Sunday, 3/29/15 Mark 12:30 And
thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart...soul...mind,
and...strength. The first commandment: how are you doing with it? The same
methods that can improve an earthly relationship will work with a heavenly one
also: talk, listen, thank, compliment, give in, etc. Ps
67:1 God be merciful unto us, and bless
us; and cause his face to shine upon us; Oh!! We need His mercy and
blessings so much...but the sentence didn’t end. V2: that thy way may be known upon earth, thy saving
health among all nations. What if the soul winner who won you to Christ
served God as fervently 2-5-10 years ago as you serve Him now? Would you be
saved? There’s another “you” out there tomorrow, next month, 2023...you’re
saved to serve God. Today, go give someone a chance to come to Heaven with you.
Monday, 3/30/15 Mark 12:31 And
the second [commandment] is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as
thyself. The second commandment...how’re you doing with it? Is your
neighbor saved? Loved? A frequent recipient of your good words and works? Do
you know their name? Ps
66:2 Sing forth the honor of his name:
make his praise glorious. Those of you who can craft words (essays, poems,
songs): first of all, do it and share it, and secondly, make God and
Christianity look good!!!
Tuesday, 3/31/15 We often
pray and say, “Please bless so-n-so.” Maybe we should pray this verse instead:
Ps 70:4 Let all those that seek thee
rejoice and be glad in thee: and let such as love thy salvation say
continually, Let God be magnified. Pray that people’s relationship with God
prospers. Gen 49:4 Unstable
as water, thou shalt not excel... Some things that make for instability: a
lack of ongoing growth; bitterness (unforgiveness/anger); sin (decay, death,
rottenness), a poor foundation (on the sand vs on a stone). Can you think of
others?
“Listening to the
voices in my head without clearing them thru the Bible.” “Double-minded,
allowing myself to be influenced spiritually by the ungodly. Reading books that
are not scriptural in their foundation.”
Wednesday, 4/1/15 Job 2:2
And the Lord said unto Satan, From whence
cometh thou? And Satan answered the Lord, and said, From going to and fro in
the earth, and from walking up and down in it. Basic Bible doctrine: Satan
is, right now, either in Heaven or somewhere on the earth. He’s never yet been
to Hell. Luke
11:1 ...one of his disciples said unto
him, Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples. Leaders,
God’s people need practical “how to’s” as least as much as philosophical “why
to’s.” What are you teaching your followers?
Thursday, 4/2/15 Ps 34:3 O
magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together. If someone
wanted a partner who would help them praise God...would they call you? When any
spiritual topic comes up, does your name come up? 1 Cor 5:6 Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump? A little
sin, permitted, accepted, excused, permeates the entire body. Everyone must
strive to cleanse that for which they’re responsible: each individual: their
own lives; parents (especially dads): their children; Pastors: their church.
(Of course, the follower must accept the cleansing, or hard feelings result.)
Friday, 4/3/15 Ps
71:2 “Deliver me...” “Oh God!! From
my debt, my sickness, my enemies, my burden, my fatigue...!! But we overlook
the next 3 words: Deliver me in thy
righteousness. God can’t violate His righteousness: He won’t go against His
character; He has purposes He’s trying to accomplish. Can you, WILL you let Him
be righteous in your situation? Ps
71:8 Let my mouth be filled with thy
praise and with thy honor all the day. The precludes gossip, griping to
others, slander...and even, most of our casual, benign conversation.
Saturday, 4/4/15 Job 6:9 Even that it would please God to destroy me;
that he would let loose his hand, and cut me off. Recognize when people are
emotionally stressed, allow them extra latitude re: what they say. Realize it’s just talk. (Another reason not
to trust your heart...) Ps
73:2 But as for me, my feet were almost
gone; my steps had well nigh slipped. What had put the psalmist into such a
precarious position? V3: For I was
envious... 1”Little,
socially acceptable” sins are still sins.
2God’s definitions
are what matters. 3The sins of the heart usually are far more deadly than
sins of the will or body. 4Envy put Christ on the
Cross. See Mt 27:18. Definition of envy: “to fret or grieve one's self at the
real or supposed superiority of another, and to hate him on that account.”
Thoughts from some others
- To most Christians,
the Bible is like a software license. Nobody actually reads it. They just
scroll to the bottom and click "I agree."
- We are not told to
manage temptation. We are told to flee it.
- The fastest way to
infuse a church with a comparative and judgmental spirit is to make personal
standards institutional regulations.
- Don't tell me how much
you love God, let me see how much you love your neighbor.
Pro
22:9 He that hath a bountiful eye shall
be blessed, for he giveth of his bread to the poor. A generous attitude and
a helping hand for the poor have a promise of blessing from God’s word.
Pro
31:27 She looketh well to the ways of her
household, and eateth not the bread of idleness. I thank God for my
ambitious, hard-working wife who made sure the children were well supervised,
disciplined, and trained early in life. The hand that rocks the cradle rules
the world.
Luke 12:48c ...and
to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more. Jesus told
us way back then about the 80/20 rule. Did you ever notice that the person
who's doing the most gets asked 'to do more'? That's because they're
responsible!
Ps
33:12 Blessed is the nation whose God is
the LORD; and the people whom he hath chosen for his own inheritance. I'm
starting to wonder about our Good Ol’ US of A!!! IS the LORD still the God of
this nation??! Christians! The 2nd part of that verse is talking about us: is
the LORD still OUR God; or do some just play around? Realize that we can be
blessed. And if we're not blessed; we're cursed.
A person can stay strong for only so long.So, when do
you cry, “Uncle!"? You don't! You realize that you need God's grace to
keep on keeping on! James 4:6 But he
giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth
grace unto the humble.
Rom 8:26a Likewise
the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray
for as we ought. Thank God for His Spirit Who not only helps us live, but
helps us pray and get our prayers answered!
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