- Tuesday, 10/8/19 John
16:22, And ye now therefore have sorrow:
but I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man
taketh from you. A reminder that no one can take your joy. So, if you don’t
have it, then you gave it away or walked away from it. And, only you can choose
to get it back.
Are you tired of fighting with your conscience, your past AND conviction from God? Psalm 38:17-18, For I am ready to halt, and my sorrow is continually before me. For I will declare mine iniquity; I will be sorry for my sin. Go be honest and blunt with yourself and God. Confess specifics. However, this may not end the trouble. V19-20a, But mine enemies are lively, and they are strong: and they that hate me wrongfully are multiplied. They also that render evil for good are mine adversaries. Enemies that you’ve accumulated will do whatever they will do. Stay faithful and walk anew with your God. V20b-22, because I follow the thing that good is. Forsake me not, O Lord: O my God, be not far from me. Make haste to help me, O Lord my salvation. There’s no denying it: sin complicates our lives. And, though it can be forsaken and forgiven, the complications often remain.
- Wednesday, 10/9/19 Psalm 37:4, Delight thyself also in the Lord; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart. Sadly, in my life, God is far too often a duty and not a delight. By disciplined thinking, we must accentuate the positives and lessen any negatives toward Him. Proverbs 5:3, For the lips of a strange woman drop as an honeycomb, and her mouth is smoother than oil. Ma’am, this is what your husband is facing: are your words MORE enticing? More sweet? More smooth? Or, have you allowed bad habits to creep into your relationship? Remember what the preacher said, “If we’d keep doing after we get married what we used to do in order to get married, we’d never get unmarried.” Keep winning what you’ve already got.
- Thursday, 10/10/19 Psalm 37:18, The Lord knoweth the days of the upright: and their inheritance shall be for ever. God knows our now and He knows our future. That’s why He’s not worried and bothered like we are. We focus on the now and forget the future. Luke 14:14, And thou shalt be blessed; for they cannot recompense thee: for thou shalt be recompensed at the resurrection of the just. From this verse, I’d like to comment on a deadly belief that is literally damning millions. People look at this verse and think that a recompense will be paid and that being owed the recompense is what makes them “just.” That is TOTALLY wrong. Being just, or justified is a gift. The Bible says the “gift of God is eternal life.” Going to Heaven is a gift given to those who know that they don’t have it, don’t deserve it, and have no way to earn it. Heaven is FREE. It is given to those who rely ONLY on the substitutionary death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus, PLUS nothing. Another Bible term for this is being “born again.” Salvation is a gift to the guilty, not a reward to the righteous. Reread that: salvation is a gift to the guilty, not a reward, a payback to the righteous. AFTER we get born again, we’re just, justified, declared innocent, and THEN, and only then, we can earn rewards through good works. Don’t put the cart before the horse in this verse: being declared just is first, and then comes the recompense. A person can do all the good deeds in the world and still go to Hell, and many will, according to Matthew 7. So, do YOU know that you’re “just”? Do you know that there is not a single sin written down on your record in Heaven? (Cuz that’s how clean your record must be to enter: “JUST,” not “SORTA JUST” or “not as bad as that guy.”) Message me if you’re not 100% sure that the moment your heart stops that you’ll be in Glory.
- Friday, 10/11/19 Matthew 5:3, Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Very simply, are we begging for spiritual things? For Spirit fullness? For holiness? For forgiveness ready to dispense? For love that goes way beyond what is normal? That’s why we live such hellish lives. Luke 14:24, For I say unto you, That NONE of those men which were bidden shall taste of my supper. Notice the absolute of the word “none.” Make no mistake, God has a “Point of No Return.” A person can reject the proffered gift of eternal life enough times that God will withdraw the invitation...eternally. That is what happened here: these people were no longer welcome at the supper. God has infinite love, infinite wisdom, infinite power, but He does NOT have infinite patience. Read my thought yesterday: do you know 100% for sure that you, right now today, HAVE eternal life? If not, this post MAY be the last invitation that the Lord extends to you...He may quit knocking on your heart’s door after today. Message me, call me TODAY if you don’t KNOW that you’re on your way to Heaven. Don’t put your head on your pillow tonight without knowing where you’ll live eternally.
- Saturday, 10/12/19 Psalm 106:1, Praise ye the Lord. O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever. This exact phrase occurs 24x in the Bible. We’re commanded to praise. Praise is bragging on someone for what they’ve done. Worship is bragging on them for what they are. Thanks is acknowledging an act done to or for us. So, “praise YE the Lord.” (It’s more than just saying the 4 words: elaborate.) If you found Aladdin’s lamp and the genie popped out and asked what one single thing that you’d like for yourself, what would it be? Honestly? If I had the wherewithal to do anything specifically FOR YOU, what would you want? God says we can have exactly that: Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets, Matthew 7:12. Go give the money or the forgiveness or the love or the listening ear to another...and claim God’s promise. Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again, Luke 6:38.
- Sunday, 10/13/19 John 17:19, And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth. Our level of separation/sanctification (however high or low) will help or hinder others. So, standards of holiness are to serve others. Is your life all about what you’d like, or how others could benefit? Some things may not be wrong but they’re not helpful. Proverbs 7:5b-6, For at the window of my house I looked through my casement, and beheld among the simple ones... This entire chapter was given in response to learning a lesson given by the fall of another person. Experience is a great teacher...but so also is someone else’s experience. It’s not judgmental to perceive and observe another’s bad judgment and see the results and warn whoever will listen to your “experience.”
- Monday, 10/14/19 Proverbs 9:34, Blessed is the man that heareth [wisdom], watching daily at my gates, waiting at the posts of my doors. A reminder that we are to meet God daily. Can He count on you to meet Him in prayer, in the Bible, in praise and worship, at church? These texts are a record of my meetings with Him. He’ll speak to you too. If you need guidance, ask. Psalm 27:14, Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lord. Clearly, we’re to wait on God. What does that mean? It doesn’t say wait FOR Him to act. A waiter works while he’s waiting on your tip. We need to wait ON the Lord while waiting FOR the Lord. While you’re waiting for His “tip,” go get Him a refill of His iced tea; go tell another how wonderful He is; go encourage another waiter; go learn from the head waiter (Pastor) how to be a better servant to Him.
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