If everywhere you go, there is a problem, guess what? Does the Bible address such a phenomenon? Glad you asked.
Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.
A fool gives full vent to his spirit, but a wise man quietly holds it back.
And as you wish that others would do to you, do so to them.
Your counselor won’t tell you that you are the problem, because you’ll cancel all future sessions. Give it some thought.
Gary
“Mama Tried” is a song Merle Haggard sang out in 1968. Here are some lines:
The first thing I remember knowin’
Was a lonesome whistle blowin’
And a young un’s dream of growin’ up to ride
On a freight train leavin’ town
Not knowin’ where I’m bound
And no one could change my mind but Mama tried
One and only rebel child
From a family, meek and mild
My Mama seemed to know what lay in store
Despite all my Sunday learnin’
Towards the bad, I kept on turnin’
‘Til Mama couldn’t hold me anymore
And I turned twenty-one in prison doin’ life without parole
No one could steer me right but Mama tried, Mama tried
Mama tried to raise me better, but her pleading, I denied
That leaves only me to blame ’cause Mama tried
Does it have a precedence in history? Glad you asked.
Proverbs 6:20
My son, keep your father’s command,
And do not forsake the law of your mother.
Yes, there is a long and sordid history of destructive goals in young men, many of whom refused the advice of a godly mother. The same happens to us when we don’t acknowledge the Word of God. Give it some thought.
Gary
It’s a statement I heard somewhere and believed to be profound. “I’m a prisoner of the wind.” Does the Bible address such a concept? Glad you asked.
that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting,
But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind.
Protection from the winds of false doctrine is available when your feet are planted securely in the Word of God.
Give it some consideration.
Gary
It’s the day when tomorrow will never come. “Yes, I’ll get right on that tomorrow,” you said. “What do you mean it’s important? There’s always time.”
I’m sorry that you didn’t consider angina, that slippery curve, the drunk driver or that fall. How many times have you heard it said, “He died unexpectedly.”? That was all for someone else, because you are the exception to the rule. Don’t you know that when you wake up in some other dimension, there is no return?
Luke 16:22-23
The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side.
Truthfully, we can find ourselves instantly on the other side of life and introduced to eternity. We don’t know when that day in which tomorrow will never come will happen, but we can be ready.
Give it some consideration.
Gary
A young boy once approached his father to ask, “Dad, why does the wind blow?”
The father responded, “I don’t know, son.”
“Dad, where do the clouds come from?”
“I’m not sure, son.”
“Dad, what makes a rainbow?”
“No idea, son.”
“Dad, do you mind my asking you all these questions?”
“Not at all, son. How else are you going to learn?”
– Source Unknown.
I’m sure glad that is not the case with our Heavenly Father. He has given us sixty-six books of answers if we so desire to ask and read. God’s Word speaks of the wind, the clouds and the rainbow, which would have provided answers for the boy’s inquisitive mind.
My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of My hand.
Whoever is of God hears the Words of God. The reason why you do not hear them is that you are not of God.”
Give it some thought and be taught by your Heavenly Father.
Gary
“Paranoia strikes deep,” is a line I remember from a song in my past. Paranoia is a pattern of intense suspicion and distrust of others, believing they intend to harm you, even without sufficient evidence, leading to defensiveness, difficulty trusting, and misinterpreting neutral actions as threats.
Does the Bible give the cure for such a malady? Glad you asked.
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.
God brings all kinds of people into our lives. Unless they are a proven threat, give them a chance.
Give it some thought.
Gary
Julie Miller wrote this song in 1993 and many sang it. This is how every true believer feels when death knocks.
When I go, don’t cry for me
In my Father’s arms I’ll be
The wounds this world left on my soul
Will all be healed and I’ll be whole
Sun and moon will be replaced
With the light of Jesus’ face
And I will not be ashamed
For my Savior knows my name
It don’t matter where you bury me
I’ll be home and I’ll be free
It don’t matter where I lay
All my tears be washed away
Gold and silver blind the eye
Temporary riches lie
Come and eat from heaven’s store
Come and drink and thirst no more
So weep not for me, my friend
When my time below does end
For my life belongs to Him
Who will raise the dead again
It don’t matter where you bury me
I’ll be home and I’ll be free
II Corinthians 5:6-8
So we are always confident, knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord. 7 For we walk by faith, not by sight. 8 We are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord.
Give it some thought.
Gary