First Things First

Life is loaded with distractions and crisis. Daily we’re bombarded with decisions, responsibilities, and trying to make a better life for ourselves and our families. But are you enjoying your life? Or are you – like me – constantly tempted to be so wrapped with the goal you forget what’s really important?

Even though daily demands create a constant pull on our energy, we have to focus on what’s most valuable. I know one professional who used to spend an hour in the cemetery whenever he felt his priorities were out of order. Looking at gravestones will definitely help you assess your life and that’s always best to do before you’re “pushing up daisies.”

People who make work or success their priority will likely lose everything of true value anyway. They might gain a title, prestige, or money, but if you forfeit your family, valuable relationships, integrity, or years of your life, what have you really gained?

People who are successful share some similar traits. Where they put their priorities are significant in their success. For them, as a general rule, they have strong faith – not necessarily Christian, but they answer to a Higher Authority in their lives and don’t run their lives in a manner that conflicts with their convictions.

After their faith they put family. Building strong relationships with their spouse and children (if they have them) is vital and sometimes they even turn down once-in-a-lifetime opportunities if it means it may jeopardize the well-being of their family.

Finally, third on the list, is work. Their career or business comes in dead last. Yet, by maintaining harmony in these three areas, they have become some of the most successful people on the planet.

So, this week, as you’re filling your life with appointments and spending the minutes you have left, be mindful of what’s taking precedence in your life. Spend time reading your Bible or other inspirational, instructional, text and improve yourself. Pray. Get quiet. Get direction.

Take the good that life has given you, whether it’s a loving spouse, super children, or great friends, and enjoy them. It’s said, “no one on their deathbed ever says, ‘I wish I would have worked more.'” What you give them emotionally can’t be replaced. Your financial fortune can be lost in a day, but the memories you give them will last their lifetime. They can lose money but they can’t lose memories.

So, I encourage you, pull up a chair and audit your life. Where’s your time spent? Are you enjoying the good things life has given you or are you so focused on getting somewhere or accomplishing something that two vital areas of your life are neglected. There’s harmony in prosperity and you can’t have a truly successful life if you don’t balance all three. What’s money without family or faith?

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The Truth of The Matter – Top 20 Favorite One-Liners

1. The nicest thing about the future is that it always starts tomorrow.

2. Money will buy a fine dog, but only kindness will make him wag his tail.

3. If you don’t have a sense of humor, you probably don’t have any sense at all.

4. Seat belts are not as confining as wheelchairs.

5. A good time to keep your mouth shut is when you’re in deep water.

6. How come it takes so little time for a child who is afraid of the dark to become a teenager who wants to stay out all night?

7. Business conventions are important because they demonstrate how many people a company can operate without.

8. Why is it that at class reunions you feel younger than everyone else looks?

9. Scratch a cat and you will have a permanent job.

10. No one has more driving ambition than the boy who wants to buy a car.

11. There are no new sins: the old ones just get more publicity.

12. There are worse things than getting a call for a wrong number at 4 a.m. It could be a right number.

13. No one ever says, “It’s only a game,” when their team is winning.

14. I’ve reached the age where the happy hour is a nap.

15. Be careful reading the fine print. There’s no way you’re going to like it.

16. The trouble with bucket seats is that not everybody has the same size bucket.

17. Do you realize that in about 40 years, we’ll have thousands of old ladies running around with tattoos and rap music will be the Golden Oldies?

18. Money can’t buy happiness – but somehow it’s more comfortable to cry in a Corvette than a Yugo.

19. After 50, if you don’t wake up aching somewhere you’re probably dead.

20. Always be yourself because the people that matter don’t mind and the people that mind don’t matter!

Flying the Friendly Skies

“But God, being rich in mercy, for His great love with which He loved me, even when I was dead through my trespasses, made me alive together with Christ (by grace I have been saved) and raised me up with Him, and made me to sit with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.” Ephesians 2:4-6 (myBible: Standing on the Promises, page 128)

Greetings, Friend! Right now I’m writing from 36,000 feet in the air, traveling 450 miles an hour toward the west coast of the United States. My heart is stirred by the incredible view of the clouds that rest beneath my feet and the glimpses of the plains below that resemble a patchwork quilt; pieced together and individually meshed with one another.

As the plane levels off I was thinking about the people around, rows of strangers traveling to the same destination. This may be the only time in our individual histories our paths cross.

As I look around I wonder who is saved and who is not. If these were the final hours of our lives, would they go “up” or down?” Would they have a joyous exit from this life into their eternal life with God the Father or exit in anguish into eternal damnation and terror?

Everyday our lives cross the paths of strangers whose time on this earth is as limited as ours. Moment by moment people just like us pass on into their eternal destinies. Eternal destinies determined by a simple question: “Who is Jesus Christ to you?”

I have a feeling an airplane is a great place to get people saved. I feel like jumping up and shouting, “if we were to die in the next hour would you go to Heaven? Have you accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior? Are you at peace with your Maker?”

Dramatic, I know. I tend to lean towards the dramatic, and sometimes morbid or dry sense of humor. I’m sure ‘d be silenced quickly and sentenced to my seat for the rest of the trip or tackled by heroic zealots.

But it is a thought. What am I responsible to do in this instant? In this moment of time? What are you responsible to do?

I believe God merely asks that we tell. That our affection for Him be so present in our thoughts and overflowing in our hearts that it works up in conversations even in passing.

Many people are strangers to God’s goodness. Unaware that He is really a loving and merciful Heavenly Father. If people know of God” they tend to think He makes you sick to teach you things or takes people’s lives from them to spare them from the future . . . sorry. God’s not that way. And if you think He is — stop it.

He needs you to fulfill your part of the Kingdom plan. He has “hidden” huge blessing for you in the midst of His will. Your part is important, regardless of what spectators may think.

Success is there. Happiness is there. Blessing is there. Provision is there. We all play different parts, but can enjoy the same fringe benefits by being in the center of God’s will for our lives.

While I’ll sit here and “behave” for now, I intend to open my mouth more often to offer a friend or a stranger a piece of the God in me. Will you join me? We’re representatives everywhere we go. We are the light in a very dark place. It will irritate the eyes of some who have lived long in the darkness and will draw others through curiosity. And then there are those that will be relieved to find refuge in the Son.

As you go through your week, I pray that you will love someone around you enough to intercept them as they trek toward eternal damnation. Some plant, some water, but God gets the increase. Let’s take as many with us as we can!

Confessions of A Junk Food Junkie

As I sat gobbling down another sweet treat, I was disturbed in my Spirit. Junk. Junk. Junk. I had developed a habit of avoiding sweets, candy, and fat-filled foods, but the season for celebration rolled in and I indulged.

What’s wrong with that? Plenty.

I’m not trying to pass off my personal beliefs on you. However, I just want to bring one thing to light. We are stewards over all that God has entrusted us with. Managers of all He has given us. Our bodies are included.

Without our bodies we are no longer legal residents of earth. If our bodies no longer house our spirits we move on to our eternal reward, be it Heaven for those who have made Jesus their Lord and Savior, or hell, for those who have rejected the goodness of God through Christ.

God isn’t ripping pages of a celestial calendar, counting down the days before He takes you off this planet. The Bible has MUCH to say about how you can possess long life. That makes it your responsibility. God doesn’t make you sick, cause bad things to happen to teach you a lesson, or kill people. He is the God of Life and love. Satan is the delivery boy of death (see John 10:10).

The Bible reveals to us we are spirits, we have a soul (our mind, will and emotions) and we live in a body. We have been issued this body, or “earth suit,” if you will. If your earth suit is abused or misused, the damage can be fatal. As long as your earth suit functions properly, you can move about the planet as a human being, or literally, human spirit.

God needs you to take care of your earth suit. It’s your passport to the natural realm until you return home, to the Heavenly Kingdom. Earth is not our beginning and end. It’s a sliver of our eternal lives. You have a mission to accomplish! You have a specific, God-given reason for living. You need a healthy body to get the job done.

There’s a saying, “you are what you eat.” How can you expect your body to perform at its peak if it’s fueled by nutritional trash? You can’t. In God’s brilliance He built the human body to be a resilient, intelligent machine, but He only assigned you one earth suit. It’s the one you have from birth and it changes throughout your life based on how you care for it.

He gave you one set of fingers. One set of toes, two feet and a nose. He gave you eyes and ears, all your unseen and unsightly organs, and miles of veins and vessels.

Now, there’s a fine line here. I’m not saying you pamper your body. Actually, the Bible is very clear about buffeting (or disciplining) your body. You tell it what to do. Don’t let it dictate to you what it wants, which for me, has been bad food.

Now I know no one really wants to hear about taking care of their body because it means not doing some things (eating those yummy fried foods) and doing others (more veggies, more exercise).

However, if you listen to your heart, I believe you’ll agree. God is trying to make us aware of the big picture. This body needs to work for many years to come. It will be hard to enjoy a good, long life if it cuts out on you.

Why enjoy decades of life living inside a sick body? That’s not how God has it planned. But, the good news is, it’s all within your control.

I encourage you to care for the earth suit God has given you. The Body of Christ needs you to fulfill your part and your purpose on this earth and you can only accomplish that mission if you’re clothed in flesh.

As you begin taking care of what you’ve been given, you will grow spiritually and enjoy the blessings that come with health and long life; more energy, greater productivity and a life that glorifies God. God honors a life that honors Him. Let’s honor Him in all we do.

Nay-Sayers and Nincompoops

“Now He who established me in Christ, and anointed me, is God;
who also sealed me, and gave me the down payment of the
Spirit in my heart.” 2 Corinthians 1:21-22, myBible: Standing
On the Promises, page 74.

I’ve been studying to acquire my commercial driver’s license.
Our community has a shortage of bus drivers and it really works
well with my schedule to drive a bus for a few hours a day. So,
I’ve been riding along as part of my preliminary training.

A few days ago, a cute little girl boarded the bus. She had big,
beautiful green eyes and her curly hair bounced on her shoulders.
She was a well-mannered and timid little creature.

As she sat down in her seat, the bus driver complimented her new
dress and shoes, “You look very pretty.” A smile crept across
her face as she took the words to heart.

Another little girl across the aisle heard her. She ducked down
behind the seat so the driver couldn’t hear her and said, “You
look like a bad girl.” When she saw I was looking, she quickly
turned away.

Now what she meant by that, I don’t know. But it wasn’t nice.
And as I observed the interaction, I realized that’s what the
devil does to a lot of people.

God comes to us in His Word and says, “this is who I say you
are . . . ” and when we read it, we’re excited. But the devil
comes along (through thoughts or other people) and whispers
something to the contrary, maybe even something believable,
and we sink down in our hearts.

Or maybe, you’ve heard or read about the promises that are yours
through Jesus Christ. You take them to heart, but a whisper, a
doubt,  a nay-sayer, or nincompoop comes to steal the promise.

If you don’t fight that doubt, if you don’t evict the whisper
from your heart and mind, you will abandon the promise.
You will lose out, surrender, and forfeit what God has already
given you, what Jesus purchased with His own blood.

I don’t know how those words affected that little girl. The kind
words were true. She did look very nice. However, would she allow
the poison words from another to suffocate and silence the truth?

Right now, someone or something is trying to persuade you subtly
or by force, that God’s Word, His promises, or even His love is
not enough. Maybe the voice says, “you’re not deserving,” or “you
can’t do it,” or “you’re bad.”

But let this resound in your heart, the Giver of Breath and
Source of all life has something to say to YOU:

“Now He who established me in Christ, and anointed me, is God;
who also sealed me, and gave me the down payment of the Spirit
in my heart.”

God Himself has established YOU in Christ.
The All-Powerful God has anointed YOU.
The Almighty God has sealed YOU, marked YOU for Himself, His
very own.
Our Loving Father gave you a down payment, a portion of what He
has in store for YOU right now.

He has already put a healthy serving of His own Spirit, a piece
of Himself, in YOUR heart, to live in YOU all the days of YOUR
life. To help YOU and to guide YOU. How personal is that?

Don’t let anyone or anything steal the promises of God from you. Don’t let some bully steal from you.

Bible Proves the BIG BANG

Greetings! The big bang theory has Biblical validity.

Here’s the reply I made to a post somewhere out in cyberspace. I’m posting it here because I don’t know how to link it back to my page.

“I was thrilled to be passing by when I caught your post. I’d love to try to answer some of your questions with real answers. I’d like to make two statements upfront, however. First, there is a large difference between Catholicism and Christianity. Second, faith is simply a deep belief. And yes, God doesn’t dish out all the answers to us up front. If we knew everything, why would we have a need/desire to trust or believe in Him? That would make us the highest form of life and therefore no need to acknowledge Him. And I don’t believe we are that highest form.

So, your questions. “But with that statement the following questions arise: who created the Big Bang and who created the creator?”

First, the Creator is a spirit being. The Big Guy. Spirits are eternal, no beginning and no end. That is why it’s so important to get into the discussion of Jesus Christ and salvation when it comes to your own eternal future.

Actually, I believe we exist in eternity right now. If eternity is eternal then it never had a beginning and never has an end. It exists outside of the parameters of time itself. If we try to grab that with our finite minds it’s a hamster wheel that makes our brain tilt.

So, God drew a starting point and a finish line across the canvas of eternity. He called the starting point “the Beginning” and the intangible measuring stick we call “time,” was born.

Now the Bible tells us right out the door, “In the beginning God (prepared, formed, fashioned, and) created the heavens and the earth.” Genesis 1:1

Then it tells us in Hebrews 11:3, “by faith we understand that the worlds were framed (fashioned, put in order, and equipped for their intended purpose) by the word of God, so that what we see was not made out of things which are visible.”

Simply put, to understand this you are going to have to incorporate some belief in it. It says “by faith we understand” and then it tells you how He did it. His Words.

Continuing in Genesis: “The earth was without form and an empty waste, and darkness was upon the face of the very great deep. The Spirit of God was moving (hovering, brooding) over the face of the waters.”

Now I’ve heard some pretty incredible scriptural arguments that support the “theory” that there’s a huge gap in time between the first and second verse. In the beginning God created . . . and . . . the earth was void and without form. The scriptural basis is found in the documentation of Lucifer’s fall, where he was cast out of God’s Kingdom (Heaven) and basically attributes the destruction (or the void and lifeless earth) to his impact into the earth. This can get pretty in-depth so we’re not going to hang out here.

So, God established time and then created the earth. It was toast and the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the planet waiting to find out what He was supposed to do. (My very loose translation of the scriptures above.)

v3 And God said, “Let there be light;” and there was light. Now that seems pretty uneventful until you start thinking about it. We know how fast light travels. That was the power and thrust that was behind His words. And remember the scripture said, “what we see was not made out of things that are visible.” No, it was made out of words. God’s words.

If God’s words have the combustion behind them to explode light into existence then don’t you think that was quite a bang? There was nothing — and then there was brilliant, permeating, penetrating light that raced through the nothingness.

Two interesting points here, science has spent billions of dollars to break down the molecular structure and has discovered the smallest particle inside: the quark. The composition of a quark is soundwaves. God said and it was. Those soundwaves created everything we see. As a matter of fact, God outlined it clearly in the Bible that salvation comes through believing and speaking with your mouth. The same way He created the universe is the same way we create a new life in Him.

The other point is that science continues to stretch out and is amazed that the universe is so unending. But God never set a boundary on the universe. He never told light to stop. He just said “light be” and it continued on . . . and on . . . and on. Science will never reach the ends of the universe because God never said “stop.” That’s how powerful His words are.

So, your “big bang” is probable as explained above. And the existence of a God with no beginning and no end is the greatest of all wonders. Maybe Adam understood it in the garden, because it wasn’t until after they disobeyed God’s one command that time became an issue.

Because of “the fall” Adam was now subject to spiritual death whereas before he wasn’t confined to a limited time on earth. So everyone developed a mindset of limited time. You’re born and then you die.

I’ll be the first to say I don’t have all the answers, but I have walked this life as a Christian for a while. Many people have bumped into religion and it doesn’t deliver. Jesus Christ is about relationship. Walking with you day-by-day, helping, comforting, counseling, encouraging. It’s not an easy road, but it’s one you never have to walk alone again.”

Stop Badgering About Jesus

A sinner doesn’t need to hear that sin is wrong. They need to hear their sins have been forgiven by a compassionate and loving God, by the bloody sacrifice and dynamic resurrection of a Savior. We need to approach people with the answer, not the problem.

Ultimately, the problem is not that sin abounds in their life but that they have not taken hold of the free gift of salvation and let it wash them clean. It is not sin that separates us eternally from the Father, but refusing to accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior. For salvation is the remedy to sin and eternal separation from the Lord of all.

Prayer in School

Now, my disclaimer prior to unleashing this poem on you: It’s loud and extreme, but makes the point. It’s not to offend (maybe some holy stirring would be good).

As we near the start of another school year, whether student or parent, we need to lift our peers and children up in prayer. Prayer to strengthen them to make a stand for Christ in growing darkness and protection from the plans of the enemy to kill, steal and destroy anyone and everyone he can. Our Lord is greater! He is stronger! The Almighty! The Creator and The Just Judge!

(This poem came to me untitled and author unknown.)
Now I sit me down in school
Where praying is against the rule
For this great nation under God
Finds mention of Him very odd.

If Scripture now the class recites,
It violates the Bill of Rights.
And anytime my head I bow
Becomes a Federal matter now.

Our hair can be purple, orange or green,
That’s no offense; it’s a freedom scene.
The law is specific, the law is precise.
Prayers spoken aloud are a serious vice.

For praying in a public hall
Might offend someone with no faith at all
In silence alone we must meditate,
God’s name is prohibited by the state.

We’re allowed to cuss and dress like freaks,
And pierce our noses, tongues and cheeks.
They’ve outlawed guns, but FIRST the Bible.
To quote the Good Book makes me liable.

We can elect a pregnant Senior Queen,
And the ‘unwed daddy,’ our Senior King.
It’s “inappropriate” to teach right from wrong,
We’re taught that such “judgments” do not belong.

We can get our condoms and birth controls,
Study witchcraft, vampires and totem poles.
But the Ten Commandments are not allowed,
No word of God must reach this crowd.

It’s scary here I must confess,
When chaos reigns the school’s a mess.
So, Lord, this silent plea I make:
Should I be shot; My soul please take!
Amen

I can not imagine the things our children have to face daily or even what fears they may confront every time they leave the house. Pray. Pray. Pray. We can make the way for God to enter the school halls again and cause a revival in our youth. He desires to infuse and empower these young lives with supernatural, overcoming, life-changing influence and ability. Let’s make it easy for Him to do. PRAY!

No matter how bad it looks, we always win in Christ.

Spoiled?

Sorry it’s been so long since I blogged. I like to keep things rolling and have been juggling so many projects this was the first to be paused.

One of my projects has given me the opportunity to see how life-changing the internet can be. For bad and for good, too. As Christians we have been pretty passive about the opportunty to harness the WWW, yet the enemy and his bunch use it to crush and exploit lives everyday.

The internet is more than a toy, it is a tool. There are a mass of sites online that pertain to internet evangelism. That’s clever. And church websites are a dime a dozen. It’s the phone book at your fingertips day and night. Instant access to weave in and out of people’s lives as you please (and they permit). However, I stumbled into a reality that I knew with my head, but never touched with my heart.

I’m an American citizen. I live in the so-called “Bible belt” and probably even more so the “belt buckle.” We are surrounded by Christians and our town has more churches than restaurants. That may sound cool to some, but it has it’s draw-backs.

Christianity has become a label and not a lifestyle. There’s a numbness that settles in and religion (man’s idea of how to please God) reigns. People adopt the attitude that if I am good, I’m alright. After all, I was “saved” as a kid (or whatever other denominations believe you have to do) and I don’t do the bad stuff that other people do. Totally self-righteous. Gag.

In launching my new book, “myBible: Standing on the Promises” earlier this year, I created a weekly newsletter that visitors to our website could sign up to receive by email (check it out at  http://www.aboutmybible.com ).

I was thrilled to see my GEOmap reveal I had subscribers from every inhabitable continent (except Australia). Those little “tacks” thrilled me. From countries surrounded by jungles to tiny islands in the sea. Africa, the Middle East, China, Japan, the UK, Germany, Israel and of course the U.S. — when you’re sitting at your desk in a small suburban town, asking the Lord how in the world you can make a difference and then you get a flood of emails from people in countries across the world, it really gets your attention.

They were so grateful to get an email that had a scripture and an encouraging “ditty.” I couldn’t believe it. Not once have I received anything from someone in the states thanking me or being so grateful — not that I’m looking for it, but it shows me something. We are drenched here. The Word of God, churches, music of every genre, and Christian fellowship abounds. It’s easily accessible and the hardest question we may answer is where to go to church or which services fit in our schedule (that’s an entirely different post).

But in every email I have received there was a hungry heart at the other end. Somewhere out there a soul who was desperately wanting more of God. A living, human being who didn’t have instant access to the dozen Christian broadcasts or a Bible bookstore down the road. They were thankful for the morsel and starving for more.

I doubt they had the luxuries that we do; the hours of entertainment at their disposal and a remote for every electronic gadget in the house. A car — or two — or three in the driveway. Yet, they were so thankful and constantly praising God for His goodness and grateful they had access to the newsletter.

As I read through the emails today, I am aware that perhaps I’m spoiled. I have enjoyed the abundance of God’s presence and a constant access to people around me who will support and agree with me in prayer. I have my Pastor’s number on speed-dial and can count the number of times I have missed church in 13 years on one hand. Yet . . . these distant emails from people I have yet to meet remind me that there’s a bigger picture. There’s another world. A life in God that is so worth living. This life I have becomes distasteful and I’m reminded that really what it is all about is Him.

While I may have been able to deliver an encouraging or inspiring word for the moment, these friends-from-afar have reminded me what it is to hunger deeply and yearn, even ache desperately for more of the Father. A richer, satisfying relationship — even more than that — more than what I can get from Him . . . what I can give to Him. Unending praise. A heart that is instantly obedient and submitted wholly (and holy) to Him every moment of every day. A life of leaning on Him so dependently that if He moved from me I would fall to the ground.

Are you spoiled? Have you forgotten the bottom line? The reason? The fire and desire to please Him? Let’s wake up and shake up the passion we have for Him and His purposes. Let’s forget the issues, the doctrine, the man-made paths to the throne and get on our faces and be still before the King. Let’s wake up out of this daze, this haze of a numb, flat, blurry existence. Let’s shed the world that desperately clings to us and slows our progress and run the race with ferver and intensity like we did when we first came to know Him.

Let’s give it all we’ve got so that in that instant, when we stand before our Master, He will gladly say “Well done, thou good and faithful servant.”

God bless you in all you do.

What Can You Dare To Believe For?

For I believe everything spoken by God is possible.  Luke 1:37 
(myBible: Standing on the Promises, page 60)

Dare to believe.

Possessing a relentless belief in God’s integrity is a vital element in seeing His power manifested in your life. You must believe if He said He would do something He will deliver. He is not a created creature, a fragile man, that He should lie or fall short of His promise. He is the ever-living, everlasting Master of the Universe whose command still illuminates the Heavens.

You were created to believe. Your heart desires to believe, to trust in and rely on Your Father. The enemy would try to strip you of that confidence and fill you full of fear, but God’s Word is greater. If you will dive into the promises and bathe yourself in the Scriptures, your mind will be introduced to a new way of thinking. Your life will evolve into a reflection of the Great God and blossom into a reality that surpasses your wildest dreams.

Dare to believe that everything spoken by God is possible, for it is so whether you believe it or not. Your unmovable determination to exalt God’s eternal Word over your temporal circumstances will grant Him permission to use His power on your
behalf. And that, my friend, is the beginning of an exciting life!

I pray this week that your internal “believer,” your God-given faith, will swell up on the inside of you and you will agree  with God’s Word. Even in the face of impossible circumstances, I pray that you will agree and see that He is willing, He is able,  and He is ready to do what He has promised in the Scriptures.

You are the child that He loves. If you trust Him with your eternal future, why not trust Him with your life now? 

This is an excerpt from a newsletter we have created entitled, “A Word For Your Week.” If you would like to subscribe go to www.aboutmybible.com and join us for a scripture and an encouraging word — it’s like caffeine for your spirit! God bless!