Articles for June 2017

Proverbs 20:7, “The just man walketh in his integrity: his children are blessed after him.” 

The 1828 dictionary defines:

Just – in a moral sense – upright, honest, having principles, conforms to the law.  Faithful.
Integrity – wholeness, moral soundness or purity, uprightness, honest, incorruptness.

We have here a picture of someone who cares about his character. He is honest and upright in all his dealings.  He has principles.  Because all of this is part of his inward fiber, we who are observing him, see this in his walk.  The truth is that who we are is demonstrated in how we live.  It starts from the inside.

I think all of us would like to be thought of as people of integrity. This should be a given for those that are Christians.  We need to strive to live upright, honest, faithful, pure, incorrupt lives.  I’ve said this before – and I’ll probably say it again, because it is a truth that we need to be reminded of often – that the world needs to be able to SEE that God has made a difference in our lives.   Everything we do, should be done with the idea of being a good testimony for the Lord.

This verse says that this man is walking – or in other words, living , an exemplary life.  The fact is that we cannot do this in our own strength.  The strength to live right can only come from the Lord.  We need to be fed daily from the Word.  We need to keep our hearts right and our minds focused on God.  We need to personally care about how our lives are reflecting on God.  We need to pray for strength to walk in integrity so that we can be a good testimony for the Lord in this sinful, out of whack world!

Proverbs 8:32b, “…for blessed are they that keep my ways.” 

I started out to give the dictionary definition of happiness (another word for blessed) when I realized that this was one word that most of us understand. It’s a good and desired destination where we all would like to dwell – but, how do we find our way there?

This verse gives the answer in a nut shell. This is a straight forward statement that says you will be HAPPY (blessed) if you do what God says.  Simple enough, but there is more implied in this statement than what appears on the surface.  There is a requirement that may not be simple at all. You must keep God’s ways.  In other words, you must DO what He says.

I’ve heard the statement that people follow god’s of their imaginations. In other words, they conjure up what they think that God is like and what He requires of them and then follow it.  Now, this is not what God is talking about.  He is not saying to keep what you think are my ways, but to follow what you know are my ways.  There is only one way to know God’s ways and that is to know the Scriptures.

Christian, you must be in the Word of God – reading, studying, and meditating.   It is such a privilege to have the Scriptures available to us. Don’t neglect to spend time in His word every day.  As you read, look for the verses that express His instructions for life (the Bible is full of them).  Get a notebook and write out the reference and the admonition that God is giving.  This will help you in your mediation and make it clear what God’s ways are.

The God who created this universe has not left us in the dark about how He wants us to live — and better yet, He promises blessed happiness to those that follow His ways.  What a great promise!

I Corinthians 15:57,58, “But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.  Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.”

What great verses of instruction for the Christian. Every word of these verses has a message for us.

• Thank God,
• Be Stedfast, Unmoveable, (don’t budge from what you believe)
• Abound, (do lots and lots for the Lord)
• Work, (put effort and determination into your service for God.)

Do you ever get tired? Giving up, looms on the horizon.  The ‘keep on, keeping on’ part of life just seems too hard.  (Been there, done that.)  But, praise God, He knew this would happen in most of our lives and these verses in His Word are an encouragement to us – a pep talk, so to speak.

Follow through on all of these admonitions from the Lord.   We have the promise of worthwhile results in the end.  All of your labour and hard work will not go unnoticed.  Even though it often seems discouraging because of lack of visible results, we know that God is working.

Remember that it is God that gives the victory. He is the one that is in charge of the results of our labours.   Our job is to do the work He has called us to do and leave the rest to Him.

Everything we do for God is not for nought. We need to – keep on, keeping on – because victory is promised in the end!

Jeremiah 15:16a, “Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart;” 

I’m sure that you’ve heard the expression, “Watch out what you say, you may have to eat your words!” Of course, this is not what this verse is talking about.  It’s plain to see here that Jeremiah was expressing a hunger for and a hankering for God’s Word.

We eat because we are hungry. We eat because we have a need for nourishment and strength to meet the demands of life.  Sometimes we eat just because it is pleasurable – some things  taste so good we just want more and more.  This is the way that Jeremiah is relating to God’s Word.  I think all of the above can fit into the category of how we should approach our reading of the Scriptures.

The second statement in this verse also gives us insight into Jeremiah’s heart towards Bible reading, “and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart.” This is the same attitude that we should have when we read God’s Word.  It truly should be a joy to read the Scriptures.  It meets all the needs of the human heart:  it encourages, it rebukes, it teaches, it helps, it instructs, it directs, it comforts – this list can go on and on.

The best part of everyday should be when you are reading God’s Word. Meditate and think about what God is saying and why He put these words in the Scriptures.   You should taste, chew, swallow, and enjoy what you are reading.  Every word is there for a reason – it is information He wants us to know.  The Holy Spirit will help you to understand the things that God desires for you to understand – just ask Him.

It’s through reading the Bible that God shows us that He loves us and that we belong to Him. This truth should cause joy and rejoicing in our hearts – every day.

Happy eating!

Psalm 69:16, “Hear me, O LORD; for thy lovingkindness is good: turn unto me according to the multitude of thy tender mercies.” 

“Hear me, O LORD:” This is a sincere request by a mere man to a Holy God.  The God who created this universe.

We all have needs, wants, and requests and we are asking this supreme God to hear us. How is this possible?  The answer is in the second part of this verse.  God hears us not because we are worthy to be heard but because of His lovingkindness and tender mercies.  He cares about us and desires to fellowship with us through prayer.

I fear we often take this privilege too lightly. We can rattle off our prayers with little thought and much speed without even considering WHO we are talking to.

Hebrews 4:16 says, “Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.”

Prayer is one of the greatest benefits of the Christian. We have direct access to a Holy God who loves us and wants to guide and direct us through this uncertain and rocky life.  He wants to meet every need that we have.   (This access is available to us through believing and accepting the work that Jesus did on the cross.)

The next time you go to prayer, think about the great privilege that it is, and think about who you are talking with.  Don’t forget to thank Him for this privilege and make sure you take time to listen for His answer!

Psalm 113:3,  “From the rising of the sun unto the going down of the same the LORD’s name is to be praised.”

I call this my ‘Sunshine Verse’ because it expresses an attitude of praise and thanksgiving that we are to have ALL day long. Our focus needs to be on the good things in ourlives and not all the things that are irritations to us.  Life can be filled with rain clouds and problems, but remember that the sun is shining somewhere above those clouds.

We need to look through the clouds of hardships and disappointments and see the sunshine of God’s presence. We need to live in an attitude of trusting that God is in control and He is working everything out for our good and His glory  (Romans 8:28).  Believing this is the only way that praising God all day long is possible!

It is pretty hard to be grumbling and praising at the same time. It takes discipline to thank God when things are not going the way that we desire.  We could even call it a great effort, to praise God  when things are going awry.  But, the interesting thing is that when we do this it takes our focus off the ‘bad things’ and puts it where it should be – on God.

The song by Helen Howarth Lemmel, “Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus”, sums this truth up nicely:

“Turn your eyes upon Jesus, Look full in His wonderful face; and the things of earth will grow strangely dim In the light of His glory and grace.”

When our eyes are on the Lord, then we will be able to praise the LORD’s name all day long!

Proverbs 22:1 “A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches, and loving favour, rather than silver and gold.” 

What exactly is a “Good Name”? It goes much, much deeper than what you are called by other people.  It’s the real you:  your character, the most basic fundamental you.  It’s how the world sees you and it’s who God knows you are.

God says that a “good name” is more important than “great” riches. I love the way that God gets His point across.  He wants us to pay attention and understand this truth.  He just doesn’t say riches – He says, “Great Riches” – lots and lots of riches, oodles and oodles of riches, overflowing riches – you get the picture.  So what is this that God is saying we should chose over a great deal of money and things?  He is clearly and simply saying it is who we are that counts, not what we have.   This statement is definitely worth repeating because in our mixed up, out of whack world, this is not the way man thinks.  He evaluates his worth around what he possesses and can often care little about his character.

We all know that God judges the heart.   He sees our inner most self.  But, it is important to remember that the world (those around us) can only see our outward actions.  To have a “good name” before the world demands certain visible qualities on our part.  You must be:

Humble, honest, friendly, have integrity, be consistent in good conduct, show compassion, have concern for others, have Christ like communications, ___, ___.                (You fill in the blanks  –  I think you get the idea.)

How you live says more about you than what you say. You can tell others about the Lord but if they don’t see Him in your life it does more harm than good.  You can relate the truths that you learn from the Scriptures but if you aren’t living them it means nothing. How you act and live does count!

This blog is an excerpt from the book, “I Want to be a Better Me for God”   Chapter 16

The other day I heard a terrible cry at my patio door. It sounded like two cats fighting.  I opened the door, and my cat came rushing in as a neighbor’s cat went scrambling down the path.  He was obviously harassing her.  She knew that safety was available in her home and she was crying out, “Let me in, I need help.”  As she sat in my lap purring, I think she was actually smiling (well, it looked that way to me).  She seemed so happy to be out of dangers way.

This situation made me think about the verse found in Psalms:

Psalm 46:1, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” 

This is a short verse with a mega message!

A ‘refuge’ is a shelter or place of protection from danger or distress. ‘Strength’ is firmness, power, support or security.  And ‘present’ means ready, at hand, now existing, and available. (1828, Dictionary)

Put all these thoughts together and we have a wonderful promise from God Himself, to us His children.

God is our place of protection and shelter. He will give us the strength we need to meet all the demands of our daily lives.  He is always ready and available to help us.  (I don’t know if cats can smile but this verse definitely warms my heart and makes ME smile.)

The fact that God loves us and desires to be an active part of our lives should be a great encouragement to us. We don’t need to muster up the strength to face the trials of life.  We just need to go to the door of God’s love and cry – let me in, I need help.  He is always there ready to open that door – all we need to do is knock!

(Blog first published on March 4, 2017)

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Psalm 116:1 ” I love the Lord, because he hath heard my voice and my supplications.” 

I love God because of WHO He is. I love God because He sent His Son to die for me. I love God because He has saved me and I have a place in Heaven reserved for me.

I love God for many reasons so this verse made me stop and think. God showed me this was in truth one of the reasons that I love Him. The deep felt love that I have for God comes from the fact that I can personally see Him working in my life.

I have prayed and He has answered.
I have asked and He has replied.
I have seeked direction and He has led.
I have followed His Word and He has blessed.

It truly is an amazing thing that God cares about me and you so much that He hears our prayers and supplications. He is a PERSONAL God and this personal relationship grows each day because of His presence in our lives.

Psalm 116:2, is a continuation of this truth:

“Because he hath inclined his ear unto me, therefore will I call upon Him as long as I live.”

I CALL   –   HE ANSWERS   

What a great truth!

(This is a republication of the blog posted on March 2, 2017)