Daddy

I muse at the vintage picture of Daddy, maybe ten, sitting on a donkey with his older sister close by. His father died when he was a child. I wish I had asked more questions about that time in his life.

He worked hard to support his family, and when the mines closed he found work at the Bon Ton filling station. A devastating explosion set him on fire and nearly killed him. He slowly recovered at the hospital in Granby.

Daddy also worked at the filling station across the street from the Savage Appliance Store. I overheard him tell Mama about the numbers he had to record and cypher. "Not bad for someone with a fourth grade education," he said.

Daddy fathered twelve children, working a garden, raising chickens, a cow, and hogs to supplement his salary. He enjoyed playing the guitar, banjo, fiddle, and piano by ear.

My favorite time was gathering around the piano, singing gospel songs. My oldest sister Doris played and sang alto, Daddy sang bass, and I sang a puny saprano.

I cherish the impact Daddy left on my life, making sure we never ever missed church even if we had to walk. It led me to Christ.

Daddy died in 1973.

Redeeming The Time

Believers can’t know what a day may bring, but we can plan our days so we use opportunities wisely.

Eph.5:15-17 – See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is.

Life is short. The days are evil. How foolish to waste opportunities to win the lost, to work for The Lord. If the days were evil when Paul wrote to the Ephesians, what must they be today?

The will of God isn’t mysterious. It doesn’t rule out clear thinking. We discover the will of God as He transforms the mind (Rom. 1:1-2). This transformation is the result of reading the Word, prayer, meditation,  worship,  gathering facts, examining them, weighing them, and praying for His wisdom.

The Events Of Our Lives

At my high school graduation a tornado roared over the Granby gymnasium, lights flickered, and the class of 1960 clutched diplomas and ran with the crowd for the exit. No hat tossing. No final prayer.  Thank God it didn't drop down.

If this was an omen, we ignored it and leaped into the adult world, bent on happiness and success. The Statler Brothers used to sing this phrase: “Life gets complicated when you get past eighteen.”

 We made choices and lived by them. I’m thankful I chose to live for Jesus. But for His grace, where would I be?

Job 23:10 But he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold.

Many if not most of the events of our lives are beyond our control, ordained by God for our good. He has an eternal purpose for us.

Wise believers trust and obey the most basic revelations in God's Word. Every believer should.

As we take care of the little picture of our lives, God will see to the big picture!

Not Easy -- Never Impossible

Whoever said the walk of faith was easy, lied! It isn't always easy, but it’s never impossible! We may suffer at times or fail and feel like quitting, but the Holy Spirit knows about it, and He helps us. The Holy Spirit knows we are prone to wander, and He helps us.

Romans 8:26 Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.

We don’t always know the perfect will of God in every matter or how to pray, but The Holy Spirit knows the mind of God because He is God. He’s able to translate our prayers out of the flawed, selfish language we use into the perfect will of God. This is genuine, biblical praying in the Spirit.

We don’t know everything about the walk of faith, but this we do know:

Romans 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

A Consecrated, Holy Life

Nothing says "I love you, Lord" like a consecrated, dedicated, holy life. God can do more in a church with one dedicated saint than a thousand playing church.

Romans 12:1  I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.

Why does God think He can control every aspect of our lives? Because He bought us at Calvary and we belong to Him. We owe Him everything!

May we say like the Apostle Paul, "But by the grace of God I am what I am." 1 Cor. 15:10. We don’t have the right to say anything but "Yes, Lord. Here am I, send me!"

When a life is totally sold out, separated, and sacrificed to God, it will be awe-inspiring, demonstrating the power of God like nothing else! Souls will be saved. A perishing world will see us as the salt and light we have been commanded to be in Matt. 5:13-16.

What Are You Thinking?

Since believers aren’t perfect, ugly thoughts may enter our minds. Some even shoot out of our mouths like a fired-up cannon ball.

The mind is the ultimate battlefield of life. The Lord, the flesh and the devil are battling for control. Why? Because the Bible says, "For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he...", Pro. 23:7.

Jesus will help us win the battle of the mind. We need to fall in love with Him. Remember how you felt when you were saved.

Matthew 22:37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.

The Lord promises to post a guard around our heart and mind when we abide in Him.

If you want a stable, fixed mind, prayerfully stay in the Word of God. Pray and praise Him often. Submit to God’s will.

These Things

2 Peter 1:8 For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

I want "these things".  I need "these things". Three prior verses lists them.

Virtue – Physical, mental, and spiritual purity.

Knowledge – Get into the Word – Let the Word get into you.

Temperance –  Self-control your tongue, temper, and temptation.

Godliness – "God-like-ness." Always please God first.

 Brotherly Kindness – Treat people like you want to be treated.

Charity – That self-sacrificing, never-ending, all-encompassing love that Jesus showed while on earth.

Seek the Lord for  "these things”.