Baptist City Blog

Tuesday, 6/14/16  Ps 23:1 is supposedly a verse of comfort: The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. But, He’s my Shepherd and I’ve wanted/lacked a lot. This is actually a challenge to my own out-of-control desires.            Jesus told stories to illustrate His points/truths: those without names are referred to as parables, and oftentimes they seem to be simply created stories. Lesson: you may “invent” or “craft” an illustration. Also, be aware of privacy issues or potential embarrassment if the story is a true one.

 

Wednesday, 6/15/16  Luke 22:62, And Peter went out, and wept bitterly. Repent humbly or weep bitterly...it’s your choice.               Ps 9:20, Put them in fear, O Lord: that the nations may know themselves to be but men. Negative circumstances sometimes bring positives with them. You’ve seen it in your life as I have in mine. So don’t be so against the negatives in your life now. Examine them. Maybe it’s just “bad tasting medicine” that is ultimately doing you much good.

 

Thursday, 6/16/16  Ps 36:7, How excellent is thy lovingkindness, O God! Therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of thy wings. Note: the children of men got saved upon emphasizing and realizing how kind God is. Don’t neglect this avenue of soul winning.                Ps 37:28, for the Lord loveth judgment, and forsaketh not his saints; they are preserved for ever: but the seed of the wicked shall be cut off. Note: “ARE”...present tense; “preserved” indicates it lasts into the future. Another proof verse that once we’re saved, we’re always saved.

 

Friday, 6/17/16  Ps 37:1, Fret not thyself because of evildoesrs, neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity. A good verse for all of you follow the news closely and get upset over the direction of the country. To quote Aaron Rodgers: “R-E-L-A-X.”                 John 10:1, Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. Having the correct destination in mind or desiring it is not sufficient. The proper method is required. Are you trusting Christ’s payment plus nothing for your hope to enter?

 

Saturday, 6/18/16  Rev 13:11, And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon. A little out of context, but do you look like a Christian and talk like a devil? Think? Act?                 Ps 46:10 Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth. Our religious freedom is an anomaly in the world and always has been. It will continue to deteriorate and be taken from us. Rest easy: God is aware and will exalt Himself and care for His name. Our job is to simply be faithful in doing what we are supposed to do in our current situation.

 

Sunday, 6/19/16  Ps 50:21, ...thou thoughtest that I [God]was altogether such an one as thyself... A reminder that we will never be able to figure out God. He is not like us: we are in His image. He thinks differently than we do. So when you and He can’t see eye to eye: trust His eyes.                  Ps 50:23, Who offereth praise glorifieth me. To glorify simply means “to put the spotlight upon.” Is your spotlight shining on you and your agenda or upon His?

 

Monday, 6/20/16  Ps 51:2, Wash me thoroughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. We often pray something like this, but we always assume that God will use a soft sponge and gentle soap. What if He needs to use steel wool and an abrasive cleanser? There is a difference between being forgiven and being cleansed. Which do you want? Are you willing to truly be cleansed?                Jud 16:17, Then [Samson] told [Delilah] all his heart. Husbands, wives: are you holding your spouse’s heart carefully? Can they open up to you without you discounting their feelings or arguing why they shouldn’t feel thus-n-so or why those feelings are their fault, or downplaying the importance of their feelings? If they can’t trust you with their feelings, their whole heart, they’ll either withhold them totally and be miserable and lonely, or they’ll find another person whom they feel they can trust (and be miserable again). Your spouse chose you and needs you...you MUST be there for them with a listening ear and a non-condemning spirit.

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- Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.

- A leader is one who sees more than others see, who sees farther than others see and who sees before others see.

- The more I see God as He really is, the more I see myself as I really am.

- Am I opposed to gun control? 100% opposed, yet the defeat of our nation comes at the hands of a generation which knows best the manipulation of remote controls. Better to teach a boy a trade than teach him to flip channels.

-  If you can't enjoy the company of kids then I can't enjoy yours. Age is no excuse. Children are a heritage of the Lord.

- “My father was excommunicated from his own church. It was his good example through that which kept me from becoming a cynic of Christianity.” ~ An excerpt from the book about JC Penney (whose dad was a Baptist preacher.)

- Looking at my children & praying for them while they're sleeping, I can't help but ask, “God, why have you blessed me so much?!”

- I'm afraid that some marriages are cheaper than others.  A cheap marriage is "for better only." A priceless marriage is "for better for worse."

- We all have fear.  The fear of circumstances will lessen the fear of God, and the fear of God will lessen the fear of circumstances.

- Look beyond your pain and use the pain to further the Gospel to keep others from the pain of Hell.”

- When your will becomes supreme, it will destroy you... Temperance is getting your feelings hurt, but opting not to retaliate or seek revenge.

- Everything that is worthwhile is earned and then received. Everything not worthwhile is received and then earned.

- Today don't let your "to do" list interfere with your "to love" list.

- If God is not immune to the pain and sorrow of His children, then how dare we be?

- Discontentment is the result of looking at my past and thinking it was better than my life is now, or looking at the future and believing it will better than my life is now, or looking at other people's lives and believing their lives are better than mine is now. Contentment is being grateful for the life God has given me now.

- A boat's problem is not the water around it but the water that gets into it. A Christian's problem is not the sin around us but the sin that gets in us.

- Waiting on God to finish a work He has begun in me takes far more faith than doing a work for God, because I am far better at working than waiting.

- The angels in heaven gaze in wonder at a grace they have never experienced.

- People who have unforgiveness in their hearts typically have unconfessed sin there as well. -

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- Christian, serve your earthly employer as if you worked for Jesus. Col. 3:22-24.

- Matthew 7:3-5: The mote that is in thy brother’s eye. Three lessons stand out conspicuously in the text...  1. Close inspection of ourselves, lest any evil lurk there unobserved which we abhor in others; lest we be like the farmer whose field is overrun with weeds, who delights in pointing out the defective condition of a neighbour’s farm.  2. Avoidance of passing rash judgments on others.  3. Readiness to assist others in overcoming their faults.

- The Old Testament penalties for sin are abolished only in the fact that the New Testament states the realities of sin. 1Tim 5:6, But she that liveth in pleasure is dead while she liveth.

- Bible thoughts! Lam 3:22-23, It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness. We expect God to be faithful to us. I think it's only right He can expect the same from us, as well!

-  Bible thoughts! Ps 68:6, God setteth the solitary in families: he bringeth out those which are bound with chains: but the rebellious dwell in a dry land. Wow! In our years of ministering to others, esp struggling teens, many have come to call me "mom". I never understood the significance of it until today. What a privilege to be used of God in such a special way!

- Bible thoughts! Ps 73:23, Nevertheless I am continually with thee: thou hast holden me by my right hand. Just imagine Jesus taking you by the hand and steadying your footsteps. Sometimes WE can't see the way, but HE can. Let's follow Him!

- Bible thoughts! Mark 2:14, Here Jesus calls Mathew to serve with Him. Mathew (aka Levi) was a hated tax collector who probably had taken advantage of the other 3 men Jesus had just called to serve Him as well, fishermen Peter, James, and John. This must have made for a very awkward intro! Jesus has a great sense of humor! LOL!

- Bible thoughts! Mark 2:3, And they come unto him, bringing one sick of the palsy, which was borne of four. Wow! These 4 friends of this paraplegic guy had an amazing amount of faith! Do we have faith like that for our friends when we pray for their needs? What an inspiring verse!

- Prayer is less about you getting your request and more about God getting you.

- "And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord." (Ephesians 6:4). Notice the colon in this verse. This entire verse is a complete thought embodying two extremes... The father is leading with one or another extreme. There is no option in this verse for both. There can be no double standard here. So then, fathers are bringing their children up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord OR they are provoking their children to wrath.

- I love this thought for today... What is man that thou art mindful of him. God is more than thoughtful of man. He is mindful of us. Mindfulness includes thoughtfulness. It is connecting to someone through thought. It is more than sympathy. It is empathy. It is more than concern. It is compassion. It is more than concern about our afflictions. It is concern about our feelings. God has connected to man through His mindfulness. How? ...and the son of man that thou visitest him. God mindfulness came from His visit to us. He experienced being all things so that He could fully connect to us. Oh that we would be as mindful to God as He is to us.

- Ps 68:19, Blessed be the Lord who daily loadeth us with benefits. We shouldn’t ever forget Who is the source of our daily blessings!

- Pro 15:17, Better is a dinner of herbs where love is, than a stalled ox and hatred therewith. Wealth, prosperity, and plenty don’t assure love, nor are they a substitute for it.

- Ps 78:4, We will not hide them from their children, showing to the generation to come the praise of the Lord and his strength, and his wonderful works that he hath done. If we had done this in America, we would not be in the mess that we are in today. We must pass it on.