The definition of a pawn is a person or thing manipulated and used by others or a game piece in the game of chess. A person unwittingly used in a scheme and taken advantage of by others is an example of a pawn.

The conversation in the garden between Eve and Satan is the manipulation of a pawn. The meeting of Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain and Adolf Hitler in 1938 is another case in point.

A nephew in jail asking me for bail money, when I don’t have a nephew in jail, is my personal example. (It didn’t work on me.)  The constant phone scams looking for a pawn seem to have no end.

The Bible makes it clear in this game of life.

2 Corinthians 11:13

 For such people are false apostles, deceitful workers, masquerading as apostles of Christ.

Ephesians 5:6

Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God’s wrath comes on those who are disobedient.

Jeremiah 9:6

You live in the midst of deception; in their deceit they refuse to acknowledge me,” declares the LORD.

These verses are just the tip of the iceberg with individuals seeking a pawn.

Don’t become one.

Give it some thought.

Gary

This old world of ours can suffer some real droughts and sometimes famine can raise its ugly head. However, even if life is not that severe for you, there can be some dry times and a hunger for something you’re really not sure of.

The hymn writer put it like this:

God will make a way
Where there seems to be no way
He works in ways we cannot see
He will make a way for me

He will be my guide
Hold me closely to His side
With love and strength for each new day
He will make a way, He will make a way

By a roadway in the wilderness, He’ll lead me
And rivers in the desert will I see
Heaven and Earth will fade but His Word will still remain
And He will do something new today

The ancient prophet mentioned a famine like no other:

Amos 8:11

 “Behold, the days are coming,” declares the Lord God,
“when I will send a famine on the land—
not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water,
but of hearing the words of the Lord.

If you are in the Word and the Word is in you, everything is good. That not being the case, you need to wake up to the famine that has eternal consequences.

Give it some thought.

Gary

One of the stanzas in an old love song states, “Before too long I built my world around you. And I prayed you’d love enough of me to stay.” This is probably not a good spot to build your world around, for I’m not sure what percentage of love is satisfactory for one to stay.

Years back many folks built their homes near a river. There was never a consideration that this could be a floodplain.  What a tragedy when the discovery of such a mistake in construction was only realized when a flood happened.

Every one of us is in the business of building many things.  It can be a personal-building project or a corporate endeavor. This would also include relationships. However, we must always consider the possible lifespan of what our time, money and soul are being placed in.

Job built his life around the Creator. After losing everything on this Earth except God, he still believed he had all he needed.

This was his statement while still in the furnace:

Job 13:15 “Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him:

Start building your world around God, and when everything else evaporates, you can still mouth such a statement.

Give it some thought, you, builder of worlds.

Gary

“Summer Wine” is a song written by Lee Hazlewood. It was originally sung by Suzi Jane Hokom and Lee Hazlewood in 1966. It’s about a proud cowboy coming into town thinking he was worth a million. She saw him coming, and with her summer wine and smooth talk, he was taken for all he was worth. Robbed, he awakened with a headache that would haunt him the rest of his days.

The Bible describes such scenes played over and over again in every generation:

Proverbs 7:6-10

For at the window of my house
I looked through my lattice,
And saw among the simple,
I perceived among the youths,
A young man devoid of understanding,
Passing along the street near her corner;
And he took the path to her house
In the twilight, in the evening,
In the black and dark night.
And there a woman met him,
With the attire of a harlot, and a crafty heart.

If a person is to rightly interpret Scripture, he realizes that the “she” doesn’t have to be a woman. “She” can represent a business deal, alcohol, a drug, a relationship or even a career. What’s contained in her deceit is the destruction of the soul. As a song writer once put it, “Another one bites the dust.”

Proverbs is the book of wisdom. One must face the realization that “she” is there and awaits the foolish.

Give it some thought.

Gary

He said, “I want you to meet a friend of mine.” We were just two teenagers walking down the street when we came face to face with another teenager. My friend had a big smile on his face, but I quickly detected that the other teen didn’t have the same demeanor. This individual was cussing under his breath as my friend was introducing me as his best friend and telling how wonderful I was. The conversation ended when this friend of mine told the boy we’d meet him in Canada that night and may the best man win. Not sure if it was my pal or I that was to take him on.

Needless to say, I had no intentions of visiting Canada that night and neither did my friend. This was my best friend and he was a character.  He could sell ice cubes to the Eskimos and make a profit.  My philosophy was as the song says, “Stay away from trouble if you can.”

Sometimes trouble is self-manufactured and sometimes others draw you into their creations. However it comes about, it’s still trouble. This is what the Bible has to say:

Job 14:1

 “Man who is born of a woman is few of days and full of trouble.

Philippians 4:14

Yet it was kind of you to share my trouble.

The next time you see trouble coming down the street, remember it is just something we were born into.

Give it some thought.

Gary

The shepherds in Luke chapter two represent social poverty and the lower rungs of humanity, yet they received the message about the birth of the Messiah. There were no political powerhouses or any of the religious elite attending that event. The wise men would only worship Him years later when He would be residing in a house and not a stable.

The angel’s message was to broken people. The Gospel means “good news.” That message has been around for two thousand years. The message was only allowed to be given by an angel to announce His birth. Through the centuries this message has been carried to broken individuals by a great multitude of characters. That message is simple, “There is born to you a Savior.” Those shepherds needed His salvation and so do we.

Luke 2:10-11

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

I wasn’t guarding sheep by night when I heard this message, but I was a poor, lost sinner blundering through this life. Do you understand this business of being lost? If not, maybe you’re in the same field as the shepherds when the angel appeared.

Give it some thought.

Gary

I read that on the average a person eats a hundred tons of food in a lifetime. That same individual will drink 45,445 liters of water.  According to my bathroom scales, I’ll probably go over that.  I just heard potatoes weren’t good for you.  My response is, “What a good way to go by eating potatoes.”

Why am I here breathing this air, eating this food, and drinking this water? That’s the question that so many can’t seem to find an answer to.

Edward Hale wasn’t much of a believer in truth, but on this subject of life he came close. This is what he wrote:

   I am only one, but I am one.

   I can’t do everything, but

   I can do something.

   And what I can do, I ought to do.

   And what I ought to do, by the

   Grace of God, I shall do.

     – Edward Everett Hale (1822-1909)

As a Christian, remember God by His grace saved you for a purpose. You might not be a Moses, Joshua, Daniel or Paul, but you have been saved for a purpose.  Start in Genesis and read through the Scriptures, discovering God’s will for you in this life. You can make a difference.

Hebrews 13:20-21

Now may the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, equip you with everything good for doing his will, and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.

Give this some serious thought.

Gary