WHAT HAPPENED TO THE JOY?

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The last few weeks have been a "drag" for me.

You see, I am not perfect like you are.  In fact

it takes a while for me to catch on to most things.

So, where did the joy of living go?  What was wrong?

Where does joy come from?

The Holy Bible makes it quite clear in many places.

Consider:

"Now may the God of hope fill you with 

all joy and peace..." -Romans 15:13

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, 

peace...."- Galatians 5:22  

"... In Your presence is fullness of joy;"

- Psalms 16:11   

And that last Scripture held the key to 

my lack of joy.  I had allowed the cares

and problems of life crowd out my time

with God.  Oh!  I still did my "devotional"

things.  Still read my Bible as much as

ever but my concern was with life's problems

rather than loving God with all my heart.

After some real heart searching and confessing

to God, guess what??

Found that joy again.

TODAY'S PROMISE

"Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty

hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper

time, casting all your anxiety on Him, because

He cares for you."

(1 Peter 5:6,7 NASB)  

LIMITING GOD

TODAY'S QUOTE

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"Do not ask God to give you a light burden; ask Him

to give you strong shoulders to carry a heavy burden."

-Bob Jones Sr.  

THE EVIDENCE

I know, I have been on this subject before.  It is a lot like

people who keep showing you a picture of their cat, dog,

horse, or on Facebook, their picture every day.

Yesterday while setting in my chair at my hide-a-way in

the woods I reach down and picked up this rock - sea shell

fossil.  They are all over that property just laying on the 

ground.  Then I went out for a walk and picked up two more.

So what?

They are at an elevation of 2000 feet above sea level about

500 or 600 miles from the closest ocean.  How did they get

there?

Simple.

It is evidence or proof that the Holy Bible is true.

There was a world wide flood that even covered all

the mountains.  Not billions of years ago, or millions

of years ago but only about 4300 to 4400 years ago.

There is proof of it all over the world.  So why do

people try to call it a myth?

PATH TO GREATNESS

A very wise, but obscure humble Swiss man named

Nicolas of Basle said:

"Dr. Tauler, before you can do your greatest work for God,
the world and this city, you must die - die to yourself,

your gifts, your popularity and even your own goodness,

and when you have learned the full meaning of the Cross,

you will have a new power with God and man."

Dr. John Tauler of Strassburg took this message to heart
and his ministry did a turn around that even impacted
Martin Luther and other Reformers.

Are we getting in our own way when trying to live
for or serve God.

TODAY'S PROMISE

"God is our refuge and strength, a very

present help in trouble.

Therefore will not we fear, though the 

earth be removed, and though the mountains

be carried into the midst of the sea;" 

(Psalms 46:1,2)

GETTING GOD'S ATTENTION

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Have you considered the many ways people attempt 

to get God's attention.  Favorable attention that is.

Nothing escapes his notice.  So in that sense, every

thing gets his attention.  But we do not want his attention

in the sense of something that would "make him sick"

and want to puke.  But we want his attention in the sense

that would make him feel favorably toward us.

Some things that people do in an attempt to get God's

attention, but his very word tells us would "backfire" on

us.

Standing on the street corner praying loud long winded

prayers does not get his attention.  In fact he does not 

pay any attention to them.

Giving large sums of money to the work of God does not

bring us into favorable attention with God.  We cannot buy

his favor with money.

Going through a set of rituals does not get his attention.

It might make you think you are doing something religious,

but it is a wast of your time.

Sitting in some goofy uncomfortable position and emptying

your mind so the Devil can put his thoughts in it does no good.

We could go on and on and on.  But you get the point.  What

we do does not necessarily get the attention we want from God.

What gets the attention of God?

He himself self said;

"But to this one I will look,

To him who is humble and contrite of spirit,

and who trembles at My word."

(Isaiah 66:2 NASB)   

Not an overdose of "self esteem",

but:

Humility,

remorse or sorrow for wrongs,

a fearful respect for God''s word

the Holy Bible.

TODAY'S QUOTE

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"The readiest way to escape from our sufferings is to

be willing they should endure as long as God pleases."

-John Wesley

SEEKING APPROVAL

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Why do we do some of the things that we do?

To seek approval among our peers.

Consider some of the things that teens do in an

effort to enhance their standing among their peer

group.  I do not need to say any more there, do I?

  Yet, we "adults" are no different.  We buy, think and

act often in ways just to influence our standing in

our peer group or culture.  We want their approval.

There were people like that in the days that Jesus was here

on earth.  Speaking about some of the religious people he said;

"...for they loved the approval of men rather 

than the approval of God,"

(John 12:43 NASB)   

SO!

The approval of people is only good here on earth,

and no further.  We might have their approval for this

short span of time we call a life time.

BUT,

what about all those years and years and years and years

and years that go forever after death?

"And inasmuch as it is appointed for men

to die once and after this comes Judgment,"

(Hebrew 9:27 NASB)  

I want to spend the little bit of time I have left

in this life seeking the approval of God.

LEARNING FROM POLITICIANS

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In this day and age it seems inconceivable, but you can

learn something from politicians.  Well, that is, what not

to do.

Like myself you have noticed that some of them (Most of 

them.) say something stupid every time they open their 

mouth.  Every time they say something, something dumb

comes out and they appear even more ignorant than the time

before.  Talk about a low I.Q.  Some of them appear to not 

even have an I.Q. at all.

What is the answer?

God gave it a long time ago through the wisest man that ever

lived.

A side note.

That wise man "Solomon" was not born "smart"  He did not

have an exceptional I.Q. or training.  His only "smart" thing

was to know that he was not "smart".  So he ask God for the

wisdom he needed, and God gave it to him in abundance.

The smart thing that Solomon said was;

"Even fools are thought wise when they keep silent;

with their mouths shut,
they seem intelligent."
(Proverbs 17:28 NLT) 

I am trying to learn that too.

TODAY'S PROMISE

"For he hath made him to be sin for us,

who knew no sin; that we might be made

the righteousness of God in him."

(2 Corinthians 5:21)

GET OFF THE MERRY-GO-ROUND

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Like my self you have noticed that life throws major

problems at people.  Things that hurt and hurt bad.

You have noticed it about people around you or following

people on "Facebook" or some other social media.

It seems like almost a daily routine.  You know, moan and

groan.  Then they are going to get a positive attitude and 

grit their teeth pretending all is well.  But of course that

does not work so it is back to moaning and groaning.

What is the answer?

GET OFF THE MERRY-GO-ROUND.

What do I mean by that?

Consider this example.  Several thousand years ago there

was a king named David.  You know.  The one that thousands

of boys have been named after, king David of Israel.

One day David and his men returned home only to find 

their town burned to the ground and the families taken

captive.  And if that were not enough, by now even his

own men were talking about stoning David to death.  

So, what did David do at probably the lowest point in his

life?  He "got of the merry-go-round".  "But David

strengthened himself in the Lord his God." (1 Samuel 

30:6 NASB)  And yes, they were able to recover it all.

Or consider even Jesus Christ and his disciples.  Things

had been going well.  Perhaps too well.  They were busy,

too busy doing God's work.  They were getting tired and

Jesus said,

"Come away by yourselves to a secluded place and rest

a while." (Mark 6:31 NASB)  In other words lets get

off the merry-go-round.  And if you have paid any 

attention to the life of Christ you noticed that often he

would go out by himself to a secluded place to be with

God the father.

Got problems.

Get off the merry-go-round and spend some time with

God.  It will straighten things out for you.

There is a Hebrew word in the Holy Bible translated

"wait" in Isaiah 40:31.  At this particular place the 

Hebrew word used meant "a prim. root; too bind together

(perh.  by twisting)"  Do you see the togetherness of it.

"Yet those who wait for the Lord

Will gain new strength;

They will mount up with wings like eagles,

They will run and not get tired,

They will walk and not become weary."

Get off the merry-go-round and go hide with

God for a while and see how it helps you.

TODAY'S QUOTE

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"When you put faith, hope, and love together,

you can raise positive kids in a negative world."

- Zig Ziglar   

HELP I'M UNATTRACTIVE AND DULL

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Do you ever feel, lets just say plain, unattractive,

not the most becoming person in the group? [Hey,

I live there, I understand that.]  Like myself if it

had been up to you, you would have made yourself

a lot different.  Most of us would change something

about us in a minute, if we could.

Did you know that puts us in a very elite group?

Think about this for a moment.  The very creator

of the heavens and earth - Jesus Christ - became a

man so he could die as a sacrifice in our place, if

we will accept it.  He was the creator, so he could

have came as the kind of man he chose to be.  But

the Holy Scriptures teach us how he came:

"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)   

Did you get that?

When Jesus Christ came to die in my place, 

he not only came as a sacrifice for me, but 

he came as "a nothing".  So common looking

that nothing about his looks made him stand 

out.

May I be content to be "a nothing" that he 

gave life to.  But may it all be for God.

TODAY'S PROMISE

"Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is 

a new creature: old things are passed away;

behold, all things are become new."

(2 Corinthians 5:17)

WHERE GOD DWELLS

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Do you ever wonder where God dwells?

Or perhaps why he is close to some people but

not others?

Through out the Holy Bible there is a truth that

keeps popping up.  And that is the attitude that

allows him to be closer to some people than others.

Consider.

"For thus says the high and exalted One

Who lives forever, whose name is Holy,

I dwell on a high and holy place,

And also with the contrite and lowly of spirit

In order to revive the spirit of the lowly

And to revive the heart of the contrite."

(Isaac 57:15 NASB)  

An overdose of "self esteem" can cause 

God to keep his distance from you.  

TODAY'S QUOTE

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"Every Christian family ought to be , as it were,

a little church consecrated to Christ and wholly

influenced and governed by His rules."

- Jonathan Edwards   

WHY LORD? WHY?

Many of us have had family members or known of 

people who were living for God and a blessing to all

around them, and yet had a premature death.

My own son was that way.  A young man helping his

church and it seemed everyone in the community.  Yet

he was killed in an auto accident.  It was one of the 

largest funerals I have ever attended because of his 

love for God and all around him.

I could not help but wonder, "Why Lord?"  Why some

one like that instead of an old worn out man like me.

I believe the answer is in the Scripture below.

"The righteous man perishes, and no man takes it to heart;

And devout men are taken away while no one understands,

For the righteous man is taken away from evil,

He enters into peace;"  

(Isiah 57:1,2 NASB)   

I feel like God gave me my answer.

WASTED, WASTED, WASTED

I know, it seems that I have only one song to sing

anymore.  And not being able to sing maybe only

one note to play.  But when you are living on borrowed

time, you look at things differently.

Even in my own life and home I now see so many.

excesses and surpluses that I am ashamed of myself.

Like so many professed Christians we are living on

the abundance of God's mercy and supplies.  We live

like there is no tomorrow.

God's word tells us that we brought nothing into the

world, and we cannot take anything out of the world.

Try arguing with that.

But Jesus Christ gives us hope even in the matter of

accumulated "treasures".   He said:

"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth,

where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves 

break in and steal.  But store up for yourselves

treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust

destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal;

for where your treasure is, there your heart will

be also."

(Matthew 6:19 - 21 NASB )   

For myself,

I want the excesses beyond my necessities to be

"forwarded" to heaven where I can enjoy them

not only for a few years  - but forever.

It was C.T. Studd who said;

"Only one life, twill soon be past,

Only what's done for Christ will last."

TODAY'S PROMISE

"LORD, you are the one who protects me

and gives me strength; you help me in times

of trouble."

(Jeremiah 16:19a GNT)