24 October 2917
Emotion or Attitude?
Proverbs 9:10
Fear of the Lord is the foundation of wisdom. Knowledge of the Holy One results in good judgment.

Fearing God is related to wisdom by the fact that knowing real right from real wrong makes us wise. Knowing Jesus is related to good judgment by the fact that Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life for every person.

Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.  (John 14:6)

Truth in society today is being based solely on people’s emotions. That’s just plain wrong. Emotions are based on feelings, and feelings can lie and be arbitrary. If we want actual wisdom and sound judgment, we will not live and make decisions based on our emotions. Instead, we must focus on our attitude. Emotions are all about how I feel, but attitude is all about how I choose to behave. A wise person with good judgment will choose to behave like Christ.

Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too. You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had.  (Philippians 2:3-5)

Dear God,
It is easier to live by how I feel rather than what is true. Help me to focus on my attitude and what I can choose to change and not focus on what arbitrarily and momentarily sweeps over me. Thank you that your guidelines are good because they do not change and they are for everyone! I love you so much and thank you bringing us the Way, the Truth, and the Life so that we can be with YOU. And I pray in Jesus’ name, amen.

17 October 2017
They Don't "Get" Me
Psalm 25:14-15
The Lord confides in those fear him. He teaches them his covenant. My eyes are always on the Lord, for he rescues me from the traps of my enemies.

People tend to look at Christians like we’re from another planet because of the way we think, by the things we do, and by the things we don’t do. But the opposite is true too. I can’t relate to unbelievers at all. Their sense of justice is arbitrary, their wisdom is destructive, and their selfishness affects their relationships, workplace, and society in general. The only ideas they get are their own or from other broken people.

But those of us who have Jesus not only receive discipline and direction, we also continually receive instruction, insight, and real wisdom. God never stops teaching us.

But the wisdom from above is first of all pure. It is also peace loving, gentle at all times, and willing to yield to others. It is full of mercy and the fruit of good deeds. It shows no favoritism and is always sincere.  And those who are peacemakers will plant seeds of peace and reap a harvest of righteousness. (James 3:17-18)

This description of God’s wisdom is very general, but God is very personal, and he reveals to us personally every day how to specifically implement his wisdom into our lives. The Lord confides in those fear him... He reveals things to us that others don’t know. That’s why we make no sense to them.

But people who aren’t spiritual can’t receive these truths from God’s Spirit. It all sounds foolish to them and they can’t understand it, for only those who are spiritual can understand what the Spirit means. Those who are spiritual can evaluate all things, but they themselves cannot be evaluated by others. For,
   “Who can know the Lord’s thoughts?
   Who knows enough to teach him?”
But we understand these things, for we have the mind of Christ. (1 Corinthians 2:14-16)

God doesn’t confide in those who don’t fear him, so they don’t understand him and they don’t “get” me.

Dear God,
Thank you for giving us your wisdom, teaching us, and revealing to us what to do and how to live. Thank you for showing me real right and real wrong, for not only giving instruction in your Word but also discernment through your Holy Spirit. I am not alone to navigate through my life. You are so good to me and I love you and thank you and pray in Jesus’ name, amen.

​9 October 2017
How to Cling
Deuteronomy 13:4
Serve only the Lord your God and fear him alone. Obey his commands, listen to his voice, and cling to him.

Reading the morning news is not encouraging. There are many disasters on the brink! And the recent actual disasters are still taking their toll. This passage this morning from Deuteronomy is timely. When there is evil, when there is disaster, and when there is more to come, don’t blame God; cling to him. Believers know that the evil in the world is a result of free will, sin, and our active Enemy. God is not the source, so the morning headlines don’t cause us to blame God, rather, we cling to him! In fact, it’s a good time to double up on that!!!

This passage also tells us how to cling to him. Clearly, we cling by continuing to follow him, love him and trust him, but there are four imperatives in this verse that describe how to do just that.

Serve. Fear. Obey. Listen.

Serve means to keep being faithful to God and physically and verbally doing the things he wants me to do.

Colossians 3:23  Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people.

Fear means to keep remembering who God is.

Ecclesiastes 12:13-14  Fear God and obey his commands, for this is everyone’s duty. God will judge us for everything we do, including every secret thing, whether good or bad.

Obey means to choose in my heart and mind that I am going to live how God prescribes before trouble even presents itself.

1 Peter 1:14   So you must live as God’s obedient children. Don’t slip back into your old ways of living to satisfy your own desires. You didn’t know any better then.

Listen means that I have an active prayer life. Prayer isn’t me telling God how it is and how it’s going to be. Prayer does involve expressing concerns and thankfulness, but it also involves prompts from God in my heart and mind, conviction and reassurances that I will miss if I just keep talking and don’t pay attention.

Proverbs 18:2   A fool takes no pleasure in understanding, but only in expressing his opinion.

We cling when we keep serving, fearing, obeying and listening in spite of the morning news.
​
Romans 8:31   If God is for us, who can ever be against us?

Dear God,
I am so glad that you are for me today and every day no matter what’s going to happen today that will be a headline tomorrow. I am so glad that you are available for me to cling to every day – even every minute! Help me to faithfully, serve, fear, obey and listen every day. I love you and thank you in Jesus’ name, amen.

6 October 2017
The Rock
Isaiah 26:4
Trust in the Lord always, for the Lord God is the eternal Rock.

The words “always” and “eternal” go together. We can trust God eternally because he is always our Rock!  And David describes what a Rock is...

I love you, Lord;
    you are my strength.
The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my savior;
    my God is my rock, in whom I find protection.
He is my shield, the power that saves me,
    and my place of safety.
I called on the Lord, who is worthy of praise,
    and he saved me from my enemies.
Psalm 18:1-3

The Lord is my rock, my fortress, my protection, my shield, and my place of safety as David described. It is easy to think these are all only invisible attributes until we keep reading and see that David was literally saved by actual enemies too. God protects all of our visible as well as invisible components. He protects the heart, mind, soul and strength of every person who trusts in him.

Interestingly enough, the Greatest Commandment (Luke 10:27) addresses the same elements:  You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind. And he is our Rock, our protection, so we can do just that!
​
Dear God,
Thank you for being concerned with every single bit of me. Thank you for keeping me safe physically, emotionally and spiritually. I love you so much and appreciate your loving concern over my life, and I pray in Jesus’ name, amen.

 2 October 2017
On the Heels of Tragedy
Proverbs 29:25
Fearing people is a dangerous trap, but trusting the Lord means safety.

Today is not the day to preach at people about political positions. Today is the day for people who witness and experience personal tragedy to examine their lives if they haven’t already.  I don’t wish tragedy on anyone, but tragedy sometimes provides the only opportunity for someone to think about things they don’t usually think about including life, death, and God. When horrible things happen, it reminds us all of two things – life is short and there is great evil in the world.

Psalm 103:15-16
Our days on earth are like grass;
    like wildflowers, we bloom and die.
The wind blows, and we are gone--
    as though we had never been here.

Even without a tragic, unforeseen attack on human life on unsuspecting concert goers, all life is short. Especially when you consider all of eternity, one life is just a blip on the screen no matter how long a person lives, and just a few short generations later, no one will even remember your name. This is not a depressing thought, it is and encouraging thought prompting us to make the most of every opportunity and not waste any time.

Ephesians 5:16-17
Make the most of every opportunity in these evil days. Don’t act thoughtlessly, but understand what the Lord wants you to do.

Not only should we realize the brevity of life, but also we should realize and recognize that during these short little lives of ours we have an active Enemy who is the source of evil.

1 Peter 5:8-9
Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.  Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith.

No one is going to escape tragedy or death. And these are terrifying truths for someone who has never heard Jesus’ words from John 16:33, “Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.”

Dear God,
It is not trite to say, only true – YOU provide the solution to short life AND tragedy. You offer eternal life through your Son, Jesus, as well as strength, protection, and the ability to withstand evil, to point evil out and prevail against it. I pray for our friends who are wrecked by what they experienced in Vegas last night and help them to turn their attention to you. YOU truly are our only source of help and life, and I love you and thank you that this is absolutely true, and I pray in Jesus’ name, amen.