Pet Peeves

 

I have several pet peeves.  You know, the things that just get under your skin.  One of them is cold butter.  No matter how hard you try, you can’t spread cold butter on bread.  It just rolls up behind the knife and tears the bread all apart.  So, I have a butter dish and cover to keep butter at room temperature and spreadable.  Another pet peeve is folding clothes, only to find one sock is left.  Now I have two feet and take off two socks, and two socks go into the hamper, and all of the clothes go into the washer and all of the washed clothes go into the dryer.  But when I get the clothes out of the dryer, where did that missing sock go to?!  Frustrating!  That’s probably how Adam felt as he named all of the animals in Genesis 2.  God brought all of the animals to Adam, two by two, male and female, and in verse 20, “And Adam gave names to all cattle, and to the fowl of the air, and to every beast of the field; but for Adam there was not found an help meet for him.”  Like my unpaired sock, Adam was alone.  So, God provided a helpmeet for Adam in the person of Eve.  And Adam and Eve were united in marriage by God Himself.  Hey, the dear Lord gave me a wonderful helpmeet.  We laughed and we cried and we enjoyed each other’s company.  We had a great run, but now, Kathy is gone.  And God will help me to make it to the finish line alone, or He may send me another wonderful helpmeet to me.  Hey, if you are young and single, be careful in looking for a mate.  Be very careful, for you will be blessed for a very long time … or you will be sorry for a very long time.  But don’t be afraid to take a mate, for it will be the greatest joy that you ever had  It was for me, and it can be for you.

Aladdin's Lamp

 

I remember reading Aladdin’s Lamp as a kid.  This was before Robin Williams and the Disney production by the same name.  I remember thinking that if I were ever granted three wishes, I would use my last wish to ask for three more wishes.  How easy is that?  I don’t know why the movie Aladdin never figured that out, but I did as a kid.  I thought that I was pretty clever.  But you know, in I Kings 3, Solomon was granted a single wish by the Lord.  Solomon didn’t ask for a long life; he didn’t ask for victory in battle; and he didn’t ask for wealth.  He asked for wisdom to rule over God’s people.  And because he made such an unselfish request (not like mine would have been) God granted that request AND gave him the other three in addition.  Hey, when we are unselfish, wonderful things happen!  Jesus said in Matthew 6:33, “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.”  Put God first in your life, and you’ll never be sorry that you did.  Solomon wasn’t sorry, and you won’t be sorry either.

Resist

When I was ten years old, I said something that angered my eight-year-old brother.  We got into it, I slugged him, and ran.  My best move was to run through the front door and lock it really fast.  I made it through the door slamming it behind me but didn’t have time to lock it.  So I jammed down my foot against the bottom of the door while leaning against it.  In a split second, Phillip hit the door and his fist went through the glass panel.  As pieces fell all around me, I turned to see my dad.  He had seen everything.  The damage cost my brother and me $12 to replace the glass - this time with the shatterproof type.  Hey, when Phillip hit the door, I was “resisting” his attack.  That same word is used by James describing how we should “resist” the devil.  James 4:7 says, “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”  The formula is clear:  As we submit to God, we are resisting Satan.  And when we resist Satan, he will fold like a Bedouin tent and fade away.  Satan cannot compete with the Almighty.  Hey, the closer we get to God, the more difficult it is for Satan to attack us.  Just like I resisted my brother, we should resist Satan … in the power of the Lord.

Invasion

 

It was late in the evening in 1985 when I heard a blood-curdling scream from the den.  I came running in to see who had been killed.  My dear wife was standing on the couch, obviously terrified.  In a distraught voice she hissed, “I just saw a mouse over there!”  And she pointed.  I moved a laundry basket, a sewing basket, and saw the tiniest little mouse scurry for the closet.  Kathy screamed, I grabbed a history book (a big one), and threw it pinning the mouse.  Then I stepped on the book just for good measure before looking underneath.  I was victorious!  That little varmint was dead, dead.  But my wife was only slightly relieved.  She gasped, “Get that thing out of my house!  Git!  Git!  Git!”  And I did.  But hey, our homes are invaded by much worse than a mouse every night on the TV.  Our computers are invaded by so much filth that it would make a mouse sick (not a computer mouse).  Our minds are invaded by vulgar lyrics from the music blaring from the tricked-out car beside us at the traffic light.  Hey, we need the good Lord to invade our minds, invade our homes, and invade our country!  David said in Psalm 127:1&2, “Except the LORD build the house, they labour in vain that build it … It is vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of sorrows ...”  A mouse is not nearly as dangerous as wickedness in our homes (although my wife may disagree with me).  Hey, we need to let God be in control of our homes.  Let’s let Jesus invade our lives, not selfishness, greed, and anger.  Let the Creator of the universe have His rightful place in our country!  Let God invade us!