What is the age that you are too old to realize your dreams? If you haven’t accomplished your goals or reached your dreams by ???? it too late? How would you fill in the age blank? Well, let’s see there was Moses that was 80 when God called him to lead Israel out of Egypt. God spent eighty years getting him ready for forty years of service. Abraham was 75 when he made the biggest change of his life pulling up stakes and starting on a journey not knowing the destination, but just day by day listening to God’s voice to let him know when he’d arrived. He was 100 when Isaac was born. Isaac was the son of promise the son of his dreams.
Today we hear people as young as their 50s, 40s, sometimes even their 30s filled with regrets that they didn’t do this or that or accomplish this dream or that goal. Our country’s custom of retirement has limited our mental ability to dream until we lay down and die. How old is too old? When is it no longer possible to accomplish the things we have set out to do? Some of you are saying, “All the examples you gave are thousands of years ago. Find me one today.” Okay, here’s one from today. Let me tell you about Mae Laborde. She’s appeared on a recent episode of MADtv playing Vanna White (of Wheel of Fortune fame) forty years in the future. You may have seen her in commercials for Lexus or Chase Bank or as a cheerleader on ESPN. She’s 97 years old, and she’s one of the hottest properties in Hollywood today.
No, it’s not unusual to be nearing 100-years-old and be popular in Hollywood. Bob Hope, George Burns and Gloria Stuart are just a few who can lay claim to that. But what makes Mae more than just a little special is she’s only been acting for four years —— she didn’t get her Screen Actor’s Guild card until she was 93! Thank you Mae for proving once again it’s never too late to live your dream!
I knew a missionary couple who served several decades as missionaries in remote parts of the world. They retired and after they came home, attended college to finish their degrees in their 80s. When is it too late to realize your dreams?
I heard somewhere that dreaming in your sleep is necessary to live. I don’t know for sure about that one, but I do know that Proverbs 29:18 (KJV) says, “Where there is no vision, the people perish...” The proverb writer is simply saying, “When you stop dreaming, you stop living.” So how old is too old to dream and realize your dreams? Your too old to live when you think your too old too dream. We are in control of that moment in our lives. Ever notice how many people reach retirement age and soon die? It’s because they stop dreaming.
God never stops dreaming for you. He has a plan, a dream for you (Jeremiah 29:11) so embrace it, whatever your age, and dream on. But don’t just live in a world of dreams, but let your dreams begin to live. I spoke at a memorial service last Saturday. I talked about Four Things I Know. The first of the four is that Death is everyone’s Destiny. Hebrews 9:27 (NIV) reminds us that “man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment.” But we don’t have to stop living before we die.
Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank You for the gift of life. Help me to live everyday to the full, bringing honor and glory to Your name. You said in John 10:10 that You came to bring us life and life to the full. I want to fulfill Your dream for my life. AMEN.
Blessings!
Pastor Roger
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
Thursday, May 17, 2007
The Secret
The big secret in life is that there is no big secret. Whatever your goal, you can get there if you're willing to work. —Oprah Winfrey
Now, if you have been around LIFEchurch you know that while I have a high respect for Oprah Winfrey, and believe she is a good woman with great leadership skills who is maybe one of the greatest givers of all time her theology is messed up. I get concerned about the gullible people who hear her say that there are many ways to God that include all the religions of the world. That is dooming many who believe her to an eternity in hell because there is only one way to God... Jesus Christ.
Anyway, I say that just so you will know that I don’t promote everything she says because I believe she got it right on one issue. So, there you have it. That said... she has it right on the issue of work and success in this life. There is a book out called “The Secret.” It has drawn national attention. I have not read the book in its entirety, but from the excerpts I have gotten by emails, on the web, etc. I can tell that for the most part the principles promoted are simple, basic life principles. They are even Biblical principles. There are many motivational speakers and books out there that teach these principles, but they are communicated in a way that anyone of any religion can benefit. And they work because they are God’s law. They are like the law of gravity. It works whether I believe in God or not. If I go up, I must come down. Things like hard work, a positive attitude, integrity, and honesty will move one to success in life. You can become rich, have nice houses, a big retirement, lots of money to spend on very nice things, and live the “good life” even if you don’t believe there is a God.
Hard work will get you just about anywhere you want to go in life... except a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God--not by works, so that no one can boast.” Ephesians 2:8-9 (NIV)
I believe in living successful lives. I even believe that it is God’s will that we be successful and prosper while we live on this earth. But we must never forget that this is the shortest part of our existence no matter how many years we may live on this earth. Jesus talked about success oriented people spending their lives winning in the world, but forgetting the most important thing. “What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul?” Mark 8:36 (NIV)
So you see, you can be successful, give away millions... even billions, bless people on every hand, be respected as a giving, compassionate, caring, and successful person; and still miss the most important “secret” of life.
“I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.” —Jesus Christ
If you have questions about a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, drop me an email or visit us at LIFEchurch.
Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank you for all the blessings in my life, but most of all thank you for eternal life, life beyond this life that will surpass any level of “success” I may experience here. Help me not to get so comfortable here and enjoy what I have now so much that I lose the anticipation for heaven. AMEN
If you don’t have a personal relationship with Jesus pray this simple prayer:
Lord Jesus, I am sinner that needs a Savior. You are the only one that can save my from my sins. Forgive me right now for every sin in my life. I believe You are the Son of God. I believe that You gave Your life on the cross for me. I believe that You died, but God raised You from the dead and You live today. I confess my sins to You now and accept the gift of salvation that You freely offer. Thank you for saving me and guide me to a church where I can grow in my new found faith. AMEN.
Blessings!
Pastor Roger
Now, if you have been around LIFEchurch you know that while I have a high respect for Oprah Winfrey, and believe she is a good woman with great leadership skills who is maybe one of the greatest givers of all time her theology is messed up. I get concerned about the gullible people who hear her say that there are many ways to God that include all the religions of the world. That is dooming many who believe her to an eternity in hell because there is only one way to God... Jesus Christ.
Anyway, I say that just so you will know that I don’t promote everything she says because I believe she got it right on one issue. So, there you have it. That said... she has it right on the issue of work and success in this life. There is a book out called “The Secret.” It has drawn national attention. I have not read the book in its entirety, but from the excerpts I have gotten by emails, on the web, etc. I can tell that for the most part the principles promoted are simple, basic life principles. They are even Biblical principles. There are many motivational speakers and books out there that teach these principles, but they are communicated in a way that anyone of any religion can benefit. And they work because they are God’s law. They are like the law of gravity. It works whether I believe in God or not. If I go up, I must come down. Things like hard work, a positive attitude, integrity, and honesty will move one to success in life. You can become rich, have nice houses, a big retirement, lots of money to spend on very nice things, and live the “good life” even if you don’t believe there is a God.
Hard work will get you just about anywhere you want to go in life... except a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God--not by works, so that no one can boast.” Ephesians 2:8-9 (NIV)
I believe in living successful lives. I even believe that it is God’s will that we be successful and prosper while we live on this earth. But we must never forget that this is the shortest part of our existence no matter how many years we may live on this earth. Jesus talked about success oriented people spending their lives winning in the world, but forgetting the most important thing. “What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul?” Mark 8:36 (NIV)
So you see, you can be successful, give away millions... even billions, bless people on every hand, be respected as a giving, compassionate, caring, and successful person; and still miss the most important “secret” of life.
“I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.” —Jesus Christ
If you have questions about a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, drop me an email or visit us at LIFEchurch.
Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank you for all the blessings in my life, but most of all thank you for eternal life, life beyond this life that will surpass any level of “success” I may experience here. Help me not to get so comfortable here and enjoy what I have now so much that I lose the anticipation for heaven. AMEN
If you don’t have a personal relationship with Jesus pray this simple prayer:
Lord Jesus, I am sinner that needs a Savior. You are the only one that can save my from my sins. Forgive me right now for every sin in my life. I believe You are the Son of God. I believe that You gave Your life on the cross for me. I believe that You died, but God raised You from the dead and You live today. I confess my sins to You now and accept the gift of salvation that You freely offer. Thank you for saving me and guide me to a church where I can grow in my new found faith. AMEN.
Blessings!
Pastor Roger
Wednesday, May 16, 2007
The Power of Imagination
Albert Einstein said, “Imagination is everything. It is the preview of life’s coming attractions.”
What is imagination? According to “The American College Dictionary” it is “the action of forming mental images or concepts of what is not actually present to the senses; the power of reproducing images stored in the memory under the suggestion of associated images; or of recombining former experiences in the creation of new images different from any known by experience.”
Sounds like a complicated way of defining what my teachers used to accuse me of in school... daydreaming. In other words dreaming while you are awake. A friend of mine, Pastor Vic Schober, likes to do what he calls “imagineering.” This whole concept is very important in the pages of Scripture. Dreams were big in the Bible. Great experiences begin with a dream. Sometimes it is a dream while sleeping or what was called a “vision,” a dream while awake. We see those kind of things as supernatural events, God giving someone a dream or a vision. But the truth is that every dream or vision, whether we perceive it as a supernatural event of God giving it sovereignly and purposefully to someone or a dream that we just sit down and choose to think about, is supernatural because they bring things that do not exist into being.
Joseph’s dreams became the reality of his life. He interpreted dreams for others that predicted their future reality. Daniel’s Seventy Weeks Vision of end time events is a dream that is unfolding before us on a daily basis. Daniel interpreted dreams for others that became a reality in their lives.
I checked Naves Topical Bible and found 26 instances of dreams in the Bible. Then I checked for “vision” and found pages and pages of examples from Scripture. The book of Revelation in its entirety is a vision.
The mind is a powerful thing. I have to be careful here or some will think we are getting weird, getting into mind over matter or other creepy things. But just think (put your mind into action) with me for a moment. In the beginning God made man. The Bible said He created man in His own image. Now, God is a spirit so we can’t see a physical form. What was He referring to when He said in Genesis 1:27 “God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him: male and female he created them.”?
He couldn’t mean that physically we look like God. Sorry to disappoint some of you that may think you look like a god. Image... the word is the root of “imagination.” According to Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance the Hebrew word translated as “image” is “tselem” and means “to shade; a phantom, i.e. an illusion, resemblance; hence, a representative figure, especially an idol.” We are the result of God’s imagination, God’s creativity. In fact, everything in creation was the result of God’s imagination at work. Doesn’t this give more reality to “As a man thinks in his heart, so is he?” Or Paul’s admonition instructing us to think on good things in Philippians 4:8?
Imagination is not just the power of man’s mind. It is the power of God in man’s mind. So everything that we have experienced, every new thing that is invented, every amazing medical miracle, every trip into outer space, and on and on it could go... is really the result of the creative nature of God imagining through us. God said of the people building the tower of Babel, “Nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them.” (Genesis 11:6) The old King James Version actually says, “now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have IMAGINED to do.” (emphasis mine)
So do some dreaming today. Change your future with the God given power of dreaming, seeing what is not yet present to the senses.
Prayer: Lord Jesus help me today to discipline my mind to think on those things that You dream for me, the plans You declare You have for me. You desire good for me, success for me, blessing for me. You said that you came that I could experience life to the full. Help me to become everything You have imagined for me. Make me a dreamer like Joseph. AMEN.
Blessings!
Pastor Roger
What is imagination? According to “The American College Dictionary” it is “the action of forming mental images or concepts of what is not actually present to the senses; the power of reproducing images stored in the memory under the suggestion of associated images; or of recombining former experiences in the creation of new images different from any known by experience.”
Sounds like a complicated way of defining what my teachers used to accuse me of in school... daydreaming. In other words dreaming while you are awake. A friend of mine, Pastor Vic Schober, likes to do what he calls “imagineering.” This whole concept is very important in the pages of Scripture. Dreams were big in the Bible. Great experiences begin with a dream. Sometimes it is a dream while sleeping or what was called a “vision,” a dream while awake. We see those kind of things as supernatural events, God giving someone a dream or a vision. But the truth is that every dream or vision, whether we perceive it as a supernatural event of God giving it sovereignly and purposefully to someone or a dream that we just sit down and choose to think about, is supernatural because they bring things that do not exist into being.
Joseph’s dreams became the reality of his life. He interpreted dreams for others that predicted their future reality. Daniel’s Seventy Weeks Vision of end time events is a dream that is unfolding before us on a daily basis. Daniel interpreted dreams for others that became a reality in their lives.
I checked Naves Topical Bible and found 26 instances of dreams in the Bible. Then I checked for “vision” and found pages and pages of examples from Scripture. The book of Revelation in its entirety is a vision.
The mind is a powerful thing. I have to be careful here or some will think we are getting weird, getting into mind over matter or other creepy things. But just think (put your mind into action) with me for a moment. In the beginning God made man. The Bible said He created man in His own image. Now, God is a spirit so we can’t see a physical form. What was He referring to when He said in Genesis 1:27 “God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him: male and female he created them.”?
He couldn’t mean that physically we look like God. Sorry to disappoint some of you that may think you look like a god. Image... the word is the root of “imagination.” According to Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance the Hebrew word translated as “image” is “tselem” and means “to shade; a phantom, i.e. an illusion, resemblance; hence, a representative figure, especially an idol.” We are the result of God’s imagination, God’s creativity. In fact, everything in creation was the result of God’s imagination at work. Doesn’t this give more reality to “As a man thinks in his heart, so is he?” Or Paul’s admonition instructing us to think on good things in Philippians 4:8?
Imagination is not just the power of man’s mind. It is the power of God in man’s mind. So everything that we have experienced, every new thing that is invented, every amazing medical miracle, every trip into outer space, and on and on it could go... is really the result of the creative nature of God imagining through us. God said of the people building the tower of Babel, “Nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them.” (Genesis 11:6) The old King James Version actually says, “now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have IMAGINED to do.” (emphasis mine)
So do some dreaming today. Change your future with the God given power of dreaming, seeing what is not yet present to the senses.
Prayer: Lord Jesus help me today to discipline my mind to think on those things that You dream for me, the plans You declare You have for me. You desire good for me, success for me, blessing for me. You said that you came that I could experience life to the full. Help me to become everything You have imagined for me. Make me a dreamer like Joseph. AMEN.
Blessings!
Pastor Roger
Tuesday, May 15, 2007
What is the Profit?
Many of you who readthis daily devotion are business people. In the business world the pressure is on us to show a profit. I even feel that in the church. The pressure is on to show increase. Increase in attendance, increase in income, increase in outreach and ministry, and on an on it goes. In business you must show increase or profit in sales, in productivity, in efficiency, in the bottom line, and on and on it goes for you. As a parent you need to show increase in weight and growth when they are infants (we reach a point in life where profit is decrease), progress in activity from playing with their feet to crawling, to pulling up, to walking, to running, to riding a bicycle, to driving a car (that’s scary!). Then, as they grow increase in responsibility, in good grades (there’s the TAKS test you know), then finally, graduation. The point is that profit is a part of all our lives in some way. It looks different in every case but it is profit nonetheless.
We generally think of profit in some quantifiable form. It has to fit on a graph somehow, but here’s a different perspective on profit...
“Showing a profit means touching something and leaving it better than you found it.” —Jim Rohn
The Bible actually has some things to say about profit too...
“All hard work brings a profit, but mere talk leads only to poverty.” Proverbs 14:23 (NIV)
“The plans of the diligent lead to profit as surely as haste leads to poverty.” Proverbs 21:5 (NIV)
Sometimes we get to intent on “counting beans” and forget the profit of our changed life and changing other lives. This story illustrates this struggle for us...
The young man was feeling very proud of himself. As a brand-new college graduate he had taken the C.P.A. Exams and passed with flying colors. Now he was a full-fledged Certified Public Accountant.
His father had been an immigrant to the U.S., & now owned his own little business. Filled with self-importance, the young man began to criticize his father’s way of keeping books. He said, “Dad, you don’t even know how much profit you’ve made. Over here in this drawer is your accounts receivable. Over there are your receipts, and you keep all your money in the cash register. You don’t have any idea how much you’ve made.”
The father answered, “Son, when I came to this country the only thing I owned was a pair of pants. Now, your brother is a doctor, your sister is an art teacher, and you are a C.P.A. Your mother and I own our home. We have a car, and we own this little business. Now add that up, subtract the pants, and all the rest is profit.”
I believe if we consistently touch people, business, products, an office environment, a neighborhood, a community, etc. it will produce profit in our lives. Profit in satisfaction and contentment of heart. Profit in calmer more serene homes and offices. Profit in safer, more productive communities. And, yes, more quantifiable produce in our lives, more money in the bank, more money flowing through our hands to bless others. It’s just a thought to chew on.
Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank You for touching me and leaving me better than You found me. Help me to carry that legacy into the world where I live and serve. Help me today and everyday to touch something, someone and leave it better than I found it.
Blessings!
Pastor Roger
We generally think of profit in some quantifiable form. It has to fit on a graph somehow, but here’s a different perspective on profit...
“Showing a profit means touching something and leaving it better than you found it.” —Jim Rohn
The Bible actually has some things to say about profit too...
“All hard work brings a profit, but mere talk leads only to poverty.” Proverbs 14:23 (NIV)
“The plans of the diligent lead to profit as surely as haste leads to poverty.” Proverbs 21:5 (NIV)
Sometimes we get to intent on “counting beans” and forget the profit of our changed life and changing other lives. This story illustrates this struggle for us...
The young man was feeling very proud of himself. As a brand-new college graduate he had taken the C.P.A. Exams and passed with flying colors. Now he was a full-fledged Certified Public Accountant.
His father had been an immigrant to the U.S., & now owned his own little business. Filled with self-importance, the young man began to criticize his father’s way of keeping books. He said, “Dad, you don’t even know how much profit you’ve made. Over here in this drawer is your accounts receivable. Over there are your receipts, and you keep all your money in the cash register. You don’t have any idea how much you’ve made.”
The father answered, “Son, when I came to this country the only thing I owned was a pair of pants. Now, your brother is a doctor, your sister is an art teacher, and you are a C.P.A. Your mother and I own our home. We have a car, and we own this little business. Now add that up, subtract the pants, and all the rest is profit.”
I believe if we consistently touch people, business, products, an office environment, a neighborhood, a community, etc. it will produce profit in our lives. Profit in satisfaction and contentment of heart. Profit in calmer more serene homes and offices. Profit in safer, more productive communities. And, yes, more quantifiable produce in our lives, more money in the bank, more money flowing through our hands to bless others. It’s just a thought to chew on.
Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank You for touching me and leaving me better than You found me. Help me to carry that legacy into the world where I live and serve. Help me today and everyday to touch something, someone and leave it better than I found it.
Blessings!
Pastor Roger
Monday, May 14, 2007
Wish You Were Smarter?
In her article “Why Smart People Make Bad Moves,” Yahoo! Financial columnist Laura Rowley examines a recent study from Ohio State University on the relationship between a person’s IQ and his or her financial situation. She summarizes the study this way: “Smart people can be boneheads when it comes to accumulating wealth, and the average Joe can become the millionaire next door.”
According to the study each point increase in IQ test scores raised income by between $234 and $616 per year. But this didn’t protect higher IQ people from financial woes. In fact, higher IQ people had just as high, if not higher rates of late bills, maxed-out credit cards, and even bankruptcies. The bottom line: Just because you’re smart doesn’t mean you’re smart in using your smartness.
I guess that’s the difference between knowledge and wisdom. God spoke that in Scripture a long time ago: “For the foolishness of God is wiser than man’s wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man’s strength” (I Corinthians 1:25). A question comes to my mind. Solomon was the wisest man ever and he was very wealthy too. Wonder what his IQ was?
According to Rowley, here are some reasons why your average next-door neighbor might be a millionaire while you sit in your living room paying off your maxed-out Visa bill.
They Make Their Own Rules: Rowley quotes Loral Langemeier, author of The Millionaire Maker: “Many wealthy people didn’t do well in school; it was too structured for them. But they’re creative, intuitive, and have street smarts——they understand how things work, and how to get business done.”
They Get Knocked Down, But They Get Up Again:’ “It’s hustle,” says real estate magnate Barbara Corcoran in Rowley’s article. “Hustle is being too stupid to know that you should lay low when you keep getting slammed.”
They Succeed Through Social Intelligence: Another characteristic of average people who become millionaires is that they surround themselves with teams that compensate for their weaknesses.
They Take More Risks and, Consequently, Reap More Rewards: People with average brains may be more naive and willing to jump in——start a business or make an investment——than their high-IQ counterparts, who ponder every angle and know too much about the potential downsides of a proposition to take a risk. Highly intelligent people are many times more adverse to risk.
So if you’re reading this today thinking about how smart you are…… get over yourself. It really doesn’t qualify you to do better things than your “sub-genius” friends.
And, if you’re reading this today wishing you werea bit smarter…… be encouraged that there are many things other than your IQ and training that figure into a successful, fruit-‘producing lives. The bottom line is that God is in charge. And being in charge He has put into the mix the laws of sowing and reaping. Just good old farmer’s common sense. What ever you plant... that is what you will get. You will get more than you plant back and the more you plant to more you harvest. You have to be patient after you plant because it takes a while for the seed to grow. They work for anyone no matter what their IQ is. God honors faith and faithfulness in our lives.
Galatians 6:7 “...a man reaps what he sow.” 2 Corinthians 9:6 “Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously.”
Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank you for today’s opportunities. Give me the real wisdom to know what to do in every situation that will bring honor to Your name and blessing to my life. I trust You to know what is best so give me ears to hear Your voice above the noise in the world I work and live in. AMEN.
Blessings!
Pastor Roger
According to the study each point increase in IQ test scores raised income by between $234 and $616 per year. But this didn’t protect higher IQ people from financial woes. In fact, higher IQ people had just as high, if not higher rates of late bills, maxed-out credit cards, and even bankruptcies. The bottom line: Just because you’re smart doesn’t mean you’re smart in using your smartness.
I guess that’s the difference between knowledge and wisdom. God spoke that in Scripture a long time ago: “For the foolishness of God is wiser than man’s wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man’s strength” (I Corinthians 1:25). A question comes to my mind. Solomon was the wisest man ever and he was very wealthy too. Wonder what his IQ was?
According to Rowley, here are some reasons why your average next-door neighbor might be a millionaire while you sit in your living room paying off your maxed-out Visa bill.
They Make Their Own Rules: Rowley quotes Loral Langemeier, author of The Millionaire Maker: “Many wealthy people didn’t do well in school; it was too structured for them. But they’re creative, intuitive, and have street smarts——they understand how things work, and how to get business done.”
They Get Knocked Down, But They Get Up Again:’ “It’s hustle,” says real estate magnate Barbara Corcoran in Rowley’s article. “Hustle is being too stupid to know that you should lay low when you keep getting slammed.”
They Succeed Through Social Intelligence: Another characteristic of average people who become millionaires is that they surround themselves with teams that compensate for their weaknesses.
They Take More Risks and, Consequently, Reap More Rewards: People with average brains may be more naive and willing to jump in——start a business or make an investment——than their high-IQ counterparts, who ponder every angle and know too much about the potential downsides of a proposition to take a risk. Highly intelligent people are many times more adverse to risk.
So if you’re reading this today thinking about how smart you are…… get over yourself. It really doesn’t qualify you to do better things than your “sub-genius” friends.
And, if you’re reading this today wishing you werea bit smarter…… be encouraged that there are many things other than your IQ and training that figure into a successful, fruit-‘producing lives. The bottom line is that God is in charge. And being in charge He has put into the mix the laws of sowing and reaping. Just good old farmer’s common sense. What ever you plant... that is what you will get. You will get more than you plant back and the more you plant to more you harvest. You have to be patient after you plant because it takes a while for the seed to grow. They work for anyone no matter what their IQ is. God honors faith and faithfulness in our lives.
Galatians 6:7 “...a man reaps what he sow.” 2 Corinthians 9:6 “Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously.”
Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank you for today’s opportunities. Give me the real wisdom to know what to do in every situation that will bring honor to Your name and blessing to my life. I trust You to know what is best so give me ears to hear Your voice above the noise in the world I work and live in. AMEN.
Blessings!
Pastor Roger
Thursday, May 10, 2007
The Blessing of Pain
Pain is not necessarily a bad thing. None of us really go around looking for opportunities to experience pain either physical, emotional, or otherwise. In fact, many people do everything they can to avoid pain or mask pain they are experiencing. Much of the drug use and alcohol abuse in the world today is to cover pain... physical, emotional, and spiritual pain. People going through terrific pain in life will escape for a while through the artificial euphoria induced by drugs (illegal or prescription) or alcohol.
Proverbs actually describes the masking of pain by drinking wine. “Do not gaze at wine when it is red, when it sparkles in the cup, when it goes down smoothly! In the end it bites like a snake and poisons like a viper. Your eyes will see strange sights and your mind imagine confusing things. You will be like one sleeping on the high seas, lying on top of the rigging. ‘They hit me,’ you will say, ‘but I'm not hurt! They beat me, but I don't feel it! When will I wake up so I can find another drink?’" Proverbs 23:31-35 (NIV)
The truth is that God has given us pain as a warning sign, an alarm for us to pay attention to and discover the cause of the pain. It is a call to UNCOVER the cause of pain not COVERUP up the pain.
In, "Where Is God When It Hurts" Philip Yancey tells the story of NBA basketball player Bob Gross. He insisted on playing in a key game despite a badly injured ankle. Knowing that Gross was an important part of the game, the team doctor injected Marcaine, a strong painkiller into three different places of his foot. Gross started the game, but after a few minutes, as he was battling for a rebound, a loud snap! could be heard throughout the arena. Gross, oblivious to the break, ran up and down the court twice more, then crumpled to the floor. He felt no pain, and yet a bone had broken in his ankle. By overriding pain’’s warning system with the anesthetic, the doctor had caused permanent damage and ended the basketball career of Bob Gross. This doctor failed his profession. He had been trained to heal the cause of pain, but instead chose to cover it up causing irreparable damage.
Bob Gross brought his pain to a doctor and received what he wanted (please stop the pain so I can play) instead of what he needed (instructions to get off the foot so he wouldn’t further injure the ankle and proper support until it healed, followed by therapy to strengthen the ankle and minimize the risk of further injury). Here’s what I know... we can bring all our pain to Jesus and always be assured that we will receive what we need not just what we want. The pain may not go away instantly, but if we will take the counsel of the Word and others Jesus places in our lives to help us we will find the cause of the pain, treat it, eliminate it, and return to life healed and restored. Sometimes because of the pain of sin we have to sit out a few games. That’s not fun, but better a few games than the rest of our life.
So, don’t curse the pain in your life. Listen to it. It’s trying to save you more pain and possible even your life. Then there is a time coming when there will be no more pain. “He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away." Revelation 21:4 (NIV)
Prayer: Lord Jesus, forgive me for not listening to the pain in my life and bringing it to the Great Physician. I bring You my pain today to know its source and its cure. My heart and my ears are open to hear Your counsel to me. Thank you for Your faithfulness. AMEN.
Blessings!
Pastor Roger
Proverbs actually describes the masking of pain by drinking wine. “Do not gaze at wine when it is red, when it sparkles in the cup, when it goes down smoothly! In the end it bites like a snake and poisons like a viper. Your eyes will see strange sights and your mind imagine confusing things. You will be like one sleeping on the high seas, lying on top of the rigging. ‘They hit me,’ you will say, ‘but I'm not hurt! They beat me, but I don't feel it! When will I wake up so I can find another drink?’" Proverbs 23:31-35 (NIV)
The truth is that God has given us pain as a warning sign, an alarm for us to pay attention to and discover the cause of the pain. It is a call to UNCOVER the cause of pain not COVERUP up the pain.
In, "Where Is God When It Hurts" Philip Yancey tells the story of NBA basketball player Bob Gross. He insisted on playing in a key game despite a badly injured ankle. Knowing that Gross was an important part of the game, the team doctor injected Marcaine, a strong painkiller into three different places of his foot. Gross started the game, but after a few minutes, as he was battling for a rebound, a loud snap! could be heard throughout the arena. Gross, oblivious to the break, ran up and down the court twice more, then crumpled to the floor. He felt no pain, and yet a bone had broken in his ankle. By overriding pain’’s warning system with the anesthetic, the doctor had caused permanent damage and ended the basketball career of Bob Gross. This doctor failed his profession. He had been trained to heal the cause of pain, but instead chose to cover it up causing irreparable damage.
Bob Gross brought his pain to a doctor and received what he wanted (please stop the pain so I can play) instead of what he needed (instructions to get off the foot so he wouldn’t further injure the ankle and proper support until it healed, followed by therapy to strengthen the ankle and minimize the risk of further injury). Here’s what I know... we can bring all our pain to Jesus and always be assured that we will receive what we need not just what we want. The pain may not go away instantly, but if we will take the counsel of the Word and others Jesus places in our lives to help us we will find the cause of the pain, treat it, eliminate it, and return to life healed and restored. Sometimes because of the pain of sin we have to sit out a few games. That’s not fun, but better a few games than the rest of our life.
So, don’t curse the pain in your life. Listen to it. It’s trying to save you more pain and possible even your life. Then there is a time coming when there will be no more pain. “He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away." Revelation 21:4 (NIV)
Prayer: Lord Jesus, forgive me for not listening to the pain in my life and bringing it to the Great Physician. I bring You my pain today to know its source and its cure. My heart and my ears are open to hear Your counsel to me. Thank you for Your faithfulness. AMEN.
Blessings!
Pastor Roger
Wednesday, May 9, 2007
Behold and Beware
Someone said, “The two great words of antiquity are behold and beware. Behold the possibilities and beware the temptations and dangers.”
One of the great “beholds” of the Bible is in John 1:29 and 36. John the Baptist saw Jesus walking by and he stood and said, “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” The next day he saw him again and He stood and said, “Behold the Lamb of God!”
The word simply means “look,” “be aware,” “don’t miss this moment.” It almost as if one is saying, “This is an opportunity of a lifetime... don’t miss it.” John wanted them to know that this was not just another man walking by. This was Divinity in flesh, and He was going to change everything.
The other word is “beware.” In the Bible you hear things like “Beware of false prophets” or “beware of the scribes” or “beware of the dogs.” It is a word of caution. It means, as well as “behold” does, to see it and not to miss it, but “behold” says, “Don’t miss it so you can embrace it” and “beware” says, “Don’t miss it so you can avoid it.”
One has to do with opportunities and the other with opposition that wants to keep you from the opportunities. We all have unlimited opportunities in life. We just don’t behold them. I challenge you today to look up and see, “behold” the opportunities that God places before you today. Opportunity is not always obvious. Thomas Edison said, “Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.” It doesn’t often just jump out and grab your attention. You have to be on the alert, ready to see it.
On the other hand temptation jumps out in front of us to trip us up, to blind us to the opportunities. Did you ever ask yourself why opportunity knocks once but temptations bangs on the door constantly? I am not sure I have the answer but it sure is true.
Truthfully, opportunity and danger are pretty close. The concept of “crisis” in Chinese is represented by two words, "danger" and "opportunity." When we manage the crisis of our lives following the example of Jesus Christ, we are able to turn the dangers and disasters of life into opportunities to fulfill the will of God.
While we don’t embrace temptation or danger, when we are in the fire of temptation and danger we embrace (behold) God who can turn every crisis into an opportunity to bring glory to His name. So behold and beware today.
Zig Ziglar tells the story of boy that went with his mother to the old general store. He liked to sneak away from his mother and when no one was looking he would dip his finger into the large barrel of molasses.
The storekeeper caught him doing this and decided to teach the boy a lesson. He picked up the boy by his britches and dunked him head first into the barrel of molasses and then set him out on the front porch of the store. But instead of crying the boy was out there praying, ““God, give me the tongue to equal this opportunity.”
Prayer: Lord Jesus, give me faith equal to the opportunities You will place before me today. Give me eyes to see and ears to hear the blessings and strength to resist the temptations that come to blind me to and keep me from the opportunities to bring honor and glory to Your name. AMEN.
Blessings!
Pastor Roger
One of the great “beholds” of the Bible is in John 1:29 and 36. John the Baptist saw Jesus walking by and he stood and said, “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” The next day he saw him again and He stood and said, “Behold the Lamb of God!”
The word simply means “look,” “be aware,” “don’t miss this moment.” It almost as if one is saying, “This is an opportunity of a lifetime... don’t miss it.” John wanted them to know that this was not just another man walking by. This was Divinity in flesh, and He was going to change everything.
The other word is “beware.” In the Bible you hear things like “Beware of false prophets” or “beware of the scribes” or “beware of the dogs.” It is a word of caution. It means, as well as “behold” does, to see it and not to miss it, but “behold” says, “Don’t miss it so you can embrace it” and “beware” says, “Don’t miss it so you can avoid it.”
One has to do with opportunities and the other with opposition that wants to keep you from the opportunities. We all have unlimited opportunities in life. We just don’t behold them. I challenge you today to look up and see, “behold” the opportunities that God places before you today. Opportunity is not always obvious. Thomas Edison said, “Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.” It doesn’t often just jump out and grab your attention. You have to be on the alert, ready to see it.
On the other hand temptation jumps out in front of us to trip us up, to blind us to the opportunities. Did you ever ask yourself why opportunity knocks once but temptations bangs on the door constantly? I am not sure I have the answer but it sure is true.
Truthfully, opportunity and danger are pretty close. The concept of “crisis” in Chinese is represented by two words, "danger" and "opportunity." When we manage the crisis of our lives following the example of Jesus Christ, we are able to turn the dangers and disasters of life into opportunities to fulfill the will of God.
While we don’t embrace temptation or danger, when we are in the fire of temptation and danger we embrace (behold) God who can turn every crisis into an opportunity to bring glory to His name. So behold and beware today.
Zig Ziglar tells the story of boy that went with his mother to the old general store. He liked to sneak away from his mother and when no one was looking he would dip his finger into the large barrel of molasses.
The storekeeper caught him doing this and decided to teach the boy a lesson. He picked up the boy by his britches and dunked him head first into the barrel of molasses and then set him out on the front porch of the store. But instead of crying the boy was out there praying, ““God, give me the tongue to equal this opportunity.”
Prayer: Lord Jesus, give me faith equal to the opportunities You will place before me today. Give me eyes to see and ears to hear the blessings and strength to resist the temptations that come to blind me to and keep me from the opportunities to bring honor and glory to Your name. AMEN.
Blessings!
Pastor Roger
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
