TODAY'S PROMISE

"I know that the Lord will 
maintain the cause of the afflicted,
and the right of the poor.
Surely the righteous will give thanks
unto your name:
the upright will dwell in your presence."
(Psalms 140:12,13 AKJV)

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"The promises of the Lord can be trusted;

they are as genuine as silver refined

seven times in the furnace."

(Psalms 12:6 GNB)

1. Meditate on God's Promises.

2. Plead the Promises at the throne of Grace.

3. Act in Faith that God Will Perform His Promises.

(William Gurnall)

WHAT INSTRUCTIONS?

WHAT INSTRUCTIONS?

For years I worked as an auto technician at a new car dealership.

And for years I got irritated with customers who would buy a brand

new car, but not read the owner's manual.

It seemed it was easier to complain when something did not work 

right.  Then go gripe at the "mechanic" about the problem.

When all the time the answer was in the owner's manual.

Guess what?

It appears I am the same way.

I am not a photographer.  But I am in my second childhood,

and have a camera and will play with it.

I was quite content with the photo program that windows had.

Then I went out and bought my wife an expensive (To me.)

high powered new computer - with Vista.

After giving it a fair trial, it drove this simple old

man to Mac.

But I did not care for Mac's photo program.  I could

not do the things I wanted to with it.

Now the computer I am on right now came with an 

84 page manual.  And knowing I needed lots

of help bought a 442 page Dummies book also.

After about three years of using this Mac, 

I stumbled into how to use it's photo program.

The things I wanted to do and could not.

[That information must have been buried down in

the middle of the manuals somewhere.] 

Whether you want to admit it or not.  God created

us and is the source of our life.  Just like the power

to the computer you are on now is plugged in.

Or was plugged in to charge it up.

And whether you want to admit it or not, God 

gave us an owner's manual - the HOLY BIBLE.

Why is it that we human "beans" would rather stumble

through life in the dark -

THAN READ THE OWNER'S MANUAL?

WHAT TO TAKE SATISFACTION IN

"Thus says the LORD,

'Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom,

neither let the mighty man glory in his might,

let not the rich man glory in his riches;

But let him who glories glory in this,

that he understands and knows me,

that I am the LORD which exercise lovingkindness,

judgment, and righteousness, in the earth;

for in these things I delight, says the LORD."

(Jeremiah 9:23,24 AKJV)

CHURCH OF THE WINO

Article of Faith.

"Thou shalt drink much wine."

Scripture substantiation

"Give strong drink unto him that is ready to perish,

and wine unto those that be of heavy hearts.

Let him drink, and forget his poverty,

and remember his misery no more"

(Proverbs 31:6,7 KJV)

"Drink no longer water,

but use a little wine for thy stomach's sake

and thine often infirmities."

(1 Timothy 5:23 KJV)

"Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do,

do it with thy might; ..."

(Ecclesiastes 9:10 KJV)

Therefore,

"Thou shalt drink much wine."

ABSURD

You say.

Yes it is.

However it is no more absurd than several of the 

most popular doctrines in Christendom.

At least one extremely popular doctrine cannot be found

in the Scriptures at all.  

That is,

unless you pull the Scriptures you want out of context,

then put them in the order you want.  And like several of

the other doctrines, totally ignore those Scriptures that do not suit you.

Are the things I believe about God and the Scriptures

something that mankind has concocted and taught me?

Or,

something that I believe because I have found it 

taught in the Scriptures -ALL OF THE SCRIPTURES?

HOW TO BE A SUPPER SAINT

Photo courtesy of:www.bigfoto.com

"The child grew and developed in body and spirit.

He lived in the desert until the day when he 

appeared publicly to the people of Israel."

(Luke 1:20 GNB)

This was John the Baptist.

The Scriptures teach us that John was filled with the Holy Spirit from

birth.  We would consider that enough to begin "ministry" at once.

But not God.

We know again from the Scriptures that John the Baptist was about

thirty years old when he began his ministry mentioned above.

Thirty years alone with God in the desert.

Even then his time of ministry was only about 6 months long.

But Oh what a ministry!  It was like a meteorite shower.

The Apostle Paul.

We know he started ministering a few days after his conversion.

But what little is said about is revealed in Galatians 1:17,18,

"I went at once to Arabia and then I returned to Damascus."

And it appears that the period of time in Arabia was about three years.

Probably time alone with God where he received his "revelations".

Then consider the prophet Elijah.

After delivering God's message to the king.  God told Elijah

to go hide by the Brook Cherith.

We do not know how long this was.  But it was until the

brook dried up.  And we know that the drought lasted 

three and one half years.  So, Elijah might have been there

up to several years before the brook dried up.

Alone with God.  Drinking from the brook and being

fed by the food ravens brought to him.

All this time alone with God BEFORE his great victory

over the false religion of Baal on Mount Carmel.

Jesus, the very Son of God himself.

We know that he did not begin his ministry until he was about thirty 

years old.  And then not until his baptism and the Holy Spirit coming 

down on him.  From there the Holy Spirit drove or led him out into the

wilderness for forty days alone with God the father and to be 

tempted by the Devil.

What makes frail people like ourselves think we can live like we

should, let alone minister to others, when we only spend a few

minutes a day alone with God if even that?

PREDICTION OF CHRIST'S SUFFERING FOR YOU

"The people reply, 

'Who would have believed what we now report?

Who could have seen the LORD's hand in this?

It was the will of the LORD that his servant grow like a

plant taking root in dry ground.

He had no dignity or beauty to make us take notice of him.

There was nothing attractive about him,

nothing that would draw us to him.

We despised him and rejected him;

he endured suffering and pain.

No one would even look at him-

we ignored him as if he were nothing.

"But he endured the suffering that should have been ours,

the pain that we should have borne.

All the while we thought that his suffering 

was punishment sent by God.

But because of our sins he was wounded,

beaten because of the evil we did.

We are healed by the punishment he suffered,

made whole by the blows he received.

All of us were like sheep that were lost,

each of us going his own way.

But the LORD made the punishment fall on him,

the punishment all of us deserved. 

"He was treated harshly, but endured it humbly;

he never said a word.

Like a lamb about to be slaughtered,

like a sheep about to be sheared,

he never said a word,

He was arrested and sentenced and let off to die,

and no one cared about his fate.

He was put to death for the sins of our people.

He was placed in a grave with those who are evil,

he was buried with the rich,

even though he had never committed a crime 

or ever told a lie.'

"The LORD says,

'It was my will that he should suffer;

his death was a sacrifice to bring forgiveness.

And so he will see his descendants;

he will live a long life;

and through him my purpose will succeed.

After a life of suffering,

he will again have joy;

he will know that he did not suffer in vain.

My devoted servant, with whom I am pleased,

will bear the punishment of many 

and for his sake I will forgive them.

And so I will give him a place of honor,

a place among the great and powerful.

He willingly gave his life and shared the fate of evil men.

He took the place of many sinners

and prayed that they might be forgiven."

(Isaiah chapter 53 GNB)

PUTTING LIFE IN FOCUS

"'Meaningless!  Meaningless!'
says the Teacher.
'Utterly meaningless!
Everything is meaningless.'"
(Ecclesiastes 1:2 NIV)

That is the way life seems some times.
And more so everyday.

Of course a person can always look through rose colored glasses.

Or filter life through their outlook and think that will change something.

Consider, 

Emile Coue de la Chataigneraie

the French psychologist and pharmacist.

He came up with the mantra,

"Every day, in every way, I'm getting better and better."

In fact he got so good that he 

committed suicide.

It must have hurt his feelings being so much better than every one else.

Any filter or lens that mankind dreams up to bring life into focus is 

going to fail

There is only one lens or filter that will truly put life into focus.

That is the word of God.

The Holy Bible.

If we will allow God to shape our thinking through His word.

Then and only then can we begin to understand what life is all about.

TODAY'S PROMISE

"The LORD loves those who hate evil,
he preserves the lives of his saints;
he delivers them from the hand of the wicked."
(Psalms 97:10 RSV)


***********

"The promises of the Lord can be trusted;

they are as genuine as silver refined

seven times in the furnace."

(Psalms 12:6 GNB)

1. Meditate on God's Promises.

2. Plead the Promises at the throne of Grace.

3. Act in Faith that God Will Perform His Promises.

(William Gurnall)

HE CARES FOR YOU

Photo courtesy of:www.bigfotolcom

"Casting all your care upon him,

for he careth for you."

(1 Peter 5:7 KJV)

"Cast all your anxieties on him,

for he cares about you."

(1 Peter 5:7 RSV)

"Leave all your worries with him,

because he cares for you."

(1 Peter 5:7 GNB)

God cares for us.

But I am afraid that I have been thinking of God's

caring for me - too much in the way I care about people or things.

Dr. PB Vargis gives a better insight regarding God's care.

My appreciation for Vargis' view point is that it stems from

many years of living by faith, totally dependent on God.

Not from the study of some student, nor from institutions of higher

learning.  But from experience.  Hard cold experience.

Dr. Vargis states,

"When the Word says that He 'cares for' us, 

it doesn't mean God feels sorry for us.

It means He takes full responsibility for us."

(Compelled... to share His love. p.86)

PRAISE GOD.

God wants to be my caretaker.

My care provider.

My caregiver.

THE BLESSED PERSON

"Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the ungodly, 

or stand in the way of sinners,

or sit in the seat of the scornful.

But his delight is in the law of the LORD;

and in his law he mediates day and night.

And he will be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, 

that yields its fruit in its season;

his leaf also will not wither; 

and whatever he does will prosper.

The ungodly are not so;

but are like the chaff that the wind drives away.

Therefore the ungodly will not stand in the judgment, 

or sinners in the congregation of the righteous.

For the LORD knows the way of the righteous;

but the way of the ungodly will perish."

(Psalms 1, AKJV) 

SAFETY IN THE NIGHT.

"...From whence does my help come?

My help comes from the LORD, 

who made heaven and earth...

The LORD is your keeper;...

The LORD will keep you from all evil;

he will keep your life."

(Psalms 121:1,2,5,7 RSV)

When I awake, my routine is to go to the kitchen,

turn on the coffee pot, then go in and dress.  I like

to wake up with a cup of coffee.

However,

this morning when I went into the kitchen it was full of smoke

and the wife's cat was desperate to get out of the house.

With all of the decorations on around the place it took a

while to find the source of the smoke.

The stove's burner (heating element) had been left on.

It was one I never use, and the wife has been house 

setting for folks in town for several days.  Why it was

on I have no idea.  But it had melted down a plastic

salt shaker near it.  Because of God's mercy it had 

not burst into flame yet.

For this I thank God.

I slumber and sleep.  But,

"he who keeps Israel will

neither slumber nor sleep."

(Psalms 121:4 RSV)

And this is the God who watches over me

both day and night.

TODAY'S PROMISE

"And you shall serve the LORD your God,
and he will bless your bread, and your water:
and I will take sickness away from the midst of you.
There shall nothing cast their young,
nor be barren, in your land:
the number of your days I will fulfill."
(Exodus 23:25,26 AKJV)

"The promises of the Lord can be trusted;

they are as genuine as silver refined

seven times in the furnace."

(Psalms 12:6 GNB)

1. Meditate on God's Promises.

2. Plead the Promises at the throne of Grace.

3. Act in Faith that God Will Perform His Promises.

(William Gurnall)

MATTHEW HENRY

Here are a few random thoughts gleaned from,

THE SECRET OF COMMUNION WITH GOD

by

Matthew Henry.

These have been an encouragement to me and hopefully

at least one can be an encouragement to you.

**************

"Praying is lifting up the soul to God, 

and pouring out the heart before him;"

"However, God understands the language of the heart,

and that is the language in which we must speak to God;"

"... we must see to it that God hears from us daily....

He expects and requires it....

he has obliged us to offer the sacrifice of prayer and 

praise to him continually."

"What a shame is this to us, that God is more willing

to be prayed to, and more ready to hear prayer

than we are to pray."

"I know what an influence it would have upon

the prosperity of your souls to be constant and

sincere in your secret worship, ..."

"All the business of the day will prosper the better for 

your beginning it thus with God."

"God looks not at the length of your prayers, nor shall

you be heard for your much speaking or fine speaking;"

"To wait on God, is entirely and unreservedly to refer

ourselves to his wise and holy direction, and disposals, 

and cheerfully to acquiesce in them, and comply with them."

"To wait on God, is to make his will our rule."

"It is good for us to think frequently of dying, to think

of it as oft as we go to bed; it will help to mortify

the corruptions of our own hearts,..."

******************

Note of interest to writers.

I am not one, but I do live in a different generation

than brother Henry did.  Thus, I am able to notice 

how "wordy" they were back in 1700 plus.

Matthew Henry has "one" sentence on page 30

of the above book which is - 136 words long.

Can you top that?

MATERIAL POSSESSIONS SATISFACTION

"I made great works;

I built me houses; I planted me vineyards.

I made me gardens and orchards,

and I planted trees in them of all kind of fruits;

I made me pools of water, to water the forest 

of growing trees.

I got me servants and maidens

and had servants born in my house;

also I had great possessions of great and small cattle

above all that were in Jerusalem before;

I gathered me also silver and gold,

and the treasure of kings and of the provinces;

I got me men singers and women singers,

and the delights of the sons of men,

as musical instruments, and that of all sorts......

Then I looked on all the works that my hands had done,

and on the labour that I had laboured to do:

and, behold,

all was vanity and vexation of spirit,

and there was no profit under the sun."

(Ecclesiastes 2:4-8,11 AJKV)

LOST AND FOUND

My wife has a small house cleaning business.

She had just added a new client who has the prospect

of being one of the better ones.

After only two cleaning sessions the lady of the house had

one of her rings missing.  And it was a special ring.  One that

her husband gave her for their twenty fifth wedding anniversary.
(No, the picture above is not it.  That's my old ring.)

We can only imagine the thoughts that went through her mind.

A new house cleaning lady and the ring comes up missing.

She of course called and talked to the wife.  She did not accuse

the wife of taking it, but....   And the next house cleaning session

was cancelled.  That was not good news.

By this time I was praying about the matter.  My prayer of course

was that the wife would be vindicated, but also that it would be

obvious that the Lord's hand was in the matter.

At the next scheduled cleaning session the lady told my wife

that the Lord woke her up at two thirty in the morning and 

showed her where the ring was.

She wanted to put off checking it out until morning. 

But that was not to be.  So at two thirty in the morning

she got up, went out of the house to the horse trailer.

Then finding the jacket that the Lord showed her,

she put her hand into the pocket the Lord had shown

her - AND FOUND THE RING.

IS GOD GREAT OR WHAT?

HE WAS IN A RUSH

I read in a motorcycle magazine about an incident with one of their staff members. He was in a rush. Waiting for a traffic signal to change, he wanted to be first across the intersection. He would have been - if it were not for a negligent driver running the red light.

The motorcycle rider had,

the fastest reaction time,

the fastest vehicle,

the right of way,

and the broken leg.

King Saul was in a rush. He started to seek God's leading. But life came too fast and he said, "There's no time to consult the Lord!" -1 Samuel 14:19 (TEV)

That same impatience cost him the kingship. Becoming impatient earlier Saul offered a sacrifice he was not supposed to. God speaking through the prophet Samuel said, "But now your rule will not continue. Because you have disobeyed him, the Lord will find the kind of man he wants and make him ruler of his people." -1 Samuel 13:14 (TEV)

That was king David, "a man after God's own heart." David had learned not to be in a hurry with God, but to wait for him.

In the remainder of 1st Samuel and 2nd Samuel we see David constantly consulting God. And when in doubt reconsulting God. As the Psalmist, David mentions fifteen or twenty times the matter of waiting on God. [Depending on your version and it's word usage.]

I can relate to king Saul. And I can relate to the motorcyclist. But when will I ever learn to "wait on - or consult" the Lord?

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart. Never rely on what you think you know. Remember the Lord in everything you do, and he will show you the right way." -Proverbs 3;5,6 (TEV)

Have you ever got in a rush and missed the Lord's best??? Tell us about it. I don't want to be the only one that failed to wait.

THE BLESSING OF PAIN AND DISAPPOINTMENT

Are pain and disappointment a blessing in disguise?

John Newton lived a despicable life admitting to being "an infidel and libertine." It eventually reduced him to "a servant of slaves in West Africa." Finally in a severe storm the ship he was on about sank, then he turned to God.

He ultimately wrote, Amazing Grace. A song that for several hundred years literally blessed millions of people.

Joseph's dreams shattered. Sold into slavery, and imprisoned for years. But prepared by God to save his family and nation.

Paul and Silas. In prison beaten and bleeding, but singing praises to God. An earth quake opened the jail, and opened the heart of the jailer saving him and his family.

Paul state, "I was given a painful physical ailment, which acts as Satan' messenger to beat me and keep me from being proud. Three times I prayed to the Lord about this and asked him to take it away. But his answer was: 'My grace is all you need. for my power is greatest when you are weak.'" - 2 Corinthians 12:8,9 (TEV)

Much of the New Testament was written and many churches started in Asia minor as a result.

Even Jesus was "made perfect" through suffering. "But even thought he was God's Son, he learned through his sufferings to be obedient. When he was made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all those who obey him..."-Hebrews 5:8,9 (TEV)

Above all, God wants our pain and disappointments to drive us to Him. That is where the real blessing will come to us.

"We know that in all things God works for good with those who love him, those whom he has called according to his purpose." - Romans *:28 (TEV)

Am I going to let God use my pain and disappointments in life? Or just complain about them?

************************

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THE HOLY BIBLE

Go to the link below for a free

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Updated King James Version.

www.oocities.org/updatedkjv

TODAY'S PROMISE

"You, LORD,
are all I have,
and you give me all I need;
my future is in your hands."
(Psalms 16:5 GNB)

"The promises of the Lord can be trusted;

they are as genuine as silver refined

seven times in the furnace."

(Psalms 12:6 GNB)

1. Meditate on God's Promises.

2. Plead the Promises at the throne of Grace.

3. Act in Faith that God Will Perform His Promises.

(William Gurnall)

THEY STILL DO IT

"Then the old prophet from Bethel said to him,

'I, too, am a prophet just like you,

and at the LORD'S command an angel told me

to take you home with me and offer 

you my hospitality.'

But the old prophet was lying."

(1 Kings 13:18 GNB)

You have heard it before,

"Figures do not lie.

But liars figure."

If you are familiar with this historical event,

you know that the good prophet believed the bad prophet.

And just as there were bad prophets back then,

they are with us today too.

In fact Jesus told us,

"Then many false prophets will appear

and fool many people."

(Matthew 24:11 GNB)

If you will look to see when this is all to be,

- it's in our day and age.

If you keep up with things in "the Christian world",

you know that many of the prophets in pulpits today 

are PROFITS.  Not prophets.

Photo of the motivating spirit of many prophets today.

Now I know that the "prophet" in your pulpit, preacher

in your pulpit, teacher or what ever, is an honest God 

fearing person.  One who would not lie to you if their 

life depended on it.  That is why you bother to sit still 

and listen to them.

But did you notice in our beginning Scripture that the

good profit believed the bad profit.  And it cost him

his life because he believed the bad prophet.

With all the bad prophets we have in this day and age,

what is the chance that "your good prophet" might at 

some point have believed a bad prophet???

It happens.

Especially if the teaching sounds good.

God gives us an example from the life of the apostle Paul 

we are supposed to follow.

"They listened to the message with great eagerness,

and every day they studied the Scriptures to see if what

Paul said was really true."

(Acts 17:11 GNB)

Of course you hear, and might check, the Scripture

texts that your "prophet" uses.  But have they been 

pulled out of context and arranged in an order that 

pleases them and you?

Have you compared them against the entire teaching

of God's word????

Your life may depend on it.

"Examine yourselves, to see whether you 

are holding to your faith.  Test yourselves.  ...."

(2 Corinthians 13:5 RSV)