Yesterday, (Sept.1st), was a very important day for me. It was on September 1, 1993 that I asked God to forgive me of my sins, and He saved my soul. It's hard to believe it's been 17 years. It's not always been easy, and sometimes, it was downright hard. But one thing has never changed, He has never left me, nor forsaken me. I have not always been that faithful to Him, but He has always been faithful to me. Whatever He said would happen, did. He has always kept His promises.
In those 17 years, He has sent us to 3 different churches. The first one was Charity Baptist Church (4 years), the second was Smyrna Missionary Baptist Church (12 years and 8 months), and the most recent one, First Baptist Church (4 months).
I have also lost a few friends because of my conversion, but He has blessed me with MANY more friends than I have lost. He is so good.
I don't know what He has in store for me in the coming years, if I even have years left, but I know that whatever it may be, it will be exciting.
Showing posts with label God. Show all posts
Showing posts with label God. Show all posts
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Friday, July 9, 2010
Thank You
Thank You Father God for...
Love, peace, joy, comfort, calmness in my soul, wisdom, knowledge, understanding, strength, energy, every breath I breathe.
Grace, mercy, patience, kindness, truth, deliverance, faith, hope and charity.
Clothes, food, house, gas, electricity, water, lights, microwave ovens, cars, TV, radio, computer, Internet, satellites, cable, shoes, socks, and art.
Clouds, rain, lightning, thunder, snow, wind, sun, moon, stars, heat, cold, birds, trees, cats, dogs, flowers, fruits and vegetables.
Most of all, thank You for sending Your only begotten Son, Jesus, the Christ, to die on an old rugged cross, to pay the debt for my nasty, ugly sins, that I could never pay.
Some of this list may sound a little silly, but the point is, we have God to thank for EVERYTHING. We take SO MUCH for granted, that we don't appreciate what God has done for us.
God is good, all the time.
Love, peace, joy, comfort, calmness in my soul, wisdom, knowledge, understanding, strength, energy, every breath I breathe.
Grace, mercy, patience, kindness, truth, deliverance, faith, hope and charity.
Clothes, food, house, gas, electricity, water, lights, microwave ovens, cars, TV, radio, computer, Internet, satellites, cable, shoes, socks, and art.
Clouds, rain, lightning, thunder, snow, wind, sun, moon, stars, heat, cold, birds, trees, cats, dogs, flowers, fruits and vegetables.
Most of all, thank You for sending Your only begotten Son, Jesus, the Christ, to die on an old rugged cross, to pay the debt for my nasty, ugly sins, that I could never pay.
Some of this list may sound a little silly, but the point is, we have God to thank for EVERYTHING. We take SO MUCH for granted, that we don't appreciate what God has done for us.
God is good, all the time.
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Staying Alive
The movie 'Saturday Night Fever' came out over 30 years ago. It's hard to believe it's been that long. I still remember all my friends learning to disco. What a sad memory. I can't dance, so I didn't even try to 'do the hustle'.
The PG version of this movie was on TV recently, so I recorded it. I hadn't seen it in decades, so I thought it would be safe to watch it without the profanity and sex. After I watched it, I was depressed. I remembered it being about dancing, mostly, but I was wrong. It showed the sad, disturbing lives of teenagers, growing up in a big city, with mixed up values, and no real role models. The main characters life, revolved mostly around dancing, and wanting to get away from his horrible life. I saw this movie about 3 times in one week. Back then, I was blown away by this thing, apparently. No wonder my life was so messed up. I looked up to something like this.
Anyway, it's been over 30 years since it came out, and we are no better off today, than we were then. Our big cities, and lately our smaller towns, are breeding grounds for all kinds of criminals, gangs, drug dealers, prostitutes, and their ilk. It's really sad that we haven't been able to pinpoint the reason for this behavior. Our government is so busy coming up with new 'programs', and throwing money at our problems, that they are missing the solution. They are so concerned about being 'politically correct', and 'tolerant', and not offending anyone, that our children, our futures, have been forgotten.
The bottom line, of course, is that we all need Jesus as our Lord and Savior. He is the only One that can change the self-destructive patterns in our lives. He is the only One that can take us off that well-worn path that leads to Hell, and put our feet on the beautiful, well-lit path that leads to Heaven. With Him, all things are possible. If He hadn't been taken out of our schools, our courtrooms, our libraries, our government, who knows where we would be as a nation today. We could have been so much more. So sad.
"Oh Victory, in Jesus, my Savior, forever; He sought me, and He bought me, with His redeeming blood." Thank you Jesus. Amen.
The PG version of this movie was on TV recently, so I recorded it. I hadn't seen it in decades, so I thought it would be safe to watch it without the profanity and sex. After I watched it, I was depressed. I remembered it being about dancing, mostly, but I was wrong. It showed the sad, disturbing lives of teenagers, growing up in a big city, with mixed up values, and no real role models. The main characters life, revolved mostly around dancing, and wanting to get away from his horrible life. I saw this movie about 3 times in one week. Back then, I was blown away by this thing, apparently. No wonder my life was so messed up. I looked up to something like this.
Anyway, it's been over 30 years since it came out, and we are no better off today, than we were then. Our big cities, and lately our smaller towns, are breeding grounds for all kinds of criminals, gangs, drug dealers, prostitutes, and their ilk. It's really sad that we haven't been able to pinpoint the reason for this behavior. Our government is so busy coming up with new 'programs', and throwing money at our problems, that they are missing the solution. They are so concerned about being 'politically correct', and 'tolerant', and not offending anyone, that our children, our futures, have been forgotten.
The bottom line, of course, is that we all need Jesus as our Lord and Savior. He is the only One that can change the self-destructive patterns in our lives. He is the only One that can take us off that well-worn path that leads to Hell, and put our feet on the beautiful, well-lit path that leads to Heaven. With Him, all things are possible. If He hadn't been taken out of our schools, our courtrooms, our libraries, our government, who knows where we would be as a nation today. We could have been so much more. So sad.
"Oh Victory, in Jesus, my Savior, forever; He sought me, and He bought me, with His redeeming blood." Thank you Jesus. Amen.
Friday, June 25, 2010
Don't Worry, Be Happy
Life is funny. When you live long enough, you start noticing things. I was out mowing my yard, and pulling weeds, (pulling them since my weed eater string kept locking up on me), when the thought hit me. 'How many times have I pulled these sames weeds, along this same fence?' The futility of it all just struck me as odd, and funny. I have spent the last 28 years at this house, taking care of my yard, pulling weeds, painting the house, etc. But just wait until I've been in the ground for a week or so, and those same weeds will be a foot high, mocking me to my grave. In the back of my mind, I think 'what's the use?'. Yes, of course I want my yard to look nice. I want my neighborhood to look nice, at least my little part of it. But what's the use, really?
We may say that we 'own' our house, or whatever, but we never really 'own' anything here on this earth. We are merely caretakers, until the next guy comes along. I know people who spend untold hours out in their yards, and/or gardens, pulling weeds, and making such a fuss over every little thing, as if that were their whole lives. I have news for them. IT'S NOT!!!
Lately, my saying has been 'Life's too short'. Life is simply too short to waste it on trivial, futile little things that don't matter. Not really. For example, my house needs to be painted this year. I have the paint, I have the ladder, the brushes, everything I need. But, if it doesn't get painted THIS year, I suppose it'll get painted next year. No big deal. I might not even be around next year to paint it anyway. I guess that will be for the next guy to do.
It may sound like I'm lazy, or nonchalant, but I'm not. I just woke up this morning, thinking about my life, and where God has brought me, from where I was. I could have made so many different decisions here and there, but didn't. And now, here I am. I have worried and fretted about every little decision I have ever made, and I'm exactly where God wanted me to be anyway. I don't have the life I had BECAUSE I worried, but in SPITE of my worrying.
Life will go on, or it won't. I will have enough money to retire on, or I won't. I will wake up tomorrow morning and enjoy my Saturday, or, again, I won't. I have a wonderful, beautiful wife, and two great boys. God has given me all that I have, not because I deserved it, or I worked hard enough for it. I have what I have because of God's grace. Sure, I have to do certain things along the way. That's part of it, isn't it? But God tells me not to worry about ANYTHING. He's got it under control. From now on, I live. I breathe. I laugh, play, work, whatever. But I will not worry. At least, I will try not to.
Now, you must excuse me. I am going to go take my shower, and go out and enjoy the rest of my day. I think I will go take some pictures, somewhere. I guess. I don't really know. I'm playing it by ear today.
God is great. All the time.
We may say that we 'own' our house, or whatever, but we never really 'own' anything here on this earth. We are merely caretakers, until the next guy comes along. I know people who spend untold hours out in their yards, and/or gardens, pulling weeds, and making such a fuss over every little thing, as if that were their whole lives. I have news for them. IT'S NOT!!!
Lately, my saying has been 'Life's too short'. Life is simply too short to waste it on trivial, futile little things that don't matter. Not really. For example, my house needs to be painted this year. I have the paint, I have the ladder, the brushes, everything I need. But, if it doesn't get painted THIS year, I suppose it'll get painted next year. No big deal. I might not even be around next year to paint it anyway. I guess that will be for the next guy to do.
It may sound like I'm lazy, or nonchalant, but I'm not. I just woke up this morning, thinking about my life, and where God has brought me, from where I was. I could have made so many different decisions here and there, but didn't. And now, here I am. I have worried and fretted about every little decision I have ever made, and I'm exactly where God wanted me to be anyway. I don't have the life I had BECAUSE I worried, but in SPITE of my worrying.
Life will go on, or it won't. I will have enough money to retire on, or I won't. I will wake up tomorrow morning and enjoy my Saturday, or, again, I won't. I have a wonderful, beautiful wife, and two great boys. God has given me all that I have, not because I deserved it, or I worked hard enough for it. I have what I have because of God's grace. Sure, I have to do certain things along the way. That's part of it, isn't it? But God tells me not to worry about ANYTHING. He's got it under control. From now on, I live. I breathe. I laugh, play, work, whatever. But I will not worry. At least, I will try not to.
Now, you must excuse me. I am going to go take my shower, and go out and enjoy the rest of my day. I think I will go take some pictures, somewhere. I guess. I don't really know. I'm playing it by ear today.
God is great. All the time.
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Change
I have had several changes in my life lately. Changes in the way I feel, the way I see certain things, the way I think, those sort of changes. One big change was when God led us away from our home church of 12 1/2 years. We were comfortable there. We love the church, and all the people in it. But something started happening about a year ago. I had a vision while sitting in church, listening to a sermon. I was listening to the preaching, when suddenly, I was somewhere else. I could hear what was going on around me, but I was aware of other things going on in front of me. To make a long story short, I felt God was showing me that in a matter of time, I was to go. After that, things started becoming very clear. I still TRIED to ignore the vision. I didn't want to hear the message God had for me.
Later in the year, in November, Carolyn had her surgery, and two weeks later, I had my surgery. I was off work for a week with Carolyn, and then I was off work for six weeks for my surgery. This gave me LOTS of time to sit and think. I wasn't allowed to do much else. In those couple of months, God changed me dramatically. I could see that He was doing things, changing things, in my and Carolyn's lives. I had been the choir director at our church for a few years, and loved doing it. I had also done the nursing home ministry for our church for about ten years, and loved it. I started feeling God leading me to quit the choir director position, and stop two of the nursing homes we were doing. These were big changes for me. Again, I was comfortable doing these things. I felt called by God to do them. But now, He was pulling me back. I was ready, but I didn't want to disappoint our church family. I had to make a choice. Make the church happy, or God. I had to choose God.
By the middle of March, we knew we were going to be leaving our church, but we didn't know where we were going. We felt like Abraham and Sarah. It was scary, but exciting. We didn't know how to tell our church we were leaving. So, as I do about EVERYTHING, I prayed and prayed and prayed. Again, long story short, we decided to just tell them, and go. It didn't go so well. Nobody understood what we were doing. They thought we were making a big mistake, and wanted us to stay. We did too, but we knew we couldn't. Easter Sunday was our last Sunday at our church, and we haven't looked back.
We have been at our new church for about two months, and LOVE it. We are exactly where we are supposed to be. The point of this post, is to show that when God makes a change in your life, you can fight it, or go where He tells you to go. Give in, and let God lead you. He knows far more than we do, where we belong. He knows where He can use you, more than you do. Change is good, when God is doing the changing. How great is our God. Amen.
Later in the year, in November, Carolyn had her surgery, and two weeks later, I had my surgery. I was off work for a week with Carolyn, and then I was off work for six weeks for my surgery. This gave me LOTS of time to sit and think. I wasn't allowed to do much else. In those couple of months, God changed me dramatically. I could see that He was doing things, changing things, in my and Carolyn's lives. I had been the choir director at our church for a few years, and loved doing it. I had also done the nursing home ministry for our church for about ten years, and loved it. I started feeling God leading me to quit the choir director position, and stop two of the nursing homes we were doing. These were big changes for me. Again, I was comfortable doing these things. I felt called by God to do them. But now, He was pulling me back. I was ready, but I didn't want to disappoint our church family. I had to make a choice. Make the church happy, or God. I had to choose God.
By the middle of March, we knew we were going to be leaving our church, but we didn't know where we were going. We felt like Abraham and Sarah. It was scary, but exciting. We didn't know how to tell our church we were leaving. So, as I do about EVERYTHING, I prayed and prayed and prayed. Again, long story short, we decided to just tell them, and go. It didn't go so well. Nobody understood what we were doing. They thought we were making a big mistake, and wanted us to stay. We did too, but we knew we couldn't. Easter Sunday was our last Sunday at our church, and we haven't looked back.
We have been at our new church for about two months, and LOVE it. We are exactly where we are supposed to be. The point of this post, is to show that when God makes a change in your life, you can fight it, or go where He tells you to go. Give in, and let God lead you. He knows far more than we do, where we belong. He knows where He can use you, more than you do. Change is good, when God is doing the changing. How great is our God. Amen.
Thursday, June 17, 2010
Life Goes On
I have a page on Facebook that I go to every now and then. Nobody ever writes on my wall, I just go there to see what everybody is saying to each other. I can catch up on things, without having to carry on a conversation. I have noticed that some very bored, sneaky people are hacking into members accounts, and using their identities, sending messages to unsuspecting friends. Most people will put up with this, and just keep adding more 'friends', not caring about the hacking. They probably think it's relatively harmless.
I was on my page tonight, and just decided to unload some of my 'friends'. I started out with 106 friends, and when I was done, I had 57 left. Out of those 57, I probably ever talk to about 5 of them. The rest, I just use to catch up on friends and family. Sad. Some people live on Facebook, playing all the silly games, tending to their 'farms', and such. I have heard of some people setting an alarm, just so they could get up and water their plants. Wow.
I am letting go of this present world, a little at a time. There will come a day, very soon, that most of my stuff will be taken away anyway. The things of this world will burn up, with a fervent heat, so says the Bible. And I believe it. I can't take it with me, so I will give away what I can, and use up what's left. When I leave this world, whether by death, or the rapture, I expect that I won't have much down here with my name on it.
When Jesus walked this earth, He didn't own anything. He said 'the foxes have holes, and the birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay His head'. He knew the importance of distancing oneself from the trappings of this present world. We can get too comfortable with our stuff, and make it a part of our identity. When we love some material thing so much, that we can't let go of it, then we have forgotten our purpose for being here. We are not here to gather as much stuff as we can get our hands on. We are here to gather souls for God's Kingdom.
Love people, not things. Pastor Larry Delon always said, don't love anything, that can't love you back. Amen.
I was on my page tonight, and just decided to unload some of my 'friends'. I started out with 106 friends, and when I was done, I had 57 left. Out of those 57, I probably ever talk to about 5 of them. The rest, I just use to catch up on friends and family. Sad. Some people live on Facebook, playing all the silly games, tending to their 'farms', and such. I have heard of some people setting an alarm, just so they could get up and water their plants. Wow.
I am letting go of this present world, a little at a time. There will come a day, very soon, that most of my stuff will be taken away anyway. The things of this world will burn up, with a fervent heat, so says the Bible. And I believe it. I can't take it with me, so I will give away what I can, and use up what's left. When I leave this world, whether by death, or the rapture, I expect that I won't have much down here with my name on it.
When Jesus walked this earth, He didn't own anything. He said 'the foxes have holes, and the birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay His head'. He knew the importance of distancing oneself from the trappings of this present world. We can get too comfortable with our stuff, and make it a part of our identity. When we love some material thing so much, that we can't let go of it, then we have forgotten our purpose for being here. We are not here to gather as much stuff as we can get our hands on. We are here to gather souls for God's Kingdom.
Love people, not things. Pastor Larry Delon always said, don't love anything, that can't love you back. Amen.
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Sudden Healing
At this time last week, I was in severe pain, and had been for about two weeks. I had a pulled muscle in my shoulder, back pain, and pain in my other shoulder. From the time I got up in the morning, and until I went to bed at night, I was in pain. I couldn't get it to go away, no matter what I took or did. I had been praying every day for God to heal me of this pain, according to His perfect will. I knew He could heal me, and I knew He heard my prayers, but He just hadn't healed me yet.
Last Thursday night, I went to bed as usual, hurting as usual. The next morning, when I got out of bed, I noticed something very unusual. I didn't hurt anymore. At all. Nowhere. I thought, 'well, it'll start hurting again in a few minutes', but it never did. It still hasn't. I don't know why God decided to wait so long to heal me, and I don't know why He decided to COMPLETELY heal me either. When I was asking Him for healing, I was asking that He put all my muscles, bones, and nerves back where they belong, so that I wouldn't hurt. I thought He might make me feel better, but I wasn't expecting such a complete healing. That makes me feel bad. I pray, and pray, for God to heal me, but I don't REALLY expect Him to all the way. I guess it has a little to do with guilt, or not feeling worthy enough for Him to do it right. After all, it's just me. I'm nobody. But what I forget, is He sent His only begotten Son to die a cruel, shameful death on a wooden cross, to pay for MY sins. MINE!!! (and everybody else's too). He loves me THAT much!!!
So, when I pray for anything now, I am going to fully expect His best. His perfect will. He knows what is best for me. I don't. He's God. I'm not. I want to brag on God every chance I get. He is SO worth it. God is good, ALL the time.
Last Thursday night, I went to bed as usual, hurting as usual. The next morning, when I got out of bed, I noticed something very unusual. I didn't hurt anymore. At all. Nowhere. I thought, 'well, it'll start hurting again in a few minutes', but it never did. It still hasn't. I don't know why God decided to wait so long to heal me, and I don't know why He decided to COMPLETELY heal me either. When I was asking Him for healing, I was asking that He put all my muscles, bones, and nerves back where they belong, so that I wouldn't hurt. I thought He might make me feel better, but I wasn't expecting such a complete healing. That makes me feel bad. I pray, and pray, for God to heal me, but I don't REALLY expect Him to all the way. I guess it has a little to do with guilt, or not feeling worthy enough for Him to do it right. After all, it's just me. I'm nobody. But what I forget, is He sent His only begotten Son to die a cruel, shameful death on a wooden cross, to pay for MY sins. MINE!!! (and everybody else's too). He loves me THAT much!!!
So, when I pray for anything now, I am going to fully expect His best. His perfect will. He knows what is best for me. I don't. He's God. I'm not. I want to brag on God every chance I get. He is SO worth it. God is good, ALL the time.
Monday, June 7, 2010
The Foolishness Of God
Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. - 1 Corinthians 2:12-14
The scripture above says that a non-believer cannot understand the spiritual things of God, because they seem foolish to him. He cannot possible understand the things of God, because he does not have the Holy Spirit in him.
As a conservative Christian, my mind can't comprehend how a perverted, evil man, can look at a sweet little girl, or boy, and only see them with a deviate sense of affection. Equally, that spiritually, and mentally, disturbed man, can't understand how I can continue to follow, and believe in, a God that I can't even see. This is just one worldly example of the same scripture. When I was saved, the old natural man was put to death, and the new man was born. I no longer had the same mind I once had. I now can see and understand the things of God more clearly. I 'hear' the voice of God, and 'feel' the Spirit of God, and 'see' God in everything around me. I have tried to explain this to non-Christians, but they cannot comprehend what I am saying.
Here is another real world example of this scripture. In today's paper, a column written by Cokie and Steve Roberts, is discussing the "don't ask, don't tell" policy in our military. That policy says that if you are a homosexual serving in the military, you cannot openly practice your lifestyle, or you will be discharged from service. They are saying that the policy needs to be repealed, because today, "we are a far more open and tolerant country. The House and Senate have both passed bills that would eliminate the policy, but it still faces a rocky legislative road." The problem is, "a small but vocal chorus of Christian conservatives continues to oppose any change in the current law, and they are strongly supported by some orthodox military chaplains who believe homosexuality is a sin." According to the Roberts', Christian conservatives have a right to their opinion, but they don't have a right to impose their narrow-minded view of homosexuality on the rest of the country."
The Roberts' also say that "most Americans know and like openly gay people in their schools, their workplaces, their neighborhoods, and their own families." I personally, know very few people who are tolerant of openly active homosexuals, flaunting their lifestyles in front of them.
Of course, homosexuality is just one area where believers, and non-believers disagree. When sin issues, such as homosexuality, abortion, gambling, adultery, and the like, are discussed in an open forum, the line is usually drawn right down the middle of both camps. It is all because of what God says in His word. The natural man cannot comprehend the things of the Spirit. The things of God are foolishness to the unbeliever.
The Apostle Paul says in the same chapter of 1 Corinthians, that our "faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God." He also wrote, "But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God."
In closing, we need to be sensitive to the concerns of non-believers, while at the same time, always trying to lead them into a relationship with Jesus Christ. The only cure for the darkness of this world, is the Light of Christ.
The scripture above says that a non-believer cannot understand the spiritual things of God, because they seem foolish to him. He cannot possible understand the things of God, because he does not have the Holy Spirit in him.
As a conservative Christian, my mind can't comprehend how a perverted, evil man, can look at a sweet little girl, or boy, and only see them with a deviate sense of affection. Equally, that spiritually, and mentally, disturbed man, can't understand how I can continue to follow, and believe in, a God that I can't even see. This is just one worldly example of the same scripture. When I was saved, the old natural man was put to death, and the new man was born. I no longer had the same mind I once had. I now can see and understand the things of God more clearly. I 'hear' the voice of God, and 'feel' the Spirit of God, and 'see' God in everything around me. I have tried to explain this to non-Christians, but they cannot comprehend what I am saying.
Here is another real world example of this scripture. In today's paper, a column written by Cokie and Steve Roberts, is discussing the "don't ask, don't tell" policy in our military. That policy says that if you are a homosexual serving in the military, you cannot openly practice your lifestyle, or you will be discharged from service. They are saying that the policy needs to be repealed, because today, "we are a far more open and tolerant country. The House and Senate have both passed bills that would eliminate the policy, but it still faces a rocky legislative road." The problem is, "a small but vocal chorus of Christian conservatives continues to oppose any change in the current law, and they are strongly supported by some orthodox military chaplains who believe homosexuality is a sin." According to the Roberts', Christian conservatives have a right to their opinion, but they don't have a right to impose their narrow-minded view of homosexuality on the rest of the country."
The Roberts' also say that "most Americans know and like openly gay people in their schools, their workplaces, their neighborhoods, and their own families." I personally, know very few people who are tolerant of openly active homosexuals, flaunting their lifestyles in front of them.
Of course, homosexuality is just one area where believers, and non-believers disagree. When sin issues, such as homosexuality, abortion, gambling, adultery, and the like, are discussed in an open forum, the line is usually drawn right down the middle of both camps. It is all because of what God says in His word. The natural man cannot comprehend the things of the Spirit. The things of God are foolishness to the unbeliever.
The Apostle Paul says in the same chapter of 1 Corinthians, that our "faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God." He also wrote, "But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God."
In closing, we need to be sensitive to the concerns of non-believers, while at the same time, always trying to lead them into a relationship with Jesus Christ. The only cure for the darkness of this world, is the Light of Christ.
Friday, June 4, 2010
Wisdom (or lack of it)
I work with a guy who thinks he is right about EVERYTHING! When he starts talking, I want to just scream and run away. Either that, or politely ignore him. Aside from these two options, the only choice I have is to stand and listen, and politely scream in my mind, where he can't hear it. Also, if you have an opinion, and he disagrees, he gets really snooty. Or smart-alecky, whichever.
I know God gave us free will. He gave us the right to disagree, even, with Him. But just because we have the right, to think He is wrong, that doesn't make us right. He is ALWAYS RIGHT. All He did, was give us the right to be wrong, if we so choose. There are those that think they are ALWAYS RIGHT, no matter what the subject. They have presumed, incorrectly, that because they were smart enough to be right about a few things, then they must be right about EVERYTHING. We need to be wise enough, to realize when we are wrong.
Bill Clinton was once asked in an interview, how he could be FOR abortion, and claim to be a Southern Baptist. His answer was amazing. He asked the interviewer to show him in the Bible, where the word 'abortion' was. In his pursuit of wisdom, he showed his ignorance. The actual word 'abortion' may not be in the Bible, but 'Thou shalt not kill' is. The word 'gambling' is not in the Bible either, but the principles against it are. It's the principle, not the word, that matters. Words change, but God's truth doesn't.
Men can be smug. They can roll their eyes. They can give that pathetic, patronizing look. When you talk about God, and scripture, and Heaven and Hell, they may just ignore you and walk away. But in the end, they can't ignore God. They can't just ignore Him and walk away. He is too great a presence. He is right. All the time. Till the end of time. Judgment is coming, and earthly wisdom won't get you to Heaven. Your own righteousness won't get you there either. Asking God to forgive you of your sins, and asking Him to save you, and accepting Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, is the ONLY WAY to get to Heaven. Don't be so smart that you miss out on eternity with Him.
I know God gave us free will. He gave us the right to disagree, even, with Him. But just because we have the right, to think He is wrong, that doesn't make us right. He is ALWAYS RIGHT. All He did, was give us the right to be wrong, if we so choose. There are those that think they are ALWAYS RIGHT, no matter what the subject. They have presumed, incorrectly, that because they were smart enough to be right about a few things, then they must be right about EVERYTHING. We need to be wise enough, to realize when we are wrong.
Bill Clinton was once asked in an interview, how he could be FOR abortion, and claim to be a Southern Baptist. His answer was amazing. He asked the interviewer to show him in the Bible, where the word 'abortion' was. In his pursuit of wisdom, he showed his ignorance. The actual word 'abortion' may not be in the Bible, but 'Thou shalt not kill' is. The word 'gambling' is not in the Bible either, but the principles against it are. It's the principle, not the word, that matters. Words change, but God's truth doesn't.
Men can be smug. They can roll their eyes. They can give that pathetic, patronizing look. When you talk about God, and scripture, and Heaven and Hell, they may just ignore you and walk away. But in the end, they can't ignore God. They can't just ignore Him and walk away. He is too great a presence. He is right. All the time. Till the end of time. Judgment is coming, and earthly wisdom won't get you to Heaven. Your own righteousness won't get you there either. Asking God to forgive you of your sins, and asking Him to save you, and accepting Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, is the ONLY WAY to get to Heaven. Don't be so smart that you miss out on eternity with Him.
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
Boring Day
Today was kind of a boring day. I had to go back to work this morning, (joy, joy). It was nice being off for three days, even thought it seemed like one and a half. I hurt like an old man when I got up. My body got out of the habit of rising early. It doesn't take very long to get out of the habit, apparently. Work went ok. I was on a grinder today, and went over my rate for the day. I don't know where the energy came from, (well, I do, really), but I'm glad I had it. It made the day go by much faster.
After work, I came straight home and started mowing the yard. It was WAY too hot to mow, but it had to be done, and I didn't see anybody else volunteering to do it. After I got done mowing our yard, I went ahead and mowed the neighbor's yard. It needed it, and I did have the extra gas. After two yards, I was totally exhausted. I thought I was going to pass out. Fortunately, we have the central air conditioning on in the house. I came in and turned it to about 68 degrees. It felt nice. That, and a long shower, made me feel much better.
After supper, Adam and his girlfriend, Kara, brought us both a small Blizzard from Dairy Queen. It was an unexpected surprise. I haven't had Dairy Queen since last year sometime. What a way to end the day. Thank You God for a Wonderful Day.
Saturday, May 29, 2010
Nice Saturday
What a beautiful day it was. And it started out so late for us. We slept in until 11:30am!!! I couldn't believe it when I woke up and saw the clock. Granted, I didn't go to bed until 3:30am, but still. I usually don't sleep more than 6 hours a night. Oh well, I must have needed it.
After our hibernation, we got cleaned up and went to my niece's open house. I missed going to her graduation ceremony. It was at 11:00am. Oops. It was nice to see family today. I don't get to see them as much as I would like. That's the way it is with family though. It was also my other niece's 15th birthday. It only seems like a couple of years ago that these two girls were running around playing. Now, their working, and driving, and graduating from high school. How time flies. John Lennon said, "Life is what happens to you, while you're busy making other plans". We need to appreciate every day that God gives us. Each day, and each person we know, are blessings from Him. How we forget that sometimes.
After the open house, Carolyn and I took off for Muncie. Tomorrow is her birthday, and I wanted her to be able to buy some clothes for her. She hardly ever spends any money on herself. We shopped for a while, and then headed back to the big town of New Castle. When we got back into town, we stopped at Ming's Buffet for some Chinese food. As usual, Carolyn didn't eat very much, while I pigged out. After that, it was WalMart, and then home. A boring, but fun day.
I am so glad God gave me Carolyn. I tell her I don't deserve a woman like her, and she gives me that look. But it's true. I see her as such a blessing in my life. God knew what kind of woman would put up with me, and it was her. How she has stayed with me all this time, I'll never know. We could have fun just sitting and talking for hours. Or just going to the park and sitting, or swinging. We have so much fun together. Thank You God. I really don't deserve such a beautiful, understanding, and forgiving woman.
After our hibernation, we got cleaned up and went to my niece's open house. I missed going to her graduation ceremony. It was at 11:00am. Oops. It was nice to see family today. I don't get to see them as much as I would like. That's the way it is with family though. It was also my other niece's 15th birthday. It only seems like a couple of years ago that these two girls were running around playing. Now, their working, and driving, and graduating from high school. How time flies. John Lennon said, "Life is what happens to you, while you're busy making other plans". We need to appreciate every day that God gives us. Each day, and each person we know, are blessings from Him. How we forget that sometimes.
After the open house, Carolyn and I took off for Muncie. Tomorrow is her birthday, and I wanted her to be able to buy some clothes for her. She hardly ever spends any money on herself. We shopped for a while, and then headed back to the big town of New Castle. When we got back into town, we stopped at Ming's Buffet for some Chinese food. As usual, Carolyn didn't eat very much, while I pigged out. After that, it was WalMart, and then home. A boring, but fun day.
I am so glad God gave me Carolyn. I tell her I don't deserve a woman like her, and she gives me that look. But it's true. I see her as such a blessing in my life. God knew what kind of woman would put up with me, and it was her. How she has stayed with me all this time, I'll never know. We could have fun just sitting and talking for hours. Or just going to the park and sitting, or swinging. We have so much fun together. Thank You God. I really don't deserve such a beautiful, understanding, and forgiving woman.
Friday, May 28, 2010
Three Day Weekend
It's finally here. Memorial Day Weekend. I've been waiting on this for weeks now. I feel bad in a way, because all I've been thinking of is the time off from work, and the beautiful weather. My mind tends to forget what the holiday is about. It's about remembering those that have given their very lives to protect our way of life. If I see a military person this weekend, I want to make sure and thank them for their service.
I never was interested in joining any branch of the military. My Dad served in the Army, and so did his Dad. My brother, Brian, served for a while. I think I passed my disinterest on to my two boys. Neither of them ever had the slightest interest in joining. Not that that's a BAD thing. Not everyone is born with the desire to. We all have our place in this world. God's plan includes all different kinds of service, not just military.
This is going to be a nice weekend, weather-wise, I hope. The Indianapolis 500 is Sunday. It's really cool that most of the world focuses on our state that one day each year. Indianapolis has built themselves up as a huge sports city. With the Lucas Oil Stadium, we finally got our chance to host the Super Bowl. I've been inside the Stadium one time, and it is HUGE. My brother, Brian, the military guy, took me there for a Colts football game on my 50th birthday. Nice.
I'm really looking forward to Sunday. Not only for church service, which I love, but also our friends from South Carolina are coming up for the week, and we get to see them Sunday night. I can't wait to see them again. Right now, I'm just really glad it's Friday. Thank you God for this weekend.
I never was interested in joining any branch of the military. My Dad served in the Army, and so did his Dad. My brother, Brian, served for a while. I think I passed my disinterest on to my two boys. Neither of them ever had the slightest interest in joining. Not that that's a BAD thing. Not everyone is born with the desire to. We all have our place in this world. God's plan includes all different kinds of service, not just military.
This is going to be a nice weekend, weather-wise, I hope. The Indianapolis 500 is Sunday. It's really cool that most of the world focuses on our state that one day each year. Indianapolis has built themselves up as a huge sports city. With the Lucas Oil Stadium, we finally got our chance to host the Super Bowl. I've been inside the Stadium one time, and it is HUGE. My brother, Brian, the military guy, took me there for a Colts football game on my 50th birthday. Nice.
I'm really looking forward to Sunday. Not only for church service, which I love, but also our friends from South Carolina are coming up for the week, and we get to see them Sunday night. I can't wait to see them again. Right now, I'm just really glad it's Friday. Thank you God for this weekend.
Sunday, May 23, 2010
Another Great Day
The Lord blessed us with another great Sunday. When we woke up this morning, it sure didn't seem like it was going to be a good day at all. Neither of us slept very well, waking up tired and hurting. We finally got showers and shaving and everything done, and left right on time. I thought we were going to be late for church, but just made it.
Sunday School class was great today. It's only the third Sunday that we have gone to SS Class at our new church. The teacher wasn't there last week for this class, so we decided to try it out again. Am I glad we did. I think we will be going back to this one for good. Again, we met more people that we hadn't met before. Every week God leads us to meet yet another friend to be.
The morning service was great, as usual. They had a celebration for all graduates, High School, and College. The graduates led the praise and worship service. They did a good job. The message today was about Pentecost. Pastor Jerry preached from Acts Chapter 2. I really learned a lot today. I also think Carolyn and I are going to talk to the Music Director about joining the Praise and Worship Team. There are so many new experiences for us at First Baptist. God has blessed us, and continues to bless us, at this church. I can hardly wait for each new service.
In the afternoon, our son Matt called us, and told us his car was overheating, and he was just down the block from us. I told him to come on down and let his car cool down, and we would take a look at it. He and his girlfriend, Ginger, took our car and did their grocery shopping and went home and ate dinner. In the meantime, I took a short nap. It was SO needed. When they came back, we spent about an hour working on his car. I think we took care of everything, because when he left, it wasn't overheating anymore, and his air conditioning was working better. It was good to spend some time with them.
We went to Grand Avenue Baptist Church tonight. They had a great Bluegrass Gospel group called Born Again playing there. We very much enjoyed their playing, singing, and testimonies.
All in all, the Lord gave us a fantastic day. He is far better to us than we deserve.
Sunday School class was great today. It's only the third Sunday that we have gone to SS Class at our new church. The teacher wasn't there last week for this class, so we decided to try it out again. Am I glad we did. I think we will be going back to this one for good. Again, we met more people that we hadn't met before. Every week God leads us to meet yet another friend to be.
The morning service was great, as usual. They had a celebration for all graduates, High School, and College. The graduates led the praise and worship service. They did a good job. The message today was about Pentecost. Pastor Jerry preached from Acts Chapter 2. I really learned a lot today. I also think Carolyn and I are going to talk to the Music Director about joining the Praise and Worship Team. There are so many new experiences for us at First Baptist. God has blessed us, and continues to bless us, at this church. I can hardly wait for each new service.
In the afternoon, our son Matt called us, and told us his car was overheating, and he was just down the block from us. I told him to come on down and let his car cool down, and we would take a look at it. He and his girlfriend, Ginger, took our car and did their grocery shopping and went home and ate dinner. In the meantime, I took a short nap. It was SO needed. When they came back, we spent about an hour working on his car. I think we took care of everything, because when he left, it wasn't overheating anymore, and his air conditioning was working better. It was good to spend some time with them.
We went to Grand Avenue Baptist Church tonight. They had a great Bluegrass Gospel group called Born Again playing there. We very much enjoyed their playing, singing, and testimonies.
All in all, the Lord gave us a fantastic day. He is far better to us than we deserve.
Friday, May 21, 2010
Marriage Assault
I was listening to Chuck Colson on Break Point radio this morning. (www.breakpoint.org). He was talking about the institute of marriage. It got me thinking about what has happened to marriage in my lifetime. There have been so many things, I am just going to point out a few important ones.
In the 1970's, lawyers came up with 'no-fault divorce'. You could go into the lawyer's office, fill out the right paperwork, and if you were in agreement, you could be divorced before you knew it. No hassle, cheaper, that's that. When a divorce was harder to get, and took quite a bit longer, husbands and wives had more incentive to stay together and try to work out their problems. That, by the way, is what we are supposed to do anyway. No marriage is going to be trouble-free. It's through compromise, hard work, and commitment, that marriage grows stronger, and lasts longer. We've made it too easy to leave when things aren't going just the way we wanted. God is surely not pleased.
Another little thing that really bothers me, is when women don't want to take their husband's last name, or they want to hyphenate their name with his. Where is the commitment? Where is the 'becoming one flesh' the Bible speaks of. When God spoke to Adam and Eve, in Genesis, He called them, simply, Adam. In His eyes, they had become 'one flesh', or two becoming one. Eve took on Adam's identity, without losing her own, of course. God never expected the woman to be a slave to her husband, but as a helper at his side, working together.
When divorce became easier, marriage lost something. It no longer seemed as important. Living together, without being married, seemed a lot more convenient. But, two people living together, without the benefit of a wedding ceremony, cannot truly say they are 'one flesh'. They are still two separate people, with two separate lives, bound only by the same mailing address. Again, where is the commitment? Where is the trust? Where is the incentive to stay together?
Fast forward to today. Now that men and women have weakened, and ruined, the whole meaning of true marriage, we have gone a step farther. And it's a dangerous step. Homosexuals now have fought for, and received the right to be 'married', in some states. This is a sad state of affairs. God sees homosexuality as an 'abomination'. It makes Him sick. It is unnatural, and disgusting. Marriage, as designed by God, was meant to be between one woman, and one man. Anything else cannot truly be called a 'marriage'. Two men, or two women, cannot truly be married 'in the eyes of God'.
Homosexuals are now wanting to change the meaning of marriage. Studies have shown that most same-sex 'marriages', are open 'marriages'. They say they want to be married 'like everybody else'. But they don't. They want everybody else to married like them. Anything goes. Once we allow these things to happen, it's only a matter of time before we legalize marriage between men and animals, or men and boys. I know this sounds like I'm being extreme, but there are actually cases of people trying to get this to happen.
I know all of this makes me sound homophobic. I am not. I friends who are homosexuals, and I love them very much. It is there lifestyle that I do not agree with. God loves them too, but hates the lifestyle they have chosen. God never designed us to have same-sex tendencies. Satan has fed the homosexual lie to the world, and they have believed it. If you read in the Bible, God destroyed the world with a flood, because every wicked thing that they could think of, they did. He destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah for the same thing. Their most prominent sin was homosexuality. Sexual sin has brought down and destroyed many societies throughout history. We need to learn from these mistakes, and get our country back to where it needs to be. We need to get marriage back to what God intended it to be. Between one man, and one woman. Period. The health of our country, and our world, depends on it.
In the 1970's, lawyers came up with 'no-fault divorce'. You could go into the lawyer's office, fill out the right paperwork, and if you were in agreement, you could be divorced before you knew it. No hassle, cheaper, that's that. When a divorce was harder to get, and took quite a bit longer, husbands and wives had more incentive to stay together and try to work out their problems. That, by the way, is what we are supposed to do anyway. No marriage is going to be trouble-free. It's through compromise, hard work, and commitment, that marriage grows stronger, and lasts longer. We've made it too easy to leave when things aren't going just the way we wanted. God is surely not pleased.
Another little thing that really bothers me, is when women don't want to take their husband's last name, or they want to hyphenate their name with his. Where is the commitment? Where is the 'becoming one flesh' the Bible speaks of. When God spoke to Adam and Eve, in Genesis, He called them, simply, Adam. In His eyes, they had become 'one flesh', or two becoming one. Eve took on Adam's identity, without losing her own, of course. God never expected the woman to be a slave to her husband, but as a helper at his side, working together.
When divorce became easier, marriage lost something. It no longer seemed as important. Living together, without being married, seemed a lot more convenient. But, two people living together, without the benefit of a wedding ceremony, cannot truly say they are 'one flesh'. They are still two separate people, with two separate lives, bound only by the same mailing address. Again, where is the commitment? Where is the trust? Where is the incentive to stay together?
Fast forward to today. Now that men and women have weakened, and ruined, the whole meaning of true marriage, we have gone a step farther. And it's a dangerous step. Homosexuals now have fought for, and received the right to be 'married', in some states. This is a sad state of affairs. God sees homosexuality as an 'abomination'. It makes Him sick. It is unnatural, and disgusting. Marriage, as designed by God, was meant to be between one woman, and one man. Anything else cannot truly be called a 'marriage'. Two men, or two women, cannot truly be married 'in the eyes of God'.
Homosexuals are now wanting to change the meaning of marriage. Studies have shown that most same-sex 'marriages', are open 'marriages'. They say they want to be married 'like everybody else'. But they don't. They want everybody else to married like them. Anything goes. Once we allow these things to happen, it's only a matter of time before we legalize marriage between men and animals, or men and boys. I know this sounds like I'm being extreme, but there are actually cases of people trying to get this to happen.
I know all of this makes me sound homophobic. I am not. I friends who are homosexuals, and I love them very much. It is there lifestyle that I do not agree with. God loves them too, but hates the lifestyle they have chosen. God never designed us to have same-sex tendencies. Satan has fed the homosexual lie to the world, and they have believed it. If you read in the Bible, God destroyed the world with a flood, because every wicked thing that they could think of, they did. He destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah for the same thing. Their most prominent sin was homosexuality. Sexual sin has brought down and destroyed many societies throughout history. We need to learn from these mistakes, and get our country back to where it needs to be. We need to get marriage back to what God intended it to be. Between one man, and one woman. Period. The health of our country, and our world, depends on it.
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Your Opinion
I recently read on another blog, that blogging was so 2008. In other words, it was a passing fad, no longer useful. They couldn't be more wrong. I personally think the blog is one of the best tools, for the average person on the street, to voice their opinion to the masses, no matter how controversial. Blogging may seem like a relatively new experience, but people have been voicing their opinions, in one way or another, for centuries.
When the printing press was invented, they had the opportunity to do what I am doing right now. Back then, though, I would have to write down what I wanted to say, find a local printer's shop, pay to have my fliers printed, and walk around, passing them out to whoever I could. If I was very fortunate, they might actually get taken to a nearby town. When we think about what we have now, we should feel very blessed.
We all have a God-given right to express ourselves. He has given us a mind to gather facts, to reason, and form an opinion. Everyone SHOULD be able to have their own opinion about anything they like. As a matter of fact, two people can take the same facts, and come to two totally different opinions. It all depends on their worldview. In some parts of the world, the government tries to suppress the ideas of their people. I suppose their reasoning is, if the people think too much, the government might lose control of them. In our country, we still have enough freedom to be able to constructively argue our point, and not be thrown in prison. How long that will last, is anybody's guess, though.
If the day comes that the Internet disappears, or goes out of style, (it could happen), men will come up with another way of spreading their views. The day we become silent on popular issues of the day, issues that affect our personal lives, will be the day we cease to be the thinking, civilized people, God created us to be. Edmund Burke is quoted as saying, "It is necessary only for the good man to do nothing for evil to triumph". How true.
I thank God that I have the ability to type these few words, my opinions, and send them out for anyone to read. Even if these words only reach a few people, they are MY words, and MY thoughts. God gives me ideas, I filter them through the brain He has given me, and I distribute them.
In the beginning was the Word. The Word created the world by speaking it into existence. The spoken word is powerful, and in the end, the Word will triumph. amen.
When the printing press was invented, they had the opportunity to do what I am doing right now. Back then, though, I would have to write down what I wanted to say, find a local printer's shop, pay to have my fliers printed, and walk around, passing them out to whoever I could. If I was very fortunate, they might actually get taken to a nearby town. When we think about what we have now, we should feel very blessed.
We all have a God-given right to express ourselves. He has given us a mind to gather facts, to reason, and form an opinion. Everyone SHOULD be able to have their own opinion about anything they like. As a matter of fact, two people can take the same facts, and come to two totally different opinions. It all depends on their worldview. In some parts of the world, the government tries to suppress the ideas of their people. I suppose their reasoning is, if the people think too much, the government might lose control of them. In our country, we still have enough freedom to be able to constructively argue our point, and not be thrown in prison. How long that will last, is anybody's guess, though.
If the day comes that the Internet disappears, or goes out of style, (it could happen), men will come up with another way of spreading their views. The day we become silent on popular issues of the day, issues that affect our personal lives, will be the day we cease to be the thinking, civilized people, God created us to be. Edmund Burke is quoted as saying, "It is necessary only for the good man to do nothing for evil to triumph". How true.
I thank God that I have the ability to type these few words, my opinions, and send them out for anyone to read. Even if these words only reach a few people, they are MY words, and MY thoughts. God gives me ideas, I filter them through the brain He has given me, and I distribute them.
In the beginning was the Word. The Word created the world by speaking it into existence. The spoken word is powerful, and in the end, the Word will triumph. amen.
Monday, May 17, 2010
Mosque At Ground Zero
I read a column in the paper today by Diana West ( http://www.dianawest.net/ ). She was saying that there are plans for a new building to go up two blocks away from where the World Trade Center towers once stood. It will stand 13 stories high, and cost around $100 million dollars. The building will include a mosque. Yes, a mosque.
Now, I am not a racist, at all. I love people of all nationalities, colors, and religions. But, I do believe in evil. I believe there are some religions that are more demonic than godly. And, while I am on the subject, I don't believe all religions worship the same, true God.
I also believe in respect for the dead. Diana made a very good point in her column. Allowing there to be a mosque at Ground Zero, would be the same as us allowing the Japanese to build a Shinto shrine adjacent to Pearl Harbor after the bombing. To me, it's absolutely disgusting to allow such things to go on in the name of 'tolerance'. Tolerance tends to lead to ignorance.
What happened on Sept. 11, 2001, was a major, catastrophic event, that turned the policies, and politics of this country in a totally different, and dangerous, direction. At the beginning, I think anyway, we did the right thing. We went looking for the people responsible for the attacks. We did what we had to do to see justice done. In time though, we started worrying about what other people thought, how it might look to other nations. We started worrying that we were being too 'intolerant'. The government was accused of 'racial profiling', because they were looking just for Muslims, and those from that part of the world. This was done after the Pearl Harbor attack, rounding up all Japanese, and Asian people, whether they were American citizens or not. Whether it was the perfect thing to do or not, we were determined to protect our nation from another attack. We didn't care what anybody thought, or how it looked. We wanted justice. Oh, how I wish we still had the guts to do that today.
Tolerance has ruined what used to be a great nation. When we started to accept other beliefs into our country, and allowed them to have more favor than traditional Christianity, we loosened God's hand of protection over us. We will most assuredly pay the consequences. More car bombs, more threats, and less and less freedom. And now that we are going to loosen our restrictions on immigration, we are inviting more problems, like we need more.
I am not one of those extremist, sign-carrying, protesters, nor do I want to come across as one. But what I am, is a Christian, and a proud American. At my age, I have seen America go from a strong, respected, superpower in the world, to a nation that apologizes for our actions. We seem to be sorry for being so powerful. We used to stand out from all other nations. The reason for that, was because God raised us up, He protected us, and gave us favor, because we stood for His teachings, His morals, His standards of right and wrong. We no longer stand out. We are becoming just like everybody else. We are blending in. We accept anything now. Nothing is out of bounds. There is a saying that goes "If you don't stand for something, you will fall for anything". We are proof of that now. May God help us all.
Now, I am not a racist, at all. I love people of all nationalities, colors, and religions. But, I do believe in evil. I believe there are some religions that are more demonic than godly. And, while I am on the subject, I don't believe all religions worship the same, true God.
I also believe in respect for the dead. Diana made a very good point in her column. Allowing there to be a mosque at Ground Zero, would be the same as us allowing the Japanese to build a Shinto shrine adjacent to Pearl Harbor after the bombing. To me, it's absolutely disgusting to allow such things to go on in the name of 'tolerance'. Tolerance tends to lead to ignorance.
What happened on Sept. 11, 2001, was a major, catastrophic event, that turned the policies, and politics of this country in a totally different, and dangerous, direction. At the beginning, I think anyway, we did the right thing. We went looking for the people responsible for the attacks. We did what we had to do to see justice done. In time though, we started worrying about what other people thought, how it might look to other nations. We started worrying that we were being too 'intolerant'. The government was accused of 'racial profiling', because they were looking just for Muslims, and those from that part of the world. This was done after the Pearl Harbor attack, rounding up all Japanese, and Asian people, whether they were American citizens or not. Whether it was the perfect thing to do or not, we were determined to protect our nation from another attack. We didn't care what anybody thought, or how it looked. We wanted justice. Oh, how I wish we still had the guts to do that today.
Tolerance has ruined what used to be a great nation. When we started to accept other beliefs into our country, and allowed them to have more favor than traditional Christianity, we loosened God's hand of protection over us. We will most assuredly pay the consequences. More car bombs, more threats, and less and less freedom. And now that we are going to loosen our restrictions on immigration, we are inviting more problems, like we need more.
I am not one of those extremist, sign-carrying, protesters, nor do I want to come across as one. But what I am, is a Christian, and a proud American. At my age, I have seen America go from a strong, respected, superpower in the world, to a nation that apologizes for our actions. We seem to be sorry for being so powerful. We used to stand out from all other nations. The reason for that, was because God raised us up, He protected us, and gave us favor, because we stood for His teachings, His morals, His standards of right and wrong. We no longer stand out. We are becoming just like everybody else. We are blending in. We accept anything now. Nothing is out of bounds. There is a saying that goes "If you don't stand for something, you will fall for anything". We are proof of that now. May God help us all.
Sunday, May 16, 2010
A Nice Day
Today was a busy day. We got started early this morning because of choir at church. This was our first time singing with the choir at First Baptist Church, and we had to meet for a final practice at 8:45am, right before Sunday School class. After the final practice for today's song, we went to a new class, called Genesis. The regular teacher was gone today, but it was still a good class. We met even more new people. We are meeting more new, and interesting people every time we go. After SS class, we met up front. The choir sang the first song, welcoming in the members to worship. It was a great feeling, standing up there, watching everybody coming in, while singing with the choir. God has surely blessed us by sending us here at this time.
After the morning worship service, they took a picture of the whole congregation, to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the church. That was a lot of fun. Carolyn and I got stuck right up front. I would rather have been off to the side, but oh well. After the picture, we had a pitch-in dinner in the Fellowship Center. We got to meet alot of people back there. After the meal, there was a Business Meeting. We sat in on that, to see what all was going on at the church. We talked to the Pastor, Jerry Ingalls, about becoming members, and he said there would be a new members class in the middle of July.
This afternoon, we went to Glen Oaks to have our monthly church service, and found somebody else there instead. They had scheduled another guy to come in and have a singing service. We just turned around and left. I didn't get upset, I figured it was a God thing. Carolyn wasn't feeling well today anyway. She went home and rested a little. She almost passed out when the choir was practicing this morning. She broke out into a sweat, and got dizzy. Very scary. She thinks it might be her new medication.
All in all, it was a good day. God still blesses us, always watches over us, and never leaves us. There's always something new around the corner. What an awesome God He is.
After the morning worship service, they took a picture of the whole congregation, to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the church. That was a lot of fun. Carolyn and I got stuck right up front. I would rather have been off to the side, but oh well. After the picture, we had a pitch-in dinner in the Fellowship Center. We got to meet alot of people back there. After the meal, there was a Business Meeting. We sat in on that, to see what all was going on at the church. We talked to the Pastor, Jerry Ingalls, about becoming members, and he said there would be a new members class in the middle of July.
This afternoon, we went to Glen Oaks to have our monthly church service, and found somebody else there instead. They had scheduled another guy to come in and have a singing service. We just turned around and left. I didn't get upset, I figured it was a God thing. Carolyn wasn't feeling well today anyway. She went home and rested a little. She almost passed out when the choir was practicing this morning. She broke out into a sweat, and got dizzy. Very scary. She thinks it might be her new medication.
All in all, it was a good day. God still blesses us, always watches over us, and never leaves us. There's always something new around the corner. What an awesome God He is.
Friday, May 14, 2010
I Am Not Ashamed
I am a 51 year-old man, and work in a foundry. I like to do 'manly' things, all the time. I also cry at the drop of a hat. I do not apologize for this, and I am not ashamed either. I have not always been like this though.
On September 1, 1993, I asked God to forgive me of my sins, (and there were many), and save me. At the time, my biggest fear was dying in my sleep, and waking up in Hell. When He saved me, there was a massive weight lifted off of me. Little did I know what all He had in store for me. I was always concerned about me. I had an attitude. I used profanity, alot. I drank, smoked, and gambled. I was a mess. But, when God saved me, He changed me. If I see someone on TV who is hurting, or has had something bad happen to them, I hurt with them. I pray for them. And, yes, I cry with them. I also tell people that I love them. When I do this at work, I don't always get a good response back. Some people don't know how to answer. That's okay with me. I really do love them, I love everybody. Although there are some individuals I don't really LIKE, I still love them. I can't help it. It's the way He has made me.
The apostle Paul said, 'I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ'. He never apologized for showing love to his neighbors. He was never sorry for trying to share God's plan of salvation with everyone he met. Jesus said that if we are ashamed of Him, then He will be ashamed of us with His Father, and the angels. I will not be ashamed of the gospel of Christ. I will not apologize for telling others that I love them, and want them to be saved.
Our life down here is short. I am going to spend more time with my Father in Heaven, than I will spend down here. I will have to give an account for my life to Jesus, not the people around me. We must use the time that we have here, wisely. Live you life on purpose. Give purpose to your life. Do not be ashamed.
On September 1, 1993, I asked God to forgive me of my sins, (and there were many), and save me. At the time, my biggest fear was dying in my sleep, and waking up in Hell. When He saved me, there was a massive weight lifted off of me. Little did I know what all He had in store for me. I was always concerned about me. I had an attitude. I used profanity, alot. I drank, smoked, and gambled. I was a mess. But, when God saved me, He changed me. If I see someone on TV who is hurting, or has had something bad happen to them, I hurt with them. I pray for them. And, yes, I cry with them. I also tell people that I love them. When I do this at work, I don't always get a good response back. Some people don't know how to answer. That's okay with me. I really do love them, I love everybody. Although there are some individuals I don't really LIKE, I still love them. I can't help it. It's the way He has made me.
The apostle Paul said, 'I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ'. He never apologized for showing love to his neighbors. He was never sorry for trying to share God's plan of salvation with everyone he met. Jesus said that if we are ashamed of Him, then He will be ashamed of us with His Father, and the angels. I will not be ashamed of the gospel of Christ. I will not apologize for telling others that I love them, and want them to be saved.
Our life down here is short. I am going to spend more time with my Father in Heaven, than I will spend down here. I will have to give an account for my life to Jesus, not the people around me. We must use the time that we have here, wisely. Live you life on purpose. Give purpose to your life. Do not be ashamed.
Thursday, May 13, 2010
First And Foremost? Really?
One of the features of this website, Blogger, is a link at the top of the page that reads "Next Blog". You can click on it, and go to a random blog. Sometimes, you can find interesting people, and interesting things to read. At other times, it will give you a headache. I was doing this last night, when I came upon a blog by a woman who, in her profile, said that "First and foremost, I am a Christian". She went on to say that she wanted to try to live her life through God's eyes. Then, she went on to say that she had another blog that she liked more than this one, but it may not sound to Christian, "Sorry God". What???
Curious, I went to the other blog to see what she was talking about. After reading the first one, I was floored by the kind of language this woman used in the second one. And the anger, and strong emotion in her writing DEFINITELY didn't sound very 'Christian'. I just could not believe this blog was by the same woman.
"First and foremost, I am a Christian". When you hear these words, you expect a certain type of attitude, a different kind of person. At least, I do. When you say you are a Christian, you are saying you are Christ-like. You are trying, with God's help, to be as much like Jesus as you can be. Now, I will be the first to tell you that I am not perfect. FAR from it. None of us are perfect, as a matter of fact. But, COME ON. To say, on the same page mind you, that you are "first and foremost a Christian", and then use language like that, is ridiculous. I know that some people, who call themselves a Christian, do not see any problem using profanity, as long as they don't use the 'bad words'. Am I the only one that sees this as more than a little hypocritical? Before I pound this poor woman into the ground, figuratively, I want to get to my point.
When we come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ, accept Him as our Lord and Savior, and REPENT of our sins, we are saying we are tired of who we are. We want to change, but we can't without His help. We invite His Holy Spirit in to change us into the likeness of Jesus Christ. Granted, sometimes, it's a slow change. But we MUST change. There MUST be conviction when we fall back into our old ways. If we can go back to doing things the way we used to, without so much as a backwards glance, there is something terribly wrong. I'm not talking about those times that we slip, we all do this at one time or another. I'm talking about COMFORTABLY using the old language, looking at the old things, listening to those sinful old things we use to listen to, and going to those places we said we were running from. These things just should not be.
The Bible says that when we are saved, TRULY saved, we 'put off' the old man, and 'put on' the new. We take off our old, filthy rags, our righteousness, and put on His righteousness, like a new set of clothes. If all we do is change our title, and not our ways, we deceive ourselves. God is not deceived. He sees our true selves, not the lie we try to pass off on everyone else, including ourselves.
We MUST turn from our old wicked ways. That means giving up the old language. God is not pleased with us when we use profanity. Jesus did not, and could not, use profanity. It is vain language. Empty, useless words. We must be Jesus to the world. We must show them that there is more to this life, than just living and dying. They have tried this world, and they are not impressed. They WANT something more. We have to be something more. God expects it.
Curious, I went to the other blog to see what she was talking about. After reading the first one, I was floored by the kind of language this woman used in the second one. And the anger, and strong emotion in her writing DEFINITELY didn't sound very 'Christian'. I just could not believe this blog was by the same woman.
"First and foremost, I am a Christian". When you hear these words, you expect a certain type of attitude, a different kind of person. At least, I do. When you say you are a Christian, you are saying you are Christ-like. You are trying, with God's help, to be as much like Jesus as you can be. Now, I will be the first to tell you that I am not perfect. FAR from it. None of us are perfect, as a matter of fact. But, COME ON. To say, on the same page mind you, that you are "first and foremost a Christian", and then use language like that, is ridiculous. I know that some people, who call themselves a Christian, do not see any problem using profanity, as long as they don't use the 'bad words'. Am I the only one that sees this as more than a little hypocritical? Before I pound this poor woman into the ground, figuratively, I want to get to my point.
When we come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ, accept Him as our Lord and Savior, and REPENT of our sins, we are saying we are tired of who we are. We want to change, but we can't without His help. We invite His Holy Spirit in to change us into the likeness of Jesus Christ. Granted, sometimes, it's a slow change. But we MUST change. There MUST be conviction when we fall back into our old ways. If we can go back to doing things the way we used to, without so much as a backwards glance, there is something terribly wrong. I'm not talking about those times that we slip, we all do this at one time or another. I'm talking about COMFORTABLY using the old language, looking at the old things, listening to those sinful old things we use to listen to, and going to those places we said we were running from. These things just should not be.
The Bible says that when we are saved, TRULY saved, we 'put off' the old man, and 'put on' the new. We take off our old, filthy rags, our righteousness, and put on His righteousness, like a new set of clothes. If all we do is change our title, and not our ways, we deceive ourselves. God is not deceived. He sees our true selves, not the lie we try to pass off on everyone else, including ourselves.
We MUST turn from our old wicked ways. That means giving up the old language. God is not pleased with us when we use profanity. Jesus did not, and could not, use profanity. It is vain language. Empty, useless words. We must be Jesus to the world. We must show them that there is more to this life, than just living and dying. They have tried this world, and they are not impressed. They WANT something more. We have to be something more. God expects it.
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Church Tonight
Well, Carolyn and I went to First Baptist Church tonight for Wednesday night study, and choir practice. We didn't know where to go, or what class to go to, but God led us to the right class. We are learning about the different personalities God gives each of us, and how this will help us in our lives, and our study of God. It was very interesting. We met a nice couple in the class.
After the class, we went to choir practice. We didn't know what to expect, and didn't know who was going to be there. The choir director is the same guy that leads praise and worship on Sunday mornings. There ended up being about 20 people there, and we were separated into parts. Carolyn sang with the altos, and I sang with the tenors. We practiced 3 songs, and had a great time. We met alot of people in the choir, and really felt like we fit in. We are going to sing with them Sunday morning. I hope we don't mess them up too much.
Carolyn and I both know that this is the church we are supposed to be in now. God is doing great things with us already. It just seems so effortless. He puts us with the right people, at the right time. We'll just have to wait on Him, and see where He leads us. Thank You Father.
After the class, we went to choir practice. We didn't know what to expect, and didn't know who was going to be there. The choir director is the same guy that leads praise and worship on Sunday mornings. There ended up being about 20 people there, and we were separated into parts. Carolyn sang with the altos, and I sang with the tenors. We practiced 3 songs, and had a great time. We met alot of people in the choir, and really felt like we fit in. We are going to sing with them Sunday morning. I hope we don't mess them up too much.
Carolyn and I both know that this is the church we are supposed to be in now. God is doing great things with us already. It just seems so effortless. He puts us with the right people, at the right time. We'll just have to wait on Him, and see where He leads us. Thank You Father.
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