“Courage is not having the strength to go on; it is going on when you don’t have the strength.”  Teddy Roosevelt

Joshua 1:9 

Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

Deuteronomy 31:8 

It is the Lord who goes before you. He will be with you; He will not leave you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.”

Get going. Keep moving. God placed you here for a purpose and it was not to be a quitter. Give it some thought.

Gary

Back in the day, she was my godmother. Her first heart attack happened before she turned forty and she experienced many after that. Her son, my best friend, died at forty-nine from a heart attack. The life God gave her lasted well into her eighties. You see, God is the one in charge of your time here on the planet and not your ailments.

Hebrews 9:27 

And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment,

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.

Don’t worry about death. It is part of the plan that God controls and He’ll take care of it. Just expend the energy you have left getting ready to meet Him.

Give it some thought.

Gary

This was told to me by a career naval officer who was stationed on an American warship in both WW2 and the Korean conflict. He revealed that another navy officer, who was the ship’s chaplain, got drunk and fell into the water. He supposedly was there to bring spiritual comfort to the crew. He was filled with something all right, but it was not the Word of God. What a sad commentary!  I guess he never took the following verses seriously.

Ephesians 5:18

And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit,

Philippians 1:11

being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.

Colossians 1:9

For this reason, we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding

Ministry requires filling, not foolishness. Give it some thought.

Gary

When did the Leaning Tower of Pisa start leaning? It became apparent that the structure was leaning in the late 1170s, after completion of the first three of the tower’s planned eight stories. The leaning was caused by the uneven settling of the building’s foundations in the soft ground.

Now it seems to me, a reasonable person would have quit building. That, they did not do. It is an earthly illustration of man’s failure. It is a brother to the Tower of Babel.

How is your building project going?

Matthew 7:24 

“Everyone then who hears these words of Mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock.

2 Corinthians 5:1 

For we know that if the tent that is our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.

If it is built by God, there is a sure foundation. Give it some thought.

Gary

The truck in front of me, headed for Canada with his load of logs, rolled over into the ditch because of the road conditions.  My initial reaction was, this is going to take some time from me. He wasn’t hurt and I stayed with him until we could process the mess and get him back on the road. Hmm, just another day in the North Maine woods.

Always be willing to be involved in someone else’s problems because others were willing to be involved in yours when you had need. “What goes around comes around,” they say.

2 Thessalonians 3:13 

As for you, brothers, do not grow weary in doing good.

Luke 6:38 

Give, and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use it will be measured back to you.”

Give it some consideration when others need you.

Gary

The heading for the newspaper article read, “Fired Ellsworth Police Chief, Suspected of Working Drunk, Opening Brewery.” How come people who are deceived by drink can use the same substance to put others in jeopardy?  It goes along with the definition of the quote, “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” That former police chief will be a real help in putting people into the same kind of shame he experienced.

Does the Bible address this? Glad you asked.

Habakkuk 2:15

“Woe to him who makes his neighbors drink— you pour out your wrath and make them drunk, in order to gaze at their nakedness!

Proverbs 20:1

Wine is a mocker, strong drink a brawler,
and whoever is led astray by it is not wise.

Stay away from embarrassment; stick with diet coke. Give it some thought.

Gary

In 1972, Mac Davis sang a hit song called, “Don’t Get Hooked on Me.” In it, he warned that he would only use the person and then set him or her free, damaged after what he’d done.  Many, and maybe some of you, have experienced people like that in your history.

The devil operates like that because he has no love for anyone and uses whomever he can. Don’t let him do that to you.

1 Peter 5:8 

Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.

James 4:7 

Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

2 Corinthians 11:14 

And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.

Don’t listen to him because he is a dangerous being. Give it some thought.

Gary