SAVING YOUR LIFE

"I count all that part of my life

lost which I spent not in communion

with God, or in doing good."

- Donne

"Only one life, 'twill soon be past,

Only what's done for Christ will last,

And when I am dying, how happy I'll be,

If the lamp of my life has been burned out for Thee."

C.T. Studd

"For if you want to save your own life,

you will lose it;

but if you lose your life for my sake,

you will find it."

(Matthew 16:25 GNT)

CAUSE OF FUTILITY

Leaving God out of your plans
causes futility.

"If the Lord does not build the house

the work of the builders is useless;

(Photos courtesy of:www.Pixabay.com)

if the Lord does not protect the city,

it does no good for the sentries to 

stand guard.

It is useless to work so hard

for a living, getting up early

and going to bed late.

For the Lord provides for those he loves,

while they are asleep."

(Psalms 127:1,2 GNT)

Put God in control of your life 

to cut out the futility.

RECIPE FOR PEACE AND CONTENTMENT

Many years ago one of the greatest kings of all
time; and a man who was pleasing to God gave
us the path to peace and contentment.
he said,

"Lord, I have given up my pride and 
turned away from my arrogance.

I am not concerned with great matters

or with subjects too difficult for me.

Instead, I am content and at peace.

As a child lies quietly in its mother's arms,

so my heart is quiet within me.

Israel, trust in the Lord now and forever!"

(Psalms 131 GNT)

INSIGHT INTO PRAYER

(photo courtesy of:www.Pixabay.com)

The caption for this image called it a computer screen

plantation.  Now we know where computer screens 

come from and that this was a crop from a few years

ago.  I have learned a lot today.  But what has that to 

do with prayer?

More seriously.

That happens to be about the number of computers we

have around the house and in my office - that are on

the internet.  So,  this has helped me to understand 

prayer better to.

I still do not know how God can hear and answer 

prayer individually to millions of people at the same

time.  It would seem impossible.  But just on our

LAN we have eight or ten computers.  All going

through one router from one internet provider.

And, we can all be on the same or different web

sites receiving or sending information while a

million or more other people are doing the same

thing.

If mankind in his stupidity  can do that, well God

is infinitely further ahead and can do even more.

Is it any wonder that God can hear and answer

millions of prayers at the same time?

What a great God I serve.

IT'S ALL JUST TALK

(All images courtesy of:www.Pixabay.com)

You hear them too.

Friends, relatives or neighbors who are constantly telling

you what they are going to do - but it never happens.  It is

just so much talk.  You have heard it so many times that

you could recite it just as well as they do.

And even more in the political realm.

ALL the politicians are telling you what they are going 

to do for you.  How they are going to clean up corruption

or bad situtions and so forth.  But it never happens.  The 

only thing that happens is that you lose more of your 

freedoms and your taxes increase.

Our words do us no good if they are not backed

up by action.  St. James when talking about faith

said what could just as well apply to words we talk.

"My friends, what good is it for one of you to

say that you have faith if your actions do not

prove it? ...... So it is with faith: if it is alone

and includes no actions, then it is dead."

(James 2:14,17 GNT)

Talk is cheap.  Or is it.

Consider this.  One day both you and I are going to 

stand before the God who created us - whether we 

like it or not. Then we are going to give an account of 

our lives.  Every bit of it.

The one who created the heavens and the earth, and gives you life it's self said,

"You can be sure that on the Judgment Day

you will have to give account of every useless

word you have ever spoken.  Your words will

be used to judge you - to declare you either

innocent or guilty."

(Matthew 12:36,37 GNT)

All of that cheap talk may end up coming

at a very high price.

"Everyone must be quick to listen, but slow to speak and slow to become angry"

(James 1:19 GNT)

Solomon the wisest man who ever lived 

gave this advice,

"Think before you speak, and don't

make any rash promises to God.  He

is in heaven and your are on earth,

so don't say any more than you have to."

(Ecclesiastes 5:2 GNT)

Someone said,

"Wisdom has two parts:

1.  Having a lot to say.

2. Not saying it.

Rochefoucauld said,
"As it is the characteristic of great
wits to say much in few words, so 
it is of small wits to talk much and
say nothing."

SUFFERING

Have you ever felt like life is just toooooo much?

All the disappointments, discouragement, pain and

hopelessness is more than you can handle?

I have.

I have lived a long time.  I have walked (Tried to.) with

God for most of those years.  And in the process of trials, 

pressures of life, discouragements, pain, hospital beds 

and heart ache I have learned a few things about suffering.

One.

God uses any and all of these things to TRY to get our

attention.  He wants to draw us to him just like a crying

child will go to it's parent.  If you have been living your

own way - you have just figured out your problem.  Simply

turn to God.

Two.

As a child of God you will still be tested - severely.

If you think being a child of God and the Christian life

is a "joy ride" like some of the "televangelist" would 

have you believe, you better change stations.  It "just

ain't so".

Over the past year or so I have been seeing something

over and over and over in the Scriptures.  For example,

the apostle John who God use to write the book off 

"Revelation" said,

"... I am your partner in patiently enduring the 

suffering that comes to those who belong to his 

Kingdom."

(Revelation 1:9 GNT)

And this is because God has a purpose in it.  No, I don't

like it either, but he is training and strengthening me with

it.  He is preparing me to be with him forever.

Look at these guys below.  They are in army boot camp.

They are enduring training, hardship and suffering 

willingly - for their own good.

So, what am I do do?

TURN TO THE BOOK.

"Good people suffer many troubles,
but the Lord saves them from 
them all."
(Psalms 34:19 GNT)

H.W. Beecher said,

"God washes the eyes by tears until

they can behold the invisible land where 

tears shall come no more."

HELP. I'M UGLY

That's my little old ugly truck.

I must admit, it does not have the words,

"RUST BUCKET" on the sides.

They are only in my computer.

That picture was taken several years ago.

Only the rain has washed it since and the 

rust has grown. A lot people would be ashamed 

to be seen in it because it is so ugly.

But, Hey!  

It is not a trophy.  It is a tool.

It still runs very good and does everything

I want a truck to do.  In short, I'm still

very happy with that ugly old truck and

have no desire what ever for a newer,

nicer truck.

What's the point?

As a person I think of myself as "ugly".

How many a time I have wished that God had

made me different than I am.  There are things

from top to bottom that I would change if it were

up to me.

I have been having a hard time to think that God 

made me the way I am because this is the way that

God wanted me.  (Well! Other than what I as a person

have messed up.  You know.  Over or under eating

or other things that are my fault.)  However, at my

age I am beginning to see the point.

Years ago there used to be a beautiful women come

into the shop with her car.  She was young and usually

when she came in, about half of the guys working 

there found some excuse or other to go by and 

see if they could "help" or what ever.

One day the boss ask me if I would that her to work

the next morning and bring her car back to the shop.

You bet I would.  (I was not in my eighties then.)

When she came early the next morning she happened

to have her kids with her.  And the way she treated her 

kids in the few miles to her work totally turned me off.

Since then, I have seen many a "lovely" lady that I

would not want to put up with as a wife.

One time God was having the prophet Samuel

pick out a king for the nation.  But Samuel was

looking on the outside and God said to him;

"But the Lord said to him,

'Pay no attention to how tall and

handsome he is.  I have rejected him,

because I do not judge as people judge. 

They look at the outward appearance,

but I look at the heart'".

(1 Samuel 16:7 GNT)

I notice something of interest to myself 

regarding the prophecy of God himself

coming down to us in the form of Jesus

Christ.

The prophecy of his coming says,

"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."

(Isaiah 53:2,3 GNT)

Lets face it.  

When our time has come, it is not a man or

woman that we will stand before in judgment.

It will be God himself.

He is not going to looking at our hair do 

or fake smile.  But at the our heart.

We can do something about our heart

or attitudes.

And it does help to realize that God had a
reason for making me the way I am,
even if it does not suit me.

DIE HOW MANY TIMES?

A truism  

"Born once, die twice.

Born twice, die once."

That's right.

The very creator himself said,

"I am telling you the truth: no one

can see the Kingdom of God

without being born again."

(John 3:3 GNV)

He goes on to explain that we are 

born physically of our human parents,

but we also need to be born again of 

the Spirit.  That is the Spirit of God.

Then when we die, we go into the presence

of God himself.  Born twice, but just

die once.

But, if we are not born again of the Spirit,

when we die we will go to an eternal hell

that was prepared for the Devil, and we

will experience a "second" eternal death.

Born once, but die twice.