Monsters

If you grew up in the sixties, you probably were consumed with fear because of “Albert Hitchcock” and “The Twilight Zone.”  It seemed like someone from outer space was lurking, waiting for you there in the darkness. When I went to bed at night, I lifted the blankets at the foot of my mattress and tucked them securely under my feet, so no monster could reach under the blankets and grab my toes.

Israel had a lot to fear because they were outnumbered and overwhelmed. However, God gave them His promises to relieve fear.

 Deuteronomy 31:6

“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you.”

God does the same for believers today.

Romans 8:15

For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.”

Nice not to have fear control our lives.

Think about it.

Gary

Value

Michael J. Smith hit a home run when he wrote and sang “Ancient Words.”

Holy words long preserved
For our walk in this world
They resound with God’s own heart
Oh, let the ancient words impart

Words of Life, words of Hope
Give us strength, help us cope
In this world, where e’er we roam
Ancient words will guide us home

No greater statement can be made about the power of God’s written Word. Over the centuries men and women have lived and died with God’s truth in their breast.

Colossians 3:16

Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.

Of all the things in life that can be accumulated, the only one with lasting value is a heartfelt love and application of Scripture.

Think about it.

Gary

Assurance vs Insurance

An insurance policy is a great asset to have in case you run into someone or the house catches on fire. Some people even insure their income. Folks can even be insurance-poor.

A salesman even pushed for me to get the extended warrantee on my Tacoma. Can you imagine the nerve of him?

What is better than insurance – is assurance. The hymn writer sure had it right when she was inspired to write “Blessed Assurance.” Yes, she. The lyrics were written in 1873 by blind hymn writer. Fanny Crosby. She was blind to physical things, but her eyes were wide open to spiritual realities.

Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine;
Oh, what a foretaste of glory divine!
Heir of salvation, purchase of God,
Born of His Spirit, washed in His blood.
This is my story; this is my song,
Praising my Savior all the day long.
This is my story; this is my song,
  Praising my Savior all the day long.
 God gives that freely through His Word.

John 5:24 

Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.

What assurance!

Think about it.

Gary

 

Tongue

In my trucking days, as I came to the Canadian port of entry, I would pull into the truck lane and park. Then I would exit the semi and go into customs with my paperwork. This particular time, I was crossing in my little Subaru and I stopped in the same spot as a truck would, two lanes removed from the truck lane and the custom house.

The Canadian customs official approached me slowly not knowing what insane character he would confront. When he inquired why I did that, I responded, I thought I was in the truck. He was amused and I was embarrassed.

There are many things we shouldn’t do without thinking and this was one of them.

The Bible has a lot to say about thinking.

Proverbs 21:23 

Whoever keeps his mouth and his tongue keeps himself out of trouble.

To do what the verse says, we must always be thinking about the situation we are coming into.

Give it some thought.

Gary

Proof

How do you prove God is real? You don’t have to because God has proven it clearly to everyone in creation. All the laws of physics were not a creation of man, but man discovering how God holds the universe together.

Romans 1:20

For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse,

There is no more chance of man being a product of evolution than a Ford Mustang or an ice-cream float being a product of evolution.

Genesis 1:1

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

Newton’s First Law states that an object will remain at rest or in uniform motion in a straight line unless acted upon by an external force.

The question is, have you been acted upon by an external force, namely God?

Give it some thought.

Gary

Rockies

If you are traveling west towards the Rockies, you can see them from 100 miles out.  At that distance if you held up one thumb with your arm extended and closed one eye, you could block them out.  However, when you are 5 miles away, the awesome size of those mountains leaves you in awe. They will consume the entire windshield.

In other words, the closer you get the greater in size they appear.

The same principle holds true with God. The closer a seeker draws near, the bigger space He takes up in the life.

James 4:8

Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.

How do you do that? Read the Word on a regular basis and talk to Him from a sincere heart.

Think about it. Selah

Gary

Women

There is much talk today about women breaking through the glass ceiling. Historically, there was a woman who did that almost two thousand years ago. Her name was Lydia.

Acts 16:14

Now a certain woman named Lydia heard us. She was a seller of purple from the city of Thyatira, who worshiped God. The Lord opened her heart to heed the things spoken by Paul.

She was a business woman from a foreign city and her product was purple dye. This lady was the kind of individual who was attracted to light.

Light was the business the Apostle Paul was demonstrating in this city that was foreign to him. Have you come into contact with the Living Word? Has God opened your heart? What a breakthrough that would be!

Think about it.

Gary