Author: E. DeWayne Swann

” FORGETTING THE PAST AND GOING FORWARD “

Part 2

(3) FUNCTIONING IN THE PRESENT! * Please notice v.13 again :
13 Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead,

1. A) Paul said, “Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do,”
   * Notice that Paul did not say, “one thing I will do.”

* He did not say, “one thing I’m going to do,”
* Or “one thing I will get around to someday.”

* He said, “one thing I do.”

B) Paul was living and acting in the present!

* Many people today try to live in the future.

* Do you know what the busiest day in the world is going to be?
* It’s not Christmas … It’s not the day after Thanksgiving … It is “someday.”
* Everyone in the world has something scheduled to do “someday.”
* You hear people all the time saying, “Someday, I’m going to do this or that …”
* The problem is that “someday” is not on any calendar.
* I’m sure that we’ve all made plans for “someday,” but the fact is, “someday” will never come!

C) Paul is the ultimate example of living each day to the fullest … Living each day as if it were your last!

* For example …….

* When he was imprisoned in Rome, he did not sit there stewing, thinking about all the things he would do when he got out of jail.
* He wrote letters to churches, sang praises to God, and even converted some of the people who had imprisoned him!

* Paul used every day to the uttermost.

D) Benjamin Franklin once said, “Do you love life? Then do not squander time, for that is the stuff that life is made of.”

 

* It was Abraham Lincoln who first said, “The leading rule for a man of every calling is diligence; never put off until tomorrow what you can do today.”

* That’s not my thinking all the time!

E) Perhaps, the saddest example of procrastination is found in the life of the Roman Governor Felix, who listened to Paul “speak about faith in Christ Jesus.”

Acts 24:24-27

24 And after some days, when Felix came with his wife Drusilla, who was Jewish, he sent for Paul and heard him concerning the faith in Christ. 25 Now as he reasoned about righteousness, self-control, and the judgment to come, Felix was afraid and answered, “Go away for now; when I have a convenient time I will call for you.” 26 Meanwhile he also hoped that money would be given him by Paul, that he might release him. Therefore he sent for him more often and conversed with him.

 

27 But after two years Porcius Festus succeeded Felix; and Felix, wanting to do the Jews a favor, left Paul bound. NKJV

 

* But as he was discussing “righteousness, temperance and judgment to come,” Felix became frightened and said,

“Go thy way for this time; when I have a convenient …”

 

1. F) Never again did Felix listen to God’s Word!

* Once he had put it off for a time, as with so many things in life, that time never came.
* We all ought to be more like the psalmist, who wrote in

Ps 119:57-64

57 You are my portion, O LORD; I have said that I would keep Your words.

58 I entreated Your favor with my whole heart; Be merciful to me according to Your word.

59 I thought about my ways, And turned my feet to Your testimonies.

60 I made haste, and did not delay To keep Your commandments.

61 The cords of the wicked have bound me, But I have not forgotten Your law.

62 At midnight I will rise to give thanks to You, Because of Your righteous judgments.

63 I am a companion of all who fear You, And of those who keep Your precepts.

64 The earth, O LORD, is full of Your mercy; Teach me Your statutes.

NKJV

 

The Room by Joshua Harris

In that place between wakefulness and dreams, I found myself in the room. There were no distinguishing features save for the one wall covered with small index-card files. They were like the ones in libraries that list titles by author or subject in alphabetical order. But these files, which stretched from floor to ceiling and seemingly endlessly in either direction, had very different headings. As I drew near the wall of files, the first to catch my attention was one that read “Girls I Have Liked.” I opened it and began flipping through the cards. I quickly shut it, shocked to realize that I recognized the names written on each one.

And then without being told, I knew exactly where I was. This lifeless room with its small files was a crude catalog system for my life. Here were written the actions of my every moment, big and small, in a detail my memory couldn’t match.

 

A sense of wonder and curiosity, coupled with horror, stirred within me as I began randomly opening files and exploring their content. Some brought joy and sweet memories; others a sense of shame and regret so intense that I would look over my shoulder to see if anyone was watching. A file named “Friends” was next to one marked “Friends I Have Betrayed.”

The titles ranged from the mundane to the outright weird. “Books I Have Read,” “Lies I Have Told,” “Comfort I Have Given,” “Jokes I Have Laughed At.” Some were almost hilarious in their exactness: “Things I’ve Yelled at My Brothers.” Others I couldn’t laugh at: “Things I Have Done in My Anger,” “Things I Have Muttered Under My Breath at My Parents.” I never ceased to be surprised by the contents. Often there were many more cards than I expected. Sometimes fewer than I hoped.

 

I was overwhelmed by the sheer volume of the life I had lived. Could it be possible that I had the time in my 20 years to write each of these thousands or even millions of cards? But each card confirmed this truth. Each was written in my own handwriting. Each signed with my signature.

When I pulled out the file marked “Songs I Have Listened To,” I realized the files grew to contain their contents. The cards were packed tightly, and yet after two or three yards, I hadn’t found the end of the file. I shut it, shamed, not so much by the quality of music, but more by the vast amount of time I knew that file represented.

 

When I came to a file marked “Lustful Thoughts,” I felt a chill run through my body. I pulled the file out only an inch, not willing to test its size, and drew out a card. I shuddered at its detailed content. I felt sick to think that such a moment had been recorded.

 

An almost animal rage broke on me. One thought dominated my mind: “No one must ever see these cards! No one must ever see this room! I have to destroy them!” In an insane frenzy I yanked the file out. Its size didn’t matter now. I had to empty it and burn the cards. But as I took it at one end and began pounding it on the floor, I could not dislodge a single card. I became desperate and pulled out a card, only to find it as strong as steel when I tried to tear it

 

Defeated and utterly helpless, I returned the file to its slot. Leaning my forehead against the wall, I let out a long, self-pitying sigh. And then I saw it. The title bore “People I Have Shared the Gospel With.” The handle was brighter than those around it, newer, almost unused. I pulled on its handle and a small box not more than three inches long fell into my hands. I could count the cards it contained on one hand.

 

And then the tears came. I began to weep. Sobs so deep that they hurt started in my stomach and shook through me. I fell on my knees and cried. I cried out of shame, from the overwhelming shame of it all. The rows of file shelves swirled in my tear-filled eyes. No one must ever, ever know of this room. I must lock it up and hide the key.

 

But then as I pushed away the tears, I saw Him. No, please not Him. Not here. Oh, anyone but Jesus.

 

I watched helplessly as He began to open the files and read the cards. I couldn’t bear to watch His response. And in the moments I could bring myself to look at His face, I saw a sorrow deeper than my own. He seemed to intuitively go to the worst boxes. Why did He have to read every one?

Finally He turned and looked at me from across the room. He looked at me with pity in His eyes. But this was a pity that didn’t anger me. I dropped my head, covered my face with my hands and began to cry again. He walked over and put His arm around me. He could have said so many things. But He didn’t say a word. He just cried with me.

 

Then He got up and walked back to the wall of files. Starting at one end of the room, He took out a file and, one by one, began to sign His name over mine on each card.

 

“No!” I shouted rushing to Him. All I could find to say was “No, no,” as I pulled the card from Him. His name shouldn’t be on these cards. But there it was, written in red so rich, so dark, so alive. The name of Jesus covered mine. It was written with His blood.

 

He gently took the card back. He smiled a sad smile and began to sign the cards. I don’t think I’ll ever understand how He did it so quickly, but the next instant it seemed I heard Him close the last file and walk back to my side.

 

He placed His hand on my shoulder and said, “It is finished.”

I stood up, and He led me out of the room. There was no lock on its door. There were still cards to be written.

 

By Joshua Harris. Orginally published in New Attitude Magazine. Copyright New Attitude, 1995. You have permission to reprint this in any form. We only ask that you include the appropriate copyright byline and do not alter the content.

 

 

CLOSE

A) What if there were no church tomorrow because we were too busy to worship God today?

* What if God could not hear your prayers tomorrow because you were too busy to pray today?
* What if there were no Bible tomorrow because you would not read His Word today?
* What if there were no forgiveness tomorrow because you did not stop sinning today?
* What if there were no invitation tomorrow because you did not respond today?

B) As we embark on the journeys of this New Year, let us determine ahead of time that it will be a year of victory!

* Let us choose our own attitudes and follow the advice of the Apostle Paul.
* Resolve to … Forget your Past: Look beyond the sins and failures of yesterday; learn from them, repent of them, and then move forward.

C) Focus your Priorities: Place God at the top of your “to do” list every day!

* Worship Him … Study His Word … Put His Kingdom first in your life and everything else will fall into place!

D) Function in the Present: Stop living in the future!

* Do not put off until tomorrow what you can do today.
* Invitation: Would you bow your heads and close your eyes for a moment?

E) This morning, the absolute best way to start this year is to become a part of God’s eternal Kingdom!

* Focus your priorities by making Jesus the Lord of your life … Allow the cleansing power of His blood to wash away your past sins, and start living your life for Christ everyday!
* The Bible says in

2 Cor 6:1-2

We then, as workers together with Him also plead with you not to receive the grace of God in vain. 2 For He says:

“In an acceptable time, I have heard you,

And in the day of salvation, I have helped you.”

Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.

NKJV

 

* The invitation is open to all!
* If you are ready to be begin your life anew today … Or if you are already a Christian, but need a fresh start … The Lord invites you to please come!

 

” FORGETTING THE PAST AND GOING FORWARD “

Part 1

 

Sermon: Philippians 3:12-16

Pressing Toward the Goal

12 Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. 13 Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, 14 I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

 15 Therefore let us, as many as are mature, have this mind; and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal even this to you. 16 Nevertheless, to the degree that we have already attained, let us walk by the same rule, let us be of the same mind.     NKJV

 

1. A) There is an old story about a happy little boy who went out into the field wearing a baseball cap … And in one hand he carried a baseball, and in the other his trusty bat!
   * His face had a look of tremendous confidence … Cocking his bat, he tossed the ball into the air, saying, “I’m the greatest batter in the world!”

* Then he swung and missed.
* “Strike one,” he said.

* He picked up the ball, examined it, and then threw it into the air again.
* As he swung, he repeated, “I’m the greatest batter in the world.”
* Once again, he missed … “Strike two,” he said.

* This time, he stopped to examine his bat to make sure there wasn’t a hole in it.
* Then he picked up the ball, adjusted his cap, and tossed the ball into the air for the third time.
* He repeated again, “I’m the greatest batter in the world,” and swung with all his might, and missed for the third straight time.
* Now most boys might be discouraged by that, but this boy said, “Wow! I’m the greatest pitcher in the world!”

B) Today the first Lesson of 2023, and as we look back over the last 12 months, I’m not sure whether most of us would consider ourselves pitchers or batters!
* One thing for sure, is that we have all struck out from time to time.
* So, I guess it’s good to be able to start fresh.

* Kids are going back in school …….
* Young people will be headed back to college.
* And most of us will soon recover from the holiday season and will be well into doing our jobs and the activities of the new year real soon.

C) As we anticipate the next 12 months, some people might eagerly look forward to what each day will bring!
* Others might be filled with dread, worried that this year will be worse than the last.
* Like the little boy with his baseball bat, I would suggest that our attitude will make all the difference in the coming year.
* How we react to its event will largely determine whether it is a year of victory or a year of defeat.

D) The Apostle Paul was never one to let circumstances conquer him.
* Rather, with the help of God, he was determined to win the victor’s crown.
* Paul’s personality, I believe, really comes through in these verses!
* And, with these thoughts, Paul lays out some principles concerning our attitude that we can carry with us into the New Year!

* The first of those principles is this …….

(1) FORGETTING YOUR PAST!

* At the end of v.13, Paul said, “… forgetting …….”

13 Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead,

1. A) Humans are very special beings, in that God has given us the ability to remember!

* However, your memories can be you friend or your enemy.
* Paul had a dreadful past and it could have easily haunted him for the rest of his life, if he allowed it to!

* He persecuted the church … He used his authority to kill Christians.
* By his own admission he said, “I am the chief of sinners.”

1. B) He could have walked around all his life with this tremendous burden of guilt crippling him!

* And he would have never become the great Apostle and missionary for God that he went on to be.
* Many people dwell on their past failures, mistakes, and sins so much so, that they become
spiritually paralyzed, unable to live productively for God.
* Paul is telling us that we can turn our past sins and failures over to God and start moving “forward to what lies ahead.”

C) Our greatest glory is not in never failing, but in rising every time we fall!

* We have failed many times, although we may not remember.
* We fell down the first time we tried to walk … We probably almost drowned the first time we tried to swim.

* Babe Ruth struck out 1,330 times, but he also hit 714 home runs.

D) R. H. Macy failed seven times before his New York department store finally caught on!

* We can’t allow ourselves to become obsessed on our failures.
* We are all human … We make mistakes … We sin … We fail … But what is worse, is missing the opportunities that God puts in front of us because we are afraid to fail.

E) In a Nike advertisement some years ago, a voice came over the television saying …….

* “I’ve missed more than 9,000 shots in my career … I’ve lost almost 300 games.”
* “Twenty-six times I’ve been trusted to take the game-winning shot and missed.”
* “I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life … And that is why I succeed.”
* Those words were spoken by Michael Jordan, by most standards the greatest basketball player who ever played the game!

F) God once told the prophet Jeremiah that He would, one day, establish a New Covenant with the children of Israel!

* And when He did, He said …….

* Jeremiah 31:34

34 No more shall every man teach his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, says the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.”   NKJV

* That covenant was established when Jesus Christ died on the cross.
* Since that day, God’s forgiveness is so complete that it is forgetfulness.

G) If we have been washed in the blood of Christ, God has forgotten all of our failures and sins!

* It is time that we forget them as well!
* Let’s follow Paul’s example here, “… forgetting those things which are …….”
* The first principal Paul teaches us for the New Year is Forgetting the Past, and the second is …….

(2) FOCUSING YOUR PRIORITIES!

* In v.14 Paul says, “I press toward the mark for the …”

14 I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

1.  He introduced that statement in v.13 with “but this one thing I do.”

* Obviously Paul did more than one thing!

* He made tents … He preached sermons.
* He planted churches … He wrote books … Paul did a lot of things!
* But what he is telling us is that his top priority in life was to “press toward the mark for …”

* Paul is saying, “I run straight toward the goal to win the prize that God’s heavenly call offers in Christ Jesus.”

* In other words, Paul’s number one priority was the Kingdom of Heaven!
* He was running straight toward that goal, and he wasn’t gonna let anything distract him from it!

 A while back an expert on the subject of time management was speaking to a group of business students!

* After speaking to them for a while, he said, “Okay, it’s time for a quiz.”
* He set a one-gallon, wide mouthed Mason jar on the table in front of him.
* Then he produced about a dozen tennis-ball-sized rocks and carefully placed them, one at a time, inside the jar.
* When the jar was filled to the top and no more rocks would fit inside, he asked, “Is this jar full?”

Everyone in the class said, “Yes.”

 * “Really?” he said.
* Then he reached under the table and pulled out a bucket of small gravel.
* He dumped some gravel into the jar and shook it , causing pieces of gravel to work themselves down into the spaces between the big rocks.
* Then he smiled and asked the group once more, “Is the jar full?”

 By this time the class was starting to catch on … “Probably not,” one of them said.

* “Good!” he replied. * Then he reached under the table and brought out a bucket of sand.
* He started dumping the sand in and it filled all the spaces between the rocks and the gravel.
* Once more he asked, “Is this jar full?” * “No!” the class shouted. * Again, he said, “Good!”
* Then he grabbed a pitcher of water and began to pour it in until the jar was filled to the brim.
* Then he looked back at the class and asked, “What is the point of this illustration?”

One eager student raised his hand and said, “The point is, no matter how full your schedule is, if you try really hard, you can always fit something more into it!”

* “No,” the speaker replied, “that’s not the point … The truth this illustration teaches us is this: If you don’t put the big rocks in first, you’ll never get them in at all.”

What are the big rocks in your life?

* As you look ahead over this year, what are your priorities?
* Jesus said in Matt. 6:33

Matt 6:33-34

33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.  34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.  NKJV

* Drawing closer to God through worship, spending time with Him in prayer, and seeking His guidance for your life, by reading His Word … These should be the big rocks in your jar!

If you are considering resolutions for the New Year, let me make two suggestions:

(1) set aside time every day to read your Bible and pray, and

(2) determine to be more involved in God’s Kingdom.

* By that I mean, attending the worship of the church and participating in other fellowship and evangelistic activities!

It’s a sad, but true fact, that many Christians do not make God’s Kingdom a priority in life!

* Those who feel like they are doing their spiritual duty by going to church once a week, punching their spiritual timecard, are not seeking “first His kingdom.”
*  If we intend to press on “toward the mark to win the prize that God’s heavenly call offers,” then we need to make God and His kingdom our top priority in life! Daily!!!

There is just one more principle that Paul offers us for the New Year, which is ……. Next week’s lesson.

 

Joy to the World for A Happy New Year

Luke 2:8-20Glory in the Highest8 Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid. 10 Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. 11 For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. 12 And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger.”  13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying:  14 “Glory to God in the highest,And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!”    15 So it was, when the angels had gone away from them into heaven, that the shepherds said to one another, “Let us now go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has come to pass, which the Lord has made known to us.” 16 And they came with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the Babe lying in a manger. 17 Now when they had seen Him, they made widely known the saying which was told them concerning this Child. 18 And all those who heard it marveled at those things which were told them by the shepherds. 19 But Mary kept all these things and pondered them in her heart. 20 Then the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told them.      NKJV

 

 

The word “Happy” is found 50 times in the NT:3107 makarios (mak-ar’-ee-os); a prolonged form of the poetical makar (meaning the same); supremely blest; by extension, fortunate, well off: KJV – blessed, happy (X -ier).

The word Joy is found 60 times in the NT:5479 chara (khar-ah’); from NT:5463; cheerfulness, i.e. calm delight: KJV – gladness, greatly, (X be exceeding) joy (-ful, -fully, -fulness, -ous).

(Biblesoft’s New Exhaustive Strong’s Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright (c) 1994, Biblesoft and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

 

Or in other words a calm in the midst of the tribulations!

Joy over Happiness

By John MacArthur

 

Definition happiness:

An attitude of satisfaction or Delight based upon some present circumstance,

Happiness is related to happening, happenstance, and comes from the root word hap. Hap is a word which conveys the ideal of chance you can’t plan our program happiness it may or may not happen it is due to circumstance.

That’s the best man can do is happiness.

Definition joy:

True joy is a gift of God, to those who believe the gospel, being produced in them by the Holy Spirit, as the believer received and obeys the word of God, being mixed with various trials, sits their hopes on future glory.

 

1 Peter 1:6 In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ, 8 whom having not seen you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, 9 receiving the end of your faith — the salvation of your souls.  NKJV

 

1) true joy is a gift of God 

Psalms 16:11You will show me the path of life;

In Your presence is fullness of joy;

At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore. NKJV

 

John 16:24 Until now you have asked nothing in My name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full. NKJV

 

2) to those who believe the gospel

 

John 15:11 “These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full.  NKJV

 

3) being produced in them by the Holy Spirit

 

Romans 14:17 for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.  NKJV

 

Galatians 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.  NKJV

 

longsuffering, Suffering = having to endure anything that you desperately do not want to endure. Long = long time.

 

4) as the believer received and obeys the word of God

 

 What Was Heard, Seen, and Touched

1 John 1:1That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, concerning the Word of life —  2 the life was manifested, and we have seen, and bear witness, and declare to you that eternal life which was with the Father and was manifested to us —  3 that which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ. 4 And these things we write to you that your joy may be full.  NKJV

 

Jeremiah 15:16 Your words were found, and I ate them,

And Your word was to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart;

For I am called by Your name, O LORD God of hosts.   NKJV

 

5) being mixed with various trials

 

1 Thessalonians 1:6 And you became followers of us and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction, with joy of the Holy Spirit, NKJV

 

2 Corinthians 6:10 as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing all things.  NKJV

 

James 1:2 My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. 4 But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.  NKJV

 

Tony Evans said “Peace does not mean that you will not have problems. Peace means that your problems, will not have you.”

6) sits their hopes on future glory

 

Romans 12:12 rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer; 13 distributing to the needs of the saints, given to hospitality.  NKJV

 

Suffering for God’s Glory

1 Peter 4:12 Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; 13 but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ’s sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy. NKJV

 

Glory to God

Jude 24 Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling,

And to present you faultless Before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy,

25 To God our Savior, Who alone is wise, Be glory and majesty,

Dominion and power, Both now and forever. Amen.    NKJV

 

Psalms 30:5 For His anger is but for a moment, His favor is for life; Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning.    NKJV

 

Definition joy:

True joy is a gift of God, to those who believe the gospel, being produced in them by the Holy Spirit, as the believer received and obeys the word of God, being mixed with various trials, sits their hopes on future glory.

 

Joy came to the World

so you can have a

Happy New Year.

Rum Pum Pum Pum

I recall many Christmases; some were really great and some were racked with grief and disappointment. The disappointment didn’t come from not getting the particular gift or not getting my wish list filled, but it was at the loss of a dear friend on Christmas Eve, and another on Christmas night. The problem is that those memories have a way of seeping into the great memories also. But I want to focus on the good times.

As I grew up in the sixties, we didn’t have the internet or Amazon. But we did have the Sears and Roebuck “Wish Book” that was packed full of everything that we saw advertised on TV during our Saturday morning cartoons. We were allowed to pick a few things that we just had to have, and my Mother would call Santa (Sears) and tell him what we wanted and give him the item number, and we would be set. And just like that, it would be under the tree on Christmas morning.

A few weeks prior to Christmas day, my Dad would show up with the family Christmas tree. He and my older brothers, Charles, and Glenn, would help set it up in the living room right in front of the picture window. Daddy would let the tree sit a day, he said to let the limbs fall into place, I think he just wanted to make the experience last just a little longer.

The next night. In a house that smelled like a pine forest. Even to this day when I smell that Christmas tree smell, it takes me back to those nights when we all gathered in the living room and waited patiently for Daddy to put on the lights. Again, he and my Mother or oldest brother had that job. After he did that, Mother would put on the garland sometimes with my Dads help and when she got older my sister Debrah would help. And when the lights and garland were in place Mother and Daddy would open the box of ornaments, and then they would referee as all five of us would get to put them on the tree, anywhere we saw fit. And after we finished our job, Daddy would divvy up the icicle or tinsel, if you prefer. Then we again could put it on the tree and again wherever we wanted, and sometimes under the direction of our parents setting back watching. So, then the final piece of the tree was put into place, The Angle was placed in her spot at the top of the tree. The whole time, this was done under the blanket of Christmas music being played on the record player in the background.

After the tree was perfect, at least we thought it was perfect, Mother would fix us some hot chocolate with coco not the mix and marshmallows. Daddy would turn off the lights in the room, and the room would be lit from the tree and the reflecting off the hardwood floors. The Christmas albums would be playing softly, and we would just sit there for a while and absorb what we have accomplished. Not knowing or understanding how fortunate we were at that time. We would sit and listen to the songs, “O’ Come All Ye Faithful,” “Do You Hear What I Hear?” “Little Town in Bethlehem,” “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer,” and on and on and then my favorite “The Little Drummer Boy”

After hearing that song, can you guess what made it to my Christmas list? Think for a second, and if you said a drum, you would be correct. Now, this was right up my Mother alley.

My Mother has a way of getting us not only what we wanted, but also what we needed. She loved getting us toys that made a great symphony of noises. And my Dad was the one that helped Santa put everything together, and he made sure that if it required batteries, it had an abundance of power to bring us a loud and wonderful Christmas. There was always the Christmas PJ’s, socks, underwear, shoes if we required them. We didn’t need a new outfit that was coming a few months later at Easter.

As the weeks slowly went by, Christmas Eve, would finally make it and that was and is one of the best nights of the year. The smell of cakes, pies Chex mix and Christmas tree was one of the best memory makers that there could ever be. Mother let us watch as she cooked the cakes and pies, she even gave me and my brother Ray the beaters to lick clean, and the bowls and spoons to clean the same way. After we did the best, we could scrape and licking icing and batter and wearing as much as we ate, Mother would then take them and wash them and start again on the next pie or cake. And the process started all over again. The kitchen would be full of laughter and fun. Just as it should be.

Then Christmas morning came. I think that my parents were as excited as we were, no, I know they were. We would all go into the living room together and Mother never had to say what was who’s. We knew what we asked for and in a certain section under the tree would be exactly what we requested.

The house was always full of people on Christmas, which with three brothers and a sister, my Mother, and Father, we were pretty much a crowd by ourselves. But there were always others to show up also. The main reason I think was just to eat my Mother’s Christmas dinner. There was always a huge turkey, a perfectly cooked ham, salad, two pans of turkey dressing, one with celery and one (mine) without celery, gravy, cranberry sauce, corn, green beans, candied yams, deviled eggs, potatoes salad, piping hot dinner rolls and for dessert she would have a pineapple upside-down cake, a coconut cake, and the best hard-boiled fudge chocolate cake in the world. (We called it the concrete cake, but it was what we all looked for and at times fought over.) an abundance of sweet potatoes pie and then there was also the best banana pudding ever there was that graced the earth.

This wasn’t just one Christmas like this, but it was this way year after year when we were young. We gave our wish list, we knew to ask for what was in the budget, some years a lot, some not so much. We were taught to accept and to be thankful for what we did received. Furthermore, we knew that we were not rich, but we also knew that others had it far worse than we did even in the lean years.

In my section under the tree one Christmas was just a single little drum with my other gifts. As the years went on and as I grew, one year was a little drum set. A bass drum, one tom drum and a snare, with two cymbals. Then as I got older and in middle school, I even got a bag and hardware for a snare drum my Uncle Gene gave me. My Uncle Dee took it, had new heads and snares put on it. And then I joined the Tapp Middle School Band. Made first chair, section leader and then honor band, all from that little drum I received that Christmas because of that song “The Little Drummer Boy.”

As the years went on, I didn’t play in high school and sort of lost the ability to play as well as I once did because of lack of practice. But I never lost the love for drums and to beat on them. I later on bought me a Pearl Drum Kit. It had a snare four toms a floor tom the kick drum with two crash cymbals a ride cymbal, and hi-hat. I added a set of roto toms, which made my set a ten-piece kit. It sat in my living room for years and when people first came into my house they would usually say when seeing them “I can tell you are single because no woman would allow those drums in a living room.” The kit is now serving God in my home church as I have them on loan to them.

I never lost the love for drums, and I still love to hear a good drum corp. It all started with that little Christmas song, “The Little Drummer Boy.” And now I want to look at that song a little and maybe give you something to ponder.

 

From the internet, we get this:

The words and music to the Christmas song Little Drummer Boy was composed by Katherine K. Davis, Henry Onorati and Harry Simeone in 1958.

The lyrics of Little Drummer Boy consist of no less than 21 rum pum pum pum’ — a major part of the song and therefore presenting an apparently easy task for the lyricist! However, Little Drummer Boy has been a huge hit for several artists.

I took out the rum pum pum pum’ to get you to look at the words;

Come they told me, we need to do that very thing, Go into ALL the word and present the Gospel (the Good News) what did the Bible tell us to tell…

A newborn King to see, unto you a child is born, angels telling the shepherds…

Our finest gifts we bring, the best we can offer as far as earthly things are as filthy rags. God wants more He deserves more…

To lay before the King, King of Kings

So, to honor Him, when we come…we honor by coming into His presence God wants to hear from us…

Little Baby, I am a poor boy too, He gave up heaven, came as a baby…

I have no gift to bring, that’s fit to give the King, we have nothing, we came into this world naked and naked we will return. You can’t take it with you when you go.

Shall I play for you, On my drum? And there it is.

Mary nodded, the ox and lamb kept time, that always bring a smile to me, and then I saw animals on Facebook keeping time with music…

I played my drum for Him, do whatever God has called you to do.

I played my best for Him,

Then He smiled at me, Me and my drum. Me and my drum.

I do not want you to miss the best part of the song, and that is that the Little Drummer Boy could only offer what we all need to be offering Jesus. And that is our BEST! Snyder Turner my mentor used to say if you are going to sleep in church then at least snore and do your best.

 

“He did it all for His Love for You.”

By: Richard Mullen

He can turn the tides and calm the angry sea. He alone decides Who writes a symphony. He lights ev’ry star That makes our darkness bright. He keeps watch all through Each long and lonely night. He still finds the time to hear a child’s first prayer. Saint or sinner call and always find Him there.

Though it makes him sad to see the way we live, He’ll always say, “I forgive.”

He can grant a wish or make a dream come true. He can paint the clouds

And turn the gray to blue. He alone knows where To find the rainbow’s end.

He alone can see What lies beyond the bend. He can touch a tree And turn the leaves to gold. He knows every lie That you and I have told.

 

He, did it all for me,

He = used to refer to a man, boy, or male previously mentioned or easily identified. “Jesus”

Did = achieve or complete. What? Calvary’s Cross.

It = used to refer to a thing previously mentioned or easily identified. Gave us the Gift of Salvation

All = the whole of one’s energy or interest. Forgave us from every sin past present and future

For = in support of or in favor of (a person or policy). on behalf of or to the benefit of (someone or something). Took someone’s place

Me = used by a speaker to refer to himself or herself as the object of a verb or preposition. Compare with I.

So, we have in this:

Jesus, achieve and completed on Calvary’s Cross, paid for the Gift of Salvation. With His whole energy and interest to Forgive us from every sin past present and future in support of, in favor of, on behalf of, to the benefit of taking someone’s place and that someone was and is to refer to as ME!

He, did it all for me,

That’s the gift of Christmas

The Gift that had Worth, Jesus gave it all. Therefore, who did He do it all for?

You, that is who!  I pray you have received His Present to you.

Merry Christmas!

Chapter 12 of “Something to Ponder”

The Gift from GOD to You,

The Christmas Present, if you will.

 

I love to see people happy; I like to crack jokes and see if I can bring a smile to someone. (Like I said it runs in the family my Uncle Dee and my Dad was like that too, even with Alzheimer’s he tried to play with people everywhere he went and to make them laugh.)

I also love to give things to people; I guess that why I love to preach so much, what better one can give to someone than Jesus’ message of salvation.

With that said I have learned the past few years that I am not a good receiver.

I truly would rather give than get.

Moreover, I do not know if I feel that I do not deserve the gifts as much as others, and they may need it and I should pass it on to them.

When we come to the Christmas season, I see a lot of Christian post on Facebook, and other outlets saying, “Jesus is the reason for the Season”. I don’t want to take away from them pointing to Jesus rather than shopping, buying, wrapping, giving, and cooking, and eating, and all the lights, and trees, and the tinsel and bows.

But I believe if we ask God the Father, what’s the reason for the season?

He might just say, “YOU”.

Allow me to take a little freedom with a few verses that we know and love so well and change a few words, so we can see it a little better.

John 3:16 For God so loved YOU that He gave His only begotten Son, that if YOU believe in Him YOU would not perish but have everlasting life.  17 For God did not send His Son to YOU to condemn YOU, but that YOU through Him might be saved.

 

Or to put it directly to you, read it this way.

For God so loved me that He gave His only begotten Son to me, that if I believe in Him, I would not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son to me to condemn me, but that I through Him might be saved.

Are you getting the reason for the season? Is it YOU?

Isaiah said it this way without me changing a word.

Isaiah 9:6 For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; NKJV

Are you getting this? “Unto us” all of us!

Me, you, that dirty stinking sinner that you don’t want anything to do with, the cheat, the liar, the thief, the adulterer, the homosexual, the bigot, we need to see that “Unto us” covers all of them too.

Luke 2:11 For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.  NKJV

Again, I didn’t have to change a word.

We have to get better at receiving, but also sharing the story of His Son our Lord Jesus.

Yes, Jesus is the reason for the season, but look at the reason he came, so

He, some 33 1/2 years later on Calvary’s cross could say:

“Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.”

And Paul said:

Christ in Our Place

Romans 5:6-11 For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.  For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die.  But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.  Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. 1 For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.  And not only that, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation.  NKJV

 

The reason for the season was for you and me. Let’s not miss the cost of the gift that God gave some 2000 years ago.

He did it all for His Love for You.

I pray you receive His Present to you.

 

The Gift that had Worth, Jesus gave it all.

Therefore, who did He do it all for?

You that is who!

 Children Go Where I Send You

There’s and old Christian song by this title, and the question is “Will you go?”

“Go Where I Send Thee”
The Kingston Trio Lyrics

Children, go where I send thee. How shall I send thee?
Well, I’m gonna send you one by one, one for the little bitty Baby
Was born, born, born in Bethlehem
Children, go where I send thee. How shall I send thee?
Well, I’m gonna send you two by two, two for Paul and Silas
One for the little bitty Baby was born, born, born in Bethlehem
Children, go where I send thee. How shall I send thee?
Well, now, I’m gonna send you three by three, three for the Hebrew children
Two for Paul and Silas, one for the little bitty Baby was born, born, born in Bethlehem
Children, go where I send thee. How shall I send thee?
Well, I’m gonna send you six by six, well, six for the six that never got fixed
Five for the gospel preachers, four for the four that stood at the door, three for the Hebrew children
Two for Paul and Silas, one for the little bitty Baby was born, born, born in Bethlehem
Children, go where I send thee. How shall I send thee?
Well, I’m gonna send you eight by eight, eight for the eight that stood at the gate
Seven for the seven that never got to heaven and six for the six that never got fixed
Five for the gospel preachers, four for the four that stood at the door, three for the Hebrew children
Two for Paul and Silas, one for the little bitty Baby was born, born, born in Bethlehem
Children, go where I send thee. How shall I send thee?
Well, now, I’m gonna send you ten by ten, ten for the ten commandments
Nine for the nine all dressed so fine, eight for the eight that stood at the gate
Seven for the seven who never got to heaven and six for the six that never got fixed
Five for the gospel preachers, four for the four that stood at the door, three for the Hebrew children
Two for Paul and Silas, one for the little bitty Baby was born, born, born in Bethlehem, He was born, born, born in Bethlehem

 

The Great Commission

Matthew 28:18-20 (NKJV)
¹⁸ And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.
¹⁹ Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
²⁰ teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.

Well, will you? Will you go? There was a saying that said, “if not you, then who, and if not now, then when?” so if you are reading this, you are the one that God is saying to GO! I cannot find anywhere in the proper content that the Word of God says to go to church, as far as that goes, there was not a Church as we know it at the time anyways. The Church as we know it did not start for a little over 300 years after Christ walked the earth. (So, now some have stopped reading and are going after ammo to counter what I just wrote instead of reading on and hearing me out) but it does say to go INTO THE WORLD (all the nations). What I want you to see is we all have a different world that we need to go into. The point is to get to the ones in need.

I am big time pro CHURCH; We need the Church as a place to collectively Worship and Praise a living, Savior. We need the Church to educate and to comfort other believers. We need the Church to do its job and to take care of the people in their communities. We need the Church for a safe haven, to get out of the world and to regroup with fellow believers. We need the Church to help the orphans and the widows. We need the Church reach a lost and dyeing world that is hell bound. And here you go, we need to do all the above regularly. SO DON’T SAY I AM ANTI CHURCH.

But because we sit up in our pulpits looking down on those not like us, they do not sing like us, they don’t read the same translation as we do, they don’t dress like us, they don’t look like us, they are not the same race as us, then we judge them and wonder why, no one wants to come to “my church”. I can tell you why, and I think I did just a little.

I love what I heard Jase Robertson say in their podcast “Unashamed” just recently. He said something along the lines of “people worship the book more than they Worship the Author.”

I think that it can also be applied to the Church building rather than the architect of the Church or Assembly. To the preacher rather than the one he should be proclaiming. The singers rather than the songs to glorify Christ. The outside of a person rather than the heart of the individual. It can and does go on and on.

But we need to GO into the world. (All the nations).

Mark 16:15 (HCSB)
¹⁵ Then He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to the whole creation.

For some their world is to go into is their work, if it is an office, a factory, assembly line, on a sales floor, or even working outdoors, cutting pulp wood, pouring concrete or building a house, being a doctor or nurse, EMT wherever you are, that’s your world. For some their world to go into is a school, either as a teacher, student, or in the administration, all the way to the people cleaning, that school, college, or university, this is your world. For some that are retired you have a great big world of stores and parks to go into, your children, grandchildren, or even great grandchildren. When anyone of us goes into a restaurant or store that is a great world to go into and “preach the gospel”.

But I am not a preacher you may say, the word preach in the Greek is Kēryssō and its definition is; to herald (as a public crier), especially divine truth (the gospel) and the English Words used in KJV: is preach 51 publish 5 proclaim 2 preached 2 preacher 1 [Total Count: 61times in the KJV Bible] from the Strong’s Talking Greek & Hebrew Dictionary.

So, you and every believer are to proclaim or tell the gospel so what is the gospel? It is to (euaggelizo); a good message, or (aggelos); to announce good news (“evangelize”) declare, bring (declare, show) glad (good) tidings, is to preach (the gospel). From Strong’s Talking Greek & Hebrew Dictionary.

That make the verse say we are to herald as a public crier, especially divine truth of the word of God. That is a good message, and to announce good news by declaring, to bring and show glad or good tidings, that is to preach the gospel. So, you need to tell what God has done and according to the word of God and what He is going to do, that, is Preaching the Gospel.

I have a redneck Yankee friend, and he does something that I have tried to incorporate into my life. He will ask the blessing (Pray) over every meal when he is out eating. As we should, but he always asks the servers if they have a prayer request. He has Preached or proclaimed the Gospel or the good news of Jesus with a number of people, those who served him and the people around his table. He has brought several people to Christ just by showing compassion.

If there is a person to preach to then there is your opportunity to “GO” and share the Gospel. I do not mean in any way for you to go get in their face and yell “you’re going to hell” which is probably true, but no one want to hear that or would respond to well to that. What you must do is live it in front of them in such a way to let your life preach the Word.

I once had a company and worked with a quite a few different people, I had one man that was only there a few months. I though because I was a preacher and he knew it, if there was a spiritual example in the room it would be me. Boy was I wrong, don’t get me wrong I showed kindness and respect, I spoke of Christ and tried to share the Gospel as much as possible. I would tell of a great sermon I heard just for a chance to preach. But it was not working.

We found out that one man working with us was really down on his luck, and words were not helping him much then. It reminded me of a story in the Bible about loving our neighbor, we call it the story of the good Samaritan, Jesus was asked how to have eternal life? His answer is recorded in the book of Luke:

Luke 10:25-37 (NKJV)
²⁵ And behold, a certain lawyer stood up and tested Him, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?”
²⁶ He said to him, “What is written in the law? What is your reading of it?”
²⁷ So he answered and said, “’You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,’ and ‘your neighbor as yourself.’ “
²⁸ And He said to him, “You have answered rightly; do this and you will live.”
²⁹ But he, wanting to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”
³⁰ Then Jesus answered and said: “A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, who stripped him of his clothing, wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.
³¹ Now by chance a certain priest came down that road. And when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.
³² Likewise a Levite, when he arrived at the place, came and looked, and passed by on the other side.
³³ But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was. And when he saw him, he had compassion.
³⁴ So he went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine; and he set him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him.
³⁵ On the next day, when he departed, he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said to him, ‘Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I come again, I will repay you.’
³⁶ So which of these three do you think was neighbor to him who fell among the thieves?”
³⁷ And he said, “He who showed mercy on him.” Then Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise.”

The question is not what kind of a neighbor I have, but what kind of neighbor does my neighbor have, namely YOU! Jesus said, “Go and do likewise.”

My business partner which is a Christian found out and informed me that our worker and now great friend did not even have enough money for food. So, for lunch I would hear a song on the radio that I knew and was pretty sure he knew the title too. I would say name that tune, and I will buy lunch, boom! Just like that he would call out the title and we were off to lunch. He chalked it up to my bad luck and his knowledge of pop songs. I was trying to help the needy and let them keep their dignity. He was slowly seeing compassion in us. I love what I heard a preacher say once that “compassion is man’s way of showing God’s Grace.” Grace is what he was getting.

My business partner would have his wife make a little extra food when preparing their dinner, and he would take what was left to him and say “we had to much left over would you like it? Again, compassion with dignity. Our new worker and now friend saw God’s hand in supplying his need,

Matthew 10:29-31 (NKJV)
²⁹ Are not two sparrows sold for a copper coin? And not one of them falls to the ground apart from your Father’s will. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.

Our friend later told me that he heard about Christians and how they were supposed to act but this was the first time that he actually saw it.  He ended up rededicating his life to Christ and is as of the time of this writing serving in a Church playing his guitar in their youth church.

As Major Ian Thomas said in one of his great sermons. If we do as instructed then we are PUT.

1 Timothy 1:12-13 (NKJV)
¹² And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord who has enabled me, because He counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry, although I was formerly a blasphemer, a persecutor, and an insolent man; but I obtained mercy because I did it ignorantly in unbelief.

Major Ian Thomas then said if you are Sent, and if you Went, then you are Put. If you could ask Jesus Christ while he was on the cross why He was there He would simply say He was PUT. Put? “Yes, I was Sent and I went.”

John 20:19-21 (NKJV)
¹⁹ Then, the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, “Peace be with you.” When He had said this, He showed them His hands and His side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord.
So, Jesus said to them again, “Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I also send you.”

Are you waiting on a call? Well, there it is, I was Sent and I went. “Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I also send you.”

As the song said that started this;

Children, go where I send thee. How shall I send thee?
Well, I’m gonna send you one by one, one for the little bitty Baby
Was born, born, born in Bethlehem. As the Christmas Season has begun, now is a great time to GO!

And now the question is “Will you go?”

Making the Most of the Time We Have

Psalm 90

Psalm 90:1-17 (HCSB)
¹ Lord, You have been our refuge in every generation.
² Before the mountains were born, before You gave birth to the earth and the world, from eternity to eternity, You are God.
³ You return mankind to the dust, saying, “Return, descendants of Adam.”
⁴ For in Your sight a thousand years are like yesterday that passes by, like a few hours of the night.
⁵ You end their lives; they sleep. They are like grass that grows in the morning—
⁶ in the morning it sprouts and grows; by evening it withers and dries up.
⁷ For we are consumed by Your anger; we are terrified by Your wrath.
⁸ You have set our unjust ways before You, our secret sins in the light of Your presence.
⁹ For all our days ebb away under Your wrath; we end our years like a sigh.
¹⁰ Our lives last seventy years or, if we are strong, eighty years. Even the best of them are struggle and sorrow; indeed, they pass quickly and we fly away.
¹¹ Who understands the power of Your anger? Your wrath matches the fear that is due You.
¹² Teach us to number our days carefully so that we may develop wisdom in our hearts.
¹³ LORD—how long? Turn and have compassion on Your servants.
¹⁴ Satisfy us in the morning with Your faithful love so that we may shout with joy and be glad all our days.
¹⁵ Make us rejoice for as many days as You have humbled us, for as many years as we have seen adversity.
¹⁶ Let Your work be seen by Your servants, and Your splendor by their children.
¹⁷ Let the favor of the Lord our God be on us; establish for us the work of our hands— establish the work of our hands!

This is the oldest Psalm, and it was the only one written by Moses. Psalm 90

is Moses’ prayer to God asking for wisdom to make the most of his time on earth. A key verse might be verse 12. “So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.”

 

Moses lived to be 120 years old. It wasn’t until he was 80 years old, that God called him to lead the children of Israel out of Egypt. Moses knew the value of making the most of his time left on earth. Moses valued God more than the riches of Egypt.

 

Hebrews 11:24-26

By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter; Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season; Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: …. Moses prays this prayer….” Lord, teach us to number our days…value our days…value the time we have left….”

 

Someone has illustrated time in this way. Suppose every day there was deposited in your bank account the amount of $86,400. There is this catch to it, what you don’t use during the day, you lose. There is no forwarding balance carried to the next day. Each day you begin with $86,400. What would you do with it? Go on a spending spree every day?

 

We are given 86,400 seconds each day. Once the day is up, it’s history. You can’t save it, it’s forever gone. It’s foolish to squander and waste $86,400, and it is much more foolish to squander and waste 86,400 seconds. Not everyone would agree. Many people would say, money is more important than time. Many would say wasting money is foolish, but wasting time doesn’t matter. How about if you were given just a few months to live? What amount of money would a person give to have more time to live?

 

The Bible says, “For what shall it profit a man if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?” Mark 8:36-37

 

When the twin towers were engulfed in flames on September the 11th, money was not a major issue, the stock market was not a major issue. The major issue was time. Time meant everything. Time to get out of the building. Time to rescue as many as possible. When many were trapped and death was inevitable, then time to use a cell phone to say final words to loved ones.

 

Moses’ prayer is “God, teach us to make the most of our time remaining. Give us a heart of wisdom to do the right thing.”

 

We have a certain amount of time, so let us make the most of the time we have. How can we do that? How can we make the most of time when it seems we don’t have enough time? How can we make the most of time when it seems useless because our time is taken up by other things beyond our control?

 

To help us learn how to make the most of our time…. I want to give you 3 things that we must remember, and then there are 2 ways to make the most of your time.

1. Remember God is God, and We are Not. (vv. 1-2)

He is our sanctuary. God has been that for all generations. People foolishly waste their time seeking for security, when God alone is our security. He is our protection and stability. Mountains are a favorite vacation spot for a lot of folks. They are really impressive. Mountains give an impression of strength, stability and something that will last for a long time. In the Bible we know there will be a day when all the mountains will be removed from their place. In the last days men will run from the face of the Lord. They will run into the caves of mountains looking for protection.

 

In Psalm 90:2

2 Before the mountains were born
or you brought forth the whole world,
from everlasting to everlasting you are God.

 

We read that God was before the mountains. He created the mountains. True security is in God. God is more stable than a mountain. He will never change.

One evening I saw on the news about a man in Sparta, TN who was cutting the grass with a riding mower. Suddenly, he along with the mower took about a 15-foot drop. A sink hole suddenly appeared. There was water up to his head. He screamed for help, and thankfully neighbors helped to get him out of the hole. The ground we stand on is not that stable. We would be wise to find a place where the ground never shakes and gives way. God is our sanctuary. He is our dwelling place. To make most of our time here on earth, we would be wise to find God to be our dwelling place. Jesus is our Rock. And upon that rock even the gates of Hell cannot prevail against it.

2. Remember God is ETERNAL, and We are Not. (vv.3-6)

We will be turned to dust. (KJV “destruction”) Our bodies will be destroyed by decay. Our bodies are not eternal. Our earthly bodies have been decreed by God to return. Return to the ground from which it came. A thousand years is but yesterday in God’s mind. A thousand years is like a few hours in the night. A “watch in the night” is 4 hours. Night begins at 6pm. And morning begins at 6am. A total of 3 watches during the night.

 

2Peter 3:8 “But beloved be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.”

 

God is not confined to time. He supersedes time. God is eternal.

According to v.5 we eventually are swept away like a flood. It reminds me of the recent tsunami. In a matter of seconds people were swept away out to sea. Our days are like a dream. We sleep and the dream is over. We are like grass that grows but soon it withers and is cut down.

APPLICATION: We can make the most of our days on earth, if we will keep in mind that we are not eternal. We are not here forever. We have an expiration date. When that time comes, there’s nothing you can do to prolong it. You can’t dodge it. You can’t escape it. One day we will be cut down. One day we will wither away. The Bible says, It’s appointed unto man once to die and then the judgment…” The old gospel songs says,

 

Life’s sinking sun, is sinking low…. A few more days, and I must go…God is ETERNAL, AND WE’RE NOT…. MAKE THE MOST OF THE DAYS WE HAVE.

3. Remember God is Holy, and We are not. (vv.7-12)

V.7 speaks of the judgment on all humanity because of sin. God’s anger and wrath on sin is the reason we die. God told Adam “in the day that you eat of the forbidden fruit…will be the day you will die” Adam began to die physically. The Bible says in Romans 6:23

23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

 

the wages of sin is death…. The Bible says be sure of this, your sins will find you out…..finds us in death…
V.8 There is no sin hidden from God. We are sinful opposed to God’s holiness.
V.9 NIV “All our days pass away under your wrath; we finish our years with a moan.”
V.10 it doesn’t matter how strong you are, how positive you are, how determined you are…. because of sin we will die. God may give us 70 yrs. And if He gives more strength, we may reach beyond 80. There are more and more people living today to see even 100yrs old. Yet our days is of labor, and sorrow and soon we are cut off….we fly away.
V.11 We would make most of our time, if we would see that sin is the reason for all the sorrow, suffering, and death in the world. We are wasting our time if we try to explain away all of life’s curses. To make the most of our time, we should recognize that God is a Holy God. Our response should be to fear Him, that is reverence Him, Respect Him, Give Him the Respect and honor that Only He Deserves. Our days our spent foolishly if we ignore His Holiness.

V.12 We ask God to teach us to number our days. Teach us God to make the most of our days since we are only here for a brief time.

 

4. Since God is God, God is Eternal, and God is Holy, we must make the most of our Time for the rest of our lives….

 

(1) It must begin with a personal relationship with our Lord. (vv. 13-15)

V.13-14 we pray for His mercy. Where do you find God’s mercy? There’s one place. Jesus is our merciful, High Priest. In Christ we come to know the God of mercy. We come to know the God of all grace. Oh satisfy us early…that we may be glad all our days Time spent in this world will only bring grief and utter disappointment. People spend frivolous time on things that will perish. Time spent with Jesus will bring true satisfaction and gladness into our souls. In Christ we find mercy, grace, and true satisfaction.

Vv.15 God can make us glad. Chorus…He has made me glad, yes, he has made me glad…. Even though we will have days of sorrow…there will be sad days, there will be troublesome days, there will be discouraging days, but our God will give gladness to those who know His mercy. Where do you find mercy? At the foot of the Cross! In Jesus we find mercy! You say, it is too late for me…. I’ve spent up all my days…. I’ve nothing to give to God… Rememberthe thief on the cross…. “Remember me, Lord, when you come in your kingdom…” Jesus said, “today, shalt thou be with me in paradise.” A man was dying…and Jesus gave Him mercy. Jesus gave Him eternal life beyond the grave. A bad man dying for the wicked deeds. Yet, he found mercy, he found forgiveness. God gave him gladness down in his soul.

5. To make the most of our Time for the rest of our lives….

(1) We must have a personal relationship with our Lord.

(2) We must live for something big…something that will count for eternity.

Look at v.16 Thy work There is nothing bigger, or greater than God’s work!
Live for God’s Work! And also look at v.16 thy glory. Live for God’s glory!
Many people are living only for their own glory. What a waste! There is nothing bigger, nothing greater than God’s glory!
· Nothing bigger than God’s work
· Nothing bigger than God’s glory
· Nothing bigger than God’s approval. (See v.17 And let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us) beauty of the Lord = God’s approval, delight, favor You might get a favorable approval from people, but that comes and goes. The main thing…is your life approved of God. Live for HIS APPROVAL.

Live for something big! There is nothing bigger than God’s Work……

If we will line up with God’s work…. get on with what God is doing…. then His work…will also be our work. (See v.17 establish the work of our hands upon us….)

Life is so meaningless…when we live only for our work, or for our glory, seeking the approval of others….

To make the most of your time………. Live for God! For God’s glory…for God’s approval…. let His work become your work!!!!

Luke 12:16-21

16 And he spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully: 17 And he thought within himself, saying, what shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits? 18 And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods. 19 And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry. 20 But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided? 21 So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.

What about you? Are you making the most of your time for the Lord?

GIVE THANKS

Part 2

F F Bruce – Ingratitude is one of the features of pagan depravity in Ro 1:21;

Romans 1:21 (HCSB) ²¹ For though they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God or show gratitude. Instead, their thinking became nonsense, and their senseless minds were darkened.

the children of God are expected (and enabled by the Spirit) to “abound in thanksgiving” (Col 2:7; Col 3:15, 17, 4:2; Eph 5:4,20)

Colossians 2:7 (HCSB) ⁷ rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, overflowing with gratitude.

Colossians 3:15 (HCSB) ¹⁵ And let the peace of the Messiah, to which you were also called in one body, control your hearts. Be thankful.

Colossians 3:17 (HCSB) ¹⁷ And whatever you do, in word or in deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.

Colossians 4:2 (HCSB) ² Devote yourselves to prayer; stay alert in it with thanksgiving.

Ephesians 5:4 (HCSB) ⁴ Coarse and foolish talking or crude joking are not suitable, but rather giving thanks.

Ephesians 5:20 (HCSB) ²⁰ giving thanks always for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,

 

C. Ryle – Thankfulness is a flower which will never bloom well excepting upon a root of deep humility.

 

Hiebert – When we realize that God works all things out for good to those who love Him and are yielded to His will (Ro 8:28, Ge 50:20),

Romans 8:28 (HCSB) ²⁸ We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God: those who are called according to His purpose.

Genesis 50:20 (HCSB) ²⁰ You planned evil against me; God planned it for good to bring about the present result—the survival of many people.

Thanksgiving under all circumstances becomes a glorious possibility “He who can say `AMEN’ to the will of God in his heart will be able to say ‘HALLELUJAH’ also.”‘

Consider what the Lord has done

For you and those you love;

Then give Him thanks with hearts of praise

For blessings from above. –Sper

 

God grant us the Spirit wrought grace to emulate Matthew Henry’s high standard who wrote in his diary the day he was mugged “Let me be thankful first because I was never robbed before; second, although they took my purse, they did not take my life; third, because although they took my all, it was not much; and fourth, because it was I who was robbed, not I who robbed.” Beloved, one of the best marks of spiritual maturity is the ability to give thanks when it is difficult!

 

K. Chesterton was once asked what was the greatest lesson, he had ever learned to which he replied “The greatest lesson I have learned is to take things with GRATITUDE and not take them for GRANTED.” Chesterton added that “You say grace before meals. All right But I say grace before the concert and the opera, and grace before the play and pantomime, and grace before I open a book, and grace before sketching, painting, swimming, walking, playing, and grace before I dip the pen in the ink.” Thanksgiving is faith in action.

 

Thanksgiving to God comes (super) naturally when we count our blessings. We would much less apt to protest the command to give thanks in EVERYTHING if it were our habit to give thanks in ANYTHING. Empowered by the Spirit, we need to focus on our “haves,” not our “have-nots.” As the psalmist says “Bless (praise) the LORD, O my soul, and FORGET NONE of His benefits; ” (Psalm 103:2). Indeed, praise to God comes naturally when we count our blessings.

 

M B Babcock encourages us “Be on the lookout for mercies. The more we look for them, the more of them we will see. Blessings brighten when we count them. Out of the determination of the heart, the eyes see. If you want to be gloomy, there’s gloom enough to keep you glum; if you want to be happy, there’s gleam enough to keep you glad. Better to lose count while naming your blessings than to lose your blessings by counting your troubles.”

 

David Cooper writes that “Thanksgiving delivers us from a victim mentality and gives us a victor’s mentality. I once read that nothing can help the person with the wrong mental attitude, and nothing can stop a person with the right mental attitude. And the right mental attitude to overcome our obstacles and win our battles is thanksgiving.”

 

Missionary Benjamin Weir was held hostage in Lebanon and imprisoned under miserable conditions for 16 months. In his first interview after his release, he was asked how he spent his time and how he dealt with boredom and despair. His answer stunned the reporters. He simply said, “Counting my blessings.” “Blessings?” they responded. “Yes,” he explained. “Some days I got to take a shower. Sometimes there were some vegetables in my food. And I could always be thankful for the love of my family.”

 

Are you ever burdened with a load of care?

Does the cross seem heavy you are called to bear?

Count your many blessings, every doubt will fly,

And you will be singing as the days go by. —Oatman

 

Thankfulness seems to be a lost art today. A ministerial student in Evanston, Illinois was part of a life-saving squad. In 1860, when a ship went aground on the shore of Lake Michigan. Edward Spencer waded again and again into the frigid waters to rescue 17 passengers. In the process and his health was permanently damaged. Some years later at his funeral, it was noted that not one of the people he rescued ever thanked him.

 

“In Everything Give Thanks!”

Mid sunshine, cloud, or stormy days,

When hope abounds or care dismays,

When trials press and toils increase

Let not thy faith in God decrease—

‘In everything give thanks.’

“All things we know shall work for good,

Nor would we change them if we could;

‘Tis well if only He command;

His promises will ever stand—

‘In everything give thanks.’

“He satisfies the longing heart,

He thwarts the tempter’s cruel dart,

With goodness fills the hungry soul,

And helps us sing when billows roll.

‘In everything give thanks.'” –Author Unknown

 

As David a man after God’s heart (Acts 13:22) said “I will GIVE THANKS to the LORD according to His righteousness, And will sing praise to the name of the LORD Most High… I will GIVE THANKS to the LORD with all my heart; I will tell of all Thy wonders… Therefore I will GIVE THANKS to Thee among the nations, O LORD, And I will sing praises to Thy name… The LORD is my strength and my shield; My heart trusts in Him, and I am helped; Therefore my heart exults, And with my song I shall THANK Him… Sing praise to the LORD, you His godly ones, And GIVE THANKS to His holy name… I will GIVE THANKS to Thee, O Lord my God, with all my heart, And will glorify Thy name forever… With my mouth I will GIVE THANKS abundantly to the LORD; And in the midst of many I will praise Him… I will GIVE THANKS to Thee, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Wonderful are Thy works, And my soul knows it very well.” (Ps 7:17, 9:1. 18:49, 28:7, 30:4, 86:12, 109:30, 139:14)

Psalm 7:17 (HCSB) ¹⁷ I will thank the LORD for His righteousness; I will sing about the name of Yahweh the Most High.

Psalm 9:1 (HCSB) ¹ I will thank Yahweh with all my heart; I will declare all Your wonderful works.

Psalm 18:49 (HCSB) ⁴⁹ Therefore I will praise You, Yahweh, among the nations; I will sing about Your name.

Psalm 28:7 (HCSB) ⁷ The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in Him, and I am helped. Therefore my heart rejoices, and I praise Him with my song.

Psalm 30:4 (HCSB) ⁴ Sing to Yahweh, you His faithful ones, and praise His holy name.

Psalm 86:12 (HCSB) ¹² I will praise You with all my heart, Lord my God, and will honor Your name forever.

Psalm 109:30 (HCSB) ³⁰ I will fervently thank the LORD with my mouth; I will praise Him in the presence of many.

Psalm 139:14 (HCSB) ¹⁴ I will praise You because I have been remarkably and wonderfully made. Your works are wonderful, and I know ⌊this⌋ very well.

Hebrews 6:12 (HCSB) ¹² so that you won’t become lazy but will be imitators of those who inherit the promises through faith and perseverance.

Father grant by Your Spirit through Christ Jesus that we might be enabled to be “imitators of those (like David who continually gave thanks to You and) who through faith and patience inherit the promises.” (Heb 6:12) Amen

We don’t need more to be thankful for,

we need to be more thankful.

 

GIVE THANKS

Part 1

If you pause to THINK, you will have cause to THANK.

 

A woman had a parrot who always complained about everything. It was Thanksgiving Eve, and she was preparing the Thanksgiving meal. The parrot complained about everything as she worked. Finally, she had heard enough. She took him out of his cage and opened the refrigerator to put him in to punish him, “You’ll stay in the refrigerator until you cool off and get control on your tongue,” she said as she put him and closed the door. The parrot was stunned. Shivering, he caught a glimpse of the Thanksgiving turkey, skinned, legs pointing upward from the pan. The parrot said to the turkey, “Good heavens, man! What did you say?”

 

1 Thessalonians 5:18 (HCSB) ¹⁸ Give thanks in everything, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

IN EVERYTHING – The Greek word for “everything” is “pas” which means no exceptions. There is a silver lining to every cloud. God is with us whatever befalls us (Heb 13:5). It is God’s will that we find joy in prayer in Christ Jesus in every condition of life.

 

As Ruth Bell Graham well said “We can’t always give thanks FOR everything, but we can always give thanks IN everything.”

 

Job is a prime OT illustration of the supernatural response of thanksgiving even in the face of overwhelming troubles (If you are experiencing trials and afflictions [and most of us are!] read Job 1:13-20). IN the midst of his manifold afflictions, Job declared, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I shall return there. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord.” (Job 1:21) And in the end “I have heard of Thee by the hearing of the ear; But now my eye sees Thee… And the LORD blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning,” (Job 42:5, 12) “Behold, we count those blessed who endured. You have heard of the endurance of Job and have seen the outcome of the Lord’s dealings, that the Lord is full of compassion and is merciful.”

James 5:11 (HCSB) ¹¹ See, we count as blessed those who have endured. You have heard of Job’s endurance and have seen the outcome from the Lord. The Lord is very compassionate and merciful.

Gratitude is always a God-honoring attitude.

For all the heartaches and the tears,

For gloomy days and fruitless years

I do give thanks, for now I know

These were the things that helped me grow! —Crandlemire

 

Ephesians 5:20 (HCSB) ²⁰ giving thanks always for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,

“ALWAYS (all times) giving thanks for ALL THINGS in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father.” How is this possible? Certainly, it is not possible in my NATURAL inclination! But it is possible by God’s SUPERNATURAL provision. In other words, what is IM-possible, is HIM-possible! Paul had just commanded us to continually “BE FILLED with the Spirit.” (Eph 5:18). What “fills you” will “control you” and in this case He enables us to accomplish supernaturally what we cannot accomplish naturally.

 

As John Piper asks “How can we not be thankful when we owe everything to God?”

 

Indeed, he who thanks God for His mercies shall never want a mercy for which to thank, for “Every stream should lead us to the fountain.” (M. Henry)

 

When upon life’s billows you are tempest-tossed,

When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost,

Count your many blessings, name them one by one,

And it will surprise you what the Lord has done.

— J Oatman

 

Ray Pritchard writes that “The foundation of gratitude is the expectation of nothing. If one expects nothing then anything is bonus. If one expects more than he receives, then he is disappointed. We are so prone to complain because roses have thorns than to give thanks because thorns have roses! “In everything give thanks.” How do we do this in a practical sense?

First, thank him for your blessings.

Second, thank him for how he has helped you in your trials.

Third, thank him for his presence every day.

Fourth, thank him for his promises for the future.

As a Christian, our whole life is to be one great, “Thank you, Lord.” This is the will of God in Christ Jesus for us.””

 

We should be ready to give the Lord thanks

For blessing as well as for test;

Hearts that are thankful is all that He asks;

Let’s trust Him to give what is best. —Bierema

 

Colossians 3:17 (HCSB) ¹⁷ And whatever you do, in word or in deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.

Paul exhorts us “Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, GIVING THANKS (present tense = continually, as our habitual practice) through Him (Christ Jesus) to God the Father.”

How is it possible to live a life of continual thanksgiving? As Jerry Bridges says we must “first renounce all confidence in our own power and then rely entirely on the power of the Holy Spirit. We must be ENABLED, not merely HELPED. What’s the difference? The word HELP implies we have some ability but not enough; we need someone else to supplement our partially adequate ability. By contrast, ENABLEMENT implies that we have no ability whatsoever. We’re entirely powerless. We can do nothing.

John 15:5 (HCSB) ⁵ “I am the vine; you are the branches. The one who remains in Me and I in him produces much fruit, because you can do nothing without Me.

But when by faith we renounce self-sufficiency and embrace reliance on the power of the Holy Spirit, we receive divine empowerment, enablement, and strength for personal transformation and ministry.” In short, the Holy Spirit enables us to continually manifest an attitude of gratitude.

Andrew Murray – A joyful, thankful life is what God has destined for us, is what He will work in us — what He desires, that He certainly does in those who do not withstand Him, but receive and suffer His will to work in them.

 

Notice that in 1Thes 5:16

1 Thessalonians 5:16 (HCSB) ¹⁶ Rejoice always!

1 Thessalonians 5:18 (HCSB) ¹⁸ Give thanks in everything, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

(Rejoice always) and 1Thes 5:18 we see the combination of joy and giving thanks which Paul also links in Colossians 1:11-12 in the phrase “Joyously giving thanks to the Father.”

Colossians 1:11-14 (HCSB) ¹¹ May you be strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for all endurance and patience, with joy ¹² giving thanks to the Father, who has enabled you to share in the saints’ inheritance in the light.

WHY? Because;
¹³ He has rescued us from the domain of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of the Son He loves. ¹⁴ We have redemption, the forgiveness of sins, in Him.

Paul’s association of thanksgiving (eucharisteo) and joy (chara) is not surprising as both words are related to the the same Greek root (charis) which is our word “grace.” Indeed, grace is the foundation for saints enabled by the Spirit to “joyously give thanks” when the circumstances are not very joy filled! And remember the lost world is watching. Will I respond naturally or supernaturally. The former draws attention to me, but the latter brings glory to the Father (Mt 5:16)!

Matthew 5:16 (HCSB) ¹⁶ In the same way, let your light shine before men, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.

The secret to abounding joy is a Spirit wrought, grace-based gratitude attitude. Remember, when you can’t change the wind, allow the Spirit to enable you to adjust your sails!

 

Warren Wiersbe – An attitude of gratitude is a wonderful weapon against unbelief, disobedience, a hard heart, and a bitter spirit. Instead of complaining about what we don’t have, let’s be thankful for what we do have, because God always gives His best to those who leave the choice with Him… We can’t control the circumstances of life, but we can control how we respond to them. That’s what faith is all about, daring to believe that God is working everything for our good even when we don’t feel like it or see it happening. “In everything give thanks” isn’t always easy to obey, but obeying this command is the best antidote against a bitter and critical spirit. The Scottish preacher George H. Morrison said, “Nine-tenths of our unhappiness is selfishness, and is an insult cast in the face of God.”

Thanksgiving is the vibration of the soul’s heart-strings under the soft touch of God’s benevolence.

 

God’s GIVING deserves our THANKSGIVING.

Friend

Friend, it’s a word that we throw around a lot, but the question is do you know what a friend is? My computer programs definition goes as follows:

Friend [frend] Noun plural noun: friends, plural noun: Friends

1. a person whom one knows and with whom one has a bond of mutual affection, typically exclusive of sexual or family relations. “she’s a friend of mine”

synonyms companion, bosom friend, best friend, close friend, intimate, confidante, confidant, familiar, soul mate, alter ego, second self, shadow, playmate, playfellow, classmate, schoolmate, workmate, ally, comrade, associate, sister, brother, pal, bosom pal, buddy, bosom buddy, chum, spar, sidekick, crony, main man…  antonyms enemy

2. a member of the Religious Society of Friends; a Quaker.

Verb; third person present: friends, present participle: friending, past tense: friended, past participle: friended

1. add (someone) to a list of contacts associated with a social networking website.

“I am friended by 29 people who I have not friended back”

2. befriend (someone).

origin

Old English frēond, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch vriend and German Freund, from an Indo-European root meaning ‘to love’, shared by free.

 

In the late 1990s I had the pleasure of being our Church sound coordinator, this also meant that I was responsible for running the sound for our choir. Running the sound for the choir also came the responsibility of going with them on singing appointments. I really enjoyed and loved mixing the sound for the Church and the choir as long as we were at our Church, or close to home where I could drive. The Church choir had gotten a pretty good reputation at that time for being anointed. God really seemed to use us a lot at that time.

The problem was we were invited to do the Smoky Mountain Jubilee in Gatlinburg Tennessee, which wasn’t too bad because I would ride up with the drummer which is dear friend and help him set up his kit. Tennessee wasn’t too bad of a ride and the Evangelist that ran the Jubilee also was a Pastor of a Church in Virginia, and he invited us to go to his annual Church Jubilee. So, now, we are going to go to Virginia and minister there.

There is one of many reasons that I don’t want to go, the main reason is the same reason I don’t like to fly, the same reason I don’t like to be in an elevator, the same reason that I don’t like being in the back of a large crowd. I am and have always been claustrophobic. I don’t like closed in places and I really don’t like being anywhere that I can’t control when and where I can stop and get out of the room or of the vehicle. With that known by our pastor Snyder, he came to me and asked me to go with them and that I could have any seat on the bus that they chartered. I asked any and he assured me any. So, I insisted that I drive, knowing that that wasn’t going to happen and knowing that I didn’t trust my little S 10 truck to make the trip, I thought that I would get out of going, I did not.

Now I am on a bus that I don’t want to be on and going somewhere that I didn’t want to go. As I have stated I love my Church and the choir and mixing the music and singers, I went not to please God but to please man, and that is never the reason to minister, but God had me where he wanted me for a reason.

I love good preaching and I truly love anointed preachers, such as Tony Evans, Ike Reighard, Dr. Charles Stanley, Andy Stanley, and on and on. A few weeks before we headed out on this outing, I had the chance to go to the Bailey Smith Real Evangelism Conference, in Marietta, Georgia at Roswell Street Baptist Church, Pastored by Nelson Price. After attending there for a week, I had an opportunity to purchase a number of cassette tapes. (I said that this was in the 90s didn’t I) There were some great sermons and testimonies on these tapes, and some would just break your heart.  So, I decided that I would bring all my tapes and my little tape player, some headphones and enough batteries to make the trip and back, with batteries to spare. Now I was hoping that I could just submerge myself in preaching and never contemplate on being on a bus full of people and having little to no control over the situation.

Now as I am set, hoping and praying that no one would bother me and remind me of my surrounding’s. I was setting alone, and I liked it that way, everyone else was talking and getting ready for a great time together, and as the bus was loading up to go. I made sure that I got a seat next to a window and not too far from the front so if I had a meltdown, I could be drugged off the bus rather easily. People already knew who they wanted to be with and where they wanted to sit. So, all was going just the way I wanted it to go, until (I have said in the past “until” is hardly ever a good word to hear in a story). She said may I sit with you? And everything inside me was screaming NO! But I tried to conjure up a smile and said sure.

I spent most of my time in that Church at that time either in the sound room or in the pulpit. I am sorry to say that I am not much of a social person, don’t get me wrong, I love people and I care deeply for their souls. But, because of certain circumstances I got to a point in my life where I was really careful who I let get close to me. Way too many people have come into my life, and I have gotten really close to them and now they are gone. I was not on that bus but for one reason and one reason only and that was to get to our destination and do my responsibility. Not to socialize and definitely not to make any new friends. But I believe that God had other plans.

As I recall I told her she could sit with me if she left me alone, her name is Dianne, she seemed to be okay with that because she had a book she wanted to read and acted as if she didn’t want to be bothered either. Boy, was I wrong about not wanting to talk with me. Her son is our drummer and a great friend of mine, so I thought she would be okay to be around because I always enjoy being around Mark.

As the trip progressed, she started asking me questions, and I thought why not talk maybe it will get my mind off the fact that I was still on a bus. It didn’t work, so to get her quite I offered for her to listen to some of my tapes, and she took me up on the offer. As she sat there listening, I saw her starting to tear up and then I remembered that I just gave her the tape of Ike Reighard testimony. It is a great sermon and testimony, and it broke her heart. After listening to it, she got yet another tape and then after completing it she said you sure listen to some tear jerkers. We then started talking about what she had been listening to. If you want a preacher to be your friend, just ask him a spiritual question about the Word of God and sit back and enjoy the ride.

That happened well over twenty years ago, and to this day I consider her as one of the few friends that I call close. She later came to work as my company office manager and was by far the best employee I ever had. She was encouraging when I need encouraging, and never worries about my feelings when it comes to setting me straight when I start to drift. We all need people like that in our life. She and her husband are now in the Journey Group that I have the honor of teaching and is someone I love dearly. You just never know who God is going to put in your life and for what reason.

 

Oswald Chambers said, “Friendship is rare on earth. It means identity in Thought and Heart and Spirit.”

 

1. S. Lewis said friendships are discovered when you say, “What, you too?! I thought I was the only one” (Four Loves, 248).

Very few people have met those criteria in my life, and I bet the same can be said for most of us. We claim hundreds or even thousands of friends on Facebook and other social media outlets, and having never met many of them, how can they be friends. I was recently removed from a post and blocked from adding anything to the page on Facebook. The post was my home Church that I have been a part of since I was five years old, I am now sixty-one. So, I was not happy, it wasn’t anything bad I posted it was just an old picture of the Church and I said I miss that, Church. After I put a rebuttal on my page and about 50 people commented on my post, I received a message apologizing and said the block was removed and ended by saying “God bless my friend.” I don’t know who misinformed the person writing me that we were friends, because we are not. I have never talked to the man that messaged me. We are not friends, not my definition of a friend

 

In the book of John, it says:

“Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends” … and then Jesus continues “No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you.”  NKJV

 

As of the writing of this we as a nation just remembered the 75th anniversary of “D Day” and how these men of the greatest generation of Americans where these men laid down their lives for us.

 

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

“What a Friend We Have in Jesus” is a Christian hymn originally written by preacher Joseph M. Scriven as a poem in 1855 to comfort his mother who was living in Ireland while he was in Canada. Scriven originally published the poem anonymously, and only received full credit for it in the 1880s. The tune to the hymn was composed by Charles Crozat Converse in 1868. William Bolcom composed a setting of the hymn.

 

What a Friend We Have in Jesus

What a friend we have in Jesus. All our sins and griefs to bear!

What a privilege to carry Everything to God in prayer!

Oh, what peace we often forfeit, Oh, what needless pain we bear,

All because we do not carry Everything to God in prayer!

Have we trials and temptations? Is there trouble anywhere?

We should never be discouraged— Take it to the Lord in prayer.

Can we find a friend so faithful? Who will all our sorrows share?

Jesus knows our every weakness; Take it to the Lord in prayer.

Are we weak and heavy-laden? Cumbered with a load of care?

Precious Savior, still our refuge—Take it to the Lord in prayer.

Do thy friends despise, forsake thee? Take it to the Lord in prayer!

In His arms He’ll take and shield thee. Thou wilt find a solace there.

Blessed Savior. Thou hast promised Thou wilt all our burdens bear;

May we ever, Lord, be bringing All to Thee in earnest prayer.

Soon in glory bright, unclouded. There will be no need for prayer—

Rapture, praise, and endless worship Will be our sweet portion there.

 

As Christians, we should know that Jesus is our friend, but we need to make sure that we introduce the surrounding people to Him also. In one of the talks in a Christian weekend retreat that I work with on occasion, says “make a friend, be a friend, and bring that friend to Jesus.”

I have this penned in the back of my Bible

“If I just do my thing and you do yours, we stand in the danger of losing each other and ourselves, we are fully ourselves only in the relation to each other, the “I” detached from the “thou,” is disintegrating. I do not find you by chance, I find you by an active life of reaching out” by Walter Tubbs

Did Jesus not say in Mark 16:15 …” Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. NKJV

All the world and let everyone as you come in contact with them know about Jesus. As it’s been said “no one cares how much you know, until they know how much you care”.

 

I love the Randy Newman song for “Toy Story”:

“You’ve Got A Friend in Me”.

You’ve got a friend in me, You’ve got a friend in me,

When the road looks rough ahead, And you’re miles and miles,

From your nice warm bed, You just remember what your old pal said,

Boy, you’ve got a friend in me, Yeah, you’ve got a friend in me.

You’ve got a friend in me, You’ve got a friend in me,

You’ve got troubles, I’ve got ’em too, There isn’t anything I wouldn’t do for you,

We stick together and we see it through, Cause you’ve got a friend in me,

You’ve got a friend in me.

Some other folks might be A little bit smarter than I am,

Bigger and stronger too, Maybe,

But none of them will ever love you, The way I do,

It’s me and you, boy.

And as the years go by, Our friendship will never die,

You’re gonna see it’s our destiny, You’ve got a friend in me,

You’ve got a friend in me, You’ve got a friend in me.

 

The word friend is found some 58 times in the NKJV, 22 of those are in the New Testament. Jesus used the word 14 of those 22 times.

 

Why does one need a friend, Solomon said in Ecclesiastes that two is better than one, and we need to make sure the one with our one is the one that God desires for us to have in our lives?

 

Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 (NKJV)

9 Two are better than one, Because they have a good reward for their labor.

10 For if they fall, one will lift up his companion. But woe to him who is alone when he falls, For he has no one to help him up.

11 Again, if two lie down together, they will keep warm; But how can one be warm alone?

12 Though one may be overpowered by another, two can withstand him. And a threefold cord is not quickly broken.

 

We have to be very careful as to not only to whom you call friend and to whom you let in your life as a friend.

 

I like what a young preacher in our church once said in one of his first sermons, and that is if you take a white glove and put it on your hand and then submerge that hand in mud, the glove gets muddy. It is never said that the mud got glovie. (I know that glovie is not a word, but do you get the point.)

 

So, we need to be very careful who we accept as a real friend, if the person brings you down, takes you away from the ones that once lifted you up. If that person takes you places that you once wouldn’t go because it would hurt your testimony. If that person uses language that brings dishonor to God and make you look cheap. So, if that person has more influence on you and you start emulating them instead of representing Christ. There should be warning horns going off big time in your heart and mind. You should step back and look and see if you are getting muddy or if they are getting glovie. My bet is the mud is winning, if you step back from real friends and start following this kind of people you are not doing them any good, and you are really not doing you any good either.

 

Well Jesus hung out with sinners and bad people. Yes, He did, and he showed them love and brought them around to His way, by the example that He led. Not by acting like them. I am not saying you can’t have bad people in your life as friends, I am saying don’t let them lead you away from the witness that took you years to build up. Satan would have nothing better than to tare you down.

Remember “Make a friend, be a friend, and bring that friend to Jesus.” Not make a friend, be a friend, let that friend take you from Jesus.

So, here is the question, are you getting muddy or the ones you are hanging with getting glovie? If you are a Christian and you allow someone to take you down the wrong road, and you are allowing them to tear down the witness that God had in you then I say it’s time to do as Joshua said in the book that carry’s his name:

Joshua 24:15 (NKJV)

15 And if it seems evil to you to serve the LORD, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.”

You have to make a choice whether to follow God or follow the world! Sometimes the one that is leading you down the wrong road may be waiting for you to make a stand and say NO, I’m going to follow God. Just so they can see if this Christianity stuff is real in your life and if, so then they may want to follow Christ themselves.

 

James 4:4 (NKJV)

4 … Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.

As I have said in the past and am sure I will say again and again. When God is talking about neighbors and friends, I don’t think he is talking about what kind of friend you have but what kind of friend does your friend have namely, YOU.  Are you loving that friend enough to say for me, I will serve the LORD! Do you love them enough to let them leave, because Jesus did? He gives us a choice, to love them and live for Him and lead them out of hell. Or watch them go on their way while destroying your testimony and your witness.

I beg you to love them enough to bring them to Christ. “Make a friend, be a friend, and bring that friend to Jesus.” That is real love.  They are worth your love, but not at the expense of taking away the love you once had for God and his word.

Let them see the Love of the Lord in you and they may just want it to. It’s been my experience that most people living a Godless life are looking for something and I promise you that something is God himself.

I heard a preacher say once that he could tell the ones not as close to God as they once were. They were in the Church down front, then about half-way back then in the back, then in the overflow, then they were gone. It’s always gradual. One small step at a time away from Christ and for every step you make away its one more step closer to Satan and his way of life, which leads to destruction.

I once had a great quiet time and now my time is quiet. I once went to church religiously (did you see what I did there?) now my religion is anything except Christ. I once went to Sunday School or Small Group and now I am in places that I know that God is heartbroken over. Does He stop loving you? NEVER!!! But there will come a time that someone that once watched how much you loved God and how you wouldn’t compromise your belief in Him. They are seeing something different, and they may say if that is Christianity, I want no part of it. Is your moment of enjoyment worthy of their soul?

As I stated at the beginning, I have a number of people that I know, but I only have a few people that I call Friend. God calls everyone his friend. Are you in need of a friend let me tell you where to get a friend?

 

Proverbs 18:24 (NKJV)

24 A man who has friends must himself be friendly, But there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.

 

Can we find a friend so faithful? Who will all our sorrows share?

Jesus knows our every weakness; Are we weak and heavy-laden? Cumbered with a load of care? Precious Savior, still our refuge—Do thy friends despise, forsake thee? Take it to the Lord in prayer! In His arms He’ll take and shield thee. Thou wilt find a solace there. Blessed Savior. Thou hast promised Thou wilt all our burdens bear; May we ever, Lord, be bringing All to Thee in earnest prayer.

 

Can we find a friend so faithful? Yes, His name is Jesus!!

 

I hope and pray that the ones that call me friend that I live up to their expectation. I hope that when my name is spoken that that people can say he is my friend.

I hope that I follow the example set before me in Christ Jesus.

I hope if you ever have called me friend that you still can.

But I know me, I know that I have let people down, I know that I probably have said or done something that I shouldn’t have said or done. And hope and pray that my friends can forgive me and that I can forgive my friends that have let me down.

 

The example that is set before us is Jesus himself. He forgave us even before we let him down and keeps loving us anyways. Let’s try to live that way and remember:

 

“Make a friend, be a friend, and bring that friend to Jesus.”

And know this “You’ve Got A Friend in Me”

From my next Book “More to Ponder”