John 6:11 – “Jesus then took the loaves, and having given thanks, He distributed to those who were seated; likewise, also of the fish as much as they wanted.”

Deuteronomy 8:10 – “When you have eaten and are satisfied, you shall bless the LORD your God for the good land which He has given you.” NASB

A custom in the Middle East during biblical times was that people, without fail, gave thanks before eating and would usually give thanks after the meal.  It was initially done to recognize God’s provision and as an expression of gratitude.  Like so many things, it evolved into a religious or societal ritual, as is often the case today!  I know many who would never dream of eating a meal without saying, Grace.

In those days, those at the table would repeat the host’s words as he gave thanks.  If a prophet were present, he would be expected to take the lead in the prayer and bless the food giving thanks as is described in 1 Samuel 9:13 – “…he must bless the sacrifice; afterward, those who are invited will eat.”  It was customary, but initially, it was far more than custom and proper recognition of God’s provision and their gratitude.

When Jesus fed the 5,000, we read that “after Jesus had given thanks, the food was distributed….”  In providing the 4,000, Matthew carefully includes the fact that Jesus gave thanks before anyone ate.  The Jews were conscious that all they had come from God and willingly expressed gratitude.  Sadly, for many then and now, it is nothing more than a religious or societal ritual, not a genuine expression of gratitude.

They also customarily gave thanks at the end of the meal, as is reflected in Deuteronomy 8:10 – “When you have eaten and are satisfied, you shall bless the LORD….”  Gratitude demands acknowledgment of not only the provision but the provider.  I would suggest that if you say grace and pray over your meal without giving thought or having genuine gratitude, it is more of an insult to God than an act He will receive and recognize with blessing.

Therefore, make your words true expressions of your heart’s gratitude, and always remember that all we are and have has its source in God.  In Him, we live and move and have our being.  

I pray blessings upon you as you go through your day!

Exodus 20:16 – “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.” NASB

1 Timothy 5:13 – “Besides, they get into the habit of being idle and going about from house to house. And not only do they become idlers, but also gossips and busybodies, saying things they ought not to.”  NIV

Years ago, I had a lady in the church I was serving who would always ask, “Do you have any news?”  She would also preface what she was going to share with, “Have you heard the news?”  I asked her once if she considered what she was doing gossip.  She said, “Oh no, pastor, I’m just sharing the latest news, not gossiping, for that would be wrong.”   I could never convince her that they were the same thing.  She longed to hear any tidbit documented or undocumented, and would share it with whomever she could find that would listen.

Gossip is a very destructive weapon the devil uses to drive wedges and damage people in their testimony.  I recall hearing something once about a fellow minister that, if true, would be so damaging to his reputation that it would impact untold numbers of people.  What I heard is not important, nor his name, but the fact that I listened is.  

As I pondered what I had heard, the Holy Spirit brought conviction to my heart, and I sensed the Lord speaking to me, saying, “Why did you allow that gossip to be spoken into your hearing?”  I began to weep, for I had listened, and without realizing it, I formed an opinion regarding this brother without actual documentation or evidence.  It was wrong!  I was wrong, and the gossip was a malicious lie later proven false.  Yet had I repeated that gossip, I would have been furthering the harm brought to an innocent brother.  Thankfully, the Holy Spirit arrested me before I participated in an activity I have long abhorred – Gossip.

When people come to me with tidbits about someone, I usually ask, “Have you gone to that individual to discuss this?”  If the answer is no, I stop them and ask that they not continue with gossip.  My directive is to take it to prayer and approach the person in question with that little morsel they share.  Some have become quite angry with me, calling me self-righteous or worse, because I did not want to participate in gossip regarding another.  However, I must ask, “Would you want someone spreading gossip about you?”  Consider that point when you are tempted to share news, as that little lady called it. 

Some years ago, Gil LeBreton, a sportswriter for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, wrote a piece regarding the Texas Ranger’s manager Ron Washington’s resignation.  He used an illustration from a movie that speaks to what I’m talking about.  It was excellent, and I share it here. 

In the Academy Award-nominated movie Doubt, there is a memorable scene in which the accused priest, Father Flynn, delivers a powerful homily to the congregation. The priest, brilliantly played by Philip Seymour Hoffman, tells the story of a woman who “was gossiping with her friend about a man whom they hardly knew.” Seized later with guilt, the woman went to a Catholic confessional and asked her parish priest if she had done anything wrong.

“Yes,” said the priest. “You have borne false witness against your neighbor. You’ve played fast and loose with his reputation and should be heartily ashamed.”  As her penance, the priest instructed the woman to go to her roof and gut a pillow with a knife, a scene classically depicted in the movie.  And what did she see? The priest asked.   “Feathers,” the woman answered. “Feathers everywhere.”  “Now, I want you to go back and gather up every last feather that flew out into the wind,” the priest instructed. The woman protested. “It can’t be done,” she said.  “I don’t know where they went. The wind took them all over.”  “And that,” the movie’s Father Flynn said, abruptly ending the sermon, “is gossip!”

That is a fantastic illustration of the damage and futility of trying to retrieve harmful words spoken about another.  It is IMPOSSIBLE!  The damage is done even if we go to them in repentance begging forgiveness; we will never retrieve all the words or find where they have been carried.  Therefore, the biblical policy is DO NOT GOSSIP!    

Blessings as you go through your day!

Luke 14:11- “For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”  NASB

In this passage, Jesus gave a parable to the guests as He noticed that they were picking out places of honor for themselves.  He used the occasion to highlight the fatal flaw in that tendency and thinking in self-exaltation.  Sadly, many today are so driven to be recognized and esteemed that they exalt themselves. 

Jesus reminded His audience of this flaw by using the scenario of the guests being invited to a wedding feast.  He warned them not to take the place of honor because someone more distinguished and recognized than they might arrive, and the host would embarrass them by asking them to move down to a lesser position.  The result would be such embarrassment that they would assume the lowest position in shame.

Public humiliation and self-pity would be the by-products of this type of action.  He suggested that when invited, they should go and recline at the lowest place; the host would possibly come and ask them to move to a more notable position.  The result would be recognition by everyone in the room rather than embarrassment and shame. 

In Verse Eleven, Jesus said – “Everyone who exalts himself will be humbled,” which is frequently painful. I know I have tasted it.  He declared that the one who humbles himself would be exalted, and I have also tasted that. 

I like the feeling of the latter far better than the former.  We have all, at times, felt more important than we are or should think about ourselves.  That is a dangerous mindset and attitude.  I am not suggesting self-flagellation but humbling ourselves in the sight of the Lord and allowing Him to cause us to be elevated or lifted to the place that He desires. 

Remember that we are not the focus of all things, nor must we be the center of attention.  We do not have to be the lead in every situation.  Sometimes the need is to lead by example.  Humility needs to be manifested.  If God wants us to be the head, He will cause us to be promoted to that position.  If God wants you to develop humility, He may give us a lesser position without fanfare and notice. 

It is His Church that is being built.  The position is not what is most important; obedience is.  It is allowing God to place the gift required for the situation in the lead spot and placing you in the mix where you can best lend to the advancement of the Kingdom.

May God be with you as you go through this day!

Proverbs 20:6 – “Most men will proclaim each his own goodness, but who can find a faithful man?”  NKJV

Through the years, I have met people who, when asked about their relationship with Christ, would declare,” Well, I am a good person.”  They would frequently tell me what they do not do, and some would describe their acts of benevolence, civic contributions, or something of the kind.  Some would tell me that they went to church regularly.  Others would say, “Well, relatively regularly.” 

This passage is incredibly accurate and reveals that many people view themselves as basically good or as good as the next fellow.  I had a man who was a regular attendee in church but had the propensity to hit the night spots and cavort with the ladies while his wife and children remained home.  He made little secret of his lifestyle, but because he considered himself “as good as the next fellow,” he felt little reason to change. 

In my many conversations with this individual, he would point out the flaws in other people in the community and church, especially those in leadership.  It was mostly comparing apples with turnips, but it was his justification for allowing his conscience to become calloused, guarding against conviction. 

I understood his argument, for I also held that view once.  The rural church I grew up in had flawed people (as to all churches), and I wrongly determined that if some of those people were going to heaven, God could not send me to hell because I was “as good as the next fellow.”  I went to Vietnam with that mindset.  It was wrong, but it was the view I adopted because it allowed me to not deal with the pricks of the Holy Spirit.

I talked to this individual, and in the course of the conversation, the account in Mark 10 came up, and I read to him the words of Jesus when He was called “Good teacher or Good master,” and Jesus stopped the individual and said, “Why are you calling me good?  No one is good except God alone.”  

He was shocked, and I continued recounting how this rich individual proclaimed his personal goodness when Jesus told Him to keep the commandments.  Jesus then informed the rich young man that he still came up short, and this individual was a captive audience at that point. 

I read to him the words of Jesus, “One thing you lack, go, sell everything you have and give it to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. THEN come, follow me.”  The ruler was heartbroken and turned away because his possessions held his heart, and his personal goodness was insufficient to save him. 

While many, if not most of us, would like to compare ourselves with others and declare that we are “as good as the next fellow,” if we are honest, we know that is insufficient.  Salvation is never earned. It is by Grace through Faith. 

God does not measure my life against your life, but His standard is Himself, the Lord Jesus, and His Holy Word.  In that light, everyone knows we have been weighed in the balance and found wanting.  If we understand the standard, we know all have sinned and come short of God’s glory.  If we understand the standard, we know that the invitation of Jesus to “Come unto Me” is our only HOPE OF SALVATION!

May God be with you as you go through this day!

Matthew 7:24-27 – “Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock.  25 “And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock.  26 “Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand.  27 “The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell — and great was its fall.”  NASB

At times, the quest for a Word from the Lord has relegated many believers to becoming nothing but ears!  The church is the Body of Christ, not the Ears or Mouth of Jesus!  As Jesus taught, He clearly distinguished between success and failure in the Christian walk.  Both groups Heard the Word, and I contend that an absence of the Word is not the problem. It is the application of the Word. 

I recall a story about a preacher who was chosen by a congregation.  The first Sunday, he preached a powerful message that had the people raving about it for days.  The same message was preached the following Sunday, which continued for several weeks.  The congregation began to complain, and the board met to discuss the issue and decided to approach the minister and advise him that this was unacceptable. 

The board called him in and said, “Pastor, your message was great, but you keep preaching the same thing.  You need to get a new sermon.”  He calmly looked at them and said, “Only when you do something with that one.”

Jesus said if we Hear and Apply, we are like the house built on the rock that cannot and will not be moved by trial, trouble, or difficulty.  However, if we Hear but Do Nothing, we are like a house built on shifting sand that can and will be shaken by the trials of life, and failure is virtually guaranteed.  We have the choice as He opens His word to become Action-Oriented in faith through the grace of God.

May God help us apply His word in our lives daily!  Blessings as you go through your day!

Joel 1:14-15 – “Consecrate a fast, proclaim a solemn assembly; gather the elders and all the inhabitants of the land to the house of the LORD your God, and cry out to the LORD.  15 Alas for the day! For the day of the LORD is near, and it will come as destruction from the Almighty.”  NASB

Saying that we live in a troubled world is an understatement of understatements.  However, it is something we must acknowledge.  We need reminders, from time to time, of the times we live to prevent us from drifting into complacency or adopting a “Que, Sera, Sera” attitude.  We dare not think they will dissipate or disappear if we ignore the conditions.  They will not! 

When a lion is in the street ignoring, the lion won’t make the street safe.  When there is a wolf at the door, denying his existence and seeking to isolate ourselves inside won’t take away his threat.  When the world plunges into chaos, corruption, disruption, and evil raises its ugly head, the church’s silence only facilitates, empowers, and emboldens that evil. 

Paul advised us that we are in a spiritual battle, and to combat that foe; we must utilize spiritual weapons of war, which we have through Jesus.  In 1 Corinthians 10, the apostle tells us that these weapons are supernatural; through them, we can ‘pull down strongholds’ the enemy has and is erecting.  We are more than conquerors through our Lord Jesus Christ and in the power of the Holy Spirit.  We can do all things through our Lord Jesus Christ; nothing is impossible with God, and in Him, nothing is impossible.

As many of us have learned, the power of prayer is wonderfully evident and apparent in both the Bible and life.  It is not a desperate attempt to sway God from taking some action or get Him to take some action He is reluctant to do.  It conditions our hearts, develops our faith, emboldens our witness, and reminds us of God’s promises.  

Prayer, when effectual, inspires a change of heart and mind and propels into action to achieve what God, through His Word and Spirit, has and does promise.  It becomes a mighty weapon to combat the assault of the wicked, enabling us to bring every thought captive to the obedience of Christ and, having done all to stand, to stand firmly on God’s Promise and Person.

Fasting was a much-utilized weapon in the Old Testament and New Testament and has been a cornerstone of the church for centuries.  The diminishing of that weapon or practice is a more recent phenomenon, and we have allowed that weapon to be lost to our own hurt spiritually. 

Fasting is not simply abstaining from food for a specified period of time; it is an endeavor in which the Spirit of God takes control of the fleshly mind and desires and turns our focus singularly upon God and His Purposes and Plan.  It is a means whereby we can ‘humble ourselves’ before God.  It is a means whereby we can focus on God first and foremost.  It facilitates a renewed or new yieldedness in our lives and often produces a brokenness that moves us nearer to God and helps us realize our dependence upon Him.

In natural warfare, successful participants know their enemy, resources, weapons, and how to use them.  When we set aside time for ‘fasting and prayer’ for whatever reason, we engage in spiritual warfare.  Because of our world’s current condition, unrest, upheaval, and depravity, we must wake up and realize, this is War! 

In war, there are casualties, and there are victors and vanquished.  If we genuinely care about what is happening in America and worldwide and are Christians, we should be inspired, encouraged, and challenged to discover the root cause of this destruction.  We should desire to utilize our weapons most effectively and consistently.  We should be willing to die for the cause of God and Freedom. 

This call is for us if we love God, love people, and want to see as many salvaged and saved as possible.  We are being called to “National Fasting and Prayer.”  Let’s bring in 2023 with a commitment to intercession, proclamation, profession, and pursuing the Kingdom of God and His Righteousness.  

God bless you as you focus on Him and His Purposes for your life and world!

Proverbs 25:4-5 – “Take away the dross from the silver, and there comes out a vessel for the smith; 5 Take away the wicked before the king, and his throne will be established in righteousness.”  NASB

Many cry out for God to purify their hearts and then complain when He begins removing the dross from the silver of our lives.  The heat is uncomfortable, and we generally prefer ease to purification.  We want instant righteousness and resist the process of becoming righteous.

The silversmith places the raw silver in a vat, then turns up the heat, and as the silver is heated to the melting point, the impurities separate from the pure and float to the surface where they are skimmed off.  In life, God uses the heat to expose and remove the impurities in our hearts.  It is generally never a pleasant experience to be exposed, but afterward, it is joyous!

David cried, “Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me and know my anxious thoughts, and see if there be any hurtful way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”  (Psalm 139:23-24) Oh, how we need to be placed in the refiner’s vat under the Holy Spirit’s microscope and allow God to expose and remove all wickedness from our hearts. 

We want to be pure but do not want to go through purification.  We will either be vessels meet (fit) for the Master vessels of honor or vessels of dishonor. Death and life are before us, so let’s choose life!  We are instructed to seek first the Kingdom of God and His Righteousness…. That is not only the best place in life but also the only place!

God bless you as you go through your day!  Blessings!

Psalm 55:22 – “Cast your burden on the LORD, and He shall sustain you; He shall never permit the righteous to be moved.”  NKJV

David said in Psalm 37:25 – “I have been young, and now am old; yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his descendants begging bread.”  In verse, speaking of the righteous, he said, “Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down; for the LORD upholds him with His hand.”  I do not believe any conflict exists in the three passages cited here or the remainder of the biblical message. 

Is this a guarantee that we will not have problems?  Is it a guarantee that we will not become, as Paul described in 1 Corinthians 9:27, a castaway or disqualified?  Is this a guarantee that we will not or cannot, as described in Hebrews 10:35 – “…cast away our confidence…”?  Is it a compilation of the promise in Romans 8:28 that “all things” are working together for our good? 

I believe strongly that God has promised to keep us against that day, and nothing can separate us from His love!  However, I am very aware that circumstances, conditions, events, and assaults on our lives can bring us to the brink of despair that God has promised NEVER to leave or forsake us! This is descriptive: If we ‘cast our burden on the LORD,’ He will sustain us.  Do you see one small caveat or problem here?

The instruction is to cast our burden on the LORD.  That is the requisite for receiving the remainder of the promise.  If we refuse to gather under the shelter of his wings as Psalm 91 describes, and we trust the arm of flesh rather than coming to him, taking His yoke upon us, and allowing Him to be supreme in our lives, we place ourselves outside the scope of the promise of the second portion of the verse.  But, if we do cast our burdens on Him, then we are assured that He will not permit us to be moved!  That is a powerful promise!

If we believe the Bible, then would that not encourage us to be obedient and cast our burdens on the LORD?   If one believes that turning to the LORD, rolling our cares on Him, and allowing Him to engineer our lives according to His plan would afford security, safety, and victory, what sense would it make not to do so?  Could it be that a major reason we would not is that we do not genuinely believe the Bible or trust God’s promise?  I know that is a bit harsh and strongly stated but examine it before rejecting it.

When I consider the life of David, I can readily understand how he would have developed a mentality of trust toward the LORD.  God repeatedly demonstrated His faithfulness to David, and David either trusted or repented for failure and ran to the LORD.  Most of us, if not all of us, have experienced God’s faithfulness.  I know that in the times I have genuinely cast my burden on Him, He has proved His Promises!  It did not always transpire as I thought it should or even in the timeframe I had in mind, but God Never Failed, and He Never Will…

May God be with you as you go through this day!

2 Peter 2:18-22 – “For when they speak great swelling words of emptiness, they allure through the lusts of the flesh, through lewdness, the ones who have actually escaped from those who live in error. 19 While they promise them liberty, they themselves are slaves of corruption; for by whom a person is overcome, by him also he is brought into bondage. 20 For if, after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the latter end is worse for them than the beginning. 21 For it would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than having known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered to them. 22 But it has happened to them according to the true proverb: “A dog returns to his own vomit,” and, “a sow, having washed, to her wallowing in the mire.” NKJV

Peter was addressing false teachers and heresy.  He made some interesting analogies in this portion of scripture.  We have all known or known of preachers and teachers whose lives do not match their preaching and teaching.  Some of them are charlatans who live in the prison of their lust for money, power, position, lasciviousness, and the like.  They come promising the hearer liberty but are bound by corruption so that they can offer nothing spiritually that is liberating.  They offer words that are “empty” because their words are not backed up by their hearts.

Peter addressed the sad situation where one escapes the world’s pollution through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and then becomes entangled in those pollutions again.  He powerfully expressed that it would have been better for that person to have Never Known the way of Righteousness than to have experienced it and turned back.  His picture is that of the natural inclination of a sick dog or a cleaned-up pig returning to the mire.  

I realize that some will totally disagree with me doctrinally or ideologically on this.  Yet, Peter was speaking about people who have escaped the world’s pollution through the knowledge of Jesus Christ.  They have moved out of darkness into light.  He then addressed the issue of the person then turning their backs on what they have received and returning to the way of the world, and he compares it to a dog’s nature or a pig’s nature. 

I say, “A pig cannot help being a pig but a person who comes to know Jesus has a “new nature” through the Blood of Jesus and does not have to return to the mire.”  Just because temptation comes does not mean you are obligated to yield to it. 

You are no longer a pig! Therefore, get it out of your head that you are somehow obligated to wallow in the mire just because you are human.  That would diminish the power of the Cross, and that is unacceptable to me.  If the Blood of Jesus can wash away my sin, then the Grace of God can keep me from sin and help me live the Christian life!  Of course, we may all and probably will stumble at times, but that doesn’t mean we return to the mire and allow the “old nature” to gain control.  No, we immediately repent and allow the Spirit of God to help us learn from our mistakes and mature. 

I have known people who kept succumbing to the same temptation time after time.  They would come to me in tears crying for help.  I had one person tell me once, “I can’t help it. It’s the way God made me.”  

As you might suspect, that did not sit well with me.  I am equally convinced that it did not with God either.  Once we receive the knowledge of the Lord and are born into the family of God, we are New Creations.  God did not make us subservient to our temptations. 

It is our responsibility to resist, and in resisting, the Bible tells us that the devil will flee!  Bullies only bully people who offer no resistance.  So, a pig is a pig, but you are not a pig. You are a child of the King and have been washed clean.  If you stumble, you have an advocate with the Father, the Lord Jesus Christ!  You may experience that failure but don’t have to take up permanent residence there.  God’s Grace is Greater than all our Sins!

May the Lord be with you as you go through your day!