Associations

Good Morning,

Over the years, I have heard, as most have, that liberals love the environment, they love nature, hate cutting down trees, and are against the pollution that hurts birds or fish. I am not going to say I know what is in their hearts, but I can notice their associations.

The trouble I have believing these folks is that I have never met a “love nature” person that cared one bit for God, the One Who created nature.  I have never met a “love life and animals” person who was not pro-abortion.  Their associations reveal their heart.  These people do not love life; they want something to replace God in the lives of humanity. Basically, they are satanic, for it is he who desires that we love anything BUT God. 

Romans 1:25 “Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.”

Leaving environmentalism and going to the churches of America, allow me to point out similar issues. There is an entire movement in American churches that embraces the “praise and worship” kind of church service.  I do not care for the music they love, it is hardly different from the music I left when I got saved.  If those churches had bus ministries, soul winning, and preached on living a holy life, I might be more tolerant of their views.  (But as yet, I have not heard of any who do so.)  Typically, these churches are worldly, financially motivated, or over-spiritually motivated.  Generally, they seek to fit into the world’s mold in personal appearance, activities, and even the atmosphere of the church.  

I have noticed that instead of striving to live holy, I see worldly lifestyles, a lack of concern for the lost or the poor, and I never see a bus ministry.  

The problem is not simply the “warm and fuzzy” so-called worship, but that which it is associated is that kind of worship.  

I am as far from Calvinism as I could be, and as such, when I notice that the Calvary Chapel movement is heavily Calvinistic (with some Pentecostal “add works to salvation” teachings), then I can have nothing to do with their style of church ministry.  They are not bad people and I rejoice anytime Christ is preached, but I want nothing to do with their form of worship.  That “style of worship” is associated with theological heresy.  

Democrats are typically pro-choice, pro-queer, and anti-Constitution and Bill of Rights.  Democrats will almost always choose big government and seek control of the daily lives and decisions of citizens.  When a Christian, politician, or news station associates strongly with Democrats, I keep my distance.  I had to distance myself from the crowd of religious people who sided with Democrats in forcing citizens to wear masks and get vaccinated.  I had no problem with voluntary masks or vaccinations, for American values are based upon freedom – I had a problem when it became compulsory.

Our associations do reveal much of our heart and true values.  When a Christian teen seeks the world’s dances, dress, and activities, I cannot help but believe there is something else occupying their heart besides Christ.  

Galatians 5:24 “And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.” 

Consider these passages and notice how much God urges His children to guard their “associations.” 

1 Corinthians 5:11 “But now I have written unto you not to keep company, if any man that is called a brother be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a railer, or a drunkard, or an extortioner; with such an one no not to eat.” 

Romans 16:17 “Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them.”

2 Thessalonians 3:6 “Now we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye withdraw yourselves from every brother that walketh disorderly, and not after the tradition which he received of us.” 

2 John 10 "If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed:” 

Psalm 101:4 “A froward heart shall depart from me: I will not know a wicked person."

vs. 5 “Whoso privily slandereth his neighbour, him will I cut off: him that hath an high look and a proud heart will not I suffer.”

vs. 6 “Mine eyes shall be upon the faithful of the land, that they may dwell with me: he that walketh in a perfect way, he shall serve me.”

More can be found in these verses: Proverbs 9:6; 12:11; 13:20; 22:24.

It does matter with whom folks associate; it is a help for all of us to see more clearly what is true. 

Pastor

Useful In Tribulation

Good Morning,

The sorrows of life are many. I do not mean to be morbid or create a hopeless air, I am simply making honest statements. Life can be difficult; in fact, life will be difficult.

Job said it this way:

Job 5:7 “Yet man is born unto trouble, as the sparks fly upward.”

Job 14:1 “Man that is born of a woman is of few days, and full of trouble.”

Jesus also spoke of the trials of life.

John 16:33 “These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.”

When life is going well, rejoice.  When situations are more difficult, draw near to God and go on doing right.  The question is, "How do I behave when trouble comes?"

I may not be able to fix my trouble, but I can help another.  My sorrow may be permanent, but I can still help another with their load.  

When you visit the rest home and bring church to those who are stuck in that difficult world, it is unlikely that they care about your financial trouble or the health of your child.  No matter what personal trials you face, you can be a help.


When you bring the Gospel to the people in jail, answer Bible questions, and sing some hymns, they will not ask how your marriage is doing or if your parents are slipping mentally.  They are simply grateful for a break to their routine and for some spiritual influence in a carnal world.

My difficulty may weigh down my heart, but it also may make me more tender to help me be a blessing to others.  If I fail to serve those around me, my trials may be found useless, for they were designed to help me help others.

2 Corinthians 1:3 “....the God of all comfort;”

vs. 4 “Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.”

No child that rides a bus cares if my roof leaks, but they do readily accept the love and security provided by the church and the Lord. I will choose to help those within my reach and to fix that which is within my abilities.

It would be sad to face a trial in order to make us more helpful, then not be helpful.  Sadly, that is how most people live their lives; they wonder why they hurt and never help anyone.  May we accept the trials in our world and realize the Lord is allowing them. While we weep inside, may we go find someone to help.

Pastor

It Is A Fight

Good Morning,


The Christian life is a battlefield.  We are attacked by our own flesh, by the godlessness around us, and by the world in general.   To stay right will always be a fight.

1 Corinthians 16:13 “Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong.”

Philippians 4:1 “Therefore, my brethren dearly beloved and longed for, my joy and crown, so stand fast in the Lord, my dearly beloved.”

Passages urging us to fight, to wrestle, and to stand firm are common in Scripture.  To coast, relax, and “go with the flow” is far from the road to a successful Christian life.  

This world is not Christian, and it is quickly becoming more contrary to the things of God.  For a man to stand strong for his faith, to stay clean in his thinking, and to focus on family, God, job, and children will be a battle. If ministry is added to the list, you will find someone who goes to war every day just to maintain his Christian life.

Ephesians 6:12 “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.”


When a lady desires to be a good wife and mother and to stay near to the Lord, she will have to fight every day.  For a lady to make a decision to live in a modest, feminine way is going to entail a great deal of work.  Styles of dress are masculine or immodest and attitudes on the job or in media are constantly suppressing anything feminine.  To maintain a Christ-honoring lifestyle is a constant battle.


The world will push our children every direction but right.  Neighbors, friends, and media are against any child gaining character, discipline, godliness, or a good education.  A parent’s job is non-stop; prayer and planning are necessary, and this is a job without a break. The blessed life is a fight!

For the pastor to keep his church separate, pure, and useful is a never-ending battle. Satan will constantly bring in one form of goofball idea after another.  Pastors will always have to work to keep soul winning alive, standards right, holiness uplifted, marriages growing, and young people learning.  Paul told Timothy that the pulpit would need to be filled with instruction and correction.

2 Timothy 4:2 “Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine.”


Paul shares his brief testimony by saying that he has fought all the way to the end:

vs. 7 “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith:”


I have found that people want to get good results from little effort. If that were possible, everyone would be enjoying a great life; the fact remains that the labor to achieve good results is constant.  Everyone wants a diet which allows you to eat all you want and not exercise to lose weight; that simply will not work. To desire a life without struggle is vain.  Searching out the way to gain peace and strength for the battle is best — these are only available from the Lord. 


John 16:33 “These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.”


Peace comes from time with the Lord.  


Peace comes from the Word of God; He will SPEAK peace to His people.

Psalm 85:8 “I will hear what God the LORD will speak: for he will speak peace unto his people, and to his saints: but let them not turn again to folly.”


We need to spend time in our Bibles and time with the Lord. The formula for gaining peace is found in Philippians 4:

Philippians 4:5 “Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand.”

First, be moderate in life.  Be careful about extremes in anything.  Always think about the Lord’s coming again.  Where would I want to be when He comes?  What would I want to be doing at His return?  


The formula continues:

vs. 6 “Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.”


The word careful indicates fearfulness, over-concern, and worry — similar to walking barefooted in the dark.  That is no way to go through life; we need to go confidently.  Be careful for nothing; do not worry all the time.  Relax and go do that which you know is right.  Next, he says, pray about everything.  So rather than being worried all the time, pray all the time. 


We are instructed to make our requests to God; stop worrying, and go get things done.  We should spend time in our Bible, be moderate, always consider the Lord’s coming, pray about each decision, and then run into life believing that God will guide and bless.  At that point, the next verse promises peace.


vs. 7 “And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”


The fight is on! The battle rages! Do not fret over pressure and conflict; read your Bible, live moderately, keep your mind on the Lord, pray over each decision and do not fret.  Although the battle rages, God will bring peace into your heart. 


We have much to do; may we run into the battle prepared to fight with the peace of God.  

Pastor 

Think

Good Morning,

Today, it matters little in which industry you are involved; industry has one primary goal — self preservation. Go to a car lot and ask the salesman what you need. He will direct you to a high end car and advise the addition of all the upgrades; but you alone know what you really need. THINK!! The salesman is there for money and business, and as long as he does not hurt you, he is fine with selling you a Cadillac when an Impala would have been just fine. The average real estate agent will sell to you any property for which you qualify; and he honestly does not care about your needs — he wants a commission. Of course there are exceptions; Christians in many industries will care for the well-being of individuals, but that is not the rule out in the world.

We hear jokes about a surgery the doctor thinks one needs, only to end up with a punch line about his wife needing a new car. Sadly, more often this has proven to be true.

Today, when you go to the doctor or dentist, you cannot go in trusting him as we did in the past. The medical world, along with the pharmaceutical industry, has become a business in which they want to make money, and profit is the main goal. If you would not let the car salesman tell you what to buy, I suggest you not let the dentist tell you what to buy either — they all sell a product. When I decided to put our daughter in braces, I found it interesting that the orthodontist said nothing about life-long needs for retainers and other extras; he simply told us of the six months or a year of braces and the straight teeth. I was the ignorant parent; six months was not bad, and straight teeth would be good. Had the orthodontist told me about life-long needs I might have chosen differently.

If you let the dentist control your family choices, he will have all your children in braces (and you as well). The dental staff will schedule deep cleaning, plaque removal, and countless other expensive things they have planned for your mouth — and, of course, your wallet.

I am not saying any of these things are wrong; but there is nothing wrong with a Ferrari either, it just may not be best for me. That which is best for me is my decision to make, not the salesman’s decision, whether it be a dental salesman or a medical salesman.

If you allow the carpet salesman to pick out what you need, he will never offer you the cheapest brand, but rather the one with the most profit for himself. If you do not think that doctors and dentists will sell you more than you need, you are not a very good student of human nature. Go ahead and ask one of them; ask if they think dentists or doctors ever prescribe treatment that exceeds the necessary demands of the body. I believe there are enough honest men and women in medicine that they will admit that, within their industry, excess can be found "at times."

My cardiologist prescribed some pills for me. After reading the side effects, I determined not to take the pills. At my next visit, the doctor asked if I was taking the pills. I said, “No,” and he asked why. I explained and he assured me that I should take the pills no matter what the warnings said. I refused and he softened his voice and said, "I would never take them either! I won’t take any of that medicine." At that point, I did not know if I should punch him or thank him for finally coming clean.

Suffice it to say, men are sinners, and the nobility of position is as far gone in medicine as it is in the ministry or politics. Men are sinners, and unless restrained by the Bible and a well-trained inner conscience, they will not choose your best interest over their own.

Psalm 51:5 “Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me.”

Psalm 58:3 “The wicked are estranged from the womb: they go astray as soon as they be born, speaking lies.”

Job 15:14 “What is man, that he should be clean? and he which is born of a woman, that he should be righteous?”

vs. 15 “Behold, he putteth no trust in his saints; yea, the heavens are not clean in his sight.”

vs. 16 “How much more abominable and filthy is man, which drinketh iniquity like water?”

God puts no trust in us, and we should be very careful about who we trust as well.

Job 15:15 “Behold, he putteth no trust in his saints…”

Men are sinners, and the farther we get from the Bible and a religiously-centered society, the more selfishness and greed will motivate the people in leadership.

Pray, study, ask direction from others, but do not blindly let a mechanic tell you what repairs your car needs. We have all seen the reports of surveys done on auto repair shops. Do you think the medical world is exempt from the flesh and carnal nature? Think and seek God's help in discerning right and wrong, but do not let the landscape architect determine your needs around the house. (Your yard will look like Disneyland and you will be broke!) The fact that I need a car is easy to determine, but a used one for sale at $3,000 is a lot different from a new Lincoln at $40,000. I will not trust the suggestion of the car salesman. Just because I qualify for the loan, does not mean it is the best choice for my family. A cancer doctor will often admit to you that he may not cure your cancer, but he will learn much in trying and that knowledge will help others. Ask yourself if you are into trial medicine and helping others before making the decision; this is called being a guinea pig. It is okay to be a guinea pig if you want to be, but at least find out this information before it all begins. How much difficulty will you face? How many trips to the doctor? How many times will the elderly lady have to get her failing husband into the car to go for weekly tests, and how much suffering will he go through? Ask and think!

That dentist will try to give you perfect teeth, and cost is of no consequence to him. You may have perfect teeth, but you will not be able to smile because you will be crying about being broke. One of my older teenage children had an abscessed tooth. The out-of-town dentist (we were on vacation) suggested a root canal, then a crown. The cost was serious. I asked about pulling it and getting an implant. After pressing him for facts, he said a root canal and crown would need to be replaced in 7-10 years, and an implant would last over twenty years and end up costing much less. I then asked his advice and he said he suggested the root canal and crown...ready... "if cost was not a consideration." I said, I am not a dentist and cost is always a consideration! I, of course, opted to have the tooth pulled. Now, if you disagree with my choice, it does not matter; but understand that there just happens to be a more profitable path to travel in life, and most men are selfish and will send you down the path most profitable for themselves or they have different priorities than I do. I will not go to ball games on Sunday when I should be in church — that is a priority! The dentist wants a perfect smile: I want godly children; I want to tithe, support missions, and help others. Perhaps that is a reason why I did not own a house for twenty years after entering the ministry. Many of my staff members were buying homes long before me. I had priorities; right or wrong, they were mine. THINK!!

How often do you need your car waxed to protect the paint? Ask the guy you hire to wax it and you will get a more expensive answer than if you ask a paint and body shop owner who repaints cars with oxidized paint.

Men are sinners!

Jeremiah 17:9 “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?”

Labor to be honorable in your work. If you are in a position that brings people to you for counsel, seek God. Do not trust the flesh of the average lost man, whether in the medical world or sales of exercise equipment.

A family moved to our church from a distant city, and after some months, came to me with a question. His house in the other city had finally sold. He made a good profit on it and he wondered where the tithe should go, his old church or his new one (ours)? Do you not see how quickly profit can move into our decision-making? I suggested he send it to his old church. Right or wrong, I felt I would err on the side of safety, but that is not what the average lost man in the world thinks; THINK for yourself.

Pastor

Spirit-Controlled Emotions

Good Morning,

Feelings are of God; He created emotions.  God provided emotions of love and compassion, as well as anger, but these feelings are to be guarded throughout life.

Paul said these emotions and desires of the flesh are to be kept in check at all times.

1 Corinthians 9:27 “But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.”

We may have a high standard of ethics in our own lives, and someone without those same strong morals can make us angry.  I have seen adults frustrated and ugly toward teens who had absolutely no training — and it is not right.  We ought to desire to help the untrained teen; ugly treatment will not help.  We may be frustrated, but those feelings need to be guarded and controlled.  

Proverbs 14:17 “He that is soon angry dealeth foolishly: and a man of wicked devices is hated.”

Proverbs 21:19 “It is better to dwell in the wilderness, than with a contentious and an angry woman.”

Proverbs 22:24 “Make no friendship with an angry man; and with a furious man thou shalt not go:”

When Obama was elected, I was very unhappy.  I was also angry when Clinton won, especially for the second time.  It was not a race issue, it was a liberal issue.  I hate the fact that babies may be legally killed.  I hate that some idiot in government is trying to make it wrong for a business or church to have religious convictions.  (Like those who feel strongly against abortion or homosexual marriage.)  I am angry about the lack of respect we see toward morality, decency, patriotism, and respect for our military and law enforcement; but my anger or frustration is not exhibited by burning down my neighbor’s home!  On my little street, there are three black families, three Latin families, and a single white lady (and, of course, our family).  I did not direct hate toward my neighbor when a liberal won an election.  My home was not burned down by my neighbors when Trump won.  We are civilized.  We are friendly because we respect humanity and the freedom of others.  That is an American value!  

I can say that I have some serious passion against Islam (before and after 9/11).   Islamic followers’ hate for freedom, hate for America, and violence towards those who differ from them shows their religion is wrong and their actions are satanic.  I do not like the religion of Islam at all, but I have never hurt Islamic followers or attacked them.  They, on the other hand, are willing to kill Americans in a heartbeat and cheer for the death of Israeli children.  Satan hates Israel.  Satan does not allow freedom, and as such, encourages violence and hatred.  God allows people to differ.  God encourages freedom, as is seen in the garden of Eden where He placed the forbidden fruit.  It could have been removed, but God wanted mankind to choose to obey.  Their actions were not compulsory; they were free.  

God urges us to control our passions.

There is a time for our anger if it is controlled, patient, and appropriately exhibited.   

Proverbs 25:23 “The north wind driveth away rain: so doth an angry countenance a backbiting tongue.”

Titus 1:7 “For a bishop must be blameless, as the steward of God; not selfwilled, not soon angry…”

Notice, the words NOT SOON ANGRY; anger can be appropriate.


Uncontrolled anger brings about much hurt:  

Proverbs 29:22 “An angry man stirreth up strife, and a furious man aboundeth in transgression.”

Ecclesiastes 7:9 “Be not hasty in thy spirit to be angry: for anger resteth in the bosom of fools.”

This behavior may be a reaction to such occurrences as a child crying, and argument about politics, or a disagreement about how to handle various household matters.  A wrong reaction is a work of Satan and evil men.   One of the evils of liquor and drugs is the breaking down of inhibitions and restraint, and causing the person to feel free to act out of control — these actions are godless.  

When we raise children, we need to constantly train them to control their feelings and to act on purpose, not out of an emotional response.   Proverbs 29:15 tells us that “…a child left to himself bringeth his mother to shame.”   We are not to allow our children to explode in anger or respond to passion without control.  Whether in response to injustice on the playground or in the classroom, a selfish friend or unfair law, we are to train our children to control themselves and to rely on the Holy Spirit to help them be in control.

Paul explained that the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives was focused much on controlling emotions and feelings.  Closeness to God is evidenced by control of the spirit of man by the Spirit of God.

Galatians 5:22 “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,”

vs. 23 “Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.”

vs. 24 “And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.”

vs. 25 “If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.”

vs. 26 “Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another.”

The maniac in the tombs was angry, violent, and lived with unrestrained and satanic passion.  He was out of control!  That is evidence of satanic power; whether it be it in the church or the White House.

Luke 8:27 “And when he went forth to land, there met him out of the city a certain man, which had devils long time, and ware no clothes, neither abode in any house, but in the tombs.”

vs. 29 “…For oftentimes it had caught him: and he was kept bound with chains and in fetters; and he brake the bands, and was driven of the devil into the wilderness.”

One of the characteristics of men before the flood was their violence.

Genesis 6:11 “The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence.”

vs. 13 “And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.”

While watching sports, I find it funny that coaches say, “Put your heart into it!” or “Get excited!” about the game.  Coaches will try many different methods to get players to become passionate about the game, but then the poor guys get penalized for taunting or being excessively rough — it is hard to exhibit both of these extremes at the same time.  

Men want a passionate wife, but only in a romantic manner.  Passion about the car out of gas, bills unpaid, or the garbage running over is not on the man’s wish list.  A man may say that these emotional situations are not the same, but it is the same woman’s heart out of which they flow. If she is passionate, she will be passionate about many things!

To control our response to our emotions is right; to be in control of our anger and not let our anger cause us to sin is also right.

Ephesians 4:26 “Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath:”

Doing RIGHT is not always easy.  We need much Bible, much prayer, and much good training in our homes to keep the Lord in control of our emotions and actions.  

Pastor

Television

Good Morning,

One evening, a few years ago, we sat and did something that we do not often do; we watched some television. We muted commercials, but I made some observations.

If you watch much television, you are going to end up an idiot. If you let your children watch television shows night after night, your children are going to become idiots regarding politics. If you set your family before the television night after night, you will end up with idiotic family values. As a young man, I remember hearing people call the television “the idiot box.” After an hour or so of watching Fox News, I was convinced that it is an idiot box on steroids!

When we allow millions of dollars to be spent to make stupid look good, we are going to end up fashion idiots. Allowing our boys to see feminine guys and masculine gals star in sitcoms, movies, and commercials will create gender idiots. If we give our ears to comments that are sensuous, talk or joke about private body parts, and treat vulgar, suggestive, and lewd comments as if they were appropriate, we will become moral idiots.

In addition to the moral depravity portrayed, the display of violence is appalling. I know this is a sacred cow of the conservatives because we love our shooting, fighting, and killing, but what does the Bible say about violence?

Why was the earth flooded in the days of Noah?

Genesis 6:11 “The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence.”

vs. 13 “And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.”

Psalm 11:5 “The LORD trieth the righteous: but the wicked and him that loveth violence his soul hateth.”

You may say what you want about this verse, but it seems God has a problem with those who love violence.

Psalm 73:6 “Therefore pride compasseth them about as a chain; violence covereth them as a garment.”

Pride and violence — two traits that are common in television shows.

Proverbs 4:17 “For they eat the bread of wickedness, and drink the wine of violence.”

Violence has become the "wine" of the television viewer; drinking it in like a drunk with his alcohol.

Is it any wonder we have so much violence in our society when we raise our children on television and video games? Is it surprising that men hit their wives when they have seen it countless times on the television?

Idiots about morals, idiots about America, idiots about the home, idiots about their own gender, idiots about religion, and to top it all off, the frosting of violence — the end result of idiotic, violent people. (If you ask me, it sounds like a popular political party.)

That box would not be so attractive if it were not powerful and useful to evil. Guard your family by turning it off, regulating it, and limiting how much of it is seen. I am so thankful my children grew up television-ignorant (meaning, they knew nothing about it).

Pastor

Surrender

Good Morning,

Thinking of our daily lives, I am reminded of how rarely we think of the word surrender. I want to do God’s will, of course, but to sacrifice my body is not really included when I pray, “Lead me, Lord.”

Romans 12:1 “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.”

vs. 2 “And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.”

We know this verse and often use it, preach it, and memorize it, but who really means it? Our Lord certainly did.

Hebrews 10:5 “Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me:”

Jesus knew He was coming into the world to suffer great humiliation and to die; as the song goes, “Born to die on mount Calvary.”

As we continue to read in Romans 12, we find the qualifications God has in mind when He refers to surrendering our bodies as a living sacrifice:

vs. 3 “…not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think…”

We can think that we deserve better, we are good, and we deserve some high honor and blessing, yet we are sinners who deserve Hell. We may think it unfair that we are hurting while another is well or that our children struggle while others have an easier life. Paul continues on the subject of sacrifice...

vs. 4 “For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office:”

vs. 5 “So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another.”

We are all a part of the work of God, yet we are not the same; and as such, we are to present our bodies a living sacrifice for the cause God has uniquely designed us to fulfill. Too often, we want what another has; we want to do what another does, whether it be singing, playing, performing, etc. We all have different gifts, and we are to surrender to that gift and use it as God desires. THAT IS WHAT WE ARE TO SURRENDER TO DO.

Continuing in Romans 12, God points out various gifts:

Romans 12:6 “Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith;”

vs. 7 “Or ministry, let us wait on our ministering: or he that teacheth, on teaching;”

vs. 8 “Or he that exhorteth, on exhortation: he that giveth, let him do it with simplicity; he that ruleth, with diligence; he that sheweth mercy, with cheerfulness.”

Some people are gifted with the ability to “show mercy.” Mercy does not seem like a glorious gift unless you are the one hurting and needing encouragement —then that gift becomes very important. Some people are gifted to minister to others, and that is also a gift from God. We are not all good at everything. Relax, we are good at what God designed us to be and do. 


Many young men would like to have a job in which they are in the limelight, but such is not the will of God. We are to surrender to whatever the will of God is and to use whatever gifts God has endowed to us. This is the surrender God speaks of in verses 1-2.

In the verses that follow, other instructions that probably go along with being surrendered to the will of God are listed:

vs. 9 “Let love be without dissimulation. Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good.”

vs. 10 “Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honour preferring one another;”

vs. 11 “Not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord;”

vs. 12 “Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer;”

vs. 13 “Distributing to the necessity of saints; given to hospitality.”

vs. 14 “Bless them which persecute you: bless, and curse not.”

vs. 15 “Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep.”

vs. 16 “Be of the same mind one toward another. Mind not high things, but condescend to men of low estate. Be not wise in your own conceits.”

vs. 17 “Recompense to no man evil for evil. Provide things honest in the sight of all men.”

vs. 18 “If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men.”

When we say to God, “Thy will be done,” we will often need to simply do little things correctly, with a good spirit, and perhaps work hard and do so without the accolades of men.

Pleasing God and living sacrificially may simply mean being kind to someone in need and doing so “under the radar.” In verse 18, we see that a sacrificial life may be simply striving to live peaceably with one who does not make the task easy.

To present our bodies a living sacrifice could mean to die on a foreign field as a martyr, but it could also mean to go to the rest home weekly and care for those in need.

It all pleases the Lord.


Pastor

Patience

Good Morning,

If we were to get our joy from the morning news, we would be the most miserable of people. God is our refuge, our hope, our trust; we can rest in Him. Understand that the events happening at this moment are not the end result, and what we see right now is not what will be in the future. We may see evil people getting away with shame; we may see the vilest of men escaping the most logical judgment and punishment, but there is an end!!

Psalm 52:7 “Lo, this is the man that made not God his strength; but trusted in the abundance of his riches, and strengthened himself in his wickedness.”

In this passage, we read of a man who has no use for God, but instead, trusts in himself for money and earthly wisdom.

Here on earth, some people may be caught committing a crime and remain unpunished, but not eternally. Some people will boast that they are free to run roughshod over our laws and Constitution, but there is a law of God yet to be faced and a Divine Judge to Whom they will yet answer.

In that day, God will judge the wicked:

Psalm 52:5 “God shall likewise destroy thee for ever, he shall take thee away, and pluck thee out of thy dwelling place, and root thee out of the land of the living.”

The righteous will fear God and laugh at the wicked for not trusting in the wonderful love of God.

Psalm 52:6 “The righteous also shall see, and fear, and shall laugh at him:”

vs. 7 “Lo, this is the man that made not God his strength; but trusted in the abundance of his riches, and strengthened himself in his wickedness.”

What brings us peace and rest? What allows frail men to prosper in this life? Not our own righteousness, but trust in the mercy of God.

vs. 8 “But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God: I trust in the mercy of God for ever and ever.”

Psalm 73 reveals the frustration of good people seeing evil men prosper and getting away with their shameful deeds.

Psalm 73:12 “Behold, these are the ungodly, who prosper in the world; they increase in riches.”

vs. 13 “Verily I have cleansed my heart in vain, and washed my hands in innocency.”

vs. 14 “For all the day long have I been plagued, and chastened every morning.”

David saw evil rewarded; he watched as good people struggled and bad people seemed to have no problems; but then in church, he found the answer.

vs. 17 “Until I went into the sanctuary of God; then understood I their end.”

vs. 18 “Surely thou didst set them in slippery places: thou castedst them down into destruction.”

vs. 19 “How are they brought into desolation, as in a moment! they are utterly consumed with terrors.”

Make God your trust — in good days and bad.

Psalm 52:7 “Lo, this is the man that made not God his strength;”

vs. 8 “But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God: I trust in the mercy of God for ever and ever.”

Trust in the Lord; it is always our best and safest course to travel. Do not worry about the wicked. God is the judge.

Pastor

God’s Plan

Good Morning,

Jeremiah 43:1”And it came to pass, that when Jeremiah had made an end of speaking unto all the people all the words of the LORD their God, for which the LORD their God had sent him to them, even all these words,”

vs. 2 “Then spake Azariah the son of Hoshaiah, and Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the proud men, saying unto Jeremiah, Thou speakest falsely: the LORD our God hath not sent thee to say, Go not into Egypt to sojourn there:”

Judah had been devastated by Babylon. Most of the people were dead or taken into captivity. In the prior chapter, the few remaining people had gone to Jeremiah seeking direction with the promise of obedience, no matter what the Lord told him.

Jeremiah 42:5 “Then they said to Jeremiah, The LORD be a true and faithful witness between us, if we do not even according to all things for the which the LORD thy God shall send thee to us.”

vs. 6 “Whether it be good, or whether it be evil, we will obey the voice of the LORD our God, to whom we send thee; that it may be well with us, when we obey the voice of the LORD our God.”

The people said they would do anything to find peace and to have the Lord's presence. But as the passage reveals, when people do not like the Lord's answers, they tend to do follow their own ideas.

For a long time, these people had witnessed the word of this preacher come true. Over and over, they saw that the Lord was with him and that his counsel was accurate in every situation. Now, with their hearts set on going to Egypt, they went to the preacher hoping to find God's blessing on their plans. They did not want new directions, they wanted God to bless their own ideas. Of course, that did not go well.

May we not be people with a plan, trying to get God involved, but rather a surrendered people with no plan, seeking direction from God in every area.

Pastor

Freedom & Others

Good Morning,

One of the amazing attributes of God is that He offers us a free will. The fact that Adam and Eve had the choice to obey or not to obey is amazing. Throughout life, we see the same choice from God over and over. Evil men may follow their corrupt ideas; and, although there are earthly results for wicked actions, God does not force people to follow Him.

On Mount Carmel, the choice was offered:

1 Kings 18:21 “And Elijah came unto all the people, and said, How long halt ye between two opinions? if the LORD be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him. And the people answered him not a word.”

Joshua made the same statement as he neared the end of his life:

Joshua 24:15 “And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.”

Jesus watched as many disciples walked away, but He simply asked his closest twelve what they would do — He did not forcefully compel them to stay.

John 6:67 “Then said Jesus unto the twelve, Will ye also go away?”

vs. 68 “Then Simon Peter answered him, Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life.”

Barnabas, speaking to young believers, urged the people to make a wise choice and to cleave to the Lord; but the choice was theirs.

Acts 11:23 “Who, when he came, and had seen the grace of God, was glad, and exhorted them all, that with purpose of heart they would cleave unto the Lord.”

Because God offers great liberty to us in marriage, in child-rearing, in church, and in government, we may follow His direction or foolishly choose our own path.

Might I offer some thoughts here regarding choice?

We know Islam is wrong because it offers no freedom, no free will, and no willing worship; it is mandated. Although, remember that their lack of free will is no different than the Reformation churches of the Middle Ages that demanded everyone to submit to the church or to suffer banishment, death, or imprisonment. God never ordained mandatory worship. God desires the heart of willing love and submission.

In government, we may allow civil rulers to demand submission to their whims. Over the centuries, the number of men like Hitler or Saddam Hussein is infinite. Watch any city council, (our own included) and see how quickly they force citizens to follow their agenda. Again, these organizations are far from Divine in their roots, but that is not the point; freedom is the point this morning.

For instance, a church may choose which kind of service to run. The church has the freedom to develop its own programs of soul winning, teaching, and ministering to the community.

In the late 1800s, Dwight Moody saw the churches of his day ministering to families and adults but completely ignoring the countless thousands of children in the community. Like George Mueller, Moody was bothered by the forgotten children and determined to do something about it. He started bringing the rougher children of the town to church who not only would come with uncouth appearances but also would disrupt the service. Moody was told to stop bringing the children. Moody, feeling compelled to do something, rented a room and started a Sunday school for street children.

In our culture, a Sunday school class can be designed in such a way as to minister to children of all walks of life. Because of the benefits of Sunday school, let me say (as God gives us the freedom to have differing opinions) that a church without Sunday school is a selfish church; one that is focused upon itself only and allows the world to go to Hell without regard for the needs of people. Most of the adults in our churches trusted Christ as children. If we remove ministries to children, countless souls will go to Hell. If we remove the buses and Sunday school classes for rougher children, the borders of Hell will need to be enlarged.


Dr. Jack Hyles sat on the lap of his teacher on his first day in a children’s Sunday school. He asked the teacher, “Does God love me as much as He loves the children with shoes?” Yes, Sunday school was the place where the heart and soul of Dr. Jack Hyles were won. Similarly, a Sunday school teacher visited Dwight Moody and led him to Christ.

The insecure pastor who is afraid that his members will learn to teach the Bible to children and adults is doing great harm to all. The pastor who insists on everyone being in HIS services will never reach the souls he could have reached, for many will not sit in church with fussing children all around.

God gives us the freedom to choose.

The church without a bus ministry is not sinful; every church has a choice, but the church is commanded to reach the world. The duty of the church is to find some way to reach that world, but the church also has the freedom to disobey as well.

A revival church is one that has occasional revivals when a good preacher comes and preaches the Gospel and sees many people get saved.

An evangelistic church has folks invite their friends, and the pastor or teachers preach the Gospel to get them saved.


A soul-winning church goes into all the world and preaches the Gospel. It gets people saved and brings them to church.

To me, the third church sounds more like one that fulfills the Great Commissions. How a church’s members get the Gospel to the world is a free choice though.

Sunday school (and bus ministry) also allows members to teach, preach, and visit in the homes of students. Now the teacher is personally involved in the ministry and is reaching many more people for Christ. Our members need a place to serve; for they will “all appear before the judgment seat of Christ…”

Here, at Faith Baptist Church, we have a serving church; our motto is “A Church of Active Faith.” We all have a place to serve if we want one. Service to others is not compulsory, but freely available.

Let me make an observation. (By the way, this is only the view of one pastor in one city for thirty-five years.) I have never seen a couple, who kept their children out of Sunday school and ministry, turn out children for God — NEVER! Those families rarely even stayed in church; but if they did, they were nominal Christians, complacent at best. I CAN show you countless servants of God in all walks of life who, as children, joined in the ministry of Sunday school, bus routes, Vacation Bible School, camps, and other outreach ministries who, today, continue to serve and glorify God through their lives. The ministry does as much for the worker as it does for the student. A selfish ministry to children will develop selfish adults. If we make the church about entertainment, people will expect it forever. Teach children to serve, then mature them into serving teens, then serving adults; this formula will yield a church that serves.

As a family, we can sit around in our comfortable, safe-space lives, or we can pour our lives out on the altar of others. We can offer our children for the service of the Lord as Hannah did. Some people object to anyone outside the family teaching their children, but notice the family from whom the great man, Samuel, came. He had a prayerful mother who freely offered her son to the service of the Lord. Although, from preschool age, Samuel had a teacher, Eli, who was far from a successful father, yet the child was incredibly blessed. (1 Samuel 1-4)

We have a choice, a free choice, like Adam and Eve. We are free to live for others or to be selfish. We are free to offer our bodies on the altar of sacrifice as Romans 12 urges. We are free to bring up our children while sacrificing their own comfort to minister to others, or we can bring up children thinking that the world revolves around them. We, as parents, can offer our families to God; and it may be, as with the great missionary Hudson Taylor, that we will bury our children prematurely. Eternity will be the rewarding time; life on earth is the serving time. 

As a church, we can have our cute little group and glory in our amazing knowledge while we do little for eternity or others, or we can reach out to the world with all our heart.

We have freedom as a family, as a church, and as a government. God allows us to choose our path, but He does not allow us to chose the outcome. The road we travel is our choice; the destination will be set.

John 12:25 “He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal.”

Pastor

Equity

Good Morning,

The second greatest commandment is to love your neighbor as yourself. James speaks of an honest and equitable love for all men, regardless of circumstances. I am so thankful for our church! I watch the homeless treated well, the rougher folks welcomed with open arms, and the educable slow adult treated with dignity and patience — that is a church pleasing to the Lord.

James 2:4 “Are ye not then partial in yourselves, and are become judges of evil thoughts?”

vs. 9 “But if ye have respect to persons, ye commit sin, and are convinced of the law as transgressors.”

Not to treat all men with dignity and love is such a sin, an exaltation of self, and a manifestation of pride. How lovingly God has treated us despite our perverseness! We ought to respect and regard all men.

Other passages echo the same truth:

Romans 2:11 “For there is no respect of persons with God.”

Acts 10:34 “Then Peter opened his mouth, and said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons:”

When God spoke to ISRAEL about their treatment of others, He mentioned their partiality. Men were treating one group well but treating another group unkindly. God judged the people for this and held them in contempt.

Malachi 2:9 “Therefore have I also made you contemptible and base before all the people, according as ye have not kept my ways, but have been partial in the law.”

Arguing with the prophet, the children of Israel claimed innocence:

vs. 10 “Have we not all one father? hath not one God created us?”

But the issue was their treatment of one another...

Verse 10 continues, “…why do we deal treacherously every man against his brother, by profaning the covenant of our fathers?”

To God, dealing treacherously against one another is a major issue.

This mistreatment of one another brought about a disregard in the heart of God. God simply did not notice their tears or their offerings.

vs. 13 “And this have ye done again, covering the altar of the LORD with tears, with weeping, and with crying out, insomuch that he regardeth not the offering any more, or receiveth it with good will at your hand.”

God wants us to be good to each other. God wants the poor treated properly. God wants the widow and the fatherless to be cared for and loved. God promises judgment on those who oppress the widow and the fatherless or those who do not pay the worker his wages.

Malachi 3:5 “And I will come near to you to judgment; and I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, and against the adulterers, and against false swearers, and against those that oppress the hireling in his wages, the widow, and the fatherless, and that turn aside the stranger from his right, and fear not me, saith the LORD of hosts.”

James 2:9 “...But if ye have respect to persons, ye commit sin…"

We need to be careful to love the brethren — all of them, with equity. Loving all men is right, but "... especially unto them who are of the household of faith.”

Galatians 6:10 “As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all [men], especially unto them who are of the household of faith.”

When we walk into the door of the church, all men ought to matter, to be honored, and to be respected.

Pastor

Effeminate Men

Good morning,

Men in America have not suddenly become feminine and been drawn sexually to their own gender. The feminization of men is a Satanic work from the early days of humanity, certainly as far back as Sodom. Paul writes in the books of 1 Corinthians and Romans about being effeminate and acting against nature.

1 Corinthians 6:9 “Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind,”

vs. 10 “…shall inherit the kingdom of God.”

Romans 1:26 “For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature:”

vs. 27 “And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet.”

Just as the misuse of drugs and alcohol, murder, and other various forms of shameful violence are present today, effeminate men will always be in society. Mankind is sinful. Why it seems to have increased in recent decades, I cannot tell you for sure; but I have observed trends which are probably a part of the cause.

Here are a few of my observations:

• Dominant women in the home

• Men absent from their family responsibilities, forcing mom to be in charge

• Divorce and children being raised without a dad

Ready for a rough one?

Women superheroes — I will not watch a show in which the woman is the superhero. I am so narrow-minded, that someone gave me a Dr. Pepper with wonder woman on it and I almost threw it out. (I decided to drink the Dr. Pepper first, then throw out the can.)

We are erasing gender lines in life! Women are coaching boys rather than caring for the softer and more feminine needs of the home (leaving these needs unmet in the home). Women have moved into the military and police force.

1 Timothy 2:12 “But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence.”

Ready for another sacred cow? Women in politics. There is no question that women standing up to campaign, criticize other political leaders, argue, and fight the political battles of a nation puts them in a position of dynamic leadership — which places men in a position of submission. The verse above forbids that! It may not be sinful, but it is hurtful.

The problem consists of much more than, “A woman can do the job just as well as a man.” The issue consists of what it is doing to society and the home. Who is rearing the children when mom is being a soldier? Who is training the children when mom is the CEO of a business? Of course women are smart; of course, women can run a bulldozer, organize, or plan and implement, but can a man be to the home and little children what a woman can be? That is one of the issues. Can a babysitter exude the love and security that the mother can? I say, “Absolutely not!” That babysitter does the job for the money; mom does the job in love. No, dad would not be able to be all that a little child needed — Moms are unique. While mom is out “playing the man” she is failing at rearing up her boys and girls; here is where the weakening of the gender begins.

Isaiah 3:12 “As for my people, children are their oppressors, and women rule over them. O my people, they which lead thee cause thee to err, and destroy the way of thy paths.”

To be what God designed a man to be, boys need some qualities that can only be learned from male leadership and from viewing female submission. Whether it be on the job or in the home, when the man leads and the woman follows, boys learn to be men; girls also learn to be the unique creation of God that only they can be.

When these roles are wrong, a submissive, soft, feminine spirit is bred into a young man, and a forward, masculine dominance is developed in a young lady. Manliness and an independent, self-sufficient, dare-to-try type manhood is under assault and is actually being dissolved right before our eyes. The idea of a young man stepping up to another person eyeball to eyeball and daring him to start something was common in my youth — that kind of action is nearly obsolete today.

With the loss of dare and risk, we have also lost the willingness to start churches or businesses, to overhaul an engine, or go out hunting in the woods. Those things that require a calm self-confidence and self-reliance are not only slipping away, but they are also completely under assault in our country.

Carefully pick out books that boldly exemplify manliness. Find books for your children to read that glorify women and men in their biblical roles. About junior high age, I started letting my boys read Louis L’ Amour books. I blacked out bad words and let them read. These books exalt manliness, honesty, treating women right, paying debts, love for freedom and country, and many more characteristics I wanted my boys to learn. I wanted my boys to hear good preaching, not teaching, but preaching by men who fearlessly said what was right and wrong.

My wife and I were very careful about which cartoons and movies our children saw. Hollywood will ruin your children if you give it a chance. No shows with unmanly men or women in leadership ought to be allowed in front of your children's eyes. Shows in which sexual innuendos are thrown around and women are viewed as sex objects ought to be trashed. Shows with women who save the day and men are being rescued ought to be tossed as well. Cartoons in which guys wiggle around like sissies or with female dancers ought to be banished from earth!

Summer activities that breed manliness ought to be encouraged: bows and arrows, BB guns, hikes, long bike rides, swimming, climbing, jumping, fun fighting, and an occasional bloody nose ought to be accepted and encouraged. Moms do not need to huddle over their children as they grow up, especially boys; let them be free and run risks now and then.

We do humanity no favor in training women to act like men and men to act like women. To attempt to erase gender differences is not only stupid, but it is dangerous for society. Our bookstore has lessons on child rearing that deal at length with developing men and women.

If you are homeschooling your children, you simply must get those boys away from mom and under male leadership. Time to face injustice, to deal with stupid people, and to allow manly character to rub off on them from good men is a necessity.


Be certain of this one thing: the devil is out to ruin anything God does. He wants men to be like women and women to be like men. He wants the home to be a shambles and politics to create lords over slaves. Use the summer to intentionally train your boys — especially in manly characteristics.

Pastor

Draw Away Disciples

Good Morning,

As active Christians, we all get concerned about younger believers. We watch and notice when a youth or newer believer is influenced by less than spiritual people, and we should notice. The book of Proverbs warns constantly about the wrong crowd misleading the simple one and promises to bless the one who walks with the wise. (Proverbs 13:20)

At times, we fail to see how mature believers can, likewise, be misled.

Acts 20:29 “For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock.”

vs. 30 “Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them.”

Notice that last phrase: “to draw away disciples after them.” The drawing away was not of young believers, but disciples — disciplined ones.

2 Timothy 4:10 “For Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world, and is departed unto Thessalonica; Crescens to Galatia, Titus unto Dalmatia.”

Demas was a faithful companion of Paul; the love of this world drew him.

Colossians 4:14 “Luke, the beloved physician, and Demas, greet you.”

It was not necessarily that Demas desired riches and wealth over Christ, he could simply have “loved this present world” and was not inclined to follow Paul to prison and death. How many believers have evaded service on a foreign field where their life would be in danger? I, for one, considered with hesitancy that my son be permitted to travel with a college friend to areas of Trinidad and Guyana where there was a possibility of harm. We had not denied the faith, but we do love having our children around and would wish long life for them. He did make the trip, and we trusted him to the hands of the loving Father.

The reasons are undisclosed of why Crescens and Titus also departed from Paul. (Titus, of course, is the faithful man who penned the book of Titus.) Their reasons for leaving may not have been negative; they may have made the decision for ministry in another place, but the context is not favoring that idea, as it followed the comment about Demas and gained no positive explanation.

Whatever their reasons were for leaving Paul, the faithful believer needed to be careful about who influenced him. The books we read, the internet sites we visit, the sermons we might hear on the radio or online all need to be carefully monitored in order to protect our spiritual future.

Fear caused Peter to deny his Lord. Love of money or the praise of men caused Ananias and Sapphira to lie about their finances and die premature deaths. (Acts 5) Perhaps it was fear of death that caused John Mark to return from following Paul and Barnabas to the mission field. Whatever the reason, the fact remains that at one point he left. (Acts 13:13)

In the exhortation of Paul to the Ephesian elders, Paul was fearful about doctrinal error drawing away disciples and thereby causing the ministry of the Gospel to suffer. It was in the early church that men denied the idea that Gentiles could be saved. (Acts 11) Shortly after, saved Jews came telling young believers that they needed to keep the Law of Moses to be saved:

Acts 15:1 “And certain men which came down from Judaea taught the brethren, and said, Except ye be circumcised after the manner of Moses, ye cannot be saved.”

vs. 2 “When therefore Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and disputation with them,”

Many stories exist of Satan’s attempts to draw the fledgling church into error, and Paul had to straighten them out; even the faithful Apostle Peter was openly rebuked for wrong:

Galatians 2:14 “But when I saw that they walked not uprightly according to the truth of the gospel, I said unto Peter before them all, If thou, being a Jew, livest after the manner of Gentiles, and not as do the Jews, why compellest thou the Gentiles to live as do the Jews?”

Do not lightly allow others to influence your faith or doctrine. Walk guardedly, and inspect the teacher as well as the teaching before it is casually adopted into your faith. One popular pastor, with a large internet audience, preaches against the nation of Israel, Jews of today, and against the idea that we will be raptured before the tribulation. One error leads to another, and once a pastor takes an off-ramp from the Bible in one area, he is forced to preach all manner of foolishness. Followers of that man, like sheep, innocently travel the road to increasing error.

For the faithful believer, take heed, guard your influences, and if anything unusual comes across your path, compare it to the Bible and time-tested, godly leaders.

Acts 20:29 “For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock.”

vs. 30 “Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them.”

Pastor

Different

Good Morning,

The fact that God’s people are different is well known, but the extent of their difference is rarely seen so clearly as in the life of Mordecai.

Esther 3:8 “..and their laws are diverse from all people;”

The people of God have always been different; or at least, we are supposed to be different —different from all other people.

Esther 4:6 “So Hatach went forth to Mordecai unto the street of the city, which was before the king's gate.”

vs. 7 “And Mordecai told him of all that had happened unto him, and of the sum of the money that Haman had promised to pay to the king's treasuries for the Jews, to destroy them.”

How very personal the king’s law was to Mordecai because it was his fault that all the Jews were threatened. He alone bore the responsibility, but it was according to the commands of God, and Mordecai was willing to leave the end result to God. Although the other Jews did not hold the same standard, Mordecai’s unbending stand, uncompromising application of Scriptures, and unmovable conviction were the cause that threatened the lives of all the Jews. Still, Mordecai did not seek peace or compromise.

Mordecai was not fearful of the destruction of the Jewish people. Later, he assured Esther that deliverance would arrive from somewhere; it was her choice to be a part of it or not.

Esther 4:14 “For if thou altogether holdest thy peace at this time, then shall there enlargement and deliverance arise to the Jews from another place; but thou and thy father’s house shall be destroyed: and who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this?”

Mordecai was sure, not only in his stand against the actions of religious people but also in that he would win in the end.

Abraham was asked to offer his son on the altar. This request was unusual and absurd in the eyes of men, yet it was the willingness to do the unusual deed that brought about the statement in Genesis 22:12: “And he said, Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me.”

I am not saying that God would ask of us the unusual deeds that He asked of Abraham or Jephthah, but I am saying that unusual actions suit an unusual people. We are strangers and pilgrims on this earth.

1 Peter 2:11 “Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul;”

Deciding not to drink liquor or go to casinos is not a freak decision, but simply one of separation. Loving your spouse, having an orderly home in which people love one another, following rules of behavior, allowing dad to be head of the home, or teaching children to obey are not weird or freakish decisions.

Esther 3:8 “…and their laws are diverse from all people;”

No matter the price, Daniel would not stop praying at his window, and his friends would not bow to the giant idol. The apostles would not quit preaching on the street, nor would believers be deterred when death was the price. Baptists were drowned by the millions for simply not baptizing their babies. They were not freaks; they were people of conviction. When people truly believe something is so right that suffering is better than compromise, they set themselves apart.

We are different. Our roots are different. Our God is worthy of our absolute trust, even if it makes us outcasts.

Hebrews 11:13 “These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.”

In Hebrews 11, we read of the kinds of people that God revered as faithful heroes:

Hebrews 11:32 “And what shall I more say? for the time would fail me to tell of Gedeon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephthae; of David also, and Samuel, and of the prophets:”

vs. 33 “Who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions,”

vs. 34 ‘Quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens.”


Some people were held up for great victories they had won; others were esteemed for standing true when the world said they were failures.

vs. 35 “Women received their dead raised to life again: and others were tortured, not accepting deliverance; that they might obtain a better resurrection:”

vs. 36 “And others had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover of bonds and imprisonment:”

vs. 37 “They were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword: they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins; being destitute, afflicted, tormented;”

vs. 38 “(Of whom the world was not worthy…”

We are not bad, but we are different. We are people of conviction and strong belief — people who believe their God is worthy of our trust and obedience.

Yes, we are very different from the world around us.

Pastor

Appropriate

Good morning,


As a child, my brother and I stayed at the home of a babysitter who had National Geographic magazines. Some of the primitive pictures of natives were certainly of interest to little boys: lack of clothing, feeding a baby in public, and lack of discretion — these are typical of primitive or Third-World nations.

1 Timothy 2:9 “In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety; not with broided hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly array;”

Ephesians 5:12 “For it is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of them in secret.”

The forward woman in Proverbs 7, talked about her bedroom. She described how it looked, how it smelled, and how safe it was from discovery.  Her actions were certainly the wrong way to behave. When reading the books of Proverbs or Song of Solomon, God alludes to different matters of intimacy with vocabulary and sentences structured in a manner that if read by a child would still be appropriate. Notice the careful wording God uses in this passage of Proverbs:

Proverbs 5:15 “Drink waters out of thine own cistern, and running waters out of thine own well.”

vs. 16 “Let thy fountains be dispersed abroad, and rivers of waters in the streets.”

vs. 17 “Let them be only thine own, and not strangers' with thee.”

vs. 18 “Let thy fountain be blessed: and rejoice with the wife of thy youth.”


Those words make a point without being too direct. In our culture, we would use the word would be discreet, appropriate, or delicate. 


The following verses contain the bluntest words you will find; notice how carefully God used them:

vs. 19 “Let her be as the loving hind and pleasant roe; let her breasts satisfy thee at all times; and be thou ravished always with her love.”

vs. 20 “And why wilt thou, my son, be ravished with a strange woman, and embrace the bosom of a stranger?”

When I was a child, people did not use the word pregnant; but instead, the words expecting or with child would be used. Rarely would anyone even speak of a lady carrying a baby in mixed company. Clothing was loose fitting and the subject was whispered. Intimate subjects were simply not a matter of public conversation. Private concerns of health or our bodies were not discussed in public — and that was in the public school or among my unsaved, non-Christian family. The word used in the Scriptures is shamefacedness: which means to be bashful or very respectful of those around you. Many subjects are not wrong but do not need not be discussed publicly. Conversation should contain some bashfulness and discretion, and should also be guarded so as to protect the mind of others.

Let me be blunt. For a teenage boy to see a lady throw a shawl over herself and then slip a baby in to breastfeed does much for the imagination. It brings the boy’s mind to places he should not go.  I went through my entire youth never seeing any lady feed her child until my wife, and that was in private. Feeding a child privately is described as appropriate, discreet, and civilized.  

Photography has become more than immodest, and we have brought our children into a society in which subjects are discussed that certainly do not fit the words shamefacedness and sobriety. (1 Timothy 2:9) Having a little shame or bashfulness is far from the expectation of today’s culture. When our last child was born, we were surprised at the lowered standard of what is appropriate since the birth of our prior child a decade earlier. Walking through the hospital for an introduction of facilities, they showed us where the wife would have a last-minute sonogram. Asking if someone would like to demonstrate, a lady near delivery hopped up on the table pulled up her shirt and allowed a dozen or so men to view not only too much of her flesh but also the sonogram of her baby. I quickly stepped to the back in the crowd to protect my appropriate and discreet thinking. What is wrong with our society? The guide of our tour went on to describe the best place to set up a camera if you wanted to video childbirth. I do not care what our society says — that is as close to pornography as it could be! Yes, childbirth is amazing. Yes, the miracle of a new child is incredible. But how does discretion fit into the picture?  Only a few years ago, a husband was not even allowed in the delivery room. Our culture has become unfathomably primitive, and we have lost the discretion that was brought into our society through the Bible and Christianity.

The lack of propriety or discretion can also slip into a Christian’s life.  The Bible tells us to confess our sins to God. James says to confess our faults one to another. Faults and sins are different; the words were carefully chosen by God. We need not describe graphic and detailed situations to other believers: we are not priests. The garbage in one person’s mind is probably best left there; to put that information in the mind of another believer is not necessary. Confess the sin to God. To say I am sorry for being rude to you is a long way from my telling you about private sinful deeds.  One is a fault, the other is a sin.  

Ephesians 5:12 “For it is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of them in secret.”

Deeds that are done in secret simply do not need to be discussed. We close doors and wear clothing; we do not discuss subjects that our clothing covers or about what is done behind closed doors (unless it is with a parent or a doctor). These practices are the product of a civilization that has been influenced by Christianity and the Bible. I do not need to hear ladies talk about someone's clothing size or a breast pump. For ladies to talk about these subjects in private would be more appropriate. Subjects which are discussed in the presence of a man should be entirely different. Perhaps that way of thinking is extreme, but no one ever got in trouble not knowing something.

Our culture has glorified the “no boundaries” kind of mentality. People with no boundaries say anything, take pictures of anything, and casually converse about anything — just like people in primitive society do. I left that mentality when I put down the National Geographic magazine and chose to think as God directed.

Philippians 4:8 “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.”

Pastor 

Environmental Agendas

Good Morning,

Deuteronomy 20:19 “When thou shalt besiege a city a long time, in making war against it to take it, thou shalt not destroy the trees thereof by forcing an axe against them: for thou mayest eat of them, and thou shalt not cut them down (for the tree of the field is man's life) to employ them in the siege.”

2 Kings 6:25 “And there was a great famine in Samaria: and, behold, they besieged it, until an ass's head was sold for fourscore pieces of silver, and the fourth part of a cab of dove's dung for five pieces of silver.”

In the Scripture, many times we read of enemy armies laying siege against a city.  People would flee into a city for defense against enemies, but then they would be stuck there with no source of supplies while the enemy surrounded them and waited for everyone to starve.  Hezekiah had a tunnel dug from a faraway water source to bring water into the city, (2 Kings 20:20) but there was also the need for food for people and animals. 

Here is a brief thought that is intended to bring us to prayer.  When the enemy wants to hurt someone, cutting off the supply chain is a common attack. They make certain items more difficult to obtain, they raise taxes or permit prices, and add regulations so the cost of production goes up; then the common man is faced with the difficulty of affording things like natural gas to heat their home or fuel to get to work.  Do not mistake it, the promotion of electric cars has a far deeper significance than clean air and co2 omissions.  If that were the case, they would be concerned about how batteries are made and disposed of (which in case you are not aware, produces far more co2 than fossil fuel powered cars).  

Our governor demands that only free-range chicken eggs be sold, so that shoots up the price of an easy source of protein. Who cares if the chicken is happy; we want their eggs. What chicken ever said she was unhappy?  Or who made the decision that chickens were capable of being happy or sad?   Every time a regulation is put into place to “protect us” or to be “more humane” we should remember the word siege.  If the supply chain is being attacked, so are the people: oil pipelines, fracking, and the attack against beef ranchers due to “emissions” are just a few.

Control has always been the goal of evil people and the evil one.  By keeping folks cold, struggling for food and heat, and limited on how to get clothing and ammunition, they strive to make the common man easier to control. 

This is not a lesson to bring fear, but to highlight facts that will remind us to pray. We are in a spiritual war for the Gospel, the church, the Bible, and the eternal souls of men. 

Pastor

A Different Perspective

Good Morning,

On the cross, Jesus prayed, “…Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do,” and Stephen prayed, “Lord, Lay not this sin to their charge.” (Acts 7:60)   Later, we read of Paul speaking of those who abandoned him in his troubles, and he said,  “I pray God that it may not be laid to their charge.” (2 Timothy 4:16)

When we consider love, it is not love of friends and family that is so amazing, but love of those who hurt us. 

Matthew 5:44 “Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;”

We have all read or heard about Christ’s instruction to “turn the other cheek,” and most of us wonder about that one.  

While reading in Psalms, I see David often praying for his enemies to be caught, trapped, confused, and even killed, but as we look more into the life of David, we do not see those emotions come out in his actions.   David sparred the life of his enemy Saul twice. 

Speaking of his enemies, David wrote;

Psalm 35:13 “But as for me, when they were sick, my clothing was sackcloth: I humbled my soul with fasting; and my prayer returned into mine own bosom.”

vs. 14 “I behaved myself as though he had been my friend or brother: I bowed down heavily, as one that mourneth for his mother.”

The world hates because they do not have the love of God.  The politicians live by deceit and graft because they never met the One Who is just and pure.  The media twists and corrupts information to sell a story and to make a buck; they do so because they never learned righteousness and honor from the altogether Lovely One.  Believers who walk with the Lord and live in His Book view life differently.  To forgive, to have mercy, and to wish well to those who wish them evil are all natural reactions that a child of God can experience.  

When one is born into the family of the One Who “so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son,”  we look at the miserable world around us with eyes of compassion.  For this reason, for centuries, believers have walked away from comfort and friends to tell the dying and evil world of the loving Saviour.  By looking back a few hundred years, we will find that most missionaries had very short ministries (an average of only five to seven years); travel, disease, or evil men often took their lives.  Most missionaries never returned home and died on the field; missionaries still went with the knowledge that this was a real possiblity.  There is a love and compassion in the heart of that anyone who walks with God, and that causes him to view life differently. The more vile the world, the more we realize how very lost and broken this world is.  Like starving children or dying prisoners of war, we see this evil world as prison of lies that hurts people who are starving for truth and honor.  

We do think differently, and the closer we are to the Almighty, the more we will exhibit tenderness, even to those who harm us.  Everything looks differently through a Spirit-filled heart. 

Pastor

Sovereignty of God

Good Morning,

On occasion, I find myself in a conversation with someone who has accepted the “Calvinistic” view of the Christian life.  It is more often found among those with college and even seminary training than among “normal” believers, but that is not always the case. At least one church in our area is strong in the folly of Calvinistic philosophy. 

Ephesians 1:11 “In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:”

The main idea of Calvin that people love to embrace is the election of some to salvation and the “irresistable grace” of God that saves a soul. The idea is that God picks who will get saved, and that one cannot not resist the will of God, even if they wanted to. The contrary part of that doctrine is that God also picks who will go to Hell, and there is nothing anyone can do to change that.  Church members sit around studying their Bibles and trying to gain a happier life, but they never lift a finger to get the Gospel to the world around them; for the men and women around them are going to go to Heaven or hell and there is nothing any of us can do to change that. 

The common believer knows this is foolish; for the idea of  “irresistable grace,” and “total depravity” says that man is so bad, he could not muster up the faith to call on God for help or salvation, without God giving him the grace to call.  Now that might make some measure of sense in a classroom, but in the real world, it will not work.  Just as a professor challenges the number of genders, no farmer ever thought up something so ridiculous.  If one lives in the real world, he will gain much truth. 

For instance, a drug-addicted person was not forced down that road of ruin by God, it was the decision of the individual. The drunk driver was not forced by God to walk into that bar, to drink liquor, and then to drive.  Any reasonable person knows these are the choices of man.  

Isaiah writes of God knowing all things and doing what He wants in the world, but it is far from causing man to sin or to do right. 

Isaiah 46:10 “Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure:”

Some people have taken this philosophy so far as to say that God placed the forbidden fruit in the garden because He planned and forced man to eat of it, so that Christ might come and save humanity (well, at least those who are ordained to be saved). 

I know that most of you who are reading this article think it is a waste of time, and are thinking, “I have other things to do beside read foolish ideas of ignorant men.”  Yet, the doctrines of Calvin are in most Bible colleges, are creeping into countless commentaries on the Bible, and are being brought subtly into the pulpits of Baptist churches across America. 

When God commands us to “be not drunk with wine,” He obviously states that the decision is up to the man.  When God says for a man to love his wife, it is logical that the man may NOT love her; God is urging him to do so, but the decision is left to the man. When God tells children to honour their mother and father, any child can see that the choice is in the heart and mind of the child, not one that is forced upon them by God.

When God says, “come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden” (Matthew 11:28), it is clearly an open invitation that leaves the choice up to the hurting one to come or not to come.  From the Ten Commandments to “Go into all the world and preach the gospel,” God expresses His will, and though He knows all things, He does not cause all things.  

The lazy, satanic excuse of not going soul winning because God has ordained some to Heaven and some to Hell is tragic.  Do we leave our children to brush their teeth or not because it was ordained of God?  Do we not seek to order the friends of our children?  Do we not teach our children to behave with respect, diligence, or punctuality?  If God is totally sovereign and ordains all things, why “train up a child in the way he should go?”  For he will go the way God eternally ordained him to go, and there is nothing we can do to change it.  No common Bible-reading Christian would consider such foolish ideas.   Remember that college is often the source of corrupt thinking, both in the secular world and the sacred. 

Why would we fast and pray for some important situation if it were ordained by the eternal edict of Heaven?  This kind of thinking will cater to the flesh and caudal the spirit.  This takes away the broken heart over the wayward child, and removes personal responsibility for the lost man next door. This eases the grief over the direction of society, and basically allows everyone to do what they want, to relax, and not to worry about anyone or anything else.   

The average Christian in a Calvinistic church will not believe all this, for it is obviously foolish, but if we want to accept the doctrine of total sovereignty, then we must follow that road and see where it leads and it most certainly leads to a land of stupidity.

Let us be clear that there are some verses we do not understand. When we read some passages, we wonder about them, but we should not allow idiotic doctrines into our churches because of our limited understanding.  

Pastor

Believe Every Word?

Good Morning,

Proverbs 14:15 “The simple believeth every word: but the prudent man looketh well to his going.”

Romans 16:18 “For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly; and by good words and fair speeches deceive the hearts of the simple."

Consider the number of recorded Bible stories in which someone got into trouble because they believed what they heard rather than verifying the facts.  We might start with Eve; she caused a few problems when she believed the tempter’s words. In addition, there were those who believed the idea that building a tower could reach Heaven.  I wonder what they thought they would do then?  Once the giant tower was built, who really wants to climb it?  Who wants to live up that high? What good will it do?  Without considering these questions, someone conceived the idea, and everyone jumped on the bandwagon (as many people do when they see something on social media.)  Abraham listened to Sara and took Hagar as his wife; this decision brought about endless hurt through the Arab race.  Isaac listened to his mother and deceived his father and that advice did not develop into anything worth while (and those illustrations were found in the first few dozen chapters of Genesis).  

The point is, a prudent man listens, thinks, acquires facts, and determines if the situation is any of his business. If not, he ignores the words because they are simply unfounded or the actions of a busybody.

Let me give you an example.  An older man had been missing from church for a few weeks.  Another man came to me and said that the missing gentleman was angry with me about something.  In foolishness, I believed what I was told and ignored the missing man.  After a week or two, I felt I had to see him.  Stopping by his house, he came to the door and began to tear up that I cared enough to come visit him. The man's elderly father had moved into his home and fallen. He had been forced to find help and on and on. You can imagine just how overwhelmed he was. He was so thankful his pastor cared enough to come by. Oftentimes, people say things that are LIES, mistaken impressions, or misinformed opinions. 

Proverbs 14:15 "The simple believeth every word: but the prudent man looketh well to his going.”

Do not believe everything you read or hear, even if the information you hear is from family or friends.  I was verbally accosted by a man about how a situation was handled at church, the issue was not momentous, but it did need a response.  I was chastised, scolded, and rebuked.  Then I explained that when the event occurred, I was out of town for a few days, and the situation was handled by others. I had no involvement or information about the incident.  The man simply ignored the facts and continued to scold me – before I even had a chance to research the facts of the situation.  

Some people will believe what they hear, even if facts prove otherwise.  Do not panic; if we think hard enough, we may also remember having done something like that before.  Have some mercy and guard your response.  It may be that emotions will calm and reason will return (or maybe not). Do not react to what you hear, and do not accept what is written in the news or social media as fact. (Have we not learned that lesson already in vibrant ways over the past few years?) 

Romans 16:18 “For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly; and by good words and fair speeches deceive the hearts of the simple.”

There are people who set themselves to deceive others.  They plan their words, order their conversation, and have an agenda.  Others want an excuse to be angry, to quit their job, to drop out of church, or to move across the country; when a fixed desire is in place, information becomes warped, stories are twisted, and details are bent to fit their narrative–and there is absolutely nothing you can do about it. In their predetermined agenda, they will deceive others and cause much harm.  

Have we all not read about propaganda from communist leaders such as Hitler and Stalin to our current socialist politicians? 

Do not believe what you hear and read; at least have the prudence to look into the information.  In reality, most of the deceitful things we hear do not even need to be researched: someone is angry at you, someone said mean things to you, someone does not like your child, or some disease is going to kill everyone so you must stay inside (you know the kind of statements that are made).  

Proverbs 14:15 “The simple believeth every word: but the prudent man looketh well to his going.” 

Do not believe every word, it may hurt more people than you think.

Pastor

Go On Anyway

Good Morning,

When someone close to us falls, there is a certain grief that hits us.  If it be a child, a spouse, or someone who works for us, it is a heavy weight to bear when those near us make a mess of their lives. 

I know people who have quit going to church when their marriage failed (often simply out of shame and partly wishing not to be reminded by the questions folks innocently ask).  The same is true if a business fails, if a child gets into great trouble, or any number of personal sins. Some people also feel personal responsibility that they failed as a spouse, parent, or boss; they blame themselves and withdraw from life in guilt or self-abasement.  

Allow me to mention a few Bible truths and some thoughts to ponder when those near to you fail.

Our knowledge of history begins long before Genesis one; we find the earliest historical events in Isaiah 14 and Ezekiel 28 when Satan was cast out of Heaven.  I am so thankful that God did not quit when one of His created servants rebelled and took a major part of the heavenly creatures with him to their ultimate destruction.  God is perfect, yet one of the beings He created used his free will to seek the highest position in Heaven.  God went on being God.

Sometime later, God made man, and you know how that went. One child was fooled by Satan, and the other chose willfully to disobey the simple commandment not to eat from that tree. Skipping ahead to the New Testament, we see how our Lord personally picked his followers, and one of the twelve was filled with Satan and sold out the Master.  That choice to pick Judas was not a BAD decision; it was perfect like everything our Lord did. I am glad Jesus stayed on track doing the will of God. When a follower does wrong, it has nothing to do with the leader, much like Satan's decision to rebel against God had nothing to do with God.

We can look at stories of earthly leaders and see one of the Apostles’ key couples lie to the Lord. God had to kill them (Acts 5).  When your child or spouse chooses wrong, you are not to blame; it was their choice, not yours.  

2 Timothy 4:10 tells of three of Paul’s hand-picked workers who went back to the world:

"For Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world, and is departed unto Thessalonica; Crescens to Galatia, Titus unto Dalmatia."  

While I'm sure Paul missed them and was grieved over their bad decisions, Paul kept going on for God.

Parents, when your child fails, you still have a life to live for God. No, you were not perfect, and neither were any other people. When a traitor walks away from his post to join the Taliban, the fault does not lie with the commanding officer.  When your spouse walks away from their marriage vows, it is not your fault any more than it was the fault of Hosea that his wife went into prostitution.  No, you were not a perfect spouse, but neither is anyone else.

Satan is the accuser of the brethren. Do not join the wicked one in trying to discourage good people from doing their duties in life. We live in a broken world, and will feel some hurt when a child or someone near you goes astray. Once you have hurt and grieved, get up and get going to make up for the work that was left undone by the one who walked into the world. Ask the manager at any major store if he ever had employees break company policy, steal, or defraud the store.  Then ask if the boss took the blame. If you are the one who messed up things and you failed, read about Edison who found a thousand ways NOT to make a lightbulb.  If leaders around you make a mess of things, remember our founding fathers who had to walk away from England – they built the greatest nation on earth.

If it was your decision to go astray, remember the cross, and that forgiveness is available (1 John 1:9), because "God so loved the world."

Some of the finest pastors and church members I know lost a child, a spouse, a business, and they went on with a broken heart to do countless wonderful things. (Yes, even while being criticized.) Keep on!  

Pastor