It was a hot summer morning in June. I was probably ten or eleven. My cousin and I were sneaking a cigarette in my room while everyone else was downstairs. The smoke was going through the screen of my window. My young mind comforted me that this was a perfect plan and nothing could go wrong.

The scream made my hair stand up as my sister entered the house shouting at the top of her lungs, “Momma, the house is on fire.” We were caught. She saw the smoke exiting the window.

When the two and a half tribes were separating themselves from the rest of Israel by the Jordon River, Moses gave a warning: You had better hold up your obligation to the nation.

Numbers 32:23

“But if you fail to do this, you will be sinning against the Lord; and you may be sure that your sin will find you out. 

My sin found me out that day with embarrassing consequences. How about you? Are you keeping this concept in mind?

Think about it.

Gary

Ecclesiastes 9:11

I returned and saw under the sun that—

The race is not to the swift,
Nor the battle to the strong,
Nor bread to the wise,
Nor riches to men of understanding,
Nor favor to men of skill;
But time and chance happen to them all.

The smartest man in the world was contemplating time and chance. I guess a better name for him at that time would be, “Lucky”. My friend left a dog to me and his name was Lucky. He was run over and killed by a truck. I almost hate to say it, but I was pleased that Lucky wasn’t lucky.

Solomon was leaving God out of the equation which always leads to the wrong answer. The children of Israel had the same problem in Jeremiah’s day.

Jeremiah 2:6

Neither did they say, ‘Where is the Lord,
Who brought us up out of the land of Egypt,
Who led us through the wilderness,
Through a land of deserts and pits,
Through a land of drought and the shadow of death,
Through a land that no one crossed
And where no one dwelt?’

How is it with you? Time and chance? Luck of the draw? Or maybe Jupiter aligned with Mars? Or does God play an active role in your life including the distant past?

Give it some thought, Lucky.

Gary

She was moderately attractive, but a little makeup might have improved the situation some. A higher-than-average IQ was an asset, but her concern was that men didn’t want someone smarter than they were.  Her desire was to stay away from the water holes where eligible bachelors might be located.  Marriage was always on her mind, but the years erased all possibilities.

Here lie the bones of Nancy Jones:

For her, life held no terrors.

She lived an old maid, she died an old maid:

No hits, no runs, no errors.

Seek is a verb found many times in the Bible. It means attempt or desire to obtain or achieve (something). Whatever the desire, it won’t come your way. You must make a move.

1 Peter 3:11

Let him turn away from evil and do good; Let him seek peace and pursue it.

Colossians 3:1

If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God.

Matthew 6:33

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

Nothing wrong with being single and it is sometimes warranted. However, if you are Nancy Jones, it was not for you.

Think of it.

Gary

Did you ever see a robin weep
When leaves begin to die?
Like me, he’s lost the will to live
I’m so lonesome, I could cry

The stanza comes from “I’M SO LONESOME I COULD CRY” (1949) by Hank Williams. I put this song in my head when I was very young. Every time some memory of past sadness comes back, this song is attached to it. There is something about the Irish part of me that enjoys being tormented.

I’m so grateful that God brought His Word into my life to combat the strong emotions of the past. There is coming a day when all tears will be wiped away.

Isaiah 25:8

 He will swallow up death forever;
and the Lord God will wipe away tears from all faces,
 and the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth,
  for the Lord has spoken.

We’ve been wiped many times throughout life, but I look forward to the final wiping that gives us eternity without these tear-jerking songs.

Think about it.

Gary

Did you know that the Andromeda Galaxy is eventually going to collide with the Milky Way? The Milky Way is the galaxy in which je vie (I live).

How do we know this? Um, it’s obvious: Humans know everything. I mean, really? If we know about things that are 2.5 million light years away, there can’t be anything we don’t know…right?

This will happen in four billion years. This is the kind of stuff that will keep you up at night. Don’t worry. Captain Kirk will be flying through space in the Enterprise making a way for us. Lieutenant Nyota Uhura will be translating the different languages from various planets.

How about a little reality?  There is an event that is going to take place a lot sooner than four billion years.

2 Peter 3:13

Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.

Now I plan on still being alive in four billion years but not in this dilapidated vessel, nor on this trashed planet. God’s going to give me a new body to walk through eternity. All of this is because of the finished work of Christ on Calvary.

Think about it.

Gary

Is it possible that you could make the following statements?

“Listen to me carefully. I don’t have all the answers to life’s myriad of questions. My personal belief is that I’m undeserving of all that I was able to enjoy in life. My IQ certainly didn’t match what I’ve, by the grace of God, been able to accomplish. If my friends really knew me, they would terminate the friendship.”

The reason for my question is that once there was a king who wrote something like that:

Psalm 131:1

 Lord, my heart is not haughty,
Nor my eyes lofty.
Neither do I concern myself with great matters,
Nor with things too profound for me.

God said David was a man after His own heart. I believe statements like the aforementioned give us a clue as to why God said that.

Maybe with the help of the Holy Spirit we could also bring ourselves to such a place.

Give it some thought.

Gary

In March 1992 Newsweek magazine mentioned a letter from
the Greenville County, S.C., Dept. of Social Services.
The letter was written to a dead person. It read:

“Your food stamps will be stopped effective immediately,
because we received notice that you passed away.
May God bless you.
You may re-apply if there is a change in your circumstances.”

Two dead men had a conversation in Luke 16:

Luke 16:30-31

And he said, ‘No, father Abraham; but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’

But he said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.’ ”

No. the food stamps were stopped because the dead can’t come back. This is a one-shot deal, so make sure you’re right with God before your food stamps are shut off forever.

Think about it.

Gary