Is Your Tongue Your Sword?

God has given us two ears, but one tongue, to show that we should be swift to hear, but slow to speak. God has set a double fence before the tongue, the teeth and the lips, to teach us to be wary that we offend not with our tongue.  Thomas Watson

One of the biggest struggles in my life is taming my tongue.  I work on it every day but it still sometimes gets loose and wanders out on its own.  Those are the most dangerous times.  When I use my tongue to hurt others I choose it as my sword to break others down.  If I am using my tongue properly as God calls me to do, it becomes a sword of the Spirit. 

God gives us all the tools to conquer Satan, but if we don’t use the tools He provides wisely, we do more harm than good.  To be able to use the tongue to share the gospel, we must first exercise it.  By that I mean we must meditate on His Word and memorize it. The best sword we can have in our fight against Satan is God’s Word.  It is like getting in your car knowing you are low on fuel and then being surprised because you ran out of gas.  If we don’t fuel our mind with scripture we will not have God’s armor when we need it most.

It is also necessary to prepare our heart.  If we have hurt, bitterness or anger in our heart the only thing that will come out will be hurt, bitterness and anger.  If I am not prepared to be last instead of first, I will continue to walk over others to get what I want in life. Have you figured out that even God’s Word can come out wrong if it is spoken in hate or anger?

There are times in my life where it would have been better for me to have a zipper on my lip or maybe superglue because things have come out that never should have been spoken.  I think I will focus on my tongue because if I harm others who are made in God’s likeness then I have committed a grave sin.  The best thing I can do for myself is to learn to control it.

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, my tongue has gotten me into trouble many times in my life.  Sometimes it was because I was hurt or angry so my heart was not prepared for my tongue to speak.  Other times I had not buried Your Word in my heart so I was not able to speak Your truth when I most needed it.  I ask for Your forgiveness for speaking to others in anger and using my tongue to harm others instead of lifting them up.  Thank you for loving me even when I am at my most unlovable.     

Scripture:  Not many of you should become teachers, my fellow believers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly. We all stumble in many ways. Anyone who is never at fault in what they say is perfect, able to keep their whole body in check.

When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal. Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go.  Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.

All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and sea creatures are being tamed and have been tamed by mankind, but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.

With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be.  Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring?  My brothers and sisters, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water.

Who is wise and understanding among you? Let them show it by their good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth.  Such “wisdom” does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice.

But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. Peacemakers who sow in peace reap a harvest of righteousness.  James 3:1-18

Heart Love

Here is a spiritual principle: We cannot exercise love unless we are experiencing grace. You cannot truly love others unless you are convinced that God's love for you is unconditional, based solely on the merit of Christ, not on your performance. Our love, either to God or to others, can only be a response to His love for us.  Jerry Bridges

I was reading a devotional by Rick Warren and he was talking about loving people from the heart.  He made a statement that stuck with me.  He said that if we don’t love people from the heart then they get on our nerves.  If we react to each other from our minds instead of our hearts then we are not loving with “heart love”. 

What does it mean to love other people from the heart?  It means it is necessary to ask questions and really listen to the answers.  If you hear the hurt and try to understand it, you are moving toward “heart love”. 

There are going to be people in this life who are going to get on our nerves.  So how do we come to love that type of person?  One of the things I do when that occurs is I think of things that person may be going through that I know nothing about.  There may be a tragedy in that person’s life that has broken them.  I run different scenarios through my head.  What if that person lost a son or daughter or maybe a parent?  If I practice “heart love” then my heart will be softened toward that person and instead of getting on my last nerve, I see them in a different light.  The light I see them in is God’s light. 

When God said to love your neighbor, he didn’t mean only when they do what you like or want. I have a neighbor who is volatile when he drinks.  You really never know who walks out of his garage on any given day.  He has a lot of anger in him and he shows that anger sometimes to his kids.  I’ve been the unfortunate witness to this one day when I left my house.  The same person has helped us repair our fence and gate, but he is also the same one who later backed out of the garage and hit that same fence while my husband was standing in the driveway.  Did it aggravate me every day when I walk out to get into my car and my gate wouldn’t open properly because my neighbor knocked it out of whack?  Yes.  But every time I get aggravated I stop myself and think about the issues he has in his life.  If I don’t consciously remind myself of the Holy Spirit living in me, I will never love others as I should in this life.

One of the things that God has provided to help us is the Holy Spirit.  If the Holy Spirit lives in us we will start reflecting “heart love”.  Have you figured out that a lot of what we call love is not really love at all?  Let the Holy Spirit dwell in you and God’s love will be made complete in us.

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, there are times when I do not show others “heart love”.  The death of Jesus Christ on the cross was You showing us “heart love”.  That kind of love is not based on how much we love God, but on how much He loves us. I have figured out that there are times in my life when I am unlovable, yet You continue to show me Your love with all the blessings in my life.  Help me to demonstrate “heart love” to everyone I meet.  I worship and praise you forever.        

Scripture: Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.  Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.  This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him.  This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.  Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.  No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.

This is how we know that we live in him and he in us: He has given us of his Spirit.  And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world.  If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God.  And so we know and rely on the love God has for us.

God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.

We love because he first loved us. Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen.  And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister. 1 John 4:7-21

Solomon’s Wisdom

Absalom, who was a fool, wished himself a judge; Solomon, who was a wise man, trembles at the undertaking, and suspects his own fitness for it. The more knowing and considerate men are, the better they are acquainted with their own weakness. Matthew Henry

I love to read about Solomon.  I always find it interesting that Solomon didn’t ask for wealth.  He was raised by King David to love God.  God appeared to Solomon in a dream and because Solomon didn’t ask for anything but a discerning heart to govern God’s people and to distinguish right from wrong, God gave him what he asked.  But God went a step further and gave him both wealth and honor.

My dreams seem pretty insignificant compared to Solomon’s.  Missing the school bus pales in comparison.  Can you imagine God appearing to you in a dream and telling you because he is pleased with you he is going to give you discernment but on top of that he is going to give you wealth and honor?

I think we see a tiny glimpse of God’s great wisdom in Solomon.  Remember the two women who lived in the same house and both had a child but one child died.  They both claimed the living child.  When they came to Solomon he said to cut the child in half and give one half to each woman.  The one who was the true mother told Solomon to give the live child to the other. The true mother was willing to give up her child so he could live. 

Have you ever prayed for brokenness so that you can gain wisdom?  Most of you would think that is crazy to pray for brokenness.  I have prayed for brokenness in my lifetime.  Why?  Because when I am broken is when I am closest to God.  During the lowest points of my life is when I have gained the most wisdom from God.  That very brokenness draws me nearer to my Creator. That brokenness removes the superficial and reveals truth in my life.  At those times it shows me the sinner that needs a redeemer.   

So if brokenness is what it takes to help me see a glimpse of Solomon’s wisdom in my life I will gladly accept it.  God can do amazing things through me in my brokenness.  

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, in 1 Thessalonians 5:17-18 you tell us to give thanks “in” all circumstances for it is Your will for me in Christ Jesus.  I praise you for the wisdom You have given me during the trials of my life.  It has taught me to lean on You through every circumstance and You have never failed me.  I praise You for loving me even when I fail You.   

Scripture: “Now, Lord my God, you have made your servant king in place of my father David. But I am only a little child and do not know how to carry out my duties. Your servant is here among the people you have chosen, a great people, too numerous to count or number. So give your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right and wrong. For who is able to govern this great people of yours?”

The Lord was pleased that Solomon had asked for this.  So God said to him, “Since you have asked for this and not for long life or wealth for yourself, nor have asked for the death of your enemies but for discernment in administering justice, I will do what you have asked. I will give you a wise and discerning heart, so that there will never have been anyone like you, nor will there ever be.  Moreover, I will give you what you have not asked for—both wealth and honor—so that in your lifetime you will have no equal among kings. And if you walk in obedience to me and keep my decrees and commands as David your father did, I will give you a long life.” Then Solomon awoke—and he realized it had been a dream. 1 Kings 3:7-15

God’s Creatures

God will prepare everything for our perfect happiness in heaven, and if it takes my dog being there, I believe he'll be there.  Billy Graham

My dog is mad at me.  The last few days my husband and I have been trying to figure out why.  There are a few options.  Any time I go out of town and leave him he acts differently when I return.  Here is an example.  When my husband and I went on our honeymoon my dog stayed with my parents.  When we returned he ran up to my husband and wagged his tail and howled.  He ignored me.  He wouldn’t even look at me.  If I tried to look into his eyes he would turn his head the other way.

So this week I bought his food but I switched it to a different kind that he normally likes.   So I get up every morning and feed him.  I put his food on a paper plate.  Every morning this week after he eats he goes into the kitchen, picks up the paper plate that his breakfast was on and carries it into the living room.  He then proceeds to shred the plate into tiny pieces all over the living room floor.  Yesterday Jerry bought him the other kind of dog food he likes because we thought he might be mad because I switched dog food on him. 

Today I figured out that he is just mad at me for leaving him for a week.  I know, you don’t have to tell me my dog is spoiled.  When he is ready to go to bed he goes into the bedroom and starts talking.  He is a creature of habit and if I don’t go to bed the same time every night he will sit in the bedroom and make noise.  He doesn’t bark he just grumbles every 15 minutes or so. My husband and I will be sitting on the couch in the living room and he will be in the bedroom grumbling. 

My dog is 12 years old and set in his ways.  He makes me laugh more than any other dog I’ve owned.  He has an internal clock that goes off in the evening when it is time for his treats.  He sits in front of my husband and does the stare down.  I kid you not, he doesn’t blink he just stares.  He also shakes your hand for treats.  The thing is I know my dog loves me unconditionally.  He may give me the cold shoulder when I leave him but he still loves me. 

One day my dog will pass on and I will be heartbroken because he has been with me through many of the trials in my life.  When I had cancer he would curl up at the end of the bed and wouldn’t leave my side.  He always gets over being mad at me but I can always depend on him to love me without fail. 

God loves us the same way.  If He didn’t He would not have let His only Son die on a cross for our sins.  A blameless son died for a sinful world.  Do we disappoint God just like I disappoint my dog?  Yes we do, over and over again we disappoint our heavenly Father.  The thing is He keeps taking us back even when we fail Him.    

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, my dog often gives me a picture of what Your love is like.  I praise You for loving me even when I don’t deserve it.  When I fail You are still waiting for me to return to You.  It is hard for me to comprehend a Father who loves a sinner like me enough to allow His Son to die on a cross so that I could be redeemed. Your love is amazing.

Scripture:    In a loud voice they were saying: “Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise!”  Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, saying: “To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honor and glory and power, for ever and ever!” The four living creatures said, “Amen,” and the elders fell down and worshiped. Revelation 5:12-14

Worry Your Life Away

Faith is made up of belief and trust. Many people believe God, but they do not trust themselves into His keeping and care; consequently, they are filled with worry and fear.  Lee Roberson

No one can pray and worry at the same time.  Max Lucado

Are you worried?  Have you noticed that humans are the only living thing on earth that worries?  Animals don’t worry about where their next meal will come from or where they will build their next nest.  They don’t build a bigger nest and store food up for the year.  They go out every day and forage for food or search each year for a new place to build a nest.  Birds flying south for the winter don’t all of a sudden decide they’re not going to be snowbirds and go to Florida this year.  They don’t even pack a bag.  They just take off and God instinctively gives them the direction to go.  The interesting thing is he also provides for everything they need.

If we ever understand that worrying is not going to change the outcome, we have won half the battle.  If God has a plan for each of us and if we understand that He does have a plan, then worry should not be part of the equation.  It is like telling God that He doesn’t know what He is doing. 

It would be different if we got paid to worry.  I would be a millionaire if that were the case.  I will say that I don’t worry near as much as I used to.  There is an exercise that I do that helps me get past worrying.  I replace worry with prayer.  Every time I catch myself worrying over something I have no control over, and believe me I have no control over anything, I stop myself and change that worry to prayer.  If you practice this for a while you will be amazed at how you will soon start to pray instead of worry.       

If we understand that worry is based on fear and to overcome our fear we need to depend on God instead of our meager resources, we will begin to see Him at work in our lives.  If you are worrying, give it to God and stand back and watch Him work.        

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, at one time I could have won an Academy Award for the best worrier.  My fear of what could happen overshadowed the work You were doing in my life.  Please keep my eyes focused on You and Your Greatness.  When I turn to You in prayer instead of worrying about the outcome, You can and will do amazing things in my life.

Scripture:  “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?

“And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these.  If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.  Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.  Matthew 6:25-34

Mission Impossible

We are all faced with a series of great opportunities brilliantly disguised as impossible situations.  Chuck Swindoll

He shows much more of Himself to some people than to others-not because He has favorites, but because it is impossible for Him to show Himself to a man whose whole mind and character are in the wrong condition.  C.S. Lewis

Some of you may be too young to remember the original TV series Mission Impossible.  The series was about a group of IMF (Impossible Mission Force) secret agents who in the beginning of each episode were given top secret missions that were tape recorded and following the listening of the tape the machine would give a warning and then it would self-destruct. 

I loved watching that show.  The tape would come on and it would say, “Your mission if you choose to accept is…” and then it would tell the agent what he was supposed to do.  I never figured out what would happen if you didn’t accept the mission.

One of the things that came to mind when I thought about this long ago TV series was that each of us as Christians have been given a mission if we choose to accept it. We are free to choose not to accept it as that is the way God planned it.  We don’t have to accept the mission of showing other people who He is.  The thing is if we choose not to accept Him we are lost. The mission God sets before us is not impossible.  We can do “anything” through His strength. 

I think too many times we see God as having weaknesses like us.  If we see Him with weaknesses we will never reach the potential of the amazing things we can do through His power.  There is nothing too big or too small for God.  It’s all small to the One who created us.  If we can ever wrap our arms around the magnificence of Our God, there is no end to what we can accomplish on His behalf here on earth. 

Your mission if you choose to accept is to show others the amazing God who created us and to point them in the direction they need to go to make their way to Him.  This message won’t self-destruct but time is running out.  Choose to accept and you will see His power at work in your life.        

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, You have assigned each of us a mission on earth. Our mission is to show others Your amazing love and to lead others to Your heavenly home.  Help me to understand the enormity of this mission and to accept wholeheartedly the mission set before me.  I can do anything through your power and might and I praise You for giving me the strength to step out in faith on Your behalf.

Scripture: For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man,  that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height—to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.  Ephesians 3:14-19

 

 

Negative vs. Positive

Two types of voices command your attention today. Negative ones fill your mind with doubt, bitterness, and fear. Positive ones purvey hope and strength. Which one will you choose to heed?  Max Lucado

Did you know that it takes approximately 10 positive statements to counteract a single negative one? If you think back over your life, can you remember the positive things someone said to you or the negative? 

I don’t know about you, but I can vividly remember the times someone said something negative to me or about me.  I can picture in my mind the individual who said it and even where I was at the time it was said.  The positive ones are harder to recall.

So this is what happens.  Someone says something negative to you about the way you do your job, the grades you get in school or the way you drive and it sticks with you like chewing gum on the bottom of your shoe.  That negative statement said to you out of anger from another person can color the rest of your life.

I remember to this day the time a former boss told me I would never amount to anything.  She was angry because I was leaving the position with her company so she wanted to make sure I knew that she thought I was a failure.  Then there were the kids in school who told me I was skinny or just plain inadequate to their way of thinking. 

So if you take the negative things that people say to you and take them to heart, you will eventually believe it. 

I am an observer of people.  I find it interesting to watch how they treat each other.  It happens with kids, parents, siblings, coworkers, bosses and spouses.  I like to watch the eyes because that is where you will read true emotions.  The eyes will tell the story of the pain behind the bravado and putting up a good front. 

One of the greatest lessons I ever learned came later in life.  That lesson is God is the only one I should be concerned about when it comes to what He thinks of me.  He is the most important.  If I know He loves me, then the hurtful things others say about me or to me no longer matter.  The problem comes in when you are younger.  When we are younger we take things to heart.  Children are especially vulnerable because if they are never told of God’s love for them they begin to believe the negative. 

I am guilty of saying negative things to others.  The critical thing about saying negative things to others when we are angry is that we don’t glorify God.  Can you imagine standing before God one day and He looks down at you and says He is disappointed in you because you broke others down instead of lifting them up? There are times when we need to confront others with the negative but it should always be done in love never in anger.       

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, I am guilty of breaking others down with negative comments.  When I do that it doesn’t glorify You and I ask for your forgiveness.  Building others up and showing them Your love should be my first priority.  I am so thankful you didn’t put me in charge because I don’t always do a good job of showing others Your love.

Scripture: Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do.  But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection.  And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful.  Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.  And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.  Colossians 3:12-17

Let It Go

We need to follow our Lord's admonition to remember Lot's wife, for she was one who did not forget her possessions even in a time of the greatest peril. She was not guilty of having retraced a single step towards Sodom. All she did was look back. But how revealing was that backward glance! Does it not speak volumes concerning the condition of her heart?  Watchman Nee

Have you determined yet that you need to let it go? By letting go I mean we have to learn to let go of things.  Too many times I think our perspective of what is ours is skewed.  We start to think that we own our house, car, furniture and even children.  The concept of ownership is taught to us from a young age.  It is like we are all children in a giant sandbox trying to one up each other.  We want what the other child has so we do whatever it takes to obtain it, including boxing them over the head with our sand pail. 

I’ve spent the majority of my life obtaining things.  Why?  When I die none of those things are going with me.  It’s kind of like reading a book that doesn’t have an adequate ending.  You are left hanging wondering why it didn’t end differently.  That is how possessions can overtake our lives. 

If we ever get the proper understanding of what stuff is, we will never feel discontentment.  We will be content with what we have in life.  There is peace in that place.  If I am content with what I have and let go of the hold it has on me, there is a peace that surpasses worldly understanding.  The anxiety of not having or obtaining something will be gone. 

If our hand is open with the things we think we own, God will provide for all our needs.  The thing we have to remember is some things are needs and others are wants.  He doesn’t say he will provide for all our wants.

Are you holding onto things that you think bring you happiness or trying to obtain something you don’t have?  Every time I do that I am disappointed.  When I am content with the things God has already given me and am not constantly searching for something new to add to my pile of stuff, peace will overflow in my life.        

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, You have blessed my life beyond measure.  Remind me that I am not the owner of my things.  I am a steward of everything you provide in my life.  Help me to handle Your things wisely and to let them go.  I am forever grateful for Your influence in my life.  I praise You above all others.    

Scripture:  Now behold, one came and said to Him, “Good Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life?”

So He said to him, “Why do you call Me good?  No one is good but One, that is, God.  But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments.”

He said to Him, “Which ones?”

Jesus said, “‘You shall not murder,’ ‘You shall not commit adultery,’ ‘You shall not steal,’ ‘You shall not bear false witness,’ ‘Honor your father and your mother,’ and, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’”

The young man said to Him, “All these things I have kept from my youth.  What do I still lack?”

Jesus said to him, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.”

But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.  Matthew 19:16-22

Big Yellow Taxi

No man who is fit to live need fear to die. To us here, death is the most terrible thing we know. But when we have tasted its reality it will mean to us birth, deliverance, a new creation of ourselves. It will be what health is to the sick man; what home is to the exile; what the loved one given back is to the bereaved. As we draw near to it a solemn gladness should fill our hearts. It is God's great morning lighting up the sky. Our fears are the terror of children in the night. The night with its terrors, its darkness, its feverish dreams, is passing away; and when we awake it will be into the sunlight of God.  Thomas Fuller

I had another dream last night, or I should say early this morning.  I dreamed I missed the school bus.  You know how in the early hours of the morning you go into what they call REM sleep.  You know what I am talking about.  Rapid Eye Movement sleep.  I call it RLM because in this dream I was running to catch the bus and I missed it so it was more like Rapid Leg Movement. 

So I am dreaming that the school bus was going to pull up at any minute at school, but I forgot something and ran back to get it.  Have you ever noticed that when you are in a hurry, everything and everyone else slows to a crawl?   I am not sure why I had to run down the bleachers, but as I am running I look over and see one of my uncles sleeping in the bleachers.  I am not sure if this was to remind me not to be caught sleeping when the big yellow taxi pulls into the station, but that is a possibility.  When I returned to the pickup location the bus (or big yellow taxi) had pulled away and was down the street turning the corner. 

We were all kids at one time and if you never rode a school bus it can make a kid panic if you miss it.  For a kid it is like the end of the world.  There is not another bus that is going to come along and pick you up 15 minutes later.  The bus you ride is the only one that is going to take you home.  You can’t get on the next bus in the line and get home.  That bus will take you somewhere else and maybe somewhere you don’t want to go. 

So back to my dream.  When I missed the bus I reached into my pocket and pulled out my cell phone.  The really weird part (I know you are laughing now because this whole thing is weird), was that back in the day when I went to school we didn’t even have cell phones so this dream covers multiple generations.  So I pull my cell phone out and call my Dad.  Instead of the phone ringing it started playing a Willie Nelson song.  So I am thinking, is this the right phone number because my Dad doesn’t like Willie Nelson music.  In the midst of me making this phone call I jumped out of bed and ran into the kitchen.  I don’t know if I thought I could catch another bus in the kitchen or what, but I thought I was late again.  When I get to the kitchen I glance at my phone and it is 3:30am. When I finally came to my senses, I went back to bed but I couldn’t go back to sleep.  Imagine that.  So yet again, I started thinking about God and this is what I came up with.

There is only one bus that goes to heaven.  We all want to be on that bus because the other bus is not one we want to take. Time is ticking away for us to get on the right bus and we must be saved by the blood of Jesus Christ. I want to be in line when the bus pulls up to my stop.  I don’t want to be running around chasing worldly things. 

There is an old hymn that we sang in church that puts this all into perspective for me.  The hymn was called “When the Roll is Called Up Yonder I’ll be There”.  I will be standing in line waiting for the big yellow taxi to pull to a stop and when the doors open I will run on and take a seat.  I can’t imagine a nicer ride.     

When the trumpet of the Lord shall sound, and time shall be no more,
And the morning breaks, eternal, bright and fair;
When the saved of earth shall gather over on the other shore,
And the roll is called up yonder, I’ll be there.

On that bright and cloudless morning when the dead in Christ shall rise,
And the glory of His resurrection share;
When His chosen ones shall gather to their home beyond the skies,
And the roll is called up yonder, I’ll be there.

Let us labor for the Master from the dawn till setting sun,
Let us talk of all His wondrous love and care;
Then when all of life is over, and our work on earth is done,
And the roll is called up yonder, I’ll be there.  Words & Music by James M. Black

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, there are times when I dream strange things.  One of the things that I so enjoy is thinking about You in everything I do.  Thinking about You brings me joy and I see You in everything, even my weird dreams.  Thank You for loving me enough to give me a way back to You.  When the roll is called I want to be in the Lambs Book of Life and live with You for eternity.       

Scripture:  He who overcomes shall be clothed in white garments, and I will not blot out his name from the Book of Life; but I will confess his name before My Father and before His angels.  Revelation 3:5

As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.  To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.  Revelation 3:19-21

A Time for Everything

Trials should not surprise us, or cause us to doubt God's faithfulness. Rather, we should actually be glad for them. God sends trials to strengthen our trust in him so that our faith will not fail. Our trials keep us trusting; they burn away our self-confidence and drive us to our Saviour.  Edmund Clowney

I was reading Ecclesiastes 3 and the verse that stuck with me was in verse one (“To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven.”)  What does that mean?

This is what I think it means.  There is a season for everything.  That means that we are going to have many seasons in our lives and some of those seasons will be good and some will be bad. 

So here is an example from my life of a bad season.  The worst season of my life was cancer. At the time I didn’t think that was purposed for my good. What happened was in time I thanked God for that season.  Why?  In the current season of my life I thank Him for willing that to happen in my life because it drew me closer to Him.  I was going through life not thinking much about God at all and then “cancer”.  If you want something to get your attention that one did it for me. 

Each of us during our lifetime will go through many seasons and every one of us can probably remember the season that was the worst.  It might me the failure of a business, the loss of a spouse, loss of a job, the list is endless.  There is an unlimited supply in this world of bad seasons.  When we are in the bad season is when we should turn to Him and lay it at His feet.  He is the only One who can bring us to the other side of that season and help us to understand the value of it in our life. 

I heard a woman who had survived breast cancer say that she didn’t understand how anyone could consider cancer a blessing.  I have to say I consider it God’s favor on me.  He loved me enough to allow me to suffer so that I could get a true picture of Who He is, but my thankfulness didn’t come until a later season in life where I was not in the midst of chemo, lost hair and illness.  In the proper season His purpose was revealed to me and what a blessing it has been in my life. 

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, You know what is best for me and I give my life to You to do as You will.  Take me and mold me into what You want me to be.  I am nothing without You.  You have blessed me over and over again during the hard seasons of my life.  You have also blessed me with good seasons.  I praise You for the tough times that teach me to love You more. 

Scripture:  Everything Has Its Time

To everything there is a season, A time for every purpose under heaven:  A time to be born, And a time to die; A time to plant, And a time to pluck what is planted;  A time to kill, And a time to heal; A time to break down, And a time to build up;  A time to weep, And a time to laugh; A time to mourn, And a time to dance;  A time to cast away stones, And a time to gather stones; A time to embrace, And a time to refrain from embracing; A time to gain, And a time to lose; A time to keep, And a time to throw away; A time to tear, And a time to sew; A time to keep silence, And a time to speak;  A time to love, And a time to hate; A time of war, And a time of peace.  Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

Pops & Ladies at the Door

Our love to God is measured by our everyday fellowship with others and the love it displays.  Andrew Murray

Last week we were in Houston with some 350 other vendors selling the products we make.  If you have never experienced an event of this size I will give you a picture of what goes on behind the scenes. 

The event started on Wednesday night but we had to set up our booth on Monday and Tuesday.  The first three days you have a different colored pass to get you into the event.  One color allows you into the dock, another into the garage and another into a specific parking area. 

There are always many workers out in the lots directing eighteen wheelers, trucks, trailers and people in all directions.  The first day we drove up there was a gentleman who worked for Reliant who was manning the front gate into parking.  The first day he saw my Dad they bonded.  I think it was a God bond because he blessed us every time we drove in.  He said it made his day because my Dad was always smiling.  So every day when we drove up he would call out to my Dad, “Hey Pops, how’s it going today?”  One of my favorite things to do is watch how people are affected by how you treat them.  Every day this gentleman blessed us by letting us park close to the building.  On Sunday, Mom and Dad went to church and didn’t get to the stadium until after 1:00pm so as you can imagine there were no parking spaces available, or so we thought.  When my Dad drove in this same gentleman was at the gate and he said his usual, “Hey Pops, how’s it going today?” This same gentleman told my Dad to wait as there were clearly no empty spaces available and when that happens, you could be parked up to a mile away from the stadium.  So the attendant takes off down an aisle and talks to another parking attendant and then returns to my Dad and tells him to follow the other parking attendant.  They took my Dad over close to the building and moved some cones and let my Dad park near the building.

Another incident was at the entrance to the convention center.  We all had to wear badges or they wouldn’t allow us into the building.  There were always two employees at the entrances to check badges.  We saw these same two older ladies every day.  One of the ladies reminded me of my grandma.  She called me baby every time she saw me.  On the third day of the event my sister and I decided to take a couple of our products and put them in gift bags to take to the ladies at the entrance.  I must say that my Mom and Dad’s business is the first company I have ever worked with or for, where I have the opportunity to give something away without having to go through the chain of command.  I don’t have to go find my manager, check with my supervisor or ask the president if I can give a candle to a cancer survivor or ask if it is ok to give free product to someone in need.  You would have thought we gave these two ladies a sack of gold.  They hugged us and thanked us over and over again.  One of the ladies turned to us and said “Love will be returned to you and God bless you.”

There was a third incident that occurred with my Mom. We had a lady and her friends come into our booth and she and Mom were talking.  She told my Mom that this time last year she had suffered a stroke and could not walk or talk.  She was standing in our booth walking and talking.  That is a God miracle.  My Mom turned to her and said we are going to give you a candle and she hugged her.  The lady started crying in our booth.  She couldn’t even speak she was so overwhelmed. 

This is what it is all about.  God intends for us to touch others through Him and when we do, He is glorified.  God has blessed my parents business beyond measure and I think the reason lies in how we treat people who come to our booth. It is not about the money and how much we sell or how much inventory we move.  God can and will exceed our expectations if we will allow Him to work through us on His behalf.            

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, You amaze me.  The more I see You at work in my life the more I love and adore You.  The people we meet may or may not be Christians, but we are all in need of a Savior and I pray that You will allow others to see You by the way I treat them.  If they can see a reflection of You in some small gesture I make, I praise You for that blessing.      

Scripture:   “My children, I will be with you only a little longer. You will look for me, and just as I told the Jews, so I tell you now: Where I am going, you cannot come.

“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”
 Simon Peter asked him, “Lord, where are you going?” Jesus replied, “Where I am going, you cannot follow now, but you will follow later.”  John 13:33-36

A Shining Light

We are told to let our light shine, and if it does, we won't need to tell anybody it does. Lighthouses don't fire cannons to call attention to their shining- they just shine.  D.L. Moody

It is so good to be back with you.  I missed my time with you last week.  We were at an event last week for my parent’s business and I have many stories to share with you.

Have you ever thought about how you show the world God’s light?  God intends for each of us to be a light to show others who He is and in the process He will be glorified. 

Many years ago we would spend several weeks every summer with some of our family in Austin.  I have an aunt who would take all of us (by all of us I mean 7 kids ranging in age from 9 to 13) to various sites around Austin.  Aunt May would take us to the State Capitol, to museums and we even went to Inner Space Caverns.  My aunt was a brave soul to take 7 kids on these trips.

One of my favorites was the Inner Space Caverns.  The Texas Highway Department found the caverns while drilling and they turned it into a park.  You would buy a ticket and a tour guide would take you down into the caverns where you could see all types of rock formations.  The tour guide would take you down into the middle of the caves and then they would turn the lights out.  If you have ever heard the term “pitch black” that is the best way to describe it.  You could put your hand in front of your face and see nothing.  It was a scary feeling. It was startling when they turned the lights back on.   

I thought about that long ago trip and it made me think about God and His Light. He is glorified when we show others His Light by the way we treat each other.  When we see someone in need and offer help His Light shines.  If we show kindness to someone who has harmed us, His Light is revealed.  If we are to ever truly understand what living in the Light is all about, we must step out in faith and reflect that very thing to others.

Are you hiding your light under a bushel or are you a light to the world? We have to look outside of ourselves to shine our light.  You can live in darkness or be a light to the world.  

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, I want to be a light to the world.  The only way I can do that is to set aside self and do for others.  In a world where kindness is sorely lacking in the majority of people, help me to show others who You are by my daily actions.  When people see Your Light shining in me, I pray that You will be glorified.

Scripture: “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden.  Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.  Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.  Matthew 5:14-16