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Showing posts from May, 2023

Signs of the times

 The note wasn't place where these types of notes to the pastor should go.  It was left on a seat in the sanctuary and wasn't signed.  It was discovered today while the sanctuary was being cleaned up a bit and the note simply said this:  When is the book of Revelation going to be preached? I think that's just where we are these days.  These aren't the end times, per-se.  These certainly seem to be the last days and as the church shrinks in America, we are fast becoming a remnant of the body of Christ that once existed here in the USA.  We're curious about what's to come because it's apparent that there's a strong possibility that we will actually see the last prophesies start to unfold In the book of Revelation, the Apostle John is given inside information about what's going to happen at the end.  The Apostle Paul wrote about the times in which we live in his second letter to Timothy.  Most importantly, the Lord Jesus Himself spoke about the ...

Peculiar people

 At an evening of worship at a local church last Sunday, I started listening closely to the words of some of the songs that were sung and I had a thought run through my mind, which is that Christians are truly peculiar people.   The why of the thought is that we were singing about the day we die.  Not that any of us are in a hurry for that, mind you, but that we understand that our hope of all hope is beyond the life that is what we have here.  While we are here, we worship our God, while at the same time longing to see Him, the One who was pierced for our transgressions and that gave up His life as a ransom and payment for sin for the lives of those that would believe on Him. I wonder what people that aren't believes think of a people who would sing about the day when we must leave this earthly tent and more on to our home in Heaven.  The other thought that I have is that these same people really have nothing to sing about when their time is at an end. I'm...

Not for everyone

 One of the things I find interesting is how things in God's kingdom is how God uses our gifts differently.  Just as each of us are differently able to do certain things in life, so it goes for ministry.  Not every ministry opportunity is right for every person.  I had a hard time wrapping my head around that at first.  In my mind, if one wanted to serve one's God, shouldn't they be able to do anything they wanted? The short answer to that is no.  And the longer version of that answer adds to the No, the idea that thinking like that isn't even Biblical.  It's not up to us to decide what we will do for God.  It's God who calls us to join Him in areas He calls us to work in.  The Bible tells us that long before the foundation of the world, He prepared the good works for us in advance.   I understand this principle though.  Sometimes, our gifts don't match up with opportunities to serve.  Other times, those opportunities migh...

Words for when there are no words

 A man I have known my whole adult life was recently found to have cancer.  Shortly thereafter he suffered a stroke.  The prognosis is not good.  And this man has had his share of bad news over the years and to know him would be to think of him as a decent and upright man and to not understand why such a terrible thing could happen to such a man as him. I also know this man to be a Christian because I was there the night he made that profession of faith.  Me, being me, was being a "martha" at the moment it happened but I was in the auditorium when he came forward.  I couldn't have been happier then.  I'm still happy for that now. We all need Jesus.  My brother in Christ will need Jesus to see him through this trial even if it means at the end of this illness, he will go home to be with Jesus.  I know that either way, this man wins.  It's hard to express that to someone who doesn't share a belief in Christ like that though.  He's dyi...

The battles we fight between the ears

 I don't know who is responsible for the sentiment, but I heard it a few days ago being re-quoted and the sentiment I'm speaking of describes the war Christians fight with the old self this way:  "most of the battles we fight are fought between our ears." I find that true.  Most of the things I struggle with in my own life are things from the past that try to creep their way back in.  I understand the words Paul the Apostle wrote when he said we are "to take every thought captive to make it obedient to Christ." (2 Cor 10:5b) Sometimes those past things can try to worm their way back in to your life.  Sometimes it's a thought, sometimes something else will trigger an old memory, like meeting someone that reminds you of someone else from your past.  Other times, it's just waking up alone and realizing you're alone and facing that reality that causes those thoughts from when that wasn't the case to creep in. The battle is real even if it's f...

Time vs Money

 The older I get, the more I see a real truth at play in life, which is that most of our lives seem to be spent around the idea of trading time for money. I need to plant some grass.  Well, I probably NEED to pour concrete and dye it green, but what will do instead is planting grass.  However, because three dogs co-habitate with me, I need to plant grass that is already ready to go.  My people call this type of grass, sod.   Sod is not an in-demand item in the marketplace in which I inhabit, so I have two choices for this purchase.  One is to have it delivered.  The other is to pick it up and drive a total of 7 hours to do that.  My cost to pick up:  about $200.  My cost for delivery:  $750 So, my cost savings is worth the time and gas to fetch said sod.  I'm trading time for money.  Often times, we trade money for time, which n this case would have been to pay the delivery fee.   The nice thing is that I ca...