Frustrated

Have you gotten frustrated by something or someone?

It might have been a password you forgot on a computer application and you were not able to log in.

It might have been a smoke detector which started beeping in the middle of the night because the battery was dead.

It might have been when you picked up a piece of clothing only to discover your cat had urinated on it.

It might have been a person who cut you off in traffic, cut in front of you at the grocery store or ignored you.

Regardless of the source, we all get frustrated at times.

The Christian response is to step back from the situation, take a deep breath, and ask the Lord to help control your response. Jesus got frustrated often. He was human. The Pharisees made him angry. His disciples frequently misunderstood Him. He got tired and hungry and made it a point to get away from people and spend time with His Father.

And yet, He never sinned.

Being frustrated is not a sin. Badly responding to our circumstances, however, can be terribly sinful.

Ask yourself these questions:

Is this thing, situation or person going to permanently affect the outcome of my life? Is this just a passing, temporary blip on the radar screen, which will disappear as quickly as it appeared? If it is, then we don’t need to make such a big deal over it.

Scripture teaches us that self control is a spiritual virtue:

“He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city.” Proverbs 16:22

To be frustrated is to be human. To control our spirit in the midst of our frustration is to be like Jesus. That in itself is the ultimate goal of each of us.

 

He’s Got The Whole World in His Hands

Colossians 1:17b: “…and by him all things consist [are held together].”

Jesus Christ is Lord. He is in control and holds all things together.

He controls the United States. He controls presidential elections and government. He controls viruses. He controls the economy.

He controls my life. And if He truly controls my life, I, therefore, have nothing to fear.

As I have heard from countless preachers, He is either Lord of all, or He is not Lord at all. The question of the day is, is He Lord of your life?

 

Giving Thanks for What You Don’t Have

In eight days, Americans will celebrate Thanksgiving. We will gather with family, eat a big meal, and thank God for His blessings upon us. Like many others, I am thankful for my life, health, wife, family, home, job and material provisions. Most of all, I am thankful for my salvation through Jesus Christ and the gift of eternal life.

Years ago, Garth Brooks sang about “Unanswered Prayers.” Have you ever thanked God for what you did NOT have?

As followers of Christ, we do not have a debt to pay. The debt of sin we owed to God and the price required for forgiveness and eternal life was paid by Jesus on the Cross. I owed a debt I could not pay and He paid a debt He did not owe. Thank God!

As believers we do not have a need to please. In Ephesians 6:6 we are instructed not to be “men pleasers ” but to simply please God. He is the only One I need to please! What a relief! As long as I am pleasing to the Lord, it does not matter what others may think of me. Thank God!

We do not have a fear to live. In 2 Timothy 1:7, we are reminded that God has not given us a spirit of “timidity” but of power, love and a sound mind. I live each day knowing that He is in control of my life as well as the lives of everyone around me. God is in complete control of this world, therefore I do not live in fear. Thank God!

Finally, as children of God, we do not have hell to face. Although a growing number of people no longer believe in eternal damnation, the Bible teaches that hell is real. On the Cross our Lord conquered hell and rescued me from it. When I wake up on the other side of physical death I have no fear of eternal punishment. Heaven is my everlasting home! Thank God!

This Thanksgiving season, let us not only praise the Lord for what we DO have, let us also be grateful for what we DO NOT have!

Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!!!

 

Red Wagons

And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye?
Matthew 7:3 NKJV
https://bible.com/bible/114/mat.7.3.NKJV

Self-judgment is hard work. Taking a good long look in the mirror, and being honest with what you see, requires humility. It is much easier to observe the faults of others. Judging others makes us look better, because we are comparing them to ourselves.

When I examine me, however, I am comparing myself to God’s standard, not man’s. I don’t measure up. I fall short. I quickly realize that the speck of dust in my brother’s eye is tiny in relation to the 2×4 stuck in mine.

While growing up, I (like many other kids) possessed a little red wagon. My Dad would tell me to pull my own little red wagon and let other people pull their’s. I was a grown adult before I understood what he meant. Judge myself before I judged others. Take care of my own faults before I try to fix other people’s.

Jesus never suggested that we not judge others at all. He merely emphasized that we start by judging ourselves first. What I have discovered is that I spend so much time pulling my own wagon and have no time left to tell others how to pull their’s.

I’m pretty sure that’s what Jesus was talking about.

 

No More Name Calling

There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
Galatians 3:28 NKJV
https://bible.com/bible/114/gal.3.28.NKJV

Why do we spend so much time focusing upon what separates us?

I am a middle aged , married, heterosexual, white male who lives in the United States. I can be described as a Christian, a Baptist, a Southerner, and a conservative.

There are other words being used to describe guys like me, words which cut like a knife: homophobic, misogynist, xenophobic and racist. These labels are hurtful and divisive.

In childhood we learned a limerick which was supposed to be helpful: “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” Baloney! That saying just ain’t true! Words do hurt. In fact, name-calling hurts very much.

The only name I wish to be called by, besides my personal one of course, is the name of Jesus Christ. In spite of our gender, nationality or race there is one name which unites us rather than separates us, the name of Jesus. Under heaven there is only one name which we are saved by and in in heaven every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Name above all Names.

 

100% or 0%

Proverbs 3:5 begins with the instruction “Trust in the Lord with all your heart…”

God did not call us to trust him with some or part, or even most. He commanded us to trust Him with ALL of our total being.

On numerous occasions, I have trusted Him with 99% but relied on my intellect to make decisions. After all, I reasoned, God gave me a brain and expects me to use it. And hearing the wisdom of others is important.

When it comes to trusting God, the matter is all or nothing. Either I have total faith in Him or I dont.

God has shown us what is right in the Bible and He reinforces and confirms that truth through the Holy Spirit. Mine and your responsibility is to do what is right 100% of the time and trust God for the outcome.

Either God is real or He isnt.

Either our trust is real or it isnt.

 

Freedom is Not Free

For 242 years, The United States of America have enjoyed political sovereignty and freedom. That freedom did not come freely however. A revolution was required. Men lost their lives, families and personal property in the process of becoming an independent nation.

In November 1968, my uncle died on foreign soil, wearing the uniform of The United States. He is just one of countless millions who have sacrificed themselves in defense of our freedom. Human blood is the cost required for liberty.

Prior to August 17, 1977, my soul was in bondage to sin, hell and death. A blood sacrifice was required in order to set me free. Jesus paid the price with His own death. I now enjoy spiritual liberty through Him. Freedom is not free,

On this holiday I celebrate my freedom as an American. I thank God for the ones who have paid the price for me.

Everyday I celebrate my freedom as a Christian. I thank God for the One who has paid the price for me.

Freedom is not free. I’m glad I did not have to pay for it.

 

Who Are You Trying To Please?

A few weeks ago, a friend asked how the church I lead is doing. Not well, I replied, ” I’m not contemporary enough.”

My friend quickly shot back, ” Not contemporary enough for whom?”

His comment got me to thinking. Our church doesn’t have a praise group, a rock band, flashy multimedia or a state of the art auditorium. I don’t preach in blue jeans, carry a microphone and my hair is not spiked. I don’t have facial hair nor wear tennis shoes. I yell, get red in the face and actually carry a paper Bible around with me. Our worship area is well- lit with windows and collection plates. We are what is called (eeww, here comes that icky word) “traditional. ”

What my friend was really asking is, ” Who are you trying to please, people or God?”

Worship, whether it be contemporary or traditional, is not meant to please us. It should be designed to please God. The most important consideration is whether or not God recieves glory . Our music, our clothing, our preaching, our giving, our fellowship. ..it must all be for His pleasure not ours. He is the audience not the congregation. We are not performers, we are worshippers.

Thank you my friend. Our church will do well if we focus on Jesus and Jesus alone. He will grow His church when it suits Him and not when it suits us.

 

Finishing the Race: Hebrews 12:1-2

The Bible uses the analogy of a “race” to describe the Christian life.

There are foot races, some based upon speed, others upon endurance. And, as we know, humans race with cars and horses and dogs, and even pigs. The goal is always the same: to finish the race and to win the race.

I am 56 years old. I began this “race” for Jesus 41 years ago when God saved me by His grace. At times I have been in the “lead.” At other times I have fallen behind, and felt as though I was in the back of the pack. I have fallen down. I have gotten off the track for a while, as others kept running. But I always “got back on track. ”

I have no idea when my race will end. But I intend to keep running. My goal is to finish and to win. As I run, I intend to do two things:

1. I will avoid looking at the others who are running. No one wins by looking side to side. No one wins by looking back. I must look forward. Jesus has already run the race and He is at the finish line, cheering me on.

2. I will quit worrying about the outcome. The prize has already been won. I just need to keep running in order to receive it. The prize is Jesus. I am not running for myself, nor others. I run for Him.

Competition is good, in the natural realm, for it makes us better athletes. In the spiritual realm, however, my competitors are not other Christians or preachers. My opponents are the world, the flesh and the devil.

The race for the heavenly crown is one of endurance not speed. I will not stop running until I reach the finish line and receive my reward.

 

Love Without End…Amen

God promised His children that He would love them with an everlasting love. 

Most of us know nothing about such love. Standing before God, a minister, family and friends, the overwhelming majority of couples repeat this phrase: “Till death do us part.” According to statistics, nearly half of them are lying through their teeth. Some “fall out of love”, others “grow apart “, while others have affairs and “fall in love” with someone else. 

I used to “love “coconut cake when I was younger. Now my tastes have changed and I don’t eat much cake at all, and when I do, I prefer yellow with white icing. 

Church members have said “I love my church” and within a few months they quit attending or find another one to “love.” Several people have declared their love for me in the past, but now we avoid speaking to one another in Walmart. When my sports team is winning, I love them. When they continually lose, I find other forms of entertainment.

Unlike you and me, the God of the universe never stops loving . All love starts and ends with Him. He is love. 

He loves us when we fail. He loves us when we hate. He loves us when we don’t love Him in return. He loves us when no one else does. He loves us forever.

He loved us before we were conceived in our mother’s womb and will love us when He takes back the spirit He breathed into us. He can do no other. And the amazing part is, He chooses to love. 

What shall we do in response to such endless, eternal, incredible love? The Reformers put it this way: the chief end of man is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever. As our brother in Christ used to sing, ” it’s a love without end.” Amen.