Tag Archive: Bible


Johnny, Be Good

Filed under: Articles, Breaking the fourth, Daily Devotional Thoughts, Human Condition, Love, Religion / Religious, Urbanism — Leave a comment
July 9, 2021

Scripture

Micah 5:2 (NIV)

“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.”

Observation

In this verse we see the birth of Jesus foretold. We see that He will be born in Bethlehem and then throughout the rest of Micah 5 we see what He will do. It’s easy to understand, as I read through these verses, to see why the Jewish people thought that the Messiah would be a great military commander. “He will be our peace when the Assyrians invade…[he will] rule the land…with the sword…He will deliver us…when they invade our land” (Micah 5:5-6 NIV) all could point to a military leader. I wonder, was there anything else that was prophesied that could have pointed out that Jesus would bring peace, not through warfare and conquering, but as He did, through love and self-sacrifice?

Isaiah prophesied “to us a child is born…And he will be called…Prince of Peace…Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end” (Isaiah 9:6-7 NIV). Peace cannot exist without war. It’s one side to a coin that is war and peace, so I can see where people might have expected that the Messiah would bring about peace by ending the wars with their enemies through physical means. When I read Isaiah 53, however, I can’t help but wonder how it could be read and then applied to a Messiah who would be a conquering hero. What occurs to me isn’t that anything was lacking in scripture that pointed out who the Messiah would be and what He would bring. Instead, those who rejected Him did so for their reasons.

One of those reasons was that Jesus came with a message that they didn’t want to hear. I wonder how often we hear God speaking to us and think, “That’s the devil” when we’re being corrected and how often, when we hear some praise we think, “That’s God!” We know that there’s no condemnation for those who are in Christ (Romans 8:1). However, this doesn’t mean that the voice you heard that told you were mean wasn’t from God. I’d say that it’s easier to discern between outright negative thoughts and accusations than it is between those thoughts that coincide with how we’re feeling and thinking at a given time. What we need to is filter what we think and hear through the word of God.

We don’t live in a world, however, where one can just tell everything to stop while we check on what the Bible says, which is why it’s so important to read and study the Bible. Nowadays, we, in the Western world, don’t have an excuse to not read the Bible. I think I’m repeating myself here, but if you have a smartphone then you have access to a Bible. Your phone is better than a printed book since you can easily carry your phone with you wherever you go. Additionally, you can listen to the Bible on your phone. Are you driving somewhere? Instead of listening to the radio, listen to the Bible. It doesn’t take much time to read the Bible. It’s a message that you will hear if you want to hear it.

That’s what it all comes down to really, our desire to hear what we want to hear or to not. There’s a great message of peace, hope, love, and eternal salvation in the Bible. The inspired word of God. It’s up to us, however, to put in the effort, to hear what it says, and then do it.

Do you know God? God knows you and He loves you. He sees you as significant because you are. Nothing is insignificant to Him. He’s with you today, right now, and He wants you to know Him. Jesus died for your sins and mine so that we could be free of guilt, be freed from death, and live eternally with Him. Eternal salvation is just a prayer away.

Pray this prayer with me to accept the gift of salvation today:

Dear Lord Jesus, I know that I am a sinner, and I ask for Your forgiveness. I believe You died for my sins and rose from the dead. I turn from my sins and invite You to come into my heart and life. I want to trust and follow You as my Lord and Savior. Amen.

If you prayed that prayer then congratulations! You are on the first step of a brand new life. Allow me to be the first to welcome you to my family, the family of God. There are abundant resources available online for new Christians. You can visit here for more information on what to do next. You can also leave me a comment and I’ll do my best to help you on the next step of this incredible journey.

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Panda, Express?

Filed under: Articles, Breaking the fourth, Daily Devotional Thoughts, Human Condition, Love, Realization, Religion / Religious — Leave a comment
May 30, 2021

Scripture

Proverbs 16:27-28 (NIV)

27 A scoundrel plots evil,
and on their lips it is like a scorching fire.
28 A perverse person stirs up conflict,
and a gossip separates close friends.

Observation

One of the things that I love about God is that He confirms His word. If we’re not listening or paying attention we can miss what God is saying to us. However, when we are listening and hear Him speak to us He is so gracious that He’ll continue to talk to us to let us know a few things.

  1. It is God speaking.
  2. He’s serious about what He’s talking to you about.
  3. He wants you to understand what He’s saying.

For the last couple of months, my wait problem has been on my mind. During my devotional time yesterday, the Lord brought some verses to my attention so I wrote about them. I didn’t doubt that it was God who brought these verses to my mind, nor did I doubt what He said to me while I was writing. However, it was awesome when this morning, in church, my Pastor’s message was about waiting on the Lord. This message delivered by the Pastor was a confirmation to me that it’s been God talking to me and that He wasn’t done.

Is it just me or does it seem like they like to talk about food in church on Sunday mornings, a lot? It might just be me since I rarely eat breakfast. Before the lockdown, I would often stop off at a nearby Panda Express after church. Since I’ve only been back to church for about a month it’s been a while since I’ve eaten at Panda Express.

I’d like to tell you that, while I was waiting in the long line, I was thinking about how cool it was to have lines to wait in again. I will tell you that the thought did cross my mind. The thoughts that stuck in my mind though, I might not have even remembered if I didn’t have to wait. Not just in line. By the time I got to the front they were out of two of the three things that I wanted.

I like rice. I do. When I go to Panda Express I like their chow mein. They were out of chow mein and had to cook some more, so I placed my order, paid, and then sat down to wait some more. The wait was going to be some time, so I broke out my Bible app and dove in.

I love it when the Bible speaks to me in real-time. Sometimes it might be more about the issues in my life at the moment or about someone else’s issues. Usually, it’s giving me guidance and wisdom regarding what I might consider more important matters.

So, here I am waiting for my food at Panda Express. I’m reading Proverbs 16:26, “The appetite of laborers works for them; their hunger drives them on” (NIV). Thank you Lord, you’re funny! Then I read verses 27 and 28:

A scoundrel plots evil,
and on their lips it is like a scorching fire.
A perverse person stirs up conflict,
and a gossip separates close friends (NIV).

Ouch. While I was waiting in line one of the things that came to remembrance was the last time I had been here. They were out of something and I had to wait. I didn’t mind the wait last time, it gave me a chance to pray for people there and just sit down and relax. However, there it was, this time, in my head bouncing around and playing tag with my evil thoughts. I’m not a scoundrel, I told the Lord. I was just wondering if there was a manager around. Surely, if there were so many people here now, at this time of day they should plan for it, right? When I managed a retail store I had to know how the traffic was during the week and plan accordingly.

It’s funny how we will try and defend ourselves. It’s even more amusing when we try and do it before God. Like Adam blaming God for putting Eve there. No sooner did I plea my case when God hits me with Proverbs 16:2, “All a person’s ways seem pure to them, but motives are weighed by the Lord” (NIV). After that, it was like all these verses that I had just read in Proverbs 16 in the last couple of minutes hit me at once.

To humans belong the plans of the heart, but from the Lord comes the proper answer of the tongue (1).
The Lord works out everything to its proper end, even the wicked for a day of disaster (4).
The Lord detests all the proud of heart. Be sure of this: They will not go unpunished (5).
Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall (18).
Better a patient person than a warrior, one with self-control than one who takes a city (31).

And I repented. You are right, Lord. I’m sorry. Forgive me. Thank you for bringing it to my attention. This whole discussion with the Lord took all of 10 seconds or so. It was just that fast. Then He tells me, “Whoever gives heed to instruction prospers, and blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord” (Proverbs 16:20 NIV).

This is another great thing that I love about our God. There was never any condemnation or judgment as He brought all those verses to mind. He is a good Father. He always speaks the Truth to me and He does it in love. Talk about blessed.

Do you know God? He loves you. He’s not mad at you and He wants you to know Him. He already knows you and He would rather die than not have you in His family. Jesus died for your sins and mine so that we could be free of guilt, be freed from death, and live eternally with Him.

Pray this prayer with me to accept the gift of salvation today:

Dear Lord Jesus, I know that I am a sinner, and I ask for Your forgiveness. I believe You died for my sins and rose from the dead. I turn from my sins and invite You to come into my heart and life. I want to trust and follow You as my Lord and Savior. Amen.

If you prayed that prayer then congratulations! You are on the first step of a brand new life. Allow me to be the first to welcome you to my family, the family of God. There are abundant resources available online for new Christians. You can visit here for more information on what to do next. You can also leave me a comment and I’ll do my best to help you on the next step of this incredible journey.

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Christian, Wake Up

Filed under: Human Condition, Poetry, Religion / Religious, Slam — Leave a comment
October 20, 2019

So you look at the surface and if the surface is clean then the inside is clean because you see the surface every day so it should be easy to clean, right?  I mean, if you don’t make time to clean the outside then how could you take the time to clean the inside?  But then, what about Jesus?  What about Paul?  They. Had. No. Showers.  They were dirty. Not leper dirty.  But Jesus was pure.  Jesus was clean.  Jesus is God.  Paul inwardly burned but was filled with the Holy Spirit.  Producing fruit we still eat today. The fruit of the Lord in the Bible and we can read it, we can try and fathom it.

but without the Holy Spirit, we can know nothing.  Understand nothing. Can do nothing. We aren’t holy, we aren’t special, we aren’t anything.  We are vapors.  The wind is more.  But God says, “you are holy because I am holy.  You are glorious because everything I make is glorious.  You are something because I made you.  Your life now is vapor but you are everlasting.  I made you that way.” We. Are. Children of God.

with the Holy Spirit, we are.  We are powerful, we are mighty.  We are gods.  Because God tells us we are.  We are the temple of God and his Spirit is in us.  We can do anything in Christ Jesus.  We-are-ambassadors of Christ.  And so, we can be dirty on the surface, but God looks within and he sees what’s inside us.  It’s what comes out of us that makes us dirty.  Jesus said so.  But we-are-ambassadors of Christ.  For Christ and by Christ.  So, we need to be above reproach. We need to be clean on the outside. People look at the outside. If the outside is dirty then the inside must be too.  Right?

People are perishing.  Every. Day. People. Die. Forever.  You are God’s child.  You are his son, his daughter.  My sister, my brother, my mother my father. We are the light.  The darkness is out there.  We. Are. The light.  Take off the shades.  Put on the light.  Be the light.  Jesus made you the light.  Be. The. Light. Show the way.  Show them, Jesus.  Be Jesus.  People die. Every day.  Forever.  Be Love.  God is Love.  He so loved the world.  You love the world.  Be not of the world.  People die.  Every day. Forever.  They don’t have to. Do Something.

Before. They die.  Forever.

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Matthew 14:30

Filed under: Experimental, Poetry, Religion / Religious — 2 Comments
July 12, 2019

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