  Afterwards, I let him have it for involving me in his troubles.  Phillip’s life was shortened by a car accident in 1969.  He was sixteen and I was eighteen.  I was close to my brother, but when I trusted Jesus Christ as my Savior in 1956, I found a Brother that was even closer.  Earthly relationships are sweet, but Jesus is the best friend that you could ever have.  Oh yes, He is!  Proverbs 18:24 “… there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother.”  Hey, don’t neglect your best friend, Jesus Christ.

Caleb

 

We can learn much from the life of Caleb.  Along with Joshua, Caleb brought back a good report from the Promised Land.  But the other ten spies spoke of a scary land: a land full of giants and fortified cities.  Yikes!!  The people were ready to stone Moses and flee back to Egypt.  Numbers 13:30 “And Caleb stilled the people before Moses, and said, Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it.”  But the people didn’t follow Caleb’s advice.  So, for the next twenty years, the naysayers wandered through the Wilderness while Caleb watched.  Hey, that wasn’t fair!  He was ready to go into the Promised Land!  Why did he have to wander around with those losers?!  I am sure Caleb quietly nodded his head each time one of those men died in the Wilderness.  But in twenty years, when it came time to choose a new leader, it wasn’t Caleb that was chosen, it was Joshua.  But even then, Caleb wasn’t discouraged.  Caleb was patient.  He wasn’t wrapped up in himself; he was waiting on the Lord and waiting on God’s timing.  And God noticed Caleb and God was proud of Caleb.  God said in Numbers 14:24, “But my servant Caleb, because he had another spirit with him, and hath followed me fully, him will I bring into the land whereinto he went; and his seed shall possess it.”  God blessed Caleb and Caleb loved God.  Hey, how about you?  Is God pleased with you?  Do you make God proud?  If not, you can start today.  Just do it.

Doing or Done?

 

A radio preacher recently made a statement that made me think.  He said, “There are only the two religions in the world: Doing and Done.”  An interesting take on world religions.  All religions (except Christianity) are about doing.  None of them can guarantee that their followers have done enough.  They must keep working and doing more.  But Christianity is different.  Jesus Christ has done all of the work on the Cross of Calvary.  And as Jesus died, He proclaimed, “It is finished!”, and truly it was.  Jesus did the work for us, and our part is only to believe.  And I am grateful for what Jesus has done for me!  Hey, how about you?  Are you still working or are you resting in what Jesus has done for you?

The Lord Strong and Mighty

 

Joshua and the Children of Israel crossed the Jordan River and came to Jericho, a great fortified city of the Canaanite confederation.  Jericho stood between Israel and the Promised Land.  They would have to defeat Jericho before they could enter into the land that God had promised to them.  Joshua 5:13, 14 “And it came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted up his eyes and looked, and, behold, there stood a man over against him with his sword drawn in his hand: and Joshua went unto him, and said unto him, Art thou for us, or for our adversaries? And he said, Nay; but as captain of the host of the LORD am I now come. And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and did worship …”  The Lord God Almighty was there, not to help Joshua, but to take over for Joshua.  Hey, God doesn’t want to help you, God wants to take over for you.  If God is your co-pilot, you are in the wrong seat!  Move over and let God be the Pilot and you be the co-pilot.  Trust God and let Him lead in your life.

An Accident?

 

Have you had an accident?  Something that you didn’t plan on happening, but it happened anyway?  Well, that depends on who is doing the talking.  Things may take you by surprise, but God knew that they were coming.  That’s because the Lord is in charge of you.  And God uses good and bad events in your life for your good and His glory.  Does God forget where you are?  Not on your life!  Isaiah said it best in Isaiah 49:15 “Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee. Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands ...”  God gives you this picture of His love for you.  He has your name tattooed right on the palm of His hand, where He sees it every day!  Hey, the dear Lord won’t forget you because He doesn’t want to forget you!  So, rest in the comfort of God’s love today.

Spiritual Grocery Shopping

 

A great memory from six years ago:  My wife called to me from the kitchen saying she needed me to go to the grocery store for her.  I was tired of reading, so I jumped up, grabbed the shopping list, and drove to Wall-Mart.  I parked and walked toward the door, but as I scanned over the items on the list, my heart sank.  My wife had not been specific.  Now this may not seem to be a problem to you, but it was for me.  I knew better.  There are so many ways that a man can mess up if the list isn’t specific.  If it reads, peanut butter, does she mean creamy or crunchy?  Cheap store brand or Peter Pan?  Small, medium, or large?  But I was prepared:  I pulled out my cell phone and called her.  As I quizzed my wife on the first item, she reminded me that the groceries were for Brother So-and-so, a dear friend at church that had been laid up for several weeks, and our church is having an old-fashioned pounding for him tomorrow.  My wife said, “Get whatever you want.”  As I ended the call, a warm feeling spread over me.  Hey, I couldn’t mess up!  Whatever I picked would be right.  This was easy!.  Then, as I reached for the Great Value strawberry jam, I had another wonderful thought.  This was no ordinary shopping trip; this was a spiritual shopping trip!  This wasn’t for me, and really, this wasn’t for Brother So-and-so; this shopping was for the Lord!  So, I put back the Great Value jam and picked out the more expensive Smucker’s Jam and put it into my cart.  I felt good.  As I pulled items off the shelves, I smiled.  I was doing God’s work!  When I got to the check-out, I even hoped that the total would be larger than it was!  Driving home, I remembered the words of Jesus that Paul quoted in Acts 20:35, “… It is more blessed to give than to receive.”  It was then that I realized that those words were true.  Tomorrow my brother in Christ will be blessed, but tonight, I am blessed.  Thank you, Lord.

Spiritual Warfare

 

The king of Syria warred against Israel.  He told his men where he wanted to camp, but God told Elijah what his plans were, and Elijah told the king of Israel.  So, the king of Israel avoided the Syrians and escaped, not once or twice, but three times.  So, the king of Syria snarled, “We’ve got a spy among us, and I’m going to find out who it is!”  But his captain said, “Not so, my lord, but the prophet Elijah tells the king of Israel what you say in your bedroom.”  So, the king of Syria said, “Well, you men get to that little town of Dothan where the prophet lives and put an end to this madness!”  And so they did.  In the morning, when Elijah’s servant went out early to do his business, he saw thousands of soldiers, chariots, spearmen, and archers - all surrounding their village of Dothan.  He rushed back into the house and woke up Elijah, who was not impressed.  The servant said, “But sir, you don’t understand!  We are surrounded!  We are in big trouble!”  Elijah still wasn’t worried.  Elijah was more annoyed, and prayed to God, “Dear Lord, give this my servant spiritual eyes to see the spirit world as it really is.”  And when the servant looked, he still saw the Syrian army surrounding Dothan, but he also saw God’s fiery army of powerful angels on the mountains surrounding the Syrians!  Then Elijah prayed again and said, “Lord, please strike the Syrians with blindness.”  And God did!  How effective is a blind soldier?  So, Elijah went out to them and said, “No, this isn’t the way to go.  Here, follow me.”  And the blinded soldiers held onto each other like “follow the leader” and Elijah took the entire Syrian army into downtown Samaria.  Then Elijah prayed again, “I pray thee, Lord, restore their sight.”  And God did!  Now it was the Syrians turn to know how it felt to be surrounded!  So, the king of Israel asked Elijah, “What shall I do?  Shall I kill the Syrians?”  But Elijah said, “No, give them food and send them on their way.”  Elijah went on, “Trust me, they’ll never give you a moment’s trouble again.”  And they never did.  Hey, we need to see things as they really are, not just how we think that they are.  We need to see things from God’s perspective.  Paul said it best in II Timothy1:7 “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.”

A Strong Foundation

 

Have you ever had a tragedy in your life?  Not just a bad day, but a real tragedy?  Have you had a loved one pass away suddenly?  Have you lost a job?  Have you had a difficult diagnosis?  Events like these can shake you to your foundation.  But really, what is your foundation built upon?  Jesus reminded us that we should build our life’s house upon a strong foundation.  A foundation of stone, not sand.  Years ago, a friend asked me to help him rebuild his house after a fire.  It was easy to begin the rebuilding process because the foundation was still there.  The wooden superstructure was destroyed, but the concrete foundation was still intact.  If you have a strong foundation, life can bring you tragedies, but you will rebuild.  Hey, see that your foundation is secure.  Make sure that your foundation is Jesus Christ. The Apostle Paul said in I Corinthians 3:10&11, “According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise masterbuilder, I have laid the foundation, and another buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon. For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.”

Youtube

 

Youtube can be a timewaster.  And I know because I waste so much of my time on Youtube.  Yes, I am guilty.  But I would love to drag you into my vice as well.  So, go on Youtube and type in “Ronald Reagan”, and listen to some of his speeches and his jokes.  It will encourage you and stimulate your mind.  I have a t-shirt that says, “Evil is powerless if good men are unafraid.”  A quote by President Reagan.  It reminds me of Isaiah 41:10, “Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.”

Squeeze It

 

When my wife squeezes the toothpaste tube, she just squeezes it in the middle of the tube.  And when she can’t squeeze any more out, she just gets another tube.  I, however, am a toothpaste connoisseur.  I squeeze it from the bottom of the tube, use the back of the toothbrush to press the tube down on the counter, and get every last bit of the toothpaste out of the bottom of the tube, and then begin to roll it up from the bottom.  I would like to think that I am frugal, but I am just obsessive compulsive (a new tube of toothpaste is only 96¢).  But last week, I got to the end of my smashing and rolling.  But then I noticed that I could get another few applications by pushing up under the back of the cap.  But after I pushed up on each side three times, I finally really ran out of toothpaste.  Hey, in life, you can be careful, eat healthy, exercise often, get mammograms/prostate scanning and live longer than other folk.  But no matter how careful you are, everyone eventually dies.  And even if you live to an old, old age, you will die – a 100% chance of it!  Then you will face your Maker.  So, along with your healthy lifestyle, you would be wise to prepare for your eternal life.  The writer of the book of Hebrews said in Hebrews 9:27, “And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment.”  Hey, live a long, long life, but be ready for a really long, long eternity.  No matter how much you squeeze life, it will eventually end, and after that, “the judgement”.

Proverbs 2

 

I heard an old pastor say, “A Proverb a day keeps the devil away.”  And since there are 31 chapters in the book of Proverbs, I can read a chapter a day.  So, as I was reading Proverbs 2 last Tuesday (April 2), I noticed two grammatical structures.  Sorry, I’m an old English teacher, and old habits are hard to break.  First, Proverbs 2:1-5 is all one sentence!  I must read these verses all together as one thought.  Second, the word “if” is used three times and is followed by “then”.  Grammatically, Solomon used a conditional expression.  Solomon told his son (and us as we read along with his son) that “if” he would do three things, “then” something would result.  Just look at these five verses and the whole idea falls into place: Proverbs 2:1-5, “My son, IF thou wilt receive my words, AND hide my commandments with thee; So that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom, AND apply thine heart to understanding; Yea, IF thou criest after knowledge, AND liftest up thy voice for understanding; IF thou seekest her as silver, AND searchest for her as for hid treasures; THEN shalt thou understand the fear of the LORD, AND find the knowledge of God.” (emphasis mine)  Hey, today, do you want to find the heart of God?  Well then just do what the previous four verses say to do!  Simple!  IF … THEN.  It’s like the railroad cars that follow the locomotive.  The power of the engine is always followed by the cars that simply trail along behind.  Hey, put God first in your life, and everything else will just trail along behind.

Giving to the Lord

 

Sometimes when things get tight around the house, the first thing to suffer is our giving to the church.  We just can’t afford to give.  But the truth is, we can’t afford NOT to give to God.  The story is told of the church member who felt convicted to give one tenth of his income to the church.  And God blessed him for his commitment.  He prospered at work and was given several raises.  But then the pastor noticed that his giving had dwindled to nothing.  He confronted his member, and the member responded, “When I was making $100 a week, I gave God $10.  Right off the top.  But now that I am making $1,000 a week, my tithe is up to $100!  That’s a lot of money!  I can’t afford to give that much money!”  The pastor thought a moment and said, “I know it’s hard to give $100 a week, so I am going to pray that God would knock you back down to making only $100 a week so that you can afford to tithe.”  God blesses us, and we should return a portion of that blessing to Him.  Don’t be stingy in your giving to God; after all, He gave His very Best for you.

March Madness

 

My eleven-year-old grandson came in two weeks ago and asked, “Granddaddy, can you download me a March Madness basketball bracket?”  Of course, I knew what he was talking about, and I found one right away.  And I downloaded two: one for Greyson and one for me.  But after only the first round, my brackets were busted!  It seems that upsets were the rule rather than the exception.  The hard thing about March Madness is that the games are single elimination: each game is move up or go home.  Hey, I’m glad that the Lord gave me another chance!  I’m glad that the Lord didn’t give up on me after only one mistake!  The Lord gave Adam a second chance.  God gave Abraham a second chance, and a third.  And David made many mistakes.  But David repented of his sins, and God took him back.  David said in Psalm 51:10&12, “Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit.”  If you have messed up, remember, the Lord is the God of the second chance.  Don’t give up; the Lord has not given up on you.  Repent and return to the Lord.  He is waiting for the repentant sinner with open arms.  Yes, He is!

A Good Example

 

While going to college, I worked to pay my way through.  Let me give you a bit of advice on student loans: don’t do it.  Pay as you go.  It took me 11 years to graduate from college, but when I graduated, I was debt free.  But … I digress.  I worked night shift at Mueller company making cast iron valves and fire hydrants.  One job that I had was slagging the furnaces.  I had to scrape off the crud from the top of the liquid iron in the furnace.  Iron melts at 2800° Fahrenheit!  It was a hot and dirty job.  Often, my boss would come up to my station, tap me on the shoulder, and tell me to take a break.  Then he would do my job for me while I sat down and cooled off.  Soon, I would recover and begin to feel guilty watching my boss doing my job.  So, I would get up, tap him on the shoulder, and get back to my work with renewed vigor.  He was a wise man.  Just like a wise pastor who doesn’t drive his people like horses, or prod his people like cattle, but lead his people like sheep.  A wise pastor is an example to his people, not a lord over his people.  The Apostle Peter said it best in I Peter 5:2&3, “Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind; Neither as being lords over God's heritage, but being ensamples to the flock.”

The Truth

 

Yesterday, I did something stupid.  But before you make any sarcastic comments, let me explain.  I was getting my two-wheeled hand truck out of the back of the pickup, but I had stuff in my left hand.  I had lifted the wheel end of the cart over the tailgate, but the cart was overbalanced and began to slip out of my hand.  I decided to just let it fall to the ground, but when the weighted end of the cart went down, the handle end was catapulted up and into my face.  The handle end hit my face and my glasses were smashed into my cheek before I could do anything.  When the incident was over, the first thing that I did was to look around to see if anyone had seen my mishap.  The second thing was to feel my face to see if it was still intact.  Other than a scratch on my glasses, I was fine.  But soon, I felt the trickle of blood in my moustache.  I had a small cut where the pipe had smashed the skin into my upper jaw.  I can only hope for a little scar, giving me the streetfighter look.  It reminded me of a scar that I got when I was fifteen years old.  My younger brother and I were fighting over a snow shovel in the wintertime.  He pulled one way, and I pulled the other.  He let go and I hit myself with the shovel in the forehead just above my left eye.  My six stitches looked good at school the next day.  I told my friends that I had been in a fight.  It was the truth, but just not all of the truth.  Jesus said in John 8:32, “And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”  It’s one thing to know the truth, but it’s another thing to tell the truth.  And telling the truth is more important than avoiding embarrassment … whether you are fifteen or seventy-five!

Reality

 

When I sleep at night, I like to wake up, look at the clock, and realize, “I have four more hours to sleep!”  I can smugly turn over and go back to sleep knowing that I have plenty of time before I must get up.  So, last night, I woke up, looked at the clock, and it was three o’clock.  I got up, went to the bathroom, and then snuggled back under the covers and went back to sleep.  Then I woke up, looked at the clock, and it was three fifteen and I really had to go to the bathroom!  My trip to the bathroom at three o’clock had only been a dream!  Am I confusing you?  Well, I was very confused myself at three fifteen!  I was so confused that I had to get fully awake to try to figure out what was going on.  And when I did, I couldn’t get back to sleep for an hour!  Bummer!  Here’s a question: what if this life is only a dream?  What if it isn’t really real at all?  What if the life that we are living is only a dream in the minds of the gods and we aren’t even real?  What if you and I are really just a dream to someone else?  Hey, we can become too bogged down with too much thinking (philosophy).  Many eastern religions become mired in “what is reality?”  Paul advised his young follower, Titus, in Titus 3:9, “But avoid foolish questions, and genealogies, and contentions, and strivings about the law; for they are unprofitable and vain.”  My dreams only serve to keep me awake at night … if that even makes sense.  But when the sun comes up, my best move is to pick up my Bible and read what the dear Lord has to say about reality.  After all, God is trustworthy and accurate.  Yes, He is!

Dead to Me

 

My son had a friend who did him wrong.  And it wasn’t just a simple transgression; it was a betrayal of his trust.  From then on, my son said that this friend was “dead to me”.  I thought that was a little harsh, but my son was so crushed by the failure that he wanted nothing to do with this man after that.  Hey, I’m so glad that Jesus Christ did not feel that way towards me, a sinner above all others.  Jesus loved me while I was sinning and “dead in trespasses and sins”.  And since I turned my life over to the dear Lord, He has given me a new heart, a new purpose, and a new life in Him!  It is as if I am now “dead to sins, but alive unto God”!  Hey, that’s exactly what baptism is a picture of.  Paul said in Romans 6:4, “Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.”  We are buried with Jesus (in a figure) in baptism and raised to walk the Christian life.  Praise the Lord!

Better or Better Off?

 

I have talked to people who say that they are just as good as some Christians that they know.  And that’s probably true.  But as Ray Comfort has said, Christians are not better than non-Christians, they are just better off.  Let me explain.  Two people are sitting on a plane.  One has a parachute and one does not.  They are both good people and one is not any better than the other.  But if the plane develops engine trouble and they both have to jump out, the person with the parachute is not better than the other person, he is just better off.  Hey, we are all sinners.  I am no better than you are, but I have trusted Jesus Christ as my Savior, and I am better off than you are because of Jesus.  I have trusted Jesus Christ as my Savior and He has guaranteed me a home in heaven when I die.  John 10:27-29, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand.”