I am now the same age as Daddy was when I left home after college.
I must admit that I am much slower than he was at this age.
But I want to draw special attention to a verse that both of my parents shared on the phone during their latter years.
– – –
“As thy days, so shall thy strength be.”
– – –
That is becoming very real for me, even earlier than for them.
I recently realized that there is a significant sequence in that short verse.
If God gives us another day, He will then give us the strength we need for that day.
It does not say He gives us strength first, and then another day to use it.
– – –
So, we trust Him to provide—the day first, then strength for the day.
“AS THY DAYS, . . .”
June 17, 2020 By Leave a Comment
SIT! STAY! DOWN! KNEEL?
June 17, 2020 By Leave a Comment
Every good dog is trained, commended, rewarded, and then praised for learning the basics of obedience.
Why?
So that, in every situation, especially in an emergency, the dog’s obedient behavior can be counted on.
But honestly, it’s mostly to show off to friends the accomplishments of submission and obedience—amazing dog, amazing owner.
Dogs comply so well to verbal commands, and we all love it.
(Cats not so much, usually not at all.)
Face it, ninety percent of all this is for the owner—called ‘master’ for a reason.
– – –
The endearing value of relationships with our beloved creatures is far more than their obedience.
But without obedience, the relationship is not worth much.
– – –
SIT!—Dog sits.
STAY!—Dog stays.
DOWN!—Dog lies down.
KNEEL?—There is something different about ‘kneel’ that animals can’t get, only humans.
Our Master commands, and we do obey.
But I am convinced that everyone who has decided to follow Jesus, will find a new depth to your relationship if you kneel before your Master every day.
Try it—Do it—Literally.
JUST HOW MUCH ?
June 12, 2020 By Leave a Comment
How will my life today be divided up?
How much for _____?
How much for _____?
How much for _____?
How much of my day today will Jesus get?
How much of my day today will He be in charge of?
How much of my day today will I consciously ask Him to manage?
How often will I ask Him today to manage today?
Is that once at the beginning of my day?
Is that whenever I get in a bind?
Is that many times a day—any times a day?
“He walks with me and He talks with me . . .”
We always talk out loud with real people.
Jesus is a real person, more real than others, so start talking out loud to Him whenever you can (which is, whenever you want).
Only real question is—how much do I want Jesus?
Do you hear others, or yourself, saying, “Some things in my life I just have to take care of myself.”?
Where does that leave Jesus—Lord in your life?—or the Lord of your life?
Jesus called us His friends—let’s put that friendship into practice today, with a continuous awareness of conversation available with Him.
If Jesus is sitting right next to us, we’re flying our plane together from takeoff to landing, through sunshine and turbulence.
Question for today:
“Which seat am I going to take, pilot or co-pilot?”
If we say, “Jesus, You’re the pilot,”
Then Jesus says, “Now we can talk!”
Then we know it’s going to be a wonderful flight, a glorious flight, loaded with every imaginable (and unimaginable) conversation, and all kinds of flying conditions, with guaranteed destination and arrival on time.
? SOCIAL JUSTICE ?
June 10, 2020 By Leave a Comment
Social Justice—Inspired?—Motivated?—Effective?—Commanded?—Blessed?
– – –
It’s just not right!
It bothers me!
It troubles me!
It makes me so angry!
I have to do something!
I must let out my anger!
I’ve got to just hit something!
Gotta hurt something!
Gotta hurt somebody!
Gotta beat on the first thing I see!
Gotta hurt the first person in my way!
I’m so angry!
Gotta use my fists!
Gotta use the first object I see to hurt, to destroy!
Gotta get my anger out, or else!
Doesn’t matter who gets hurt!
Doesn’t matter what gets destroyed!
Gotta express my anger!
Just try and stop me!
I’m angry RIGHT NOW—that’s all that matters now!
Somebody’s got to pay, because I’m angry!
Don’t try talking to me!
I don’t want to talk about it!
I just want to be angry!
– – –
Anything is better than not having a purpose.
Anything is better than sitting around doing nothing.
Anything is better than wandering around doing nothing.
Just give me a cause, anybody, and I’m there—
—ready, fit to unload my anger.
—ready, fit to destroy something.
—ready, fit to hurt somebody.
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
Social Justice—Protests?—Progress?
Social Justice—Commanded? YES
Social Justice—Blessed? YES
Social Justice—Instructions? YES
– – –
“Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:
to loose the chains of injustice
and untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressed free
and break every yoke?
Is it not to share your food with the hungry
and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—
when you see the naked, to clothe them,
and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?
Then your light will break forth like the dawn,
and your healing will quickly appear;
then your righteousness will go before you,
and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard.
Then you will call, and the Lord will answer;
you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.
If you do away with the yoke of oppression,
with the pointing finger and malicious talk,
and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry
and satisfy the needs of the oppressed,
then your light will rise in the darkness,
and your night will become like the noonday.”
HONOR – – – OBEY
June 10, 2020 By Leave a Comment
“Honor your father and mother . . .” has no expiration for age or time, even as adults, and after parents are gone.
And, exclusive, added motivation to do so is the fact, the promise of “. . . long life with blessings.”
– – –
“Children, obey your parents in the Lord, . . .”
While you’re growing up, do what your parents say, period.
And, the motivation is very simply “. . . because this is right.”
OXYMORONS FOR SENIORS
May 27, 2020 By Leave a Comment
+Hurry up.
+Write it down.
+Just google it.
+Young people appreciate your wisdom, and are willing to do your manual labor.
+More lame jokes as knees get worse.
+If it weren’t for slow speed, I’d have no speed at all.
+Count your blessings—T-9, T-8, T-7, T-6 . . . all the way to LIFT-OFF (the best).
+I’m not half the man I used to think I wished I was.
+”Go with the wimp.”—–Bill Pruett, responding to my complaint feeling like a wimp.
+”As your days, so shall your strength be.”—–Jesus (OK, God, I’ll take Your Word for it.)
+Getting older, getting slower, faster.
+”When I am weak, then I am strong.”—–Paul (Sure need that to be true.)
+”First shall be last—last shall be first.”—–Jesus (Looking forward to the rest of THAT story.)
+”. . . He will teach you all things, and bring all things to your memory, whatever . . .” (Alzheimer’s Bible verse)
+Laugh at peer pressure—or cry for lack of peer pressure.
+Embarrassment doesn’t matter so much anymore (unless no one notices, to laugh with you).
+Memories.
+Short-term memory goes first—no problem, it’s just the issue of things that happened over thirty seconds ago.
+”How are you doing?” becomes a multiple choice question.
+Was ok—got over it.
+God’s opinion—my opinion. (Which is a laughing matter?)
+”Let no one despise your youth.”
+”Remember your Creator in the days of your youth, before . . .”
– – –
My dear, faithful servants, you’re not home yet.
FREEDOM (WITH VIGILANCE)—VS— SECURITY (WITH CONTROL)
May 27, 2020 By Leave a Comment
The natural default human experience is a drift toward the promise of security—with a drift toward the loss of freedom.
This experience happens with no conscious effort by the people—with a plan for taking control by a small group at the top.
The reversal of this typical experience, to gain and maintain freedom, requires very conscious effort and sustained faith and sacrifice.
It calls for strength beyond human nature.
ALEX MCFARLAND ON THE CHURCH TODAY
May 23, 2020 By Leave a Comment
“Churches are following trends rather than blazing trails.”
“We are selling our soul for celebrity status.”
DIVINE DISTANCING
May 23, 2020 By 1 Comment
There are some interesting mandates from God about distancing.
+”Don’t eat the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden.”
So how much distance should Adam and Eve keep from the fruit and the tree?
Apparently more than they did—but they blew it before they touched or ate—got too close just listening.*
+”Take off your shoes, for the place you are standing is holy ground.”
How much distance should Moses keep from the burning bush?
Rest assured, Moses did not treat casually getting so close to the presence of God.*
+”Fear not, stand still, and see the salvation of God . . . go forward.”
Israel was a very short distance from a miracle they could not see, about to happen in front of them.
Israel was also a very short distance from the fearful enemy behind, out to get them.
But God . . .*
+Israel at Mt. Sinai, “Take heed, that you do not go up to the mountain, . . . whoever touches the mountain shall surely be put to death.”
The people kept their distance, because the greatest fireworks in history on Mt. Sinai blew them away with fear—from God, on purpose.
And Moses said to the people, “Fear not, for God has come to prove you, that His fear may be before your faces, that you sin not.”*
+Don’t touch the Ark of the Covenant!—“The anger of the Lord was kindled against Uzza, and he smote him, because he put his hand to the ark.”
Even “David was afraid of God that day.”
So, keep your distance, or else.
Hmmm.*
+”Touch not the unclean thing.”
So how much distance must we keep from unclean things, from sin, from evil.
“Flee sexual sins.”
“Flee idols.”
“Flee youthful lusts.”
“I will set no wicked thing before my eyes.”
RUN—simply, put as much distance as you can, as fast as you can, between you and evil, temptation, sin.
If God says, “FLEE!”—that means you already had a close call.
Do your very best to keep as much distance as you can from life’s pitfalls, not courting disaster close to the cliffs.
*Same for us?—to fear, or not to fear—take heed, on what basis we expect to get close to God—on what basis we expect a miracle from God.
IDOLS ? – – – TODAY ?
May 16, 2020 By Leave a Comment
First, a few selections from history:
+ PAGAN IDOLS—earth, animals, trees, rocks, weather
When I taught fourth grade four decades ago, it seemed obviously silly how ancient people actually worshipped the earth and things it contained.
It wasn’t long after, that the world established “earth day,” so we could officially worship the physical world around us with the misguided environmental movement.
+OLD TESTAMENT ISRAEL IDOLS—the golden calf at Mt. Sinai, ‘high places’ for duplicating pagan worship on mountains away from the temple, fiery molech for child sacrifice, even physical idols brought into God’s temple.
God set the record straight with severe repercussions, repeatedly as required.
+ROMAN/GREEK IDOLS—named gods for every human need, with human personalities, with human weaknesses, with human needs, providing material for a world of literature, fascinating in itself.
What a phenomenal exercise in futility.
They instinctively knew this did not cover their spiritual requirements, so they added to their physical idols an altar “to the unknown god.”
+CATHOLIC IDOLS—popes and councils add to the Bible (oppose people reading the Bible), indulgences (buy forgiveness—build cathedrals), saints for every need and every occasion (praying to saints unabated for 2000 years, shamelessly, with shrines and dates), Jesus alone is not enough, church itself becomes the idol.
God sends the Reformation—people read the Bible and find Jesus—Catholicism basically unchanged (still depending on the pope and praying to saints when you need them).
PROTESTANT/AMERICAN IDOLS—our enlightenment (we got salvation right, we brush over that Catholics don’t get it quite right, at least we all have Jesus—or do we?), our success (best Christian nation ever), economy (too good to depend on God), personal retirement (unbiblical), evolution to abortion (we didn’t stop either), sex worship to sex perversion (unclean pulpits—unclear message—unthinkable inclusion), social justice to socialism (church mission abdicated to government).
– – –
Jesus alone is enough—adding anything to Jesus and the Bible, by any church, at any time, is false gospel and idolatry—truth is unchanged!
We worship, condoning what God clearly forbids—no illusions that we’ve made any progress since Eden.
If nothing else, don’t give satan more to gloat about.
Warning:
Speak out against the idols of the day in the church—expect to pay a high price, now.
Warning:
Fail to speak out against the idols of the day in the church—expect to pay a higher price, soon.