Read the Label  

Our society's values are being corrupted by advertising's insistence on the equation:  Youth equals popularity, popularity equals success, success equals happiness.  ~John Fisher, The Plot to Make You Buy, 1968

I am a label reader.  Maybe it is because since we started making our own products for Purple Ranch, I find it interesting to see what ingredients are in the everyday items you buy and also what they call the benefits of the products. 

So I decided to read what was in my conditioner.  Now maybe I am the only one who would find this interesting because there are words in there that I don’t understand, let alone have the ability to pronounce. 

This time I decided to focus on the benefits. These are the three that I found most interesting.  This product claims to have Bioamp, Transactive Delivery System  and Glyco-shield.  This started me thinking about what those things mean.  I started with the easiest of the three, Bioamp.  I think this really means you can have Texas Big Hair if you use this conditioner.  Now, Glyco was a hard one for me so I went to the dictionary to see what I could come up with.  Glyco means sugar.  So I can have a sugar shield for my hair once it’s amped up.  This gets more complicated because I looked up “transactive” and it gave me “a geometric isomer having a pair of identical atoms or groups on the opposite sides of two atoms linked by a double bond.”  What does that mean?  I am no chemistry major so this one thoroughly confused me.  Does this mean I will have thicker fuller Texas Big Hair?  I am not sure what geometric isomers are doing linking up in my hair and being active but it could mean they’re on a sugar high.

Yesterday our sermon was about the things we decide we can’t live without and how advertisements influence our thinking every day. Our world has become one huge advertisement.  The thing is we feel like we can’t get ahead of the competition unless we can apply some made up name for something that no one can pronounce much less identify what it means.  Then when we buy it, we do so because it has something in it that we don’t know the meaning of but it must be good because it says so on the label. 

The thing I do know is that the Bible is very straightforward in most cases.  I admit sometimes the parables get me and I have to study them over and over again before I really get their true meaning but God’s Word is not filled with made up words with unknown definitions. Jesus was the best advertisement ever made and if you decide on life everlasting that is truly what you will get.  

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, we are bombarded by advertisements on TV, the radio, in the grocery store and on billboards along the highway.  They tell us our lives will be better, we will live longer, we can be or look successful if we will just try whatever is being advertised.  I am often caught up in these very ads that promise me all those things.  Please remind me that my hope is in You.     

Scripture:   Show me your ways, Lord, teach me your paths.  Guide me in your truth and teach me for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long.  Remember, Lord, your great mercy and love, for they are from of old.  Psalm 25:4-6

Is Dessert a Food Group?

Gluttony is an emotional escape, a sign something is eating us.  Peter De Vries

Definition of Glutton: a person with a remarkably great desire or capacity for something: a glutton for work; a glutton for punishment. Gluttony is an emotional escape, a sign something is eating us.LESSATTRIBUTION DETAIL »

I confess.  I had a gluttony episode yesterday and this is how it went.  I was really good at lunch and had two slices of chicken and several slices of cheese.  I have been trying to watch what I eat so this was really good. 

Then it happened.  I decided to stop on my way home to get something to eat.  My first thought was I would go by Pot Belly Subs and get a skinny.  I know, I know, the name alone conjures up visions of a pot belly pig but they do have great subs and if you get a skinny they cut out a lot of the bread, meat and cheese so you get less starch, fat and calories. 

Well, I got distracted.  I drove by the Nestle Toll House store.  Big mistake!   It was like my car had a mind of its own and went on autopilot.  Instead of getting a skinny I got chocolate chip cookies.  I did go out on a limb and get my daily intake of calcium, (I bought a large milk).  So for dinner I had two chocolate chip cookies and milk.  I guess I could have been even more of a glutton and rounded it out with a baker’s dozen. The thing is once I walked in there it was like I was in front of a cookie buffet.  I walked out of there with 3 chocolate chip cookies, 3 peanut butter cookies and something they call a peanut butter cup.  This is a cookie baked around chocolate fudge with caramel drizzled on top.  I am surprised I only ate two cookies.  The really stupid thing is I asked the lady if she had 2% milk.  As soon as I said it I knew how dumb that sounded.  I just bought 10,000 calories and I am going to supplement it with 2% milk!!!  

The older I get the more things have a tendency to spread in the wrong direction and I have a major sweet tooth.  I would rather go straight to dessert and skip the meal.  This is not healthy by any means, but it is a weakness of mine.  The thing is we can become a glutton for anything.  This means anything we crave in extreme measures.  We can be a glutton for work, food, cars, homes, drugs and just about anything else.

In the story of Jacob and Esau, there were two things at work.  One was greed and the other gluttony.  Esau was hungry and couldn’t control his craving for food.  Jacob was greedy and wanted Esau’s birthright.  Esau was willing to sell the rights he had as the first born to inherit his father’s estate, for a bowl of stew.

I am going to work on this.  Having told you all about it, this will help hold me accountable when I pass the Nestle store. I will update you soon to let you know how I am doing.     

 

Prayer for the Day: Father, I am often led by food cravings.  I struggle with eating foods that are not good for me.  Our bodies are temples created by You and we should care for them as such.  Please help me overcome the cravings I have for the sweets in this life. 

Scripture:    Now Jacob cooked a stew; and Esau came in from the field, and he was weary. And Esau said to Jacob, “Please feed me with that same red stew, for I am weary.” Therefore his name was called Edom.  But Jacob said, “Sell me your birthright as of this day.”  And Esau said, “Look, I am about to die; so what is this birthright to me?”  Then Jacob said, “Swear to me as of this day.” So he swore to him, and sold his birthright to Jacob.  And Jacob gave Esau bread and stew of lentils; then he ate and drank, arose, and went his way. Thus Esau despised his birthright. Genesis 25:29-34

Fulfilling Your Purpose

When a train goes through a tunnel and it gets dark, you don't throw away the ticket and jump off. You sit still and trust the engineer.  Corrie Ten Boom

What does fulfillment mean?  According to the dictionary fulfillment means “to develop the full potential of something or to carry out and obligation.”

Do you fulfill the purpose of why God placed you on earth?  This is one of the hardest things for us to learn because our very nature and the world around us teach us to be self-serving instead of what I call “other-serving.”

If we are ever to reach our full potential on earth it is necessary to let go.  I would compare this to driving while blindfolded.  That is exactly what it feels like when we release our need to control every situation and allow God to work.  It means we have to follow God’s lead even when we don’t know where we are going.  In a devotional by Rick Warren he says it involves “Waiting, Trusting, Following and Expecting.” 

This is extremely difficult in a world that teaches us to be self-reliant.  In other words if I don’t look out for myself, no one else will.  The opposite is true if we rely on God instead of ourselves. 

I have a tendency to think that I am in control.  When I start thinking this way I push God aside and step out, not in faith, but in thinking that I can do it on my own. 

If I am not able to wait on God and his timing then I am probably going to miss out on a lot of blessings.  If I don’t trust that He knows what is best for me, then I will miss the opportunity to learn wisdom even during trials.  The majority of the time we don’t want to be followers.  Why should we follow God without knowing where we will end up?  It is like jumping off a cliff with no parachute. If I am not willing to trust that God has my best interest in mind even when it doesn’t make sense, then I have missed the point entirely. This one is really important. Too many times we don’t expect God to work in our lives.  We halfheartedly ask for God’s guidance or blessing, fully expecting that He will not come through for us.     

We become self-defeating when we learn to depend only on ourselves to get us out of the jams of life.  One of my favorite verses is Proverbs 3:4-6.  It says trust the Lord, lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and he will direct your paths.   Notice it doesn’t say, only trust Him when you can’t handle the circumstance, or lean on Him only when you’ve already resolved it, or acknowledge Him when you feel like it and finally let Him direct your path when all else fails.  If we are to ever feel the peace that surpasses all understanding, we should focus our thoughts on God and wait, follow, trust and expect Him to work for our good.

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, I am guilty of lacking patience when it comes to waiting for You to work in my life.  I take “You” out of the equation and replace it with “me” and that is when I become like a train wreck waiting to happen.  If I follow You, trust and expect that You will respond, that is when I can be a total peace in my life because then I am not depending on my feeble attempts to run my life.  

       

Scripture:  And so find favor and high esteem in the sight of God and man. Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.  Proverbs 3:4-6

Distraction  

We need to find God, and he cannot be found in noise and restlessness. God is the friend of silence.  See how nature - trees, flowers, grass - grows in silence; see the stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence.... We need silence to be able to touch souls. ~Mother Teresa

Do you ever get so distracted and do things repetitively so much so that you do something stupid?  I do.  Last night I decided to get my coffee pot ready before I went to bed.  I normally get up every morning at 4:00 and get my coffee pot ready, but I decided I would save some of my morning time and do it the night before.

 

Well I must have been distracted, because this morning when I got up to turn on the coffee pot, I lifted the lid where the grounds go and there were none.  So my mind immediately goes to “I know I did this last night.”  I know my husband didn’t touch it because he doesn’t drink coffee and the dog can’t reach the pot so it wasn’t him. 

I decided to check the trash.  Last night I ground the coffee, placed it in the filter placed it in the container that holds the filter and then I proceeded to throw it in the trash.  I don’t even remember doing it. 

There are times that I do this very same thing with God.  I get distracted by the things of this life and I will get to church and instead of paying attention to the message I will start thinking about all of the things that need to be done when I leave church.  Instead of worshiping the Father, I worship the things of this life. 

I have learned that I need a place that is totally silent for me to meditate on what God wants to teach me.  I can’t play music because that distracts me, and I certainly can’t watch TV.  I have to remove myself from all of the distractions around me to totally focus my attention on the One who created me. 

I also learned that you have to pick your place of solitude.  My time is in the morning when I get to work.  There are few people in the office and very little noise.  It gives me a solid hour of time to just think and meditate on God’s Word.  If you have never spent quality time with God, pick a place.  Talk to Him.  Listen for His voice.  You will be amazed at what you hear.

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, I am often distracted by the things in this life.  It can be something minor that can take my attention away from you.  Please forgive me for not giving you my undivided attention.  I want to build my personal relationship with you and I can’t do that if I am constantly thinking about the next thing I need to do.  

           

Scripture:  Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my strength and my Redeemer.  Psalm 19:14

A Pig & A Goat

There is in all animals a sense of duty that man condescends to call instinct. ~Robert Brault

I was watching the news this morning and saw a story about a pig and a goat.  There was a baby goat at a petting zoo that fell into a pond and started floundering.  As humans stood on the sideline watching and videoing, a piglet jumped into the water and swam over to the goat and started pushing him to shore.  The piglet reached the shore leading the way for the goat to follow.  They both ran up the side of the hill to safety. 

You might ask why I found this interesting.  The main thing is it made me think of God.  There are millions of lost souls in this world who are drowning and we are standing on the sidelines watching. 

The piglet was an unlikely savior for the goat.  Even growing up in the country as I did, I don’t ever remember seeing a pig swim.  I’ve seen them roll around in the mud but never swim.  This piglet was an Olympian.  He would have gotten the gold. 

So as I watched this video it made me think of Jesus the carpenter by trade who was born to save us by dying.  What a legacy that is for us. The problem is we don’t often get off the sidelines to help someone else come to know our Savior. I want to be the seed falling on good soil that produces a heavenly crop in abundance.   

           

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, I am sometimes like the humans standing on the sidelines waiting for someone else to save others.  I want to be like the piglet who jumped in without hesitation and pushed the goat to shore.  You provide the tools to help us reach others in Your name.  Help me to open my eyes and see the lost souls waiting to be saved.  Give me the courage to step forward in faith.   

Scripture:   “Listen then to what the parable of the sower means: When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in their heart. This is the seed sown along the path. The seed falling on rocky ground refers to someone who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, making it unfruitful. But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.” Matthew 13:18-23

Joy  

If a thing is free to be good it is also free to be bad. And free will is what has made evil possible. Why, then, did God give them free will? Because free will, though it makes evil possible, is also the only thing that makes possible any love or goodness or joy worth having.  C. S. Lewis

Joy is not an option.  I know there are days when I don’t feel much joy.  The stresses of life can be a huge hindrance to having joy.  This means that it’s not just the individuals in this life who have the temperament for being joyful.  Each of us are called by God to be joyful in everything we do. 

The problem with having joy is that life interferes.  Sometimes we may have sin in our life that takes away joy.  An example is when David confessed his sin of adultery he prayed, “Restore to me the joy of Your salvation” and one of the most important parts of this passage is “Then I will teach transgressors Your ways, and sinners shall be converted to You.”  David asks for restoration of joy in his life so that he can bring others to God.

Sometimes our joy is removed from our lives because of sin in our lives.  It is hard to have joy if we are concerned about how we hurt someone, or if we have a sinful attitude such as envy, resentment, or a critical and unforgiving spirit.  All of these things will block the joy in our lives.

The other hindrance to joy is that we place our confidence in our good works or religious attainment.  Our joy should be grounded in and focused on the assurance of being with Christ one day and that our name is written in heaven.  If we focus too much on what we are doing in God’s name we often allow ourselves to be the source of our joy instead of Christ.

 

When God disciplines us it can be painful and not a joyful experience.  The thing is we have to keep our sights on what God intends to do with that discipline.  When we welcome God’s discipline it is with the understanding that this is God’s way of getting rid of sin and its habits.  We have to remember that God disciplines those he loves.

Trials can take our joy but the purpose of them is to exercise our faith.  Our faith grows through trials. It is a choice to be joyful in everything.  Choose joy.

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, I want to live a joyful life.  Please remind me of the joy that can be found in the trials of life and also through Your loving discipline.  Help me to not get caught up in the things I do in your name but to always remember the assurance I have in being with Christ one day. 

                 

Scripture:   Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

Hide Your face from my sins, And blot out all my iniquities. Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me away from Your presence, And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, And uphold me by Your  generous Spirit. Then I will teach transgressors Your ways, And sinners shall be converted to You.  Psalm 51:9-13

A Transparent Life

“Honesty and transparency make you vulnerable.  Be honest and transparent anyway.”  Mother Teresa

When I decided to start writing devotionals, it occurred to me that I would need to be transparent for anyone to really see who I really am and how God affects my life.  The problem with transparency is that you will sometimes look silly, sound dumb and often make a fool of yourself.   

There is fear that comes with being transparent with others.  There is the fear of others laughing at you or making fun of or even ridiculing you.  The very things that Jesus suffered for will become a reality when you become transparent.  We are all warned that we will be persecuted if we follow Him.  That’s not such a great recommendation for leading the Christian life. 

There are several things I have learned through being transparent in my faults and sharing them with others.  The first thing I learned is that I have to become vulnerable to really understand some of the sufferings of Christ and in that vulnerability, it becomes easier for me to relate to another person’s suffering.  Second, it means that you will know much more about me than I will about you.  The odd thing about this is that when I meet you for the first time, you may say something to me about something I have written about my past and I may look at you and think, “how does this person know that about me.” 

Leading a transparent life means that other people will see you as God sees you.  I know I have often thought in the past that if no one can see what I am doing then they won’t be able to determine the sin in my life.  Why do we think we can hide the sin in our lives?  It is like hiding behind a skinny tree. God can see you no matter what you hide behind.

 

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, please help me to always be transparent in my life.  I want to reflect Your glory but I can’t do that if I am hiding behind sin and covering it up.  Being transparent means I will be vulnerable to others and it opens the door to ridicule. When I turn to You it makes me stronger. I praise You for lifting me up.  

Scripture: But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth. Isaiah 53:5-7

Your Love Sets Me Free  

As your faith is strengthened you will find that there is no longer the need to have a sense of control, that things will flow as they will, and that you will flow with them, to your great delight and benefit.  ~Emmanuel

I’ve never felt the freedom that I do when God is my focus.  You all know that I do goofy things and strange things have happened to me in my lifetime.  Many of these I have shared with you. 

One thing I have learned is that God loves me no matter what I do.  The things I do may not be right, or the things that happen to me may not be because of something I have done. I do believe that God allows things to happen to us for a reason sometimes only known by Him.  But that is why He is God and we aren’t. 

When I finally decided to allow God to lead me it did several things for me.  It released me from the worry of what others might think of me.  It also helped me to laugh at myself because I often picture God looking down at me and laughing too.  I am human and I will do things that are not so smart. 

God’s love has set me free.  The freedom this gives me can be described as the same feeling I had as a child where I didn’t worry about where my next meal came from or where I would live, or the bills that needed to be paid.

When do we lose our freedom?  It comes when the world disappoints us or a parent treats us harshly.  Freedom is lost when other children make fun of us and others join in.  The freedom we have in Christ is lost because we cease to believe that someone could love us enough to accept us as we are.  Broken.

So today I thank God for His love for me.  He will not forsake me nor leave me.  He will not make fun of my stupid mistakes nor ridicule me.  Christ died on the cross to set me free and I pray that you find that same freedom.   

     

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, Your freedom is all I will ever need.  When I let go of the worldly things that take away my freedom, I clearly see what being free is all about.  You bring me freedom that cannot be bought and I praise You for allowing Your Son to die on the cross to set me free.

Scripture:   May your unfailing love come to me, Lord, your salvation, according to your promise; then I can answer anyone who taunts me, for I trust in your word.  Never take your word of truth from my mouth, for I have put my hope in your laws.  I will always obey your law, for ever and ever.  I will walk about in freedom, for I have sought out your precepts.  I will speak of your statutes before kings and will not be put to shame, for I delight in your commands because I love them.  I reach out for your commands, which I love, that I may meditate on your decrees.  Psalm 119:41-48

Transforming & Engaging

Past the seeker as he prayed came the crippled and the beggar and the beaten. And seeing them... he cried, "Great God, how is it that a loving creator can see such things and yet do nothing about them?" God said, "I did do something. I made you." ~Author Unknown

We are doing a study on transformation and engagement.  Transforming ourselves into what God created us to be on this earth.  God didn’t create us to just hang out with other Christians.  He also created us to engage with others who don’t know Him.  He told a story that was an excellent example of what it means to engage with other people for God’s glory. 

The story went like this.  The President of the United States is the leader of the largest nation in the world.  You are invited to attend a dinner with the President.  You are sitting at the table and there are plates and utensils all around.  A head waiter from the hotel where the dinner is held comes up to the wait staff and asks why the dishes are still on the table.  He says, “The President of the United States is getting ready to speak so why aren’t the dishes cleared from the table.”  The wait staff replies that the dishwasher is broken and there are dishes all over the kitchen and no room for more.  The head waiter tells the staff that if the dishes aren’t cleared by the time the President steps up to the podium they will all be fired. 

The President happens to overhear the conversation and heads to the kitchen.  He takes off his coat, rolls up his sleeves and starts washing dishes.  The Secret Service has followed him and are drying dishes. 

The correlation here is that Jesus was the best in the world at engaging.  He was the King of the World and he knew how to engage with the least of those on earth.  He showed us what servanthood means.  The evening before his crucifixion he washed the disciple’s feet.  This was a job that was normally left to the lowest person in the household and Jesus Christ our Savior bent down and washed dirty feet. 

How will we know what it means to serve others if we don’t bring ourselves to the lowest level?  What better way do we have to show others God than by serving someone else in need without expecting something in return.  Jesus engaged with tax collectors, thieves, prostitutes, the blind, beggars and he continues to engage with us through the Holy Spirit.       

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, I don’t want to stand on the sidelines.  I want to be engaged in Your business.  Please give me the strength to use what you have given me for others.  I want your Glory to be my only business. 

Scripture:  When he had finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and returned to his place. “Do you understand what I have done for you?” he asked them. “You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am. Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them. John 13:12-17

Tablet Splitter

Laughing is the best medicine, but if you’re laughing for no reason, you may need medicine. 

I received a card in the mail from my insurance company.  I probably shouldn’t have been reading it at 5:00 in the morning because I had to read it several times to get it.  On the front of the card in big letters it said “Stop Throwing Money Away.  Well that got my attention. In these difficult times who doesn’t want to save money.

So I open the card and it tells me that I am throwing money away by not splitting my medication.  What does that mean?  It goes on to show me diagrams and pictures of how I will save.  If I contact my doctor and get a new prescription for a larger dosage but fewer pills I could “potentially” save half off the prescription price of the full number of tablets at a smaller dosage.  I hope I haven’t lost you yet.  

How long do you think it will take the pharmaceutical companies to figure out that I am getting the same dosage in smaller quantities and jack the price per pill up.  I am going to get on my soap box here for a moment.  I am really tired of paying $10-$20 per pill for something that is supposed to lower my blood pressure when the very idea of paying that much for one pill raises my blood pressure.  Then I started thinking about how every morning I would need to break out the cutting board to cut my pills in half so I don’t overdose.  Then I read the fine print.  “Only split tablets with a device specifically for that purpose. Follow the instructions provided with your tablet splitter.”  Now I need to buy a “tablet splitter” for accuracy.

I think I need a new strategy.  If I get up at 4:00am and run around the neighborhood for free, lower my blood pressure and cholesterol so I don’t need the medication, (as long as I don’t run by the donut shop first), maybe I can cut my medication to “none” and save money at the same time.

Here are several questions?  Did God intend for us to prolong our lives with medications in the first place?  I struggle with this because if I think about it, why do I want to prolong my life here.  There is a much better place in eternity where I will not need the medications that keep me alive here on earth. Is this just our human need for longevity or our unwillingness to let go of this world?  Are we essentially searching on earth for the very thing we lost in the Garden of Eden? The reality is when the end comes no medication on earth will save us.  Only God can do that. 

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, I struggle with questions about life.  I pray for Your wisdom, but most of all I pray for peace.  Peace in knowing that You know what is best for me and faith to understand that I may never understand this side of heaven. You are a wondrous God and I praise you for your grace and mercy over me.  

  

Scripture:  Now godliness with contentment is great gain.  For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out.  And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content.  But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition.  For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.  1 Timothy 6:6-10

The Power of Words

How far you go in life depends on your being tender with the young, compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the striving and tolerant of the weak and strong. Because someday in your life you will have been all of these. ~George Washington Carver

Have you ever spoken harshly to someone?  I know I have many times.  Do you ever think of the damage that is done by the words we speak?  Children are the most vulnerable individuals on this earth.  God gives children as a blessing in life and they are often treated more harshly than adults. Adults have defenses through experience, but children don’t.   

Children are not ours to do with as we please and it is not just parents that are responsible for their view of the world.  Every person on earth who sees or interacts with a child is responsible for their development.  If you are a parent, grandparent, uncle, aunt, teacher or friend you make a difference in a child’s life.  Every word and action we use toward children will be recorded and used later as a reference.  I heard Max Lucado speak at our church and one of the things that stuck with me was he used the example of a rock and a sponge.  Adults sometimes have hearts that are like rock hardened by circumstances of life.  If you drop a rock in a bowl of water it will not absorb the water.  Children’s hearts are like a sponge.  Whatever they hear they absorb and whatever they absorb will come out of their hearts later.   

The words we use with children matter.  You may not think they are significant, but to a child, they can mean the difference between a productive life or total devastation.  I observe parents today that yell at their children; abuse them by belittling them or embarrassing them in front of others.  Parents tell their children that they will never amount to anything or that they are worthless and the worst are those who physically abuse their children.  There is scientific proof that if you tell someone something often enough they will start to believe it and become that very thing. There are seeds of greatness in every child waiting to be cultivated.  What type of seeds are you planting in your children?

Each of us were children at one time.  There were seeds planted in us at a young age that affect the adults we have become.  Do you want to pass on the legacy of the broken child you are or break the cycle?  We need to learn to think before we speak.   

I wonder what God will have to say to those of us who harm innocent children by the words we speak and our actions.  We may think it is funny to make jokes at our children’s expense but I don’t expect that God will share that view.   

               

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, my heart hurts for children.  I have been guilty in the past of saying harsh things to children.  Please forgive me for that sin.  I want to be a light to the children of this world.   It is not possible for me to be that light if I don’t use the light you give me for that purpose.  Please help me to only use eternal words that lift others up and that show the children of this world a picture of You.

   

Scripture:   The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit.  Proverbs 18:21

Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless. Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. James 1:26-27

Children are a heritage from the Lord, offspring a reward from him.  Psalm 127:3

He called a little child to him, and placed the child among them.  And he said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.  Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.  Matthew 18:2-4

Responsibility & Blame 

You are not responsible for the programming you picked up in childhood. However, as an adult, you are one hundred percent responsible for fixing it. ~Ken Keyes, Jr.

Most of us can read the writing on the wall; we just assume it's addressed to someone else. ~Ivern Ball

Take your life in your own hands, and what happens? A terrible thing: no one to blame. ~Erica Jong

We have a tendency to blame others for our circumstances and often through our own choices in life we create the very circumstance that we want to blame on others.  I admit it is much easier to blame someone else than it is to take responsibility. 

We live in a society of blamers and responsibility dodgers.  There is a story of a man who was inebriated at 2:00am and decided to take his dog for a walk around the neighborhood without a leash.  When the dog ran off he decided to walk behind neighbor’s yards calling the dog at 2:00am.  One of the neighbors called the police because they heard someone in their backyard. As he is walking home the police stopped him.  He was eventually arrested because he became belligerent with the policeman.  He spent a night in jail. The next day he talked to his neighbor about the incident.  When his neighbor told him the police were doing their job, he became angry and stopped speaking to the neighbor. 

This story reminded me of Aaron in the Bible.  Moses had gone up on the mountain for a conference with God and Aaron was left to tend the Israelites.  We are an impatient people too, so when Moses took longer at his meeting than they thought it should, they came to Aaron and asked him to make gods that would go before them.

Aaron had a choice to make and he made the wrong one.  He told the people to bring their gold to him and he made an idol in the shape of a calf.  When Moses returned and was angry with Aaron this is what he said.  “Do not be angry, my lord, You know how prone these people are to evil.  They said to me, “Make us gods who will go before us….”Then they gave me the gold and I threw it into the fire, and out came this calf!”

This is a great example of dodging responsibility and blaming others.  Aaron acted like he didn’t have anything to do with making the golden calf. He made it sound like he threw the gold into the fire to get rid of it and a calf jumped out.  You see how we spin things to try to place the blame somewhere else. 

When we figure out that God knows where our heart is in everything, maybe we will begin to take responsibility for our own actions and stop blaming others. 

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, I am guilty of blaming others and not taking responsibility for my own actions.  Please help me to understand that I make choices every day that are wrong.  I ask you to remind me when I do this so that I can accept responsibility.  It is the only way I can become more like You.  I praise You for Your grace and mercy on me.   

Scripture:  (Aaron responsible for the Israelites) When the people saw that Moses was so long in coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and said, “Come, make us gods who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who brought us up out of Egypt, we don’t know what has happened to him.” Aaron answered them, “Take off the gold earrings that your wives, your sons and your daughters are wearing, and bring them to me.” So all the people took off their earrings and brought them to Aaron. He took what they handed him and made it into an idol cast in the shape of a calf, fashioning it with a tool. Then they said, “These are your gods, Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.” Exodus 32:1-4

(Aaron blaming the Israelites) “Do not be angry, my lord,” Aaron answered. “You know how prone these people are to evil. They said to me, ‘Make us gods who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who brought us up out of Egypt, we don’t know what has happened to him.’ So I told them, ‘Whoever has any gold jewelry, take it off.’ Then they gave me the gold, and I threw it into the fire, and out came this calf!” Exodus 32:22-24

Goodness  

good·ness – the state or quality of being good, moral excellence; virtue.  Kindly feeling; kindness; generosity.  The best part of anything; essence; strength. You do not wake up one morning a bad person. It happens by a thousand tiny surrenders of self-respect to self-interest. ~Robert Brault

When I think of goodness I often think of my grandmother.  She was a good person.  She didn’t have or own a lot of things but she had a big heart.  I spent many summers with my grandmother and you always knew you were loved when you were around her. 

When I started thinking of my grandmother it made me think of how we learn goodness in this life.  How do children in this day and age learn goodness?  In Galatians 6:10, Paul tells us to “do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.  In 1 Timothy 5:8 Paul tells Timothy, “but if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his household, he has denied his faith and is worse than an unbeliever.” This one verse caught my attention.  We sometimes treat our own families worse than we do strangers.  The thing is, if we are out doing good deeds for others while neglecting the needs of our spouse, parents, or children, we are not practicing the grace of goodness.  The only way children will learn goodness is by our actions.

True goodness is self-sacrificing, not only of money but also of time.  It is also untiring.  True goodness doesn’t look at getting a result from doing good deeds.  True goodness doesn’t look to the recipients of the good deed, but looks to God alone.  Knowing the goodness you do is pleasing to the Father should give us the strength to move forward. 

“And so in the judgment day, the inquiry will be made not into our opinions or professions alone, but into our deeds, as proving the correctness of our faith and the sincerity of our professions.  Never can we know that we are in the right way, except we walk in the footsteps of Him, who did good in all his life and death.  He came from heaven to do good on earth, that we in doing good might tread the path to heaven.”  George Bethune

“Consider your gifts, your talents, your vocation, and your circumstances as a special trust from God with which to serve Him by serving others.”  Jerry Bridges

           

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, we are called by You to do good deeds for others.  Too many times I get caught up in “what’s in it for me” instead of doing it for Your purpose.  I need Your help in keeping my focus on You.  If my heart is in the right place, I will gladly do for others.  Thank You for Your love and mercy.

Scripture:  “Take heed that you do not do your charitable deeds before men, to be seen by them. Otherwise you have no reward from your Father in heaven. Therefore, when you do a charitable deed, do not sound a trumpet before you as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory from men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing.  Matthew 6:1-3

Lionfish

  

For the LORD your God is the one who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies to give you victory." Deuteronomy 20:4

When I start thinking about what I will write my next devotional on, I will sometimes use something that recently happened to me or something I saw and frequently I will use what I call “repetitive events.”  What that means is that if something either comes to mind several times or if I read or see something more than once I will explore that topic. 

You are now wondering why I am telling you this.  The reason I tell you this is because this is the way that God grabs my attention.  If you pay close attention to events or things in your life that repeat that is often the way that God speaks to us.  Now you are probably asking what does that have to do with lionfish?

This weekend I saw an article about lionfish on the internet.  Then on Sunday I was reading a book and it talked about lionfish.  When this happens I immediately write down the incident.  Mostly I write it down because if I don’t, before I realize it I forget. 

So I did some research on the lionfish.  I will give you a few fast facts about this particular fish.  They have few predators, they are poisonous to humans, they can multiply throughout the year, they will often spread their multiple fins and heard fish into a corner in order to prey on them.  They also blow a puff of water in front of other fish to disorient them. 

The lionfish reminded me of another predator in our lives.  Satan is the worst predator on the planet and we often don’t realize he is there.  Satan has few predators, he is poisonous to humans and he can disorient us and distract us from our purpose in life.  He is also invasive.  He can consume our lives without us realizing it and he can make things of this world look very attractive.  He draws us in and before we know it we are caught in his net.  I think about Satan this way.  If Jesus could be tempted by Satan and he was perfect in every way, how much more will we be affected by Satan as sinners. If we don’t have our God defenses up, Satan can stroll in and conquer. 

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, I know Satan is roaming the earth daily looking for victims.  Please help us to put on your armor to protect us from the evil one.  Thank you for Your protection in our lives.  You are our best defense against Satan.

Scripture: Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. The tempter came to him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.” Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’ Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. “If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down. For it is written: ‘He will command his angels concerning you, and they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’ Jesus answered him, “It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’ Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. “All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.” Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’ Matthew 4:1-10