“Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow.” ~ Albert Einstein
They say that hind sight is twenty-twenty. When we look back following a mistake we have made, we can clearly see where we went wrong. “If only I had known” we say. Did you ever stop to think that the mistakes of our past prepared us for the future? Albert was on base when he made this statement. There is another statement that we need to be aware of us as well. It comes from the Book of Hebrews in the Bible: “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.” (Hebrews 13:8)
The only bad thing about making mistakes is not learning from them and we continue to repeat them. The fact that Jesus is the same as He ever was is encouraging to those of us who have made mistakes in our lives and with our lives. His death on the Cross paid for the sins we committed yesterday. If we sin today, He will forgive us for those too. The question is: are we learning from our mistakes? Forgiveness is available for the mistakes we make but judgment is reserved for us if we never learn from them. As the Apostle Paul wrote, “How can we who have died to sin live any longer in it?” Our hope rests in the resurrected Christ not upon our goodness, but God is into forgiving sin, not excusing it.
Monday, August 30, 2010
Monday, August 23, 2010
He Knows. He Cares.
Two sparrows cost only a penny, but not even one of them can die without your Father's knowing it. (Matthew 10:29 NCV).
Entire passage: www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=matt%2010:29-31&version=NCV
Have you ever paid attention to the birds? I mean, have you ever really taken the time to just sit and watch them? How about when you are out and about, ever look around and take notice of them? Unless you are a birdwatcher; probably not! I like to sit on the deck and watch them but when I am on the go I generally never notice them.
Some people feel the same way in Gods eyes. They feel like He never even notices that they are suffering, worrying, scared, or broke. After all He does have a lot to do you know. There are wars being fought and floods taking place all around the world. How could He possible be concerned about my little problem?
He is concerned: about you. The God of the Universe, the Creator of all things; cares about little old you! You may never notice if a bird falls out of a tree but He does. He knows you so well He can tell you how many hairs were on your head yesterday, at birth, and even now! Never think He does not pay attention to you; He does. The question is do we pay attention to Him?
You may feel today as though no one cares or even knows about you or your troubles. God knows and cares. Do not just take my word for it; take His Word for it; talk to Him about it.
Entire passage: www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=matt%2010:29-31&version=NCV
Have you ever paid attention to the birds? I mean, have you ever really taken the time to just sit and watch them? How about when you are out and about, ever look around and take notice of them? Unless you are a birdwatcher; probably not! I like to sit on the deck and watch them but when I am on the go I generally never notice them.
Some people feel the same way in Gods eyes. They feel like He never even notices that they are suffering, worrying, scared, or broke. After all He does have a lot to do you know. There are wars being fought and floods taking place all around the world. How could He possible be concerned about my little problem?
He is concerned: about you. The God of the Universe, the Creator of all things; cares about little old you! You may never notice if a bird falls out of a tree but He does. He knows you so well He can tell you how many hairs were on your head yesterday, at birth, and even now! Never think He does not pay attention to you; He does. The question is do we pay attention to Him?
You may feel today as though no one cares or even knows about you or your troubles. God knows and cares. Do not just take my word for it; take His Word for it; talk to Him about it.
Monday, August 16, 2010
Never Beyond Forgiveness
“But go, tell His disciples—and Peter—that He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him, as He said to you.” (Mark 16:7 NKJV)
Our little five year old niece was playing the card game UNO with my wife, her sister, and their mother Saturday night. She was cheating and when they called her hand on it she got mad and quit. When they asked her to come back and play she said, “I’m not going to play unless you promise me you will not cheat me!”
I like the way the New King James Version translates this verse. Those two separator lines make it clear the angel emphasized that they were to tell Peter too! The last scene we see Peter in he is left crying because he had denied Jesus. Some translations say, “Tell His disciples and even Peter.” Another one says, “Tell His disciples, especially Peter.” Yet another says, “Tell His disciples, including Peter.” All are correct as the Greek rendering of the word is; and, also or even. If the angel had been Southern he may have said, “Go tell the guys, and even old Peter, that Jesus will meet ‘em all in Galilee.”
You and I were cheated out of eternal life by sin. God promised us that it would not happen again as He Himself paid the price of disobedience for us. We cheat sometimes against Him but I am so thankful that He shows us the same forgiveness that He did Peter! Think you have gone to far to be forgiven or to return to Christ? Then think about Peter and how God accepted him; He will do the same for you!
Our little five year old niece was playing the card game UNO with my wife, her sister, and their mother Saturday night. She was cheating and when they called her hand on it she got mad and quit. When they asked her to come back and play she said, “I’m not going to play unless you promise me you will not cheat me!”
I like the way the New King James Version translates this verse. Those two separator lines make it clear the angel emphasized that they were to tell Peter too! The last scene we see Peter in he is left crying because he had denied Jesus. Some translations say, “Tell His disciples and even Peter.” Another one says, “Tell His disciples, especially Peter.” Yet another says, “Tell His disciples, including Peter.” All are correct as the Greek rendering of the word is; and, also or even. If the angel had been Southern he may have said, “Go tell the guys, and even old Peter, that Jesus will meet ‘em all in Galilee.”
You and I were cheated out of eternal life by sin. God promised us that it would not happen again as He Himself paid the price of disobedience for us. We cheat sometimes against Him but I am so thankful that He shows us the same forgiveness that He did Peter! Think you have gone to far to be forgiven or to return to Christ? Then think about Peter and how God accepted him; He will do the same for you!
Monday, August 9, 2010
Deliberate Ignorance
5 They argued about this, saying, "If we answer, 'John's baptism was from God,' Jesus will say, 'Then why did you not believe him? (Luke 20:5, ESV)
Entire Chapter: www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+20&version=NCV
A preacher noticed a man sitting in the back with his fingers in his ears during his sermon. After church the preacher asked the man, “Why did you put your fingers in your ears while I was preaching?” The fellow replied, “I did not want to hear if I had committed sin or not, then I won’t be guilty!”
We may fool ourselves but we can never fool God. James said in his letter that we fool ourselves when we know what the Bible says yet we act as though we do not, (James 1:22). Mark Twain said, “It is not the parts of the Bible that I cannot understand that bother me; it is the parts that I can understand.” The men that day that asked Jesus who gave Him the authority to do and say all these things He was teaching and doing were “called on the carpet” by a simple question: Where do you think I get this authority? They knew it had to be from God but they did not want to admit it because they did not want to come under Jesus’ authority.
I realize there are those who may not know they need forgiveness of sin. I also know there are those who do not think about it, hoping their denial of the fact will somehow excuse them from judgment. Like the guy with his fingers in his ears.
Got sin? Then repent; admit it to God, ask Him to forgive you, and allow Christ to save you because deliberate ignorance is inexcusable by God.
Entire Chapter: www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+20&version=NCV
A preacher noticed a man sitting in the back with his fingers in his ears during his sermon. After church the preacher asked the man, “Why did you put your fingers in your ears while I was preaching?” The fellow replied, “I did not want to hear if I had committed sin or not, then I won’t be guilty!”
We may fool ourselves but we can never fool God. James said in his letter that we fool ourselves when we know what the Bible says yet we act as though we do not, (James 1:22). Mark Twain said, “It is not the parts of the Bible that I cannot understand that bother me; it is the parts that I can understand.” The men that day that asked Jesus who gave Him the authority to do and say all these things He was teaching and doing were “called on the carpet” by a simple question: Where do you think I get this authority? They knew it had to be from God but they did not want to admit it because they did not want to come under Jesus’ authority.
I realize there are those who may not know they need forgiveness of sin. I also know there are those who do not think about it, hoping their denial of the fact will somehow excuse them from judgment. Like the guy with his fingers in his ears.
Got sin? Then repent; admit it to God, ask Him to forgive you, and allow Christ to save you because deliberate ignorance is inexcusable by God.
Monday, August 2, 2010
God Comes First
"No one can serve two masters. The person will hate one master and love the other, or will follow one master and refuse to follow the other. You cannot serve both God and worldly riches.” (Matthew 6:24 NCV).
I am amazed today at how many folk have learned to multi-task. Housewives and stay at home moms as they were once called have been multi-tasking for years they just never had a term for it!
We have all at some point done more than one thing at a time. While doing one thing our minds are thinking ahead of what else we need to do. It is now spilling over into our service to our Lord I am afraid. Jesus gave a warning to the twelve about trying to serve two masters. He used the example of money or things of this world. A person cannot serve God with only half of his life. We must totally submit our entire lives to Him. Serving Him only when it is convenient is not serving at all but rather acknowledging. Being aware of Gods presence and actually serving Him are two different things. Let us heed the words of Christ today in our busy lives and get our priorities back in order. Let’s seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness.
I am amazed today at how many folk have learned to multi-task. Housewives and stay at home moms as they were once called have been multi-tasking for years they just never had a term for it!
We have all at some point done more than one thing at a time. While doing one thing our minds are thinking ahead of what else we need to do. It is now spilling over into our service to our Lord I am afraid. Jesus gave a warning to the twelve about trying to serve two masters. He used the example of money or things of this world. A person cannot serve God with only half of his life. We must totally submit our entire lives to Him. Serving Him only when it is convenient is not serving at all but rather acknowledging. Being aware of Gods presence and actually serving Him are two different things. Let us heed the words of Christ today in our busy lives and get our priorities back in order. Let’s seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness.
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