Baptist City Blog

- Tuesday, 5/4/21  Psalm 116:2b, Because he hath inclined his ear unto me, therefore will I

call upon him AS LONG AS I LIVE. In addition to whatever else we pray for, we need to pray for our own protection; that we’ll stay faithful until our race is over.                           Psalm 84:11, For the Lord God is a sun and shield: he Lord will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that WALK UPRIGHTLY.  How upright are you? We’re to be like the stupid poster that shows evolution: the monkeys “evolved” and they stood up straighter and straighter until the final picture is of an upright human. We’re to be gradually getting more and more upright. Could you honestly say that you’re a better Christian than a year or two ago? If not, get with it. If you are, there’s more to do. Don’t get complacent. Those who become casualties in the Christian life were first casual toward their Christian lives.

- Wednesday, 5/5/21  Proverbs 28:26a, He that trusteth in his own heart is a fool. Our hearts are NOT to be listened to; NOT to be trusted; NOT to be followed; NOT to be depended upon. They are cesspools. Yours is; mine is. We’re not objective. What does the Bible say to do? Get counsel.                          Psalm 118:6, The Lord is on my side; I WILL NOT fear: what can man do unto me? Notice that the psalmist said that his fear was subservient to his will. Fear can be governed by the will. So...stop! Emotions come from our thoughts. Change, by choice, on what you are thinking. “Living in fear” shows a habit of wrong thinking.

- Thursday, 5/6/21  Are you starting to feel your age? Good!!! Psalm 90:12, So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom. God wants us to be aware of our frailty so that we loosen our grip on temporal things and latch onto eternal.                          1 Samuel 14:6, And Jonathan said to the young man that bare his armour, Come, and let us go over unto the garrison of these uncircumcised: it may be that the Lord will work for us: for there is no restraint to the Lord to save by many or by few. Jonathan’s faith made him DO something for God. What is your faith pushing you to do? Faith is not meant to be a static possession or a shiny trophy, but a greasy, oft-used dynamic tool. Faith is like gasoline: it has huge potential. But we don’t buy gas to leave it forever in a gas can. We buy gas to use it to accomplish something: mowing the yard, driving to work, visiting a hospital. Use your faith.

- Friday, 5/7/21  Psalm 119:74, They that fear thee will be glad when they see me; because I have hoped in thy word. Some people brighten others’ days when they walk in a room; some when they walk out of it. Are your words and spirit and attitude uplifting or down-pulling?                                    Psalm 119:10, With my whole heart have I sought thee: O let me not wander from thy commandments. Most of us won’t run from the commandments, but will simply drift away. We must remember that our natural inclination is away from God. If we simply try to tread water, we’ll be taken downstream by the current just as surely as if we swam downstream. If we don’t actively keep trying to progress toward God, toward MORE holiness, toward MORE surrender, toward more purity, we’ll drift.

- Saturday, 5/8/21  Psalm 119:113, I hate vain thoughts: but thy law do I love. Christianity is as much about hatred as it is about love. OK...you love; do you hate? Is it even possible to truly love without hating? If we love flowers we automatically hate weeds... We’re to hate our sins and tolerate others’.                                Psalm 119:73b, Give me understanding, that I may learn thy commandments. Understanding comes before learning. “The knowledge of the holy is understanding.” “He that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.”  To help us learn the Bible, we must make sure our heart is right with Him, and that we acknowledge Him anew as the Source of all good things and also our complete impotence to learn anything without His help. ‘Without Him, we can do nothing.’

- Sunday, 5/9/21  Psalm 91:5, Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day. The solution to a fear problem is given in vv1-2. Are you characterized by fear? Careful...you’re telling on yourself.                           Romans 9:2, ...that I have great heaviness and continual sorrow in my heart. This is the same one who penned the words, “Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice,” and “rejoice evermore.” How can these two coexist? He had sorrow in his heart but choice to express and feel joy. There’s both hot and cold water in my faucet, but I can choose which to open. There’s honey and vinegar in my kitchen: I choose which to use. (BTW, there's a time and a place for both.)

- Monday, 5/10/21  Romans 12:2a, ...and be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed... Conformed means to “fashion alike.” So God is saying that our outside, our exterior, is to be visibly different from the world. Just by watching you, can others see something different? (Yes, He’s very aware of and concerned with our exterior appearance.)                            Psalm 119:132, Look thou upon me, and be merciful unto me, as thou usest to do unto those that love thy name. Thank God that despite our evaluation of His actions, He is faithful and His character never changes. PTL that He never “used to do good, but no more.” Also, note: one of God’s superstars, a writer of Scripture, got it wrong. The Bible “superstars” were a LOT more like us than we normally think. They are in our Bibles as trophies, but as examples and motivators. We CAN be like them, cuz they were JUST like us.