Category Archives: TRUST

CORRECTION AND DISCIPLINE. 040615

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Warning SignHebrews 12:5-8 says, “My son .  .  .  and do not lose heart when He scolds you, because the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and he [corrects] everyone he accepts as his son.” .  .  .  If you are not disciplined—then you are not legitimate, not true sons and daughters at all.” NIV

My son Ian, 16, just got his ‘real’ driver’s license, and an ’88 Ford pickup.  Along with the license and the truck he got a few hard fast rules to live by.  FIRST RULE “keep your parents informed.”        Second rule: Don’t drive near the HEB, the primary shopping area by our house. It’s dangerous: traffic accidents, teenage drivers and others not paying attention; cell-phones, texting and other distractions.  Not a place for an inexperienced driver.

The other night, after supper, he says, “I’m going to go drive around just for fun.”  He said he’d drive in the neighboring subdivision and be back in 25 minutes . We agreed.  In 25 minutes he called.  He said, “I’m down here across from the HEB and the truck won’t run.”  When I arrived, I asked him about gas. Turns out he bought a little gas ($2.50 worth) 3 days ago.  No wonder he ran out. Continue reading →

Joseph and the Technicolor Dreamcoat. 040115

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shadow of karavan“You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good .  .  .” Genesis 50:20 

You know the story of Joseph.  He was the favorite son of Jacob, the eleventh of twelve, and when he was young he was a little arrogant.  His father gave him the “technicolor dreamcoat”.  He told his brothers he had a dream which showed all his brothers and even their father bowing down to Joseph. He probably shouldn’t have done that.  Made ‘em mad.  So mad they wanted to kill him. They even threw him in a well and left him there to die.  But Reuben (one of the brothers) got him out and sold him to slave traders on the way to Egypt.  Continue reading →

GOD’S GRACE.033115

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Miracles HappenHere I am.  66.  Married to a good wife with three grown children and six grandchildren; and a 16 yr old son at home. I’m still working at a ‘real’ job, ‘cause my baby needs shoes.  Really because God wants me to keep on working so I get to talk to people about Him. Continue reading →

OBEDIENCE? 032715

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God's LoveObedience is saying ‘yes’ when God tells you something to do (in an immediate sense). “If you love me you’ll keep my commandments;7” and “This is my commandment, that you love one another.” John 15:12.  I cannot do right by myself.  I can only do right as I surrender and trust God to work His will in me.  Only as I die to myself, and let Jesus live His life in me,” (Galatians 2:20) can I live up to His standard, which is, “Be perfect (whole, complete, entire, wanting nothing), even as your Father in heaven is perfect.” Matthew 5:48 Continue reading →

OBEDIENCE. 032515

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Ephesians 2.8In the 22nd Chapter of Genesis is the story of when God told Abraham to get his son Isaac, the ‘Son of God’s Promise’, and take him up on a mountain, and “offer him there as a burnt offering.”  The very next verse in the story says, “So Abraham got up early the next morning and started out.”

It really is clear in the Bible, that from the beginning, God’s preferred means of reconciling Himself to men (really His only method and means) is by grace through faith; and this episode is but one of many examples of that message found in the Bible. Continue reading →

HUMILITY IS SURRENDER.032015

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Jesus with a jug of waterThe underlying key to all aspects of our relationship with Jesus is our surrender to Him.  So how does humility express surrender in our lives?  Early on, I thought the essence of humility is surrender; such as in Philippians 2:5, 8; where it says, ” Let Jesus’ attitude be in you.  .  Who, being found as a man, humbled himself, and became a slave, and was obedient unto death, even death on a cross.”

Continue reading →

Old People’s Comfort. 031715

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Grandmother and grandchildrenOur friend, the prophet Isaiah, says, “Have you not heard? The everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, neither faints nor is weary. His understanding is unsearchable.  He gives power to the weak, and to those who have no might He increases strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall, but those who wait on [trust in] the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.”  Isaiah 40:28-31. Continue reading →

Where Is God? 031615

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Goslings Staying Close to MomThe only time you really get to rest in this life is when you find someone you can trust to protect you.  And most of the time the only one you can trust completely is God.  Everyone else, sooner or later, comes up short.  They’re just not there when you really need them most.  God is the only One who is really trustworthy.  And when you have God to protect you, it’s a lead pipe cinch that nothing bad is going to happen to you. (No evil will befall you) And no catastrophe, no earthquake, no hurricanes, no swine flu, no cancer, and certainly no plague will come near your dwelling. Continue reading →

The Prayer of Faith. 031315

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Elderly woman praying before bed“ .  .  the prayer of faith will heal the sick and the Lord will raise them up. If they have sinned, they will be forgiven.” James 5:15

Who is a “righteous” person? A righteous person is one who has Jesus’s righteousness in him because he has surrendered his whole self to Jesus. Not my righteousness but Jesus’ righteousness is the only thing that is going to save me, the only thing that is going to make me holy, as God is holy. Continue reading →

POWERFUL, EFFECTIVE PRAYER.031215

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Hands Praying on Bible“The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective”. James 5:16 NIV

Praying is an act of service.  The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.  Who is righteous?  Anyone who has surrendered to Jesus and let His Spirit come to dwell in their heart.  No one else is righteous in God’s eyes.  If you want to have a powerful and effective prayer life, surrender your whole self to Jesus.  “Deny yourself, take up your cross (that means “die to yourself” let Jesus live His Eternal Life in you!)  daily, and follow Him.” (Luke 9:23) That’s the ONLY way to have a powerful effective prayer life.