Making a Difference in your Life, in the Parts that are for Keeps!
Insurance – – Definitions
– – The Cost of Fear
– – Pay for a Promise
– – Fee for Guarantee?
– – Lack of Trust In God
– – Expect the Unexpected
– – Paying Ahead for Worrying
– – Lottery—Win Only If You Lose . . .
– – Protection for Stuff You Can’t Keep
– – The Cost of “Modern Miracles”
– – “The Thief Comes to Steal”
– – “Treasure On Earth”
– – Another god
– – Blackmail
– – Slavery
– – Power
COMPLAIN—Crying “No Fair” makes no difference anymore. Unequal treatment of Christians and the unconstitutional tsunami on the first amendment is the present reality.
FIGHT—Christians influenced elections in the past. That has changed. Christian lawyers have won over ninety percent of religious liberty cases. That will change when the Supreme Court changes. Fight if you can win? Shut up if you’re going to lose?
WITNESS—Win or lose, witness. Win or lose, stand up for the right. Win or lose, fight for the helpless and less fortunate. Win or lose, remember that you are the salt of the earth—make a difference in the everyday decay around you. Win or lose, remember you are the light of the world—make a difference in the darkness.
Now, change one word in the title:
Complain, Fight, and Witness.
It’s time for Christians to stop practicing selective discipleship—weighing the climate of the culture and vacillating like politicians and polls.
Partial obedience does not bring revival.
“Worry is the dark room that develops negatives.”
If you are blessed with a wife . . .
I’ll be writing this as a man, to share the focus of undivided attention in your real relationship with her, rather than giving advice to everybody from psychology or theology. But I trust that everyone may benefit from these thoughts.
If you love someone, you want to spend time with her more than anything else in the world.
If you love someone, you want to get closer, physically and emotionally.
If you love someone, you want to give, you want to sacrifice, you want her well-being before your own.
If you love someone, you forsake all others; you deliberately take steps to prevent anyone or anything from coming between you.
If you love someone, you make her the priority of your life; everything else is secondary, and that is evident, to her, and to others.
If you love someone, you make sacred times together, regularly, and everybody else knows it.
If you love someone, you tell her she is beautiful, inside and out; and you want her to get even better, because you know you can help make that happen.
If you love someone, you follow Jesus’ example; do for her what He did for us, talk to her like Jesus talks to us, give her everything you are like He gave to us, challenge her like Jesus challenges us, serve others together like Jesus served those in need, teach her the ways of God like Jesus taught us, make her things like Jesus is now preparing mansions for us, promise to be with her always, touch her often no matter what—like Jesus touched people even when they were down and out or dirty, and certainly have a good time eating and drinking with friends often like Jesus did.
Above all, if you love someone, you spend lots and lots of time praying for wisdom to do the will of the Father in heaven—showing her what the love of God is like in real life. Love her with skin on and skin in the game. That’s what Jesus did for us.
If you love someone, you will guard and fight against busyness borrowing from your time together. Projects aren’t people, just as people aren’t projects, especially in marriage. You can work, you can work together, but above all you must have fun together.
If you love someone, you will remember that it counts more in the long run to be sweet than to be right.
If you love someone, you will choose to enjoy her, and you will offer her something to enjoy in you, more than any stuff you get for her.
If you love someone, you will turn off technology when you are with her (or else it doesn’t count as time together). Eye-to-Eye and Touch preclude all Technology.
If you love someone, you will not try multi-tasking, except when all the multiple tasks are directly focused on her ! ! !
If you love someone, and you are watching a good movie together, you will pause the movie before responding to any interruption (call, text, person, etc.)
If you love someone, you will give her the last, best minutes of the day, together, exclusively.
If you love someone, you will give her the first, best minutes of the day, together, exclusively.
Strangely enough, I am not married. This time has given me a chance to think an awful lot about what a relationship would mean to me. And since the Bible always compares our relation with Jesus to marriage, I have gained much in reflecting on what both could be. “And, by the way, Jesus, I’m waiting.”
(started 7-3-13 finished 7-25-13)
Sometimes Time Heals—Sometimes It Doesn’t.
Sometimes Time Heals Wounds—Sometimes Time Steals Freedom.
Sometimes Time Is A Friend—Sometimes Time Is An Enemy.
Sometimes We Buy Time, To Win—Sometimes We Consume Time, And Lose.
Often time slips away, and we miss the opportunities of a lifetime.
In personal lives, time helps recovery; or at least it helps the bad times fade.
In times past, our country healed over time, from serious wounds.
In the present time, our country is not getting better with time.
Today, time is aiding the enemies of America, inside and out.
In this country, every crisis, every scandal, and every ensuing lawsuit quickly fades into not making any difference—after serving the other side well as a temporary distraction.
The leadership in Washington is deliberately out to steal and destroy our freedom, and time is on their side; they are patiently using it effectively. And very few are responding accordingly—none effectively.
“The thief comes to kill, steal, and destroy; I came that you may have life, and have it more abundantly.” Jesus said that. It makes all the difference in the world, and it’s our choice, as individuals, and as a country.
“I’d rather have _____than riches untold.”
“I’d rather have _____than houses or land.”
“I’d rather have _____than worldwide fame.”
“I’d rather have _____than anything this world offers today.”
So just what do we have to hold onto?
So just what do we have to give away?
We have to have Jesus, and we have to hold onto Him.
Could it be that we have to give away everything else?
“No man can serve two masters. He will love one and despise the other; he will hold onto one and forsake the other.” —–Jesus
(This is a revised repeat posting)
I prayed, “Lord, what do You want me to do?”
Immediately He said, “Leave off the last part, and we’ll talk.”
So I prayed, “Lord, what do you want?”
He said, “I want a relationship with you, I want time with you, I want to be close to you and come in to you.”
Now, after several years I get the point:
. How about praying, “Lord, what do You want, me?”
You know, “Jesus Loves the Little Children” and
anyone of us who come to Him as little children.
Sweet – – – Simple – – – Secure
I’m not sure what my BS in Ed has done for me the past few decades, but I now have two other degrees that I use every day to make a difference.
Doctor of Experience from the University of Life
Doctor of Wisdom from the Book of Life
As I’ve said before, one of the significant challenges of growing older is finding younger people who appreciate your wisdom and experience.
I would encourage everyone to put extra effort into passing on to the next generation what you have learned. I would even say, “Don’t wait until they ask.” It doesn’t happen automatically like it used to, when it was built into the fabric of our culture. But it is needed now more than ever.
“The greater the interval between God’s command and our obedience, the greater the possibility for disobedience.” —–Robert Jeffres
Delayed obedience is disobedience.
“If you love me, obey my commands.” —–Jesus
Anytime the church (led by pastors) avoids issues that matter to God, it soon loses it’s power to make a difference.
“Salt” preserves—and delays decay.
“Light” exposes evil—and reveals reality with the truth.
“Salt” must come in direct contact with anything it is going to preserve.
“Light” must enter the dark places of evil to confront it directly with truth.
Jesus said his followers are the salt of the earth and the light of the world.
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