He said, “Dad, I have a real problem driving this high up in these Wyoming mountains; would you take the wheel?”

 I said, “Sure.”  Even though I had the same problem with heights, I wasn’t going to let him know. Maybe if I would have been honest with my fears, he would still be calling me Dad.

Don’t hold your shortcomings from others and pretend you’re something you’re not. In the course of time, it might hurt them and boomerang unto you.

Matthew 6:1 

“Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.

Luke 12:2 

Nothing is covered up that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known.

Don’t fear telling someone you feel the same way. Give it some thought.

Gary

Someone told me the other day that the Farmer’s Almanac said this winter would be cold with lots of snow. Now this is my 71st winter in Maine. I’m not sure of the first three or four years of my existence, but the next sixty-seven were cold with plenty of snow. There was no new information in that statement. Unlike some politicians and preachers, people under certain circumstances can make money simply by telling the truth. Yes, the Bible does mention the truth.

John 8:32 

“And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

John 17:17 

“Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth.”

John 4:24 

“God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”

 Give it some thought, and for those of you blessed to live in Maine, have an enjoyable winter.

Gary

Life is a continuous process of getting used to things we hadn’t expected.

–       Unknown

That quote certainly is true of what the past has thrown at us. Experience should have taught us to expect some of the unexpected. Truthfully, there are just too many variables in life to use experience as a guide as to what the future might bring. Experience sometimes is no more accurate than a crystal ball.

Does the Bible address this phenomenon? Glad you asked.

Proverbs 19:21 

Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand.

Proverbs 20:24 

A man’s steps are from the Lord; how then can man understand His way?

Someone has already been there. Take His hand. Give it some thought.

Gary

I got a call from a contractor who wanted me to drive a logging truck for a few days. I’m seventy-one years old and licensed, but I haven’t jammed those gears for thirty years. Some would say it’s like riding a bicycle, and you never forget. No, you might hurt yourself when you’re out bike riding, but a mistake in trucking can hurt others. Truckers are always dealing with the following: How wide do you make the turn? How many gears do you skip in that hill? What is the distance needed to stop 100,000 pounds and twenty-two wheels? And when are you too tired so that you need to call it good and shut her down? Those skills the years have stolen from me and I can never get them back.

Somebody needed me, but I had to face my limitations. That’s the stinker about age-related problems.

Psalm 90:10 

The years of our life are seventy, or even by reason of strength eighty; yet their span is but toil and trouble; they are soon gone, and we fly away.

Psalm 90:12-13 

So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom. Return, O Lord! How long? Have pity on your servants!

Give it some thought the next time you’re called to do something that time has taken away from you.

Gary

Back in 1934, when the Cunard line was getting ready to name its greatest ocean liner, the consensus was that it should be named after Queen Elizabeth I. A high official is reported to have had an audience with King George V. “We would like to name the ship after England’s greatest queen,” he told the king.

 “Well,” said King George, “I shall have to ask her.”  The ship was promptly named Queen Mary.

This is a legend. However, if true, it tells you something of Mary. Does the Bible mention this flaw in human nature? You guessed it.

Philippians 2:3-4

Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.

James 3:16

For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice.

James 3:13

Who among you is wise and intelligent? Let him by his good conduct show his [good] deeds with the gentleness and humility of true wisdom.

Give it some thought the next time you are being bypassed.

Gary

This article was sent to me by a friend. I certainly couldn’t have said it better myself. 

The walk out.

Everyone in ministry knows the feeling.

Every Sunday.

The sound is off and the lights are down, and the flock has gone to get lunch with their family and friends.

Empty. Having poured out all physically, spiritually, emotionally.

Not sure if the sermon worked.

Questioning the worship.

Wondering about the distractions.

Remembering all that did not go right.

Praying someone got help, instruction, encouragement or edification.

Hoping the people who sat on these pews today received something to help them navigate life this week.

Praying God’s presence meets me in my place of preparation.

Until, the next time I pour out, before the crowd leaves and it’s time again to walk out.

1 Peter 5:2 

Shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly;

Acts 20:28 

Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood.

Give it some thought.

Gary

My greatest thought is my accountability to God. 

–                                                                              –   Daniel Webster

Remini writes that, though Webster occasionally attended other churches, he remained closely affiliated with the Congregational church throughout his life. In an 1807 letter to a Congregational pastor, Webster wrote, “I believe in the utter inability of any human being to work out his own salvation, without the constant aids of the spirit of all grace…” His last words were, “I still live.”

I don’t know if his life reflected the new birth or not. However, I fully believe that with these comments he hit the ball out of the park.

Matthew 9:6-8

But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—He then said to the paralytic—“Rise, pick up your bed and go home.” And he rose and went home. When the crowds saw it, they were afraid, and they glorified God, who had given such authority to men.

1 John 1:9

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Give it some thought.

Gary