James is one of my favorite NT books. It is full of practical advice on how to live and James doesn’t worry if he’s being politically correct or not in his delivery. He hits it hard when it comes to the topic of the tongue. “The tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity.” Yeah, that pretty much sums it up. I would wager that more people have gotten in trouble for things they’ve said than for things they’ve done! You need to use some thought to take an action but words can flow out of the mouth with little thought at all! As Christians, we need to be aware of what we say. The world is watching, and listening too! Take heed to what Jesus said, “that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment.” David, far from perfect in his actions, sincerely wrote from his heart, “let my words be pleasing to You.” Are we concerned about the Lord’s opinion before we speak, does it ever occur to us? Solomon tells us in one of his Proverbs “a kind word makes a glad heart.” Are we striving to make glad hearts, in everyone, everywhere, with both our words and actions? We have opportunities, small and large, everyday to show kindness with our words and actions, and we should constantly be taking advantage of them. As James said, you can’t have fresh and salt water coming from the same spring. Don’t allow the woes and worries of the world turn you brackish! Strive to be a fresh spring of kindness, encouragement, and hope and then you won’t have to worry about being in the long line on judgment day!B
There are many heroes in the Bible that are great examples of someone to look up to, but Samson really isn’t one of them. Yeah, he may have been the first superhero, incredible strength, took out a 1000 Philistines with a donkey’s jawbone, toppled a temple, but he was suppose to be a spiritual leader more than just a warrior. He allowed his ego and his lust to control him until in the end he was left blind and bound with chains at the hands of his enemies. Only through the grace and power of the Lord was he able to make amends and exact justice on his Philistine captors. Instead of being the truly great leader he should have been, he became broken, defeated, and humiliated. Playing in the fields of sin will do that! Pastor Curt made three points yesterday that we need to take to heart and teach others. Sin will take you farther than you want to go! Sin will keep you longer than you want to stay! Sin will cost you more than you want to pay! The world constantly lures and lies to us. Try this, do that, what’s the harm? Don’t listen to God, He’s a killjoy, you can handle it. From the beginning, that old snake in the grass has been trying to tear us down. He’s good at his job and we are pretty soft targets. That’s why Jesus had to do what He did, we couldn’t be reconciled any other way. Rely on Him, His strength, His help. Ask Him to create a clean heart in you. Don’t be like Samson and think you can play in the fields of sin and win! Instead, play in the fields of the Lord and you will never lose!
What is the most valuable thing in your life? What can you not live without? What is the first thing you think of when you awake? Apparently, for the average American, it’s their cell phone! I don’t know how or who comes up with these statistics, but supposedly, the average American touches their cell phone 2,617 times each day, spending 2 1/2 hours staring at the small screen! And that’s not counting computers and tv! Technology has trapped the world into instant mindless entertainment and gratification! How many people, as they lie on their deathbed, will be reaching for their cell phones to check how many likes they got on their last, very last, picture? Too many I fear. Instead of the small screen (except for reading this) let’s take a look at King David. A man like us, certainly not perfect (we won’t go into his major blunders), but even in his youth, he was a man after God’s own heart … and God honored him for that! Over and over, David wrote the same theme in Psalms. “My soul longs for You, early will I seek You my soul thirsts for you, I shall be satisfied when I wake in Your likeness, how sweet are Your words to my taste sweeter than honey in my mouth, Your word is wonderful my soul keeps them.” David was sold or souled out for the Lord! We can say we are distracted by the pressures of modern day life and providing for a family, but that doesn’t wash. David had the same to many more pressures than we do, and like us, he failed many times, but he still, as should we, had a heart for God. This life span is miniscule compared to eternity. Get your eyes off the small screen and onto the big picture of forever which starts now with your personal relationship with the Lord!
I will always remember watching the 2013 Stanley Cup Eastern Conference final when Gregory Campbell of the Boston Bruins broke his right fibular as he blocked a slap shot during a penalty kill and still stayed on the ice for a minute longer so as not to leave his team another man down! That is playing while hurting! We all suffer hurts throughout life, be they emotional, physical, relational, financial, things happen, but we go on. When you became a Christian you weren’t promised a bed of roses, in this life. We’re told there will be trials and tests and they will make us stronger to keep on going. Look at Paul’s account to the Corinthians. ” … in labors more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prison more frequently, in deaths often; from the Jews five times I received 40 stripes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, a night and a day in the deep; in perils often, in perils of waters, perils of robbers, perils of my own Countrymen, perils of Gentiles, in perils of city, perils of wilderness, perils of false brethren, in weariness and toil, in sleeplessness often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness …” Dude! Paul knew how to play hurt, he knew how to serve hurting! As pampered Americans, we have no idea how much hurt many of our brothers and sisters in other parts of the world are going through to serve the Lord. They know how to serve while hurting! While we are alive, we should never grow weary of serving the Lord, hurting or not! We should never grow weary of doing good. We all have different abilities and gifts, don’ t stop using them because you may be hurting. We have an eternity of joy before us, but maybe only one more slap shot to stop. Make your time on the ice count!
One of the saddest days in history was twenty years ago this month, on the 11th day of September, and I never saw it coming. Do you remember where you were and what you were doing on that day of tragedy? Were you ready for that news when it hit and unfolded throughout the day? President Bush sat in on a primary school activity and informed what had just happened; he never saw it coming. American flights were all banned from entry as planes over the US were grounded. Most of us watched the footage repeatedly as the planes flew right into the towers. Then, with horror, we watched the towers collapsing with the realization of the thousands who were not ready for that day. If only we had been warned of the events of that day, we could have prepared, and no one’s life would have been lost. May we never forget.
The Bible tells of the ultimate saddest day that we can prepare for – the great day of judgment. Though no one knows the exact day or hour, we have been instructed to be ready whenever it happens. God has paid the way through the death of Jesus Christ for no one to perish. The sad truth is that many will be standing outside the gates of heaven and denied entry. They did not prepare for this day as they have rejected the payment of Christ on their behalf. The Apostle Paul said that God “…has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained. He has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead” (Acts 17:30-31). What a sad day for those not prepared and who will be lost (see Matthew 25:1-13). Are you ready for Judgment Day?
The woes of the world can give one angst. Tragedies piled upon tragedies, people fleeing their countries, viruses killing wantonly, it isn’t pretty. We all need some encouragement. Read Psalm 46 and focus on verses 1-3 and verse 10. “God is our refuge and strength. A very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear.” Who is our strength and refuge? Are we going to work out all our own troubles and everyone else’s? What are we scared of? He tells us over and over He is there for us, to lean on Him, He’s got it under control. What can we fear if He is for us? Then there’s verse 10. “Be still and know that I am God.” Isn’t it so much easier to run around willy nilly and know that He is God than to sit patiently and quietly and let Him do His thing because HE IS GOD? You have to love Peter because he represents so many of us so well. I get Peter. I would rather do something wrong than nothing at all. When Peter was on the Mount of Transfiguration and getting all excited, wanting to build tents (better to do something wrong than nothing) and God spoke, “This My beloved Son in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him,” it was for our sakes as much as Peter, James, and John’s. Be still, I am God and so is My Son, listen to Him, We’ve got it covered! We’re not going to change the world’s situation, He is! We can’t get rid of the angst, but He can! Try being still, being alone with Him in quietness, listening and leaning on Him, letting Him be in control, because you know, He is God!
James is one of my favorite NT books. It is full of practical advice on how to live and James doesn’t worry if he’s being politically correct or not in his delivery. He hits it hard when it comes to the topic of the tongue. “The tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity.” Yeah, that pretty much sums it up. I would wager that more people have gotten in trouble for things they’ve said than for things they’ve done! You need to use some thought to take an action but words can flow out of the mouth with little thought at all! As Christians, we need to be aware of what we say. The world is watching, and listening too! Take heed to what Jesus said, “that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment.” David, far from perfect in his actions, sincerely wrote from his heart, “let my words be pleasing to You.” Are we concerned about the Lord’s opinion before we speak, does it ever occur to us? Solomon tells us in one of his Proverbs “a kind word makes a glad heart.” Are we striving to make glad hearts, in everyone, everywhere, with both our words and actions? We have opportunities, small and large, everyday to show kindness with our words and actions, and we should constantly be taking advantage of them. As James said, you can’t have fresh and salt water coming from the same spring. Don’t allow the woes and worries of the world turn you brackish! Strive to be a fresh spring of kindness, encouragement, and hope and then you won’t have to worry about being in the long line on judgment day!B
By Tim Irving – Evangelism Team
What is the most valuable thing in your life? What can you not live without? What is the first thing you think of when you awake? Apparently, for the average American, it’s their cell phone! I don’t know how or who comes up with these statistics, but supposedly, the average American touches their cell phone 2,617 times each day, spending 2 1/2 hours staring at the small screen! And that’s not counting computers and tv! Technology has trapped the world into instant mindless entertainment and gratification! How many people, as they lie on their deathbed, will be reaching for their cell phones to check how many likes they got on their last, very last, picture? Too many I fear. Instead of the small screen (except for reading this) let’s take a look at King David. A man like us, certainly not perfect (we won’t go into his major blunders), but even in his youth, he was a man after God’s own heart … and God honored him for that! Over and over, David wrote the same theme in Psalms. “My soul longs for You, early will I seek You my soul thirsts for you, I shall be satisfied when I wake in Your likeness, how sweet are Your words to my taste sweeter than honey in my mouth, Your word is wonderful my soul keeps them.” David was sold or souled out for the Lord! We can say we are distracted by the pressures of modern day life and providing for a family, but that doesn’t wash. David had the same to many more pressures than we do, and like us, he failed many times, but he still, as should we, had a heart for God. This life span is miniscule compared to eternity. Get your eyes off the small screen and onto the big picture of forever which starts now with your personal relationship with the Lord!
By: Tim Irving – Evangelism Team
The woes of the world can give one angst. Tragedies piled upon tragedies, people fleeing their countries, viruses killing wantonly, it isn’t pretty. We all need some encouragement. Read Psalm 46 and focus on verses 1-3 and verse 10. “God is our refuge and strength. A very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear.” Who is our strength and refuge? Are we going to work out all our own troubles and everyone else’s? What are we scared of? He tells us over and over He is there for us, to lean on Him, He’s got it under control. What can we fear if He is for us? Then there’s verse 10. “Be still and know that I am God.” Isn’t it so much easier to run around willy nilly and know that He is God than to sit patiently and quietly and let Him do His thing because HE IS GOD? You have to love Peter because he represents so many of us so well. I get Peter. I would rather do something wrong than nothing at all. When Peter was on the Mount of Transfiguration and getting all excited, wanting to build tents (better to do something wrong than nothing) and God spoke, “This My beloved Son in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him,” it was for our sakes as much as Peter, James, and John’s. Be still, I am God and so is My Son, listen to Him, We’ve got it covered! We’re not going to change the world’s situation, He is! We can’t get rid of the angst, but He can! Try being still, being alone with Him in quietness, listening and leaning on Him, letting Him be in control, because you know, He is God!