Dad, Dad

He was an eighteen-month-old walking around in a large gathering of people and I was observing him. Seeing his dad, the boy started slapping his dad on the knees. The father, however, was too busy talking to take notice. Not getting a response, the little guy turned to look for his mother.

I wonder how many times my own son wanted his dad’s attention and I never gave it to him. Pain grips my heart at the possibility of opportunities missed. Our heavenly Father never does such things.

1 Peter 5:7 

Casting all your anxieties on Him, because He cares for you.

Psalm 46:1 

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.

He’s been here and He feels our pain. As we like to say, “You can go to Him anytime, anywhere, about anything.”  Give it some thought.

Gary

Another World

“If we find ourselves with a desire that nothing in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that we were made for another world.”

― C.S. Lewis

Luke 23:43 

And He said to him, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in paradise.”

2 Corinthians 5:1 

For we know that if the tent that is our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.

Give it some careful consideration.

Gary

Beautiful

I don’t know who said it, but I sure like it. Beautiful people are not always good, but good people are always beautiful. Be good and you might make it to beautiful.

Psalm 37:3 

Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness.

Micah 6:8 

He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?

Psalm 34:8 

Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him!

Ask me how you look, and I’ll tell you the truth. Give it some thought.

Gary

Esther

At the close of World War II, the Russians held a reception for Field Marshall Sir Bernard L. Montgomery. At the reception, he was awarded the Soviet Union’s Order of Victory. Vodka flowed freely at the function. Montgomery was surrounded by a score of imbibing, high-ranking Russian officers. Being a total abstainer, he was “on the spot.” He was embarrassed. Just then, General Dwight D. Eisenhower came near. And Montgomery said: “Ike, get me out of this!” Ike came promptly to his aid. He explained that the British Marshall did not drink.

I look back over my life and remember multiple times someone like Ike came along and got me out of a jam. They are by your side for such a time as this.

For Esther, Mordecai served her well with this reminder.

Esther 4:14 

For if you keep silent at this time, relief and deliverance will rise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?”

Give it some thought.

Gary

Definition

An English publication offered a prize for the best definition of a friend, and among the thousands of answers received were the following:

“One who multiplies joys, divides grief.”

“One who understands our silence.”

But here is the definition that won the prize: “A friend—the one who comes in when the whole world has gone out.”

Proverbs 17:17 

A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.

1 Thessalonians 5:11 

Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.

Give it some thought and be a friend. Everybody needs them.

Gary

Focus

Former Dallas Cowboys coach Jimmy Johnson told his football team: “If I laid a two-by four plank across the room, everybody there would walk across it and not fall, because our focus would be on that two-by-four. But if I put that same two-by-four plank 10 stories high between two buildings only a few would make it, because the focus would be on failing. Focus is everything. The team that is more focused today is the team that will win this game.”

Focus is something the Bible directs every believer to do.

Proverbs 4:25 

Let your eyes look directly forward, and your gaze be straight before you.

Colossians 3:2 

Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.

Matthew 6:33 

But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

You can do it if you stay focused. Give it some thought.

Gary

Deceptive Gifts

The devil came to Jesus in Matthew chapter 4 and had a lot to offer Him.  He still appears to have a giving spirit today. He can offer you money through litigation, give you what seems to be a better circle of friends, and even the ability to get your body in shape.  Waylon Jennings sang, “The Taker,” which expresses the concept of self-serving deception well. Similarly, Satan’s gifts are produced to eventually fail and will never be taken into eternity.

2 Corinthians 11:14 

And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.

1 Peter 5:8 

Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.

James 4:7 

Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

Don’t believe him.  Give it some serious thought before it is too late.

Gary