The Greatest Commandments

"Jesus replied, 'Love The Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself.' " Matthew 22:37-39 (NIV)

"... Heart ... soul ... mind ..." identifies the completeness of our love for The Lord. We should love The Lord with all of our being, as much as is humanly possible.

"... Your neighbor ..." is not just the person who lives next door, but refers to all people.

Some of us cannot remember or recite the ten commandments in order, but we can all remember these two commandments. Our problem is not remembering them, our problem is
keeping them and living them. We should pray daily for God to help us follow these two commandments.

All Things Are Possible If You Only Believe

"If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer." Matthew 21:22 (NIV)

If you have faith and do not doubt, it will be done, whatever it is that you pray for. That is, if it will give God glory and if it is not for selfish gain or pleasure.

God can do what to us is seemingly impossible, but we have to have faith and believe in Him.

Are You Built On Solid Rock Or Shifting Sand?

"Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash." Matthew 7:24-27 (NIV)

Our house, our religious life, will be tested and judged. Only those whose house is on the foundation of belief in and obedience to The Word of God will stand through the tests of life and the judgement. Just going to church once in a while or once a week is not enough. We need to believe, read, and live The Word of God.

The rock is The Word of God. The shifting sand is human opinion and the doctrines of man. Is your foundation built upon the solid rock or on shifting sand?

Admit Being Christian, Don't Deny Jesus

"Whoever acknowledges Me before men, I will also acknowledge him before My Father in heaven. But whoever disowns Me before men, I will disown him before My Father in heaven." Matthew 10:32-33 (NIV)

Do not be ashamed to admit that you believe in Jesus The Christ. Do not deny Him in order to be accepted by people here on earth. If we deny Him now, He will deny us later.

Do your family and friends know that you are a Christian? They should not only hear you say it, but they should see you live like it.

How Strong Is Your Faith?

"Then Jesus said to the centurion, 'Go! It will be done just as you believed it would.' And his servant was healed at that very hour." Matthew 8:13

Some times faith is involved in healing and blessings. Jesus was impressed by the "great faith"
(Matthew 8:10) of the centurion and answered his prayer. Jesus was also impressed by the faith of the paralytic and the men who brought him to Him (Matthew 9:2).

Before Jesus blessed the two blind men, He asked them did they believe, then He blessed them "According to your faith will it be done to you." (Matthew 9:27-30)

Many true believers are weak in their faith, and many have doubts. At one point Jesus rebuked the little faith of His disciples saying "You of little faith, why are you so afraid?" Matthew 8:26

Maybe we need to exercise and strengthen our faith. Just maybe the more that we believe and
step out on faith, the more He will bless us.

Beware Of False Prophets And False Friends

"Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit will you recognize them ..." Matthew 7:15-16

Don't follow everyone who wants to lead or direct you. Also, do not believe all that you hear. It is better to watch what a man does than it is to listen to what he says. A false prophet will soon show his wickedness.

People can impersonate friends and shepherds, pray for discernment and read The Bible to help you evaluate what you hear and whom you listen to. This applies to preachers, politicians, community leaders, and some times to friends and family.

Do not naively accept all that you hear. There is a difference between judging a person and discerning that which is true.

I Will Lift Up My Eyes

"I will lift up my eyes to the hills; where does my help come from? My help comes from The Lord, The Maker of heaven and earth." Psalms 121:1-2

In this sin sick world that we live in, we need to recognize and acknowledge that God is our helper, our keeper, our protector, and our preserver. We need to keep our eyes lifted up and focused upon Him.

As we journey through the uncertain circumstances of life, we need the help of The Lord. We must trust in The Lord in times of trouble (health, financial, relationship, or whatever) and when we think that all is fine. From day to day, from minute to minute, from moment to moment, we need The Lord. We can't make it on this journey without Him.

Give Thanks To God # 4

"Give thanks to The Lord, for He is good; His love endures forever." Psalms 106:1 (NIV)

May you have a blessed and joy filled celebration on the day of giving thanks to God for all that He has given to you.

Give Thanks To God # 3

O that we could all praise and thank The Lord now as David did then.

"David praised The Lord in the presence of the whole assembly saying, 'Praise be to you O Lord, God of our father Israel, from everlasting to everlasting. Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is Yours. Yours, O Lord is the kingdom; You are exalted as head over all. Wealth and honor come from You; You are the ruler of all things. In Your hands are strength and power to exalt and give strength to all. Now, our God, we give You thanks, and praise Your glorious name.' " 1 Chronicles 29:10-13

During this period of giving thanks, we should all pray and give thanks God for everything.

Give Thanks To God # 2

"Giving thanks always for all things unto God and The Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;" Ephesians 5:20 (KJV)

"Always giving thanks to God The Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ." Ephesians 5:20 (NIV)

We should be thankful to God for who He is, for all that He has done, and for what He has done for us through His Son, Jesus The Christ, our Lord and Savior.

We should be grateful for all things which are divinely allowed to enter our life since they will all be used for our good or the good of others.

Give Thanks To God

"Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let The Word of Christ dwell in you richly ... with gratitude in your heart to God. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of The Lord Jesus; giving thanks to God the Father through Him." Colossians 3:15-17 (NIV)

May we all be blessed during this period of giving thanks and may we remember to include The Word of God in your thoughts, words, and actions as you interact with family and friends. May
we exhibit good Christian behavior and reflect an attitude of gratitude to all that we encounter.

A Call To Praise And Thank God

"Make a joyful noise unto The Lord ... Serve The Lord with gladness ... He is God ... He ... made us ... we are His ... Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise; be thankful unto Him, and bless His name. For The Lord is good; His mercy is everlasting; and His truth endureth to all generations." Psalms 100:1-5 (KJV - King James version)

"Shout for joy to The Lord ... Worship The Lord with gladness ... He is God ... He ... made us ... we are His ... Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise; Give thanks to Him and praise His name. For The Lord is good and His love endures forever; His faithfulness continues through all generations." Psalms 100:1-5 (NIV - New International version)

This Psalm is a call to praise and thank The Lord. We are not only told to praise Him, but how to praise Him, and why we should praise Him.

During this period of celebration and giving thanks, and every day for that matter, we should let everyone that we come into contact with know that The Lord God is the source of all goodness and that we are grateful for all that He has done, is doing, and will do for us in the future.

Want A Long Productive Prosperous Life?

"The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree; he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon. Those that be planted in the house of The Lord shall flourish in the courts of our God. They shall still forth fruit in old age; they shall be fat and flourishing;" Psalms 92:12-14

The palm tree, in a barren land, is watered by deep roots. The cedars of Lebanon grow tall and are long-lived. Being planted in the courtyard of the temple is symbolic of thriving, in spite of the conditions, and prosperity for those who maintain a close relationship with The Lord. He will provide a permanent security and long lasting prosperity, even into old age.

The righteous shall have a fruitful and prosperous long life.

When You Pray Use Not Vain Repetitions

"And when thou prayest, thou shall not be as the hypocrites are ... that they may be seen of men ... pray to Thy Father which is in secret ... and Thy Father shall reward thee openly. But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do; for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking. Be not ye therefore like unto them; for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask Him." Matthew 6:5-8

Prayer is us talking to God. It should be a sincere, honest, personal, private conversation and not just a series of trite, overused, worn out expressions that we have heard others use. Every prayer should not be the same exact words, every time that we pray. How would you feel about someone who said the exact same thing to you every time they talked to you?

Prayers are not to be merely recited, nor are our words in prayer to be repeated thoughtlessly. Our prayers should differ as our daily situations change, even throughout a single day. "... The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much." James 5:16

Being Tried By The Lord Makes Us Better

"The fining pot is for silver, and the furnace for gold; but The Lord trieth the heart." Proverbs 17:3

Heat makes raw precious metals pure. Being heated to very high temperatures tests and refines silver and gold. Likewise, trials and tribulations make us better people. Our faith is tested and strengthened by the adversity and affliction that we endure.

The things that we go through in life make us stronger. We can be better witnesses for The Lord and have a better testimony after we endure the tests. Whatever He brings us to, He can bring us through. We may not like it while we are in it, but we will be better because of it.

What's On Your Mind, How Pure Are Your Thoughts?

"Commit thy works unto The Lord, and thy thoughts shall be established." Proverbs 16:3

Having trouble thinking sinful thoughts, then get busy working for The Lord. "An idle mind is the devil's workshop." Unknown Keep yourself and your mind occupied with Godly activities, like reading The Word of God, or doing something to be a helpful blessing to others.

While it is possible to deceive others, and do the "right thing for the wrong reasons", God knows our true motives. If we submit to the will of God, He will direct our thoughts and fulfill our righteous plans.

We need to clean up our thoughts, as well as our words and actions, and we need God's help to do it. Remember, as a man "... thinketh in his heart, so is he;" Proverbs 23:7

Now When I am Old And Greyheaded

"Now when I am old and greyheaded, O God, forsake me not; until I have shewed Thy strength unto this generation, and Thy power to every one that is to come." Psalms 71:18

Do not discard or disregard the "seasoned" senior saints, there is a lot of wisdom tied up in all those years that could be useful to the world. For we have seen, and experienced, and learned a lot during our Christian walk that could benefit the younger generations. We can truly testify, based upon our trials and tribulations, about the strength and power of The Lord and what He has done in our lives.

Listen when the elderly speak, you just may learn something. God is not through with us old folks yet, and with His help there is still kingdom building work for us to do. That is why we can pray this old man's prayer. We need God's help to guide our tongue as we speak to the next generation.

Seek Ye First The Kingdom Of God

"But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you." Matthew 6:33

God knows all of our needs, for food, for drink, for clothing, for lodging, for health, and for everything else. In fact, He knows what we will need before the need exists, and He can supply all of our needs.

God wants us to put Him first, to seek salvation, to seek Him and His righteous ways above everything else. When we commit our lives to Him, He will give us everything that we need.

We need to continually strive to get our spiritual life in order and making that our first priority, and God will take care of our material and physical needs.

Don't Argue With A Fool

"Go from the presence of a foolish man, when thou perceiveth not in him the lips of knowledge." Proverbs 14:7

At the point, during the course of your conversation or discussion with another individual, that you discover that he or she is foolish, you should just walk away from that person. You cannot have an intelligent Christian conversation with a foolish person.

We are to tell the world about our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, but it is up to the Holy Spirit the convict, convince, and convert them as He deems necessary. "... And The Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved." Acts 2:47 Converting folks is God's work.

"And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear you, when ye depart thence, shake off the dust under your feet for a testimony against them..." Mark 6:11

It has been said, "When you encounter a genius and a fool arguing, it is difficult to tell which one is which." Unknown

Delight Thyself In The Lord And Get Your Desires

"Delight thyself also in The Lord; and He shall give thee the desires of thine heart. Commit thy way unto The Lord; trust also in Him; and He shall bring it to pass." Psalms 37:4-5

When we find joy in The Lord and in reading The Word of God, He will give us what our heart desires because we will want that which is right for ourselves and others and that which gives Him glory.

We need to be committed to doing things His way. When we trust in Him, He will provide for us the desires of our heart.

Sharing With Others Will Lead To Your Blessings

"There is that scattereth, and yet increaseth; and there is that withholdeth more than is meet, but it tendeth to poverty." Proverbs 11:24

The principal here is that generosity produces increase, while stinginess when you have enough to share results in poverty.

"The liberal soul shall be made fat; and he that watereth shall be watered also himself." Proverbs 11:25

The word "fat" here equates to prosperity, and "watereth" implies to give or to bless. He that generously gives to others shall experience increases for himself. He that is a blessing to others, shall also be blessed himself. He that gives to others receives far more in return.

"What you give, you gain; and what you keep, you lose. God blesses the bountiful soul and repays what is cheerfully given." F. J. Dake

Don't Be Afraid Of Anything

"God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore will not we fear ..." Psalms 46:1-2

There is no need for us to be afraid of anything. God will strengthen us when we are weak. God will hid and shield us when we need protection. God will help us when we are in trouble.

So, what do we have to be afraid of? This Psalms gives us assurance and unshakable confidence that we are secure in God, no matter what happens to us, or around us. There is no need for us to be afraid of anything.

God is our "bridge over troubled waters", and "a shelter in the time of storm."

The Steps Of A Good Man

"The steps of a good man are ordered by The Lord; and he delighteth in his way. Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down; for The Lord upholdeth him with His hand." Psalms 37:23-24

It is not clear to me from my research whether the "... he ..." and "... his ..." in this verse should be read as "... and The Lord delighteth in a good man's way ..." or as "... and a good man delighteth in The Lord's way ..." It appears that either way we read it could be appropriate. However, the second seems to be consistent with Psalms 1:2.

What is very clear is that the steps and direction of a good person are established or guided by The Lord and even though we fall down, stumble in our walk with Him, or suffer hardships, we won't stay down, we will recover because The Lord is holding us up. We are in God's hand.

Don't Give Up, Hang In There

"Be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart, all ye that hope in The Lord." Psalms 31:24

When things get rough and the going gets tough, hang on in there, don't give up. The Good Lord has not forgotten us, our faith is just being tested. He just wants us to know that it is He that gives us the strength to carry on. When we need His strength, we just need to ask for it. "Be of good courage ..." He will help us make it through the storms of life.

Blessed And Protected

"The Angel of The Lord encampeth round about them that fear Him, and He delivereth them. O taste and see that The Lord is good; blessed is the man that trusteth in Him." Psalms 34:7-8

Try Him, you'll like Him, in fact, He's so good that you'll love Him. He can protect you from all hurt, harm, and danger, seen and unseen.

God Sees All That We Do And Judgement Is Coming

"For the ways of man are before the eyes of The Lord, and He pondereth all his goings." Proverbs 5:21

Some people say, "What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas." It is as if they believe that God is not there and that He does not see all that goes on in Las Vegas and everywhere else. That which is done in the dark will soon come to the light.

Imagine a video camera being focused upon you, 24 hours each day, 365 days of the year. Would you want that recording played back to all of your family and friends in church, especially if it included all that you said and thought?

On judgement day, Jesus is going to judge each of us on all of our thoughts, words, and deeds. Read Matthew 12:36-37 and Revelation 20:12-13. Repent now and ask for forgiveness for all sins, and pray for help to avoid them in the future.

Show Us The Way

Prayer is powerful. We should begin and end each day with prayer, and it is okay to pray multiple times during the day. The following prayer of David is a good way to start the day.

"Shew me Thy ways, O Lord; teach me Thy paths. Lead me in Thy truth, and teach me; for Thou art The God of my salvation; on Thee do I wait all the day." Psalms 25:4-5

We won't go wrong with God showing us the way, leading us, and teaching us. We need His help to do a better job of following His lead.

Watch Your Words

Watch what you say, before you speak, pray this prayer, or something just like it.

"Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in Thy sight, O Lord, my strength, and my redeemer." Psalms 19:14

We really ought to be much more careful regarding the words that we speak. Even what we think should be pleasing to God. We will be judged by not only that which we do, but also by what we say and think. (Read Matthew 12:36-37 & Matthew 5:28 & Proverbs 23:7)

When you pray, ask for forgiveness for sinful deeds, spoken words, and thoughts.

Want To Gain Favor With God?

"... Forget not my law; but let thine heart keep my commandments; For length of days, long life, and peace, shall they add to thee. Let not mercy and truth forsake thee; bind them about thy neck ... So shalt thou find favour and good understanding in the sight of God and man." Proverbs 3:1-4

A peaceful, long life and God's favour, that should make any Christian happy. You too can enjoy these blessings, all you have to do is believe and follow The Word of God.

If we keep God's word in our heart and on our mind, and have mercy and truth become a part of us so that we demonstrate acts of loving-kindness, we will have favour in the sight of God.

The Apocalypse

The Book of Revelation is probably the most difficult Book of The Bible to understand. It is The New Testament book of prophesy. It is written by a first century man presenting things revealed to him that are to come in the twenty-first century (or later), the apocalypse, the end of days.

There is a blessing in store for all who read, not necessarily understand, the Book of Revelation for it is full of symbols.

"Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy..." Revelation 1:3

To the believers, it teaches about the folly of living for things that will soon pass away. To the unbeliever, it offers a warning of doom that awaits all who reject Jesus Christ.

God Is Love

"Beloved, let us love one another; for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love." 1 John 4:7-8

God is the essence of love. All of us who are born again receive God's nature. This is not a reference to mere human love or lust, but the highest and ultimate form of agape love which is spiritual not physical.

Let us show the world the God in us by demonstrating love for one another. Jesus said, "By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another." John 13:35