Monthly Archives: September 2014

30 posts

Thought for the Lord’s Day

God continues to keep his promise. Our God is a faithful God! Today marks the Fall Equinox. Just as God promised thousands of years ago the seasons continue to change at his command.  The Sun begins its journey southward. Spring has begun in the southern hemisphere while the northern hemisphere welcomes Fall. As long planet Earth remains, this pattern will not cease. So, today provides yet another reason to praise the steadfast, faithful love of God. His word never fails. This is a reminder that regardless of the circumstances that we face, God remains faithful. You hope is secure. God is a refuge strong and sure! As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and […]

Listening – it’s the manly thing to do!

This post is directed to husbands and fathers. However, wives and moms are welcome to read as well. Feel free to pass this on to your husbands. He who answers before listening—        that is his folly and his shame.                                                                                                                                                             […]

Three ways to find stability in an uncertain world

There is a false notion that children can be protected from every danger and uncertainty of life. That simply is not true. You cannot protect your children from life itself.  The storms in Matthew 7 come to the wise and the unwise alike.  Until we go to be with Christ, sin and uncertainty will be a part of life. You cannot promise your children or yourself that unexpected, painful things will not happen.  They will.  Uncertainty is part of life.  Here are three biblical principles that speak to these uncertainties. Believing them will help you and your family find stability and peace. The first principle, from Luke 12 and Matthew 6, is that worry doesn’t help. Biblically, worry means a lack […]

Speaking the truth in love – the high calling of being a parent!

Note these important words from Instructing a Child’s Heart. “As parents, it is our divinely appointed task to commend God’s works to the next generation (Ps. 145:4). We are to proclaim God’s truth—not our own ideas. We get a sense of the importance of God’s words in Deuteronomy 32:46–47, “Take to heart all the words I have solemnly declared to you this day, so that you may command your children to obey carefully all the words of this law. . . . They are not just idle words for you—they are your life” (emphasis author’s). The Scriptures teach repeatedly that God’s Word alone provides truth that can bring life to the hearer. Our words must echo this. But they must […]

Teach your children about the danger of acceptable sins

Sin is making headlines these days. However, the media does not use the word sin to describe what is being reported. That might offend someone. And, of course, the list of wrong behaviors being reported is quite limited.  Certain acts of violence, both nationally and internationally, provide opportunities for sound bites and attract viewers, listeners, and readers. But there are other acts, other sins which are ignored. Abortion is a brutally violent act, but there is no media outrage over the thousands of unborn children who are legally murdered each year. Sexual sin is tearing apart the fabric of our culture and country.  Yet, immorality is reported as progress, tolerance and freedom of expression.  The sin of praying to any […]

A Biblical Response to Irritating People

Do you know people that irritate you? Do you have some friends or family members that you find annoying? No, these are not trick questions, just honest ones. The Holy Spirit wrote the Bible to help you deal with irritating, annoying people. And, as always, God’s answers are not our answers. The church in Philippi was having some people problems. So, Paul wrote a letter to address their concerns. There is much for us to consider in Philippians about relationships. But, I just want to focus on one point today. God wants you to consider the irritating, annoying people in your life as being more significant, more important than you are.  Now, obeying God’s command to do this will not, […]

Thought for the Lord’s Day

God’s message for all of humanity: Praise Him!   God commands praise from all of the earth, from all of the people of earth. Only God’s love is unfailing. Only God is faithful forever.  No one else is worthy of praise! The worship of God is not optional for the human race. This one truth is the foundation for life itself: God is to be praised.    In his wisdom the Holy Spirit wrote an entire Psalm to capture this truth. Why not learn it, live it and love it? Bring its message to all of your life.    Sometimes we forget that the Holy Spirit is the most articulate and brilliant of all authors. He alone set the literary […]

Are you dominated by joyfulness?

There is much in life that brings sadness and disappointment. Life can be difficult for many reasons. But, for those who know God, joyfulness is always appropriate.   Joyfulness is believing that God will work all things together for my good, so I never have to despair. I can be joyful even when I am sad.  Because of the rich mercy and grace of God there is always reason for joy. Even when we don’t feel joyful God commands that we are to always rejoice ( 1 Thessalonians 5:18).  You see, God has promised never to leave us or turn away from us. Because of this great truth we can know joy even in sadness. Here is a prayer for […]

Update: The NFL, Domestic Violence, the Gospel and an impotent church

The headlines from the sports world have forced themselves into the national headlines. Men  are violently attacking women. Owners and players alike are using recreational drugs, performance enhancing drugs and engaging in sexually immoral behavior. The NFL has enacted new policies and punishment protocols. The NFL is heavily involved in educational programs to prevent these problems. Yet they persist.   There is one politically incorrect initiative that the NFL has not embraced. The league would receive harsh, scathing criticism if they chose to follow this strategy.  Yet, it is the only option available to the NFL, to colleges and other sports organizations that will bring genuine change to the hearts of those involved.   If the NFL were to urge […]

God’s answer to domestic violence

A wife is to be treated with great respect and honor,  even if she is not as physically strong as her husband. A wife will receive the same gift of life as her husband. A wife is to be intimately understood by her husband. She is not subservient to him in any way. Husbands who fail to grasp these basic truths will have their prayers hindered by God. These are some of the things that we learn from I Peter 3:7. When husbands physically intimidate their wives, either by threat or by injury, they turn from God and bring disgust and dishonor upon themselves. When husbands verbally intimidate their wives they fail to treat them with the understanding and respect […]