Advice

      “How many times have I told you not to do that?” That has to be one of the most repeated phrases that I heard as a child. There were times when I would do something and my Mother would repeat those words over and over. I might well say, “How many times have I heard that phrase?” Well, it was necessary because of some repeated violation that had been set forth from the rules of the family. It could be in reference to socks, chores, feeding the dog, getting up on time, doing my homework or practicing the clarinet. My Mother probably felt like a tape recorder giving the same things over and over. Peter said in Second Peter 1:12, “Wherefore I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though ye know them, and be established in the present truth.” Peter felt that it was necessary to repeat himself with some instructions for the readers of his second epistle. Notice the words, “…though ye know them.” They already knew the truths that he was going to tell them, yet he did so anyway. It is as if he was saying, “How many times have I repeated these things to you?” Still, we seem to need to be reminded of them anyway. Why? Because we get caught up in the affairs of life, start going our own way and forget the instructions that God has given to us. It is like we are shutting the barn door after the horse got out. We have heard that before. We know the truth, we know the results and when something happens, we know what we should have done to prevent it. Yet, we forgot, once more to do what God’s Word said we should do. So, as you begin to go out into the world today, take heed to what God’s Word has said. Be reminded that God has the answer, that He is in control, that He is not being surprised by the conditions in the world or even in your own life. Keep the armor on and be ready for the spiritual battle that looms ahead. Praise God today for the equipping of the saints.

Loose Change

      How much spare change do you have in your pocket or purse?  Spare change can be classified as those loose coins that are roaming around with no specific place to claim as their own.  We often get frustrated with the spre change and so find some container in which to put it.  Canning jars, jugs of all sorts and tine cans soon become the depositories for all of your loose change.  Then, you have to go to some place where you can pour the change into a container and it will count it for you and give you paper money instead or you can roll it all up and take it to the bank, but who wants to do that. I have heard it said that if you have spare change at all, you are among the top 15 percent of the wealthiest people on earth.  Acts 1:8 says, “But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.”  People need to hear the Gospel message of salvation.  We are, however, feeding the masses a bunch of costly platitudes that reap no benefits in the end.  False religions abound as the greater mass of people pursue after paganism rather than the Lord Jesus Christ, and if you are not pursuing Christ, then you are pursuing after paganism according to Romans 1.  You can read it for yourselves.  Then, whose responsibility is it to send forth the gospel to the people of the world?  It would fall on those who have the resources to accomplish the task or the group that is classed as the richest in the world to share their wealth by sending forth the Gospel message.  It was once reported by a missionary, Harold Stevens, that the world spends more on pet food than it does in sending forth the gospel message.  The task was not just for the evangelical churches but they are failing in the task as well.  Usually 94 percent of the money that is given to missions remains in the United States and so never goes to a foreign land.  The huge masses of Africa and Asia don’t hear of the message because it never gets to them.  What does that mean to you and me? There are ways in which we can channel some of our “loose change” to mission groups who are responsible and Biblical in their mission activity of spreading the Gospel message.  You can give, you can pray and you can go.  Choose which of the three ways you want to be involved in being a part of world missions.  Praise God today that He is still sending forth the  message of salvation and that the final call has not come, but it is getting closer.

Game Changer

      Every now and then a new word pops up that hasn’t been used much but now seems to be on everyone’s lips.  We had “unprecedented” last year and it seems that this year’s new word is “gamechanger.”  I have heard it countless times in the news and even in a Depends underwear advertisement.  One definition states, “The term game-changer refers to an individual or company that significantly alters the way things are done as a whole. ... By mere virtue of their actions, game-changers can make changes that transform the landscape as a whole.”  And so you have our new word for the year, at least one that is being used by a lot of people these days.  Will there ever be a “real” game changer?  You bet there will be and it may be coming sooner than you think.  First Thessalonians 4:16-17 says, “For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:  Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.”  You can’t help but wonder what it is going to be like the day after the rapture.  People will have to come up with an explanation as to where so many people went in so short a time.  “The Russians did it.”  “The Extraterrestrials did it.”  “The government has them all hidden away in a secret labor camp.”  This event will be a real “game changer” for the world to cope with.  I personally don’t agree with the “Left Behind” series that people will have a second chance for salvation after having rejected it while here on earth.  Instead, they will believe a lie.  The average person will be more willing to accept that UFO’s came down and gobbled them up than to believe that the Lord Jesus Christ came to catch up His own church.  John wrote about this event in the words of the Lord Jesus Christ Himself when Christ said in John 14:3 “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.”  The acclamation of two angels standing on the Mount of Olives at the Ascension also speak to us about this event.  Acts 1:11 states, “Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.”  For the believer, the second coming of Christ is not a game changer but it will be for the rest of the world.  Form fitting paper underwear is not a game changer, but the second coming of Christ certainly is.  Praise God today for the real Game Changer that will soon take place.

Errors

      If you took your whole lifetime and wrote a book, how many errors could be found in the text?  I say that because I use “google docs” to write the draft of these devotions, and it is continually coming up with errors or suggestions  on how to phrase something better than what I did.  I get all kinds of lines, green ones, blue ones and even some red ones that point out my errors.   What is a tad funny is that when I often do a cut and paste of the Bible, the program will suggest changes to the text.  I leave those alone.   John 17:17 says, “Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.”   People were looking for the truth back 2000 years ago and they still are.  As the years have progressed, we find many more examples of falsehood in our lives which tend to lead us away to false claims for salvation.  Men and women seek to find peace and hope in their lives and only end up with a basket of nothing.  In the end, they have no hope as they have ignored the One and Only true way to find salvation.  Salvation, in this case, means to be saved from something.  For the believer, it is to be saved from eternal wrath of God this is to come upon all those who have not believed in the Lord Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.  I know of many who simply want to ignore the issue and hope that in the end, they will be granted some special visa to enter heaven.  After all, we live in America where when the going gets tough, you might get a stimulus check to carry you through.  Our hope begins then, to be applied to those in power in congress.  God has made the way simple while it was very complex on His side, it is simple on our end.  Ephesians 2:8-9 describes our salvation as a simple gift.  A gift cannot be earned or it wouldn’t be a gift.  A gift is given by the Giver Who, in this case, is God Himself.  The Philippians Jailer was instructed to simply believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and He would be saved.  The same manner of salvation is present today.  It has not changed over the years.  Praise God today that the Truth is still present in the Word of God.

B;ogging

   Blogging is one of those new things which has produced thousands of experts on any given field.  You can find all kinds of articles based upon the writer's experiences that has suddenly made them an expert in many different fields especially those of which they know nothing about.  A little knowledge seems to make some people dangerous.  This is especially in the area of religion and in Christianity in particular.  It is as if where two or three are gathered together you will find one moron who has come up with his or her own way of salvation or a denial that there is any judgment coming at all.  It reminds you of the time in the history of Israel when they had no man who was leading them so they just did whatever seemed to be right in their own eyes.  The last verse in the Book of Judges made it very clear.  Judges 21:25 says, "In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did that which was right in his own eyes."  Christianity is not the only things that is suffering these days because of self-made experts.  Hollywood has also produced a number of people who, because they played a certain part in the movies, now think that they can be an authority in that area in real life.   But, it isn't so.  They are following the wrong script.  There is only one source when it comes to the matter of salvation.  That source is the Bible, God's Holy Word, The Good Book, the Scriptures.  God didn't leave us in the dark when it comes to the area of knowing the way of salvation.  When I go to a doctor's office, I find that there are numerous copies of his diploma hanging in almost every room.  I read them.  There are certain colleges and universities that are good in the area of medicine.  If I ever found one that read, "Popular Mechanics Correspondence School of Medicine," I think that I would leave right then and there.  Don't be deceived by people who think they know the answer when they are not quoting the Word of God nor do they even know anything about the Word of God.  Rather than doing what seems to be right in a person's eyes, do that which is right according to the Word of God.  Praise God today that He has given us His Word for guidance in every way of life.

Prayers

       It sometimes amazes me what you get when you ask someone for it.  I remember asking for my Red Ryder B B Gun and I remember asking for my bicycle.  I didn't think I was going to get either one of them at the time I asked, but I did.  I got a lot more than I asked for with the bicycle.  I just wanted one with fenders so I didn't get my back wet every time I went through a mud puddle. What I actually got was a deluxe Hawthorne Bicycle with shocks, turn signals, front and rear lights, brake lights, horn, chain guard and of course, deluxe fenders.   In John 16, Jesus is getting ready to leave the scene and is giving some special instructions to the disciples.  When they wanted something, they were going to have to ask for it and it was going to be an entirely different situation than what they were used to.  Jesus was physically going to be away from them.  John 16:23-24 says, "And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you.  Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full."  This was going to a matter of prayer.  Jesus had already taught them how to pray and we have the example in the Lord's Prayer as we see it in Matthew 6.  We also see examples of prayer in the life of Jesus during His three years of public ministry.  Now, the lessons were going to be put to good use.  The disciples were going to have to exercise prayer in their lives.  What a lesson for us.  Prayer has become a vital part of our lives here on this earth.  Dictionaries define prayer in regard to religion.  It is a practice whereby a person contacts God.  The Bible mentions prayer, to pray, praying or prayed, over 500 times.  We used to say that if God said something once, it was important.  Well, God has mentioned prayer over 500 times.  I guess you could say that it is also very, very important.  While there are many lessons in regard to prayer, let us just think of one.  The above verses remind us that we need to ask God for the things that are necessary in our lives.  If we do, we have the assurance that He will answer.  Jesus had reminded the disciples that up to that point, they had done little asking but that they were going to be asking a lot.  He had given them the examples, the teaching and the instruction, but now, it was going to become very practical for them all. Acts 2:42 says, "And they continued stedfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers."  After the experience of Pentecost and Peter's first sermon, the apostles remembered to be involved in prayer.  Do you bring your requests before God?  We often hear the words, "Ye have not, because ye ask not."  That is often the case especially with believers these days.  When needs arise in your life, don't hesitate to bring them before God, and when you do, remember to leave them there with Him.  You will be surprised at what God will do.  Praise God today for answered prayers.

Doxology

      What do you do when you really get excited about something?  I have prepared a lot of sermons and lessons over the last 50 years and I always had a process that was similar in most cases.  I would write out the material as if I was going to read it word for word, even though I never did.  We were once told to always write out the introduction and the closing so you could get started and end as  you thought you should.  Well, I wrote out the whole thing and there would be  times when  I would get to a certain point and the excitement would overcome me and I would find myself standing up or walking around ready to shout.  I often wished I was preaching it at that moment.  The following passage in Ephesians is one where it seems Paul got excited and all of a sudden erupted in a Doxology of praise To God for what He was doing in the lives of the believers.  Ephesians 3:20-21 says, “Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us,  Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.”   We can easily see what is going on.  Paul has just set forth all of their wonderful blessings that they possess by being “In Christ.”  Their spiritual bank account is overflowing.  It makes no difference what is going on around them as they are blessed beyond measure and so Paul pronounces this doxology.  Have things changed in the past 2000 years?  God’s Word is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow.  It will never change.  God remains the same and His promises remain the same.  Do we have any less to praise God for then did Paul at the time the Book of Ephesians was written?  Obviously, we answer “no” to those thoughts.  Our excitement over the things of God often wanes in the force of the world’s things and we find ourselves overcome with discouragement, depression. Loneliness and loss of hope.  That should not be the case but we should be standing up and praising God for the fact that we also are “In Christ.”  So, be encouraged today and all of the days of our life because God doesn’t change and we can rely on Him each and every day.  Praise God today for His immutable character.

Lights

      Lights are, for the most part, always welcome in a dark situation.  I can recall one period in my life when lights were not wanted and it was during an  air raid.  World War 2 found a lot of people functioning as air raid wardens in towns across America.  The siren would blow in the dark of night while the sound of a single engine plane could be heard overhead.  It was the spotter looking for any light that it could find.  Hopefully, it wouldn’t find any light at that time. Our town had about 36,000 people, so, didn’t take long for the plane to fly over the populated area and then land at the local airport. We were listening to Henry Aldrich during one such air raid and Mom hung a newspaper over the lit dial of the tall radio. Spiritually speaking, light is important and many passages in the Bible speak of the importance of this light in our lives.  Psalm 119:105 says, “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.”  In this passage, the Light is likened to the Word of God and it is explained how the Light is both a lamp for our feet and a light for our path.   The two references are both important.  You need to know where your feet are planted and you need to know the path in which you are about to trod.  The Scriptures point out how that the Word of God is able to perform both of these functions.  No Scripture is unimportant.  It is very interesting to note how the smallest of lights are able to be seen. This was the concern during the air raid and people knew that the smallest of lights could be seen from the air and show the enemy the location of our building.  Of course, this is going to mean that each and every one of us are going to have to be in the Word of God each and every day.  You can’t absorb the Word of God by sleeping on your Bible and hope that it gets into your mind by the process of osmosis.  Each and every believer needs to be having an input of the Word of God each and every day.  Will you be content to stumble around in the dark or will you be walking in the Light of the Word of God?  Praise God for His Word today.