God's Greatness Vs. Man's Weakness

Isaiah 40:8

"The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever."

Are you amazed that God would use you? When I consider my weaknesses, I am stunned that our great God would use me. There are many times when I pray and ask God why He would use someone like me. I am constantly amazed that God could use me. I do not wonder because I doubt God's greatness, but I wonder because I realize my weaknesses.

In the verse above, God shows us the difference between His greatness and our weakness. In verse 6, God says that man is as the grass of the field. He also says that our goodness is like the flower of the field. It's interesting that God uses these things to show us how weak we are. As pretty as grass may be, it takes a constant watering for it to exist. When you look at the beauty of a flower, you are amazed. Yet, the beauty of the flower will fade without water.

It is interesting that both grass and the flower need water to exist. God says in Ephesians 5:26, "That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word," Notice, God's Word is compared to water. In other words, just like the flower and grass need water to exist, you need God's Word to make it. You will wither against life's attack if you don't stay in the Word of God. The beauty of your life will fade if you don't stay in the Word of God. Your strength is dependent upon God's Word. It is God's Word that has made you who you are. Whatever greatness you have, it is all due to the fact that God's Word is what made you.

So, you wonder how great is God's Word. The verse above says that the grass will wither, the flower will fade, "but the word of our God shall stand for ever." The word "stand" carries several definitions to show us how great It is. It means, "to rise, to abide, to continue, to remain, to accomplish, to lift up, to perform, to strengthen and to succeed." Don't miss it! You may fall, but God's Word can cause you to rise again. You may begin to fade, but God's Word will help to you to abide. You may want to quit, but God's Word will encourage you to continue. You may want to leave, but God's Word will cause you to remain. You may falter, but God's Word will help you accomplish what He has sent you to do. You may be thrown down, but God's Word will lift you back up. You may be broken, but God's Word will fix you and cause you to perform. You may begin to tire, but God's Word will give you the strength to continue. You may fail many times in life, but God's Word will help you succeed.

Christian, when you can do no more, God's Word is what steps in to help you make it. You cannot allow a day to go by without spending time in God's Word. Everything in your life may fail, but you can count on God's Word. Your world may crumble, but God's Word will always stand.

Always remember in your weakness, God's strength will be revealed to you through His Word. Don't give up! When you have no where to go, you can trust God's Word to keep you going. When you have withered and faded in life, then lean on God's Word for It will stand forever.


Stay Close to Home

Proverbs 27:8

"As a bird that wandereth from her nest, so is a man that wandereth from his place."

The shelter of the bird is its nest. Oftentimes a bird will build its nest in a location that their enemy cannot get to. Every time the bird wanders from its nest, it is putting its life in danger for it is away from the protection of its nest.

God uses this illustration to teach us that a man who wanders from his place is in danger. A young person doesn't get into sin while they are at home, but they get into sin when they are away from home. Adults don't get themselves into trouble when they are away from the protection of their home. The reason they get into trouble is because when they are away from home they will allow themselves to do things they wouldn't do when they are around their family. Home is where you find protection, and if you don't want to get into trouble, you would be wise to stay close to home. This is an important principle in many areas. Let me explain the areas and its importance.

First, be careful when you are away from your personal home. As we've already discussed, there are many things a person will get themselves into that they normally would not do if they were around their family. Because of this, you would be wise to set up precautions to guide you when you are away from home. One of the most important precautions you can make is to be sure you are not out late when away from home. Many people get into trouble away from home when it is late at night. Make it your habit to stay in late at night when you are away from home.

Second, spiritually you need to stay close to home. Many people compromise when they stray from the principles of the Word of God. In other words, don't meet with people who don't believe like you. You will find that they can sway your thinking. Many times a compromiser is not a rude person, but they are very personable and have learned the art of swaying others to them with their personality. Stay close to your home church and the Word of God, and don't explore other beliefs that are different from yours.

Third, in the business world you need to stay close to home. Many businesses get themselves into trouble when they start trying to do something for which they are not known. For instance, a restaurant that sells burgers would be wise to stay in the burger business. If that is from where their success came, then that is where they will stay successful. Many business go bankrupt because they get away from what made them successful in the first place. They didn't mean to go bankrupt, but they simply strayed from what they knew as a business.

Fourth, stay close to home with what you know. I do believe it is good to continually learn, but it is bad to delve into an area about which you know nothing. Simply, don't give advice or explore opportunities in areas where you have no knowledge. Your safety is found in those areas where you are knowledgeable.

Christian, many of the heartaches we find ourselves in are in areas where we strayed from our nest. Always remember that home is where your safety is found. Stay close to home, and be extra careful when you find yourself away from the home in any area of life.


Don't Let Go

Song of Solomon 3:4

"It was but a little that I passed from them, but I found him whom my soul loveth: I held him, and would not let him go, until I had brought him into my mother's house, and into the chamber of her that conceived me."

Nearly every week of my life I leave to go preach at a meeting for someone. One of the hardest things I do each week is leave my wife and daughter to go to the airport. I have yet to find the easy way to do this. During my daughter's early years, she would often grab one of my legs and hang on as I would head to the garage. She would say, "Daddy, I'm not letting you go." I finally had to tell her that daddy had to go and help people. She reluctantly let go, and I would leave with my heart crushed because I wanted to be with her and my wife.

In the verse above, the wife said she found her husband and "would not let him go." This lady searched her whole life for the right man, and now that she found him she was determined to hold on to him. She wasn't going to let anything come between her and her husband. She wanted to be close to him. I would think that this type of desire the wife had for her husband had a way of keeping him close to her. Just like my daughter grabbing my leg and not letting me go made it hard for me to leave, I also believe it made it that much more difficult for this husband to leave his wife.

Married couples should have a determination that they are not going to let their spouse go. I'm constantly amazed how couples who are struggling are so quick to divorce their spouse. Where is the determination not to let their spouse go?

Every spouse should determine to hold on to their husband/wife and not let them go. Don't let your spouse go for another person. Don't let your spouse go for your career. Don't let your spouse go for personality conflicts. Don't let your spouse go because you are going through a short spell of marital problems. Your marriage can make it, and you can work through your marital problems if both husband and wife will determine not to let each other go.

Moreover, I believe parents and children need to get the determination not to let each other go. I know children grow up and some of the things like my daughter did when I left for a meeting were an childlike stage action, but you can still emotionally hang on to each other and not let things or people pull you apart. Every family needs to be careful not to let technologies pull them apart. Don't get so wrapped up in other things that you truly never spend time with each other. Grab on to each other and spend time together, for you never know when your loved one will be gone.

Most importantly, every Christian needs to grab on to God and determine not to let Him go. Of course, you can never lose your salvation, but you must determine to hold on to God if you are going to keep Him first in your life. Don't let trials and heartaches cause you to let go of God. Don't let disillusionment in leaders cause you to let go of God. Latch on to God and determine that money, career advancement, outside activities or friends will not cause you to let go of God. Grab ahold of God and determine you are going to stay close to Him no matter what comes your way. Be as determined as Job was in Job 13:15 when he said, "Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him:..." Determine that you will hold on to God until the day of your death.


The Simple Life


Ecclesiastes 4:6

"Better is an handful with quietness, than both the hands full with travail and vexation of spirit."

I remember going to visit my grandparents when I was a young boy. Neither set of grandparents had a lavish home. I remember visiting my mother's parents in Illinois. My grandmother did not have a big home. I believe she had a two bedroom house, and the porch was converted into another room in which to sleep when we came to visit. Her simple home was nothing you would look back to and wish you could have, but the one thing that stands out in my mind is that she was happy.

My father's parents also had a very small home. They lived in a small town in Shelby, Indiana. Their home was a three bedroom home, but two of the three bedrooms were nothing more than an oversized closet. They lived in that home for several decades and seemed to be very happy living there.

When I look back to both sets of grandparents, I see they did not have big homes or lavish possessions, but what they did have was happiness. I believe their happiness came from living a simple life. They didn't feel they needed all the updated technologies or possessions that others had. Though they didn't have a lot of possessions, their simple life did give them happiness.

The verse above says, "Better is an handful with quietness, than both the hands full with travail and vexation of spirit." One of the things many miss in life is the happiness that a simple life brings. You can have your hands full with every possession the world offers, and have all the newest technological gadgets, but if you don't have happiness, you are a very poor person. Too many people get caught up in making their life complex by having to have more, thus they bring strife and discontent into their homes. You will always find that those who tend to live a more simple life will normally have a happier life because they don't have to squabble over "things."

You would be wise not to get caught up in the status game. Be careful that you don't purchase a home that is truly too big for your family. I'm not against bigger homes, but I do feel that sometimes we purchase homes that are too big, and the price of those homes force husband and wife to have to work to pay the bills. Always remember when you purchase a home that eventually your children will be gone. Don't think that you have to have a bigger home just to stay up with someone else.

Furthermore, be careful about falling into the trap of always having to get some gadget or technological device that someone else has. Most of us have, at one time or another, gotten something we really didn't need, and ended up selling it in a yard sale. Learn to wait a while before going out and buying something that someone else has. You will find that many times you really don't need it.

Christian, there is nothing wrong with having things, but don't fall into the trap of having to have something because someone else has it, or getting something for the sake of status. Live within your means. When you learn to keep your life simple, you will find true happiness is easier to obtain.


You're Not Spiritual Enough

Job 1:5

"And it was so, when the days of their feasting were gone about, that Job sent and sanctified them, and rose up early in the morning, and offered burnt offerings according to the number of them all: for Job said, It may be that my sons have sinned, and cursed God in their hearts. Thus did Job continually."

Having godly parents is a great blessing for anyone. Certainly, when you look at Job's children, they could easily say that they had a godly dad. For God to give the commendation to Satan about Job is nothing short of amazing. God said there was no one like Job. God bragged about Job's spirituality. His children had no excuse not to be spiritual themselves.

However, one of the mistakes that Job made was thinking he could be spiritual for his children. It says in the verse above that Job sacrificed burnt offerings for his children just in case they sinned against God. Job felt that he could do for them what they should've done for themselves. Job needed to understand that as much as he loved his children, he could not pass his spirituality down to them like an inheritance.

Parent, you cannot be spiritual enough to pass your spirituality down to your children. Being spiritual is not a possession; it is an action. Far too many parents think their children are spiritual because they serve God. As much as I love my daughter, I cannot pass my spirituality down to her as an inheritance. I am only as spiritual as I am because I do what I'm supposed to do. If your children are going to be spiritual, then they must do spiritual things. Your children will not be spiritual because you are. They will be spiritual because they do right.

However, you can be spiritual enough to influence them in the ways of God. Though you cannot pass your spirituality down to them, you can influence them in the right ways to become what they are supposed to be. This is what you must understand about rearing your children. Your children are not going to become spiritual through osmosis, but you can make sure that all of their influences are spiritual so that they have a better chance of choosing to do spiritual things.

If you want your children to be spiritual, then be sure they're in a constant atmosphere of spirituality. In other words, make your home life a spiritual life. Don't leave your spirituality at church; instead live a spiritual life 24/7. Be sure your children attend spiritual activities. When the youth department at your church has activities, be sure they are involved in those activities so they can have an enjoyable time in a spiritual atmosphere.

Furthermore, be sure your children have spiritual friends. Friends will influence your children more than anything else. One of your responsibilities as a parent is to be sure your children have the right friends. They may not like you telling them not to spend time with a certain person, but it is your responsibility to be sure their friends are spiritual.

Finally, be sure you do spiritual things with them. Every night it would be good to have family devotions. Read the Scriptures and pray with your children on a daily basis. Be sure they have a personal time alone with God.

It would be a wonderful thing if we could put in our will that we are passing our spirituality down to our children, but we can't. So, the best thing you can do is to be sure they are around a spiritual atmosphere and that they do spiritual things. Ultimately, spirituality is their choice, but you can make sure their choice is influenced by spiritual things.