LEARNING

That is two of my great grand kids at work. They caught me in one of my shops. Their question, "Grandpa can we make something?"

After granting permission they headed straight from my scrap metal pile. They did not know what they wanted to make or how. But they jumped right in making "stuff".

It almost hurt watching them TRY to work. I was very tempted to step in and do it for them. But how else are they going to learn?

As I watched them I could not but wonder, are we like that in God's sight. Does he in love let us blunder around so we can learn?

The little boy made this for grandpa. It is a weapon. Something to throw at the bad guys. And all I had to do was tie the string for him. Can't beat that.

JUST WONDERING

This is the picture of an old computer. It is all set up and ready to use. (I know, it is not a nice new one like you have. But it will work.)

Now what is the purpose of a computer? Just to admire? Simply to have one more asset? To play with? (That can be a valid reason, I know.) Something to brag about?

Now I'm not real smart. But I am under the impression that the purpose is to set down at the keyboard, grab the mouse and either start entering data or look up something or other. To put the thing to work for you. Right or wrong?

Huh!

I must be a little on the "geeky" side. Then it is not to tear up and see what makes it tick. You mean I do not have to try and find out the difference between the; motherboard, hard drive, raid controller, video card, fan, heat sink, expansion card, Ram and Rom memory or a processor. You mean the purpose is simply to use it, put it to work?

This is not a plea for ignorance nor neglect of the Word of God. God wants us in his word and he gives us wisdom.

But with all of our Bible study, conferences, seminars etc, we still have one of the most impotent churches on the face of the earth here in this country.

Is it we Christians are too "geeky". We think study and service are synonyms . That godliness is the by product of knowledge.

Let's face it. The heathen could tell us where Mesopotamia is. A pagan could give us the proper way to pronounce Mephibosheth. And an atheist could probable tell us more about Petra than we could.

I would like to suggest that the need is not more scholarship, but more discipleship.

Gene Edwards in his book - Living Close To God When you're Not Good At It - makes a very interesting observation on page 15.

"I am a theologian with more degrees than a thermometer!"

"I come from six generations of complete illiterates - my father and five fathers before him. My Cajun grandfather had a closer walk with the Lord Jesus than any theologian I have ever known. Being a theologian is not in any way a passport to spirituality. In fact, it can be a hindrance."

...

"...the man who had the closest walk with Christ was my utterly illiterate grandfather, a man who could not identify a single letter of his signature."

Just something to think about.

IN NEED OF ENCOURAGEMENT

You guessed it. Motorcycles again.

I knew that both of these motorcycles had problems. And in that case it meant that I had problems. However the day the one above was brought in it really hit me. Shortly after the one above came in, we found out the magnitude of the problem in the one below. It's problem meant that I was going to have to pull the engine again and take it totally apart. And at that moment there were eight motorcycles on the place. (Only three are mine.) and five of them have problems.

This coupled with a lot of other work this old man wants to get done soon overwhelmed me.

I was discouraged. Real discouraged.

The next morning while praying about it I reminded the Lord that he is the source of my encouragement.

"And may God, the source of patience and encouragement,"-Romans 15:5 (TEV)

And that if he was my encouragement I needed help.

While in prayer he brought the scripture to mind, "Come to me, all of you who are tired from carrying heavy loads, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke and put it on you, and learn from me, because I am gentle and humble in spirit; and you will find rest. For the yoke I will give you is easy, and the load I will put on you is light." -Matthew 11:28-30 (TEV)

And in that very moment he lifted the burden. PRAISE GOD.

About and hour latter in one of my devotional periods the following verse just happened to be there, "So do not worry about tomorrow; it will have enough worries of its own. There is no need to add to the troubles each day brings." -Matthew 6:34 (TEV)

GOD IS THE SOURCE OF MY ENCOURAGEMENT.

CRYSTAL BRIDGES MUSEUM OF AMERICAN ART

My wife had me take her to see the brand new CRYSTAL BRIDGES MUSEUM OF AMERICAN ART.

Truly it is a magnificent facility. We enjoyed the experience. There were even some pretty pictures there. And there were some pictures, art or what ever, that were only cluttering up the walls. In truth maybe not. They may have been covering up holes in the walls of the new buildings.

When we got home I begin to wonder, what the CRYSTAL BRIDES MUSEUM OF AMERICAN ART cost?

A trip to the Internet gave some insights. As expected it was not possible for this old guy to get exact numbers. But what I found was something like this;

Expected yearly expense to be met, 16-20 million dollars per year. [Just to maintain it]

Approximate assets, about 800 million dollars. I think that included the art on display. Now that is a bunch of money to bring a little culture to this area. A walk through to see some pretty pictures.

I am familiar with this area. I live uncomfortably close to it. I also know that we have homeless people and families. There are hungry people here. The Salvation Army shelters are full and church food pantries are running low.

It makes me wonder about misplaced values.

Forgive me. On second thought I remember several of the churches we passed on the way to see CRYSTAL BRIDGES MUSEUM OF AMERICAN ART. Perhaps this is simply a demonstration of American churchianity on a grander scale than theirs.

I no doubt am too much in the flesh. I would rather see a hungry stomach filled and a poor widow sheltered from the weather than someones mind enlightened to cultural things.

There possibly is as spiritual side to it. After all, poor hungry people need to see pretty pictures too.

HOPE IN THE MIDST OF DISASTER

We live in a world that offers no true hope.

If you are a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ. If you pay any attention to what His word says about these end time days. If you have been listening as God is warning us through the ministries of today. Then you know that our beloved nation is headed for disaster because it has turned it's back on God - just as Israel did.

The prophet Jeremiah lived in a time like our own. God was preparing to destroy Jerusalem and Judah in Jeremiah's life time.

However in the midst of this God said,

"But I will bless the person who puts his trust in me. He is like a tree growing near a stream and sending out roots to the water.It is not afraid when hot weather comes, because its leaves stay green; it has no worries when there is no rain; it keeps on bearing fruit."-Jeremiah 17:7,8 (TEV)

"My hope is built on nothing less Than Jesus' blood and righteousness. I dare not trust the sweetest frame, But wholly trust in Jesus name."

GREATEST TREASURE

TREASURE!

MONEY.

STOCKS.

BONDS.

REAL ESTATE.

???????????

HEY! I HAVE EVEN MORE IN THE BANK.

[If I did not. I would be bankrupt.]

Where is your greatest treasure?

Money sure is not mine. Mine is in a very

simple, life dependant, fact. God helped

me see this in a statement He made about

about Israel and Jerusalem in particular.

"He always protects his people and gives

them wisdom and knowledge. Their

greatest treasure is their reverence

for the Lord." - Isaiah 33:6 (TEV)

If I have a fear of God. A reverence of

God, I have everything.

His blessing. His health. His help. His

wealth. His wisdom.

You name it. What ever my need, I have

it from him if I reverence him.

Can you say that with your bank account

in today's economy?

THINGS HAVE CHANGED

Oh how things have changed!

Healings and miracles were the norm for the apostles. This got them in trouble. They did not have a license to heal. They did not even use the approved medicines. Then to add insult to injury - they did it for free.

But the authorities made and interesting observation about these apostles.

"When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus." -Acts 4:13 (NIV)

They saw two elements: a. They were uneducated. b. They had been with Jesus.

Today we are "schooled". And today we send sick people to the doctor to die at his hands.

But God also use "schooled" or "learned" people in the same way as Peter and John. Consider the apostle Paul. Education is not the missing element.

What was the cause of change?

Makes a person wonder what the missing element is!!!!!!!