Prov 22:2-6
2 The rich and the poor have a common bond,
The Lord is the maker of them all.
3 The prudent sees the evil and hides himself,
But the naive go on, and are punished for it.
4 The reward of humility and the fear of the Lord
Are riches, honor and life.
5 Thorns and snares are in the way of the perverse;
He who guards himself will be far from them.
6 Train up a child in the way he should go,
Even when he is old he will not depart from it.
Sound advise to stay the course, wouldn’t you say?
I’ve been preparing some information on relationships for my daughter and her boy friend. You may find it intersting. I just added the fourth set of notes. You can find it at The Perfect Bible Study under Relationships. After 22 years of marriage this has been a refreshing review and has brought back many good memories. Can you explain the difference between infatuation and true love to a young person today?
The spiritual sickness that Paul confronted in the Corinthian church is running rampant in America today.
“You have such admirable tolerance for impostors who rob your freedom, rip you off, steal you blind, put you down — even slap your face!” Listen, and listen good. DON’T BE LED AROUND BY “SERVANTS OF RIGHTEOUSNESS” DISGUISED AS “ANGELS OF LIGHT” WHO INTENTIONALLY DECEIVE YOU FOR THEIR OWN GAIN. ~ The Apostle Paul to the so called Christians at Corinth – 2 Cor 11:15-21
Proverbs 1 condemns the simple minded man who cannot investigate a matter to find the truth. Proverbs 2 praises the man who works hard at finding the truth to a matter. If you are one of the 8 out of 10 Americans who call themselves Christian, act like one or stop making the claim for yourself.
Remember your Lord who stood before Pilate. He was asked, “Who are you?” Do you remember what He said? See John 18:37
John F. Mahoney wrote: “Thomas Are reminds me of Dietrich Bonhoeffer: an active pastor who comes to the unsettling realization that he and his people have been fed a terrible lie that is killing and torturing thousands of innocent men, women and children. Not without ample research and prayer does such a pastor, in turn, risk unsettling his congregation. The Reverend Are has done his homework and, I suspect, has prayed often and long during the writing of this courageous book.”
“What Christians Can Do,” Rev. Are writes: “We cannot allow others to dictate our thinking on any subject, especially on anything as important as Christian faithfulness, which is tested by an attitude towards seeking justice for the oppressed. It’s a Christian’s duty to know.”
It is paradoxical that Israel is demonstrating that veracity lies not in the Christian belief in good will but in Lenin’s doctrine that violence is the effective force in history and that the evangelical Christian Zionist churches agree.
But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come. For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power…2 Tim 3:1-5
I’ve always like Jackson Browne and never knew who Jann Arden was until I heard this song. They team up and make a powerful statement about a world without love.
There will be no consolation prize
This time the bone is broken clean
No baptism, no reprise and no sweet taste
Of victory. all the stars have fallen
From the sky
And everything else in between
Satelites have closed their eyes, the moon
Has gone to sleep
Unloved….unloved….unloved….unloved
Here I am inside a hotel choking on a
Million words I said
Cigarettes have burned a hole and dreams are
Drunk and penniless
Here I am inside my fathers arms
All jagged-bone and whiskey-dry
Whisper to me sweetly now and tell me I will
Never die
Unloved….unloved….unloved….unloved
Here I am an empty hallway
Broken window, rainy night
I am nineteen sixty-two and I am ready
For a fight people crying hallelujah
While the bullet leaves the gun
People falling, falling, falling and I dont know
Where theyre falling from
Are they
Unloved….unloved….unloved….unloved
Hoping that the kindness will lead us
Past the blindness and
Not another living soul will ever have to feel
Unloved….unloved….unloved….unloved
Unloved….unloved
1 What mighty praise, O God,belongs to you in Zion. We will fulfill our vows to you, 2 for you answer our prayers. All of us must come to you. 3 Though we are overwhelmed by our sins,you forgive them all. 4 What joy for those you choose to bring near, those who live in your holy courts. What festivities await usinside your holy Temple.
5 You faithfully answer our prayers with awesome deeds, O God our savior. You are the hope of everyone on earth, even those who sail on distant seas. 6 You formed the mountains by your powerand armed yourself with mighty strength. 7 You quieted the raging oceanswith their pounding wavesand silenced the shouting of the nations. 8 Those who live at the ends of the earthstand in awe of your wonders.From where the sun rises to where it sets, you inspire shouts of joy.
9 You take care of the earth and water it,making it rich and fertile. The river of God has plenty of water; it provides a bountiful harvest of grain,for you have ordered it so. 10 You drench the plowed ground with rain, melting the clods and leveling the ridges. You soften the earth with showersand bless its abundant crops. 11 You crown the year with a bountiful harvest;even the hard pathways overflow with abundance. 12 The grasslands of the wilderness become a lush pasture, and the hillsides blossom with joy. 13 The meadows are clothed with flocks of sheep,and the valleys are carpeted with grain. They all shout and sing for joy!
We will fulfill our vows to You
Wow, almost half the year is already over! What has become of my New Year’s resolutions? How am I doing? Am I on target, off target, where am I?
During the last week I’ve pulled out my Personal Goals Workbook and begun working on it again. It is refreshing to stand back and take a look at yourself – find yourself – see what God has gifted you with and how you are being a steward of it. I have a long way to go and have to get back on track, but it is kind of exciting to work with the Lord on this.
Oddly enough, I randomly opened up John MacArthur’s devotional Truth for Today.
May 23
No Secret to Success
No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.
Luke 9:62
I have never met a successful, influential person in any realm of enterprise who was not committed to reaching goals. The people who influence the world are pursuers, competitors, and winners, preoccupied with goals rather than having their own needs met. All I have learned about the lives of great Christian leaders has made one thing clear: there is no secret to success—they all put out maximum effort to reach spiritual goals and ignore personal satisfaction during the process.
It’s amazing to discover what great preachers, theologians, and missionaries have suffered in the process of reaching their goals. They were far more concerned with following Christ than with their own condition. Can you say the same about your own commitment to Christ?
MacArthur, J. (2001). Truth for today : A daily touch of God’s grace (160). Nashville, Tenn.: J. Countryman.
Can I say the same about my own commitment to Christ? Um, no.
What mighty praise, O God,belongs to you in Zion. I will fulfill my vows to you, for you answer my prayers. All of us must come to you. Though I am overwhelmed by my sins, you forgive them all! What joy for those you choose to bring near, those who live in your holy courts. What festivities await us inside your holy Temple!
