Jul
13
Glass Houses and Rocks
Filed Under grace
It has been a while since I have posted. I’m surprised David hasn’t kicked me off his blog! Things have been kind of hectic with the new job.
It has been a tad over a week since Steve McNair was shot and killed in a murder suicide by his girlfriend. It was quite a shocking story. Here was a man, who was married and had 4 children, carrying on a relationship with another woman. Even though I never knew Steve McNair or his family, I immediately felt sorry for his wife and children.
We all know he was a great football player, and he was one of my favorites. He may have been the toughest man I have ever seen. I watched him in person put on a performance during a college football game that no one has ever repeated. I have heard a lot on talk radio about McNair and his death. There were people who pointed out he would probably still be alive if he hadn’t been carrying on an affair, yet, others praised him for his football talent.
Another response I heard, regarding McNair’s death, was that of quoting scripture out of context. These folks liked to quote Jesus from the second part of John 8:7:
If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her
They didn’t feel anyone should point out McNair’s infidelity because none of us are perfect. I completely disagree with them. We should all be discerning in our lives. If something is sin, we should call it that. We shouldn’t pretend something that is wrong is right just because that might be the popular thing. Jesus’ response in John 8:7 was regarding the scribes and Pharisees bringing an adulterer to Him and asking what they should do with her. Jesus was merely pointing out they should not judge themselves better than her. Their sins were just as bad as her sin. We should judge ourselves as we would judge others. We all live in glass houses whether we realize it or not. As Christians, our houses are even more transparent.
None of us are perfect. We all make mistakes and are sinners. Romans 3:10 says:
As it is written: “There is no one righteous, not even one
We should not judge our lives to how Steve McNair lived his. There is nothing wrong with pointing out his affair was wrong, but we should not judge ourselves better than he was. We all have our faults and sins. McNair’s death should remind us that the choices we make in life have consequences. This is why we should ask and pray for God’s leading in direction in our lives.
Jun
23
Thank You Lord
Filed Under faith
A few weeks ago, in a post, I mentioned my position at work was being terminated due to unsuccessful bidding on a contract. God has truly shown how great and faithful He is. I was offered and accepted a position within the parent company that provides a pay increase and a promotion. Once again, God has shown that He answers prayer.
In times when it seems all hope is lost, never fear. God is always in control. There is nothing God cannot do or provide. He is truly an awesome God!
Please pray for my co-workers who have not found new jobs yet. There are many who have been unsuccessful in searching for a new job.
Jun
10
Amazing God
Filed Under Thankfulness, praise
Yesterday morning, before leaving for work, I sat on my back porch and enjoyed the cool morning. I got to looking around at the trees and plants. Then 5 or 6 birds flew by the screened in porch. The sun started rising. I got to thinking about how amazing God is.
We didn’t happen by accident. The world didn’t happen by accident. Everything is because of God. That thought hit me hard, and I really felt how truly insignificant I am and how much I need to let God take control of the things I try to control. It also let me know that no matter what trials I face in life, He is there in control.
May
9
Trusting God
Filed Under God's Will
Proverbs 3:5 and 6:
Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways, acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths.
I hope you enjoyed our 30 Days of Christian Living series David and I did last month. I know I have been a little slack in posting this month, but there have been a few things going on in my life and I have not taken the time to post.
Many, many years ago, I chose Proverbs 3:5 and 6 as my life verses. However, lately, I haven’t been following those words very well. I received word this past Monday my job would be terminated in 90 days due to my company’s contract expiring. While it was not really unexpected, it was kind of an eye opener once it became official. I have to admit I have had a little anxiety over it this week. With the way the economy is today, it is not the best of times to be looking for a new job. Hopefully, I will be able to obtain a new position within my company sometime between now and August 3.
Last night, I became convicted about having a lack of faith. I have written on here a lot about trusting in God and having faith. It seems this week, I have been hypocritical in my own life. I have not been following my own advice and the word of the Bible. I must admit, I felt ashamed. Here I am, placing my faith in Jesus to save me, but yet, I haven’t been fully trusting Him to provide a new job for me. I had to ask Him to forgive me. He gave me my current job. Why would I think He would leave me out to dry? He won’t. I know He has a plan for me. I just have to have faith and wait upon Him.
I don’t try to pretend I know it all. There are a ton of things I have no clue about. I do know God is in control of everything and His will is always perfect. We just have to be patient. It is not about us and what we want, it is about Him and His time.
Apr
30
Jesus said in Matthew 25:40:
Inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to me.
There are many people in the world who are hurting and have needs. Not only do they have physical needs, a lot of these people also have spiritual needs that need to be met too. Unfortunately, we do not look for opportunities to help people. Too many times, we do not do this because it will be an inconvenience to us. I have to admit I am guilt of this.
When you read through the gospels, Jesus helped many people without receiving anything in return. I’m sure there were times when He helped people when it was not convenient for Him. Any time He did anything for anyone, He did it with love and without any expectation of being paid back.
I recently ran across a quote that made me think about myself. I do not know who wrote it, but I thought it was a quote that we should all remember.
A test of true Christian love: Do you help those who can’t help you in return?
This is a question we should take to heart and try to improve our answer.
Apr
28
Jesus said in Luke 14:13-14:
When you give a feast, invite the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind. And you will be blessed.
The following poem was written by Dennis J. DeHaan.
The poor and needy everywhere
Are objects of God’s love and care,
But they will always know despair
Unless His love with them we share.
There are many ways to give to others. When we think about giving to others, we think about providing services, giving money, or giving our time. There is another thing we should give, but unfortunately, we do not always think of it. We should share with people our gift of salvation.
God was not choosey when we were given the gift of salvation. John 3:16 tells us God loved the world so much, Jesus was sent to save whosoever believes upon Him. Anyone who believes on Him is given eternal life.
Just as God was not choosey in saving us, we should not be choosey with whom we share His love. We should not be too good to help or to share God’s love with the poor, the lame, the blind, or anyone else. Someone was not too good to share God’s love with us, why would we think we shouldn’t tell someone else?
Apr
26
The title of this post may be a little misleading. I am not going to talk about the monetary offering we give in church. I’m going to talk a little bit about giving ourselves for the Lord’s service. We are told in Colossians 3:17:
Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus.
I have written several blog posts that were similar to this subject, but as I was thinking about this subject, I happened to run across a devotion written in an “Our Daily Bread” devotion book that is published by Radio Bible Class Ministries. In this devotion, David Roper writes,
As long as we have the light of day, we must work-not to conquer, acquire, accumulate, and retire, but to make visible the invisible Christ by touching people with His love. We can then be confident that our labor is not in vain in the Lord.
That quote pretty much sums it up. As Christians, we are to give ourselves to spreading the love of Christ and making Him visible through us. We are to strive to lay up treasures in Heaven and not treasures on earth. Many times, we tend to lose sight of what we are supposed to strive to accomplish.
Yes, we have to work in order to pay our bills and take care of our families. We all have to make money in order to live. However, we should not place more importance on earthly treasures instead of Heavenly treasures. I have to admit I lose sight of this. Unfortunately, I tend to dwell too much on earthly thing rather than Heavenly things.
Don’t get me wrong. There is nothing wrong with making a lot of money or having a nice house or having nice things. However, we should all realize these are gifts to us from God. Without His help and blessing, we would not have those things. This should cause us to re-evaluate our priorities and realize these things should not be our primary motivation in life. We should be motivated to store up treasures in Heaven. When it is all said and done and we are living eternally in Heaven, all of our earthly riches won’t matter. The only things that will matter is what we have done for Christ.
Apr
24
In Isaiah 5:20, the prophet Isaiah said:
Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil!
As Christians, we should all be leaders. Obviously, all of us cannot be the same type of leader. We all are not called to be pastors, deacons, or hold ministry positions. However, we all can be leaders for the faith in our own circles and communities.
Part of being a leader is discerning what is good and Godly and what is not. This is not always easy to do. There will always be opposition from the world to the things of God. The world calls many things good when, in reality, they are evil. In order to be leaders for God, it is imperative we do not waver and we have the courage to stand for what is good and stand against what is against the things of God.
We need to make sure our relationship with God is what it is supposed to be. We should maintain a healthy prayer life. I Thessalonians 5:17 tells us to:
Pray without ceasing.
Without consistently seeking God’s help and strength, we will not be able to stand up for Him. We should constantly petition God for His help and guidance so we can be effective and strong leaders for Him.
Apr
22
We all have heard the parable of the prodigal son. This story can be found in Luke 15:11-32. Since this passage is a little long, I will not post the passage here. However, I would encourage you to look it up and read it. You can find the passage by clicking on this link.
The parable of the prodigal son is wonderful story of our relationship with God. When we are saved, we are not transformed into perfect beings. Our salvation does not replace our sin nature. Since we are not perfect and still have our sin nature, we will do things that are not pleasing to God. We may say things we shouldn’t. We may act unethically. We may be dishonest. There are many, many things we may do that bring hurt and sadness to God. However, God will accept us back if we stray from him. When our actions disappoint God, He is there waiting for us ready to accept us back when we repent and come back to Him.
This also involves us being humble and not being proud. We have to be able to recognize we are wrong. This involves being honest with ourselves and with God. There is nothing we say or think that God does not know. However, true repentance must involve our own personal honesty. We may audibly ask for God’s forgiveness, but if we are not sincere, we are not being honest to God or ourselves. We will not receive God’s forgiveness unless we really are sincere.
We are assured in I John 1:9 that:
If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
Apr
20
I ran across a tract that was titled, “How To Be A Happy, Useful Christian.” It was written by J. Allen Blair. He listed quite a few things Christians can implement that would open ourselves to be used by God. Among the things listed, Blair said:
-Commit yourself wholeheartedly to God
-Constantly trust the Lord Jesus to live through your rather than struggle to live the Christian life by yourself
-Meet the Lord regularly
-Be alert for the many opportunities God will give you to tell others what Christ has done for you
-Choose friends who will help you grow and advance in Christian faith
-Join a church which teaches the Bible clearly, and be regular and punctual in attending its services
-Pray
-Recognize your responsibility as a steart of what God had given you
There were many others, but I thought these should be noted.
In order for us to be useful for God, we need to be open for His will and guidance in our lives. That involves having a relationship with Him, and having a healthy prayer life. If we make ourselves available and ask for opportunities to serve Him, He will place us in the right spots and will open doors for opportunities. However, we must be willing to do so.
keep looking »