HANG ON!

While watching an Atlanta Hawks basketball game last night, the Hawks were at one time 20 points ahead, but I realized that if there was a fifth quarter the end results may be different.  The Hawks seemed to be losing ground and I found myself saying,"Hawks just hang on to your lead".  (The game ended with the Hawks winning by 11 points.)

Do you ever feel like you are just hanging on?  Do you feel that you are "hanging by a thread" and wish this day was over?  

Maybe that is reality for you today.  I encourage you that there is no problem to big for God and that He cares about every need that you have.

Psalm 16:8, NCV "I keep the Lord before me always.  Because he is close by my side, I will not be hurt."

If you get to the end of your rope today, just hang on! 

MAKING DECISIONS

There are some sports that requires you to be quick to think and others allow you to think it through. Baseball requires you to think quick when a ball is speeding by you at 95 mph, if you are the batter. Golf requires just the opposite, for you to give it some thought before you "swing it". 
Today there will be some decisions that will come quickly while others will afford you some time to give it some thought. But in all of your decisions today follow the advice given in Proverbs 3:5,6.
"Trust the Lord with all your heart, and don't depend on your own understanding. Remember the Lord in all you do, and he will give you success." Proverbs 3:5,6 NCV

The Carpenter's Son

Everyone has a "platform" that God blesses them with to speak into the life of someone else. Your platform may be wide and high while others may be narrow and short but a platform is huge when it impacts just one person.

Jesus, the great Carpenter, is the builder of your platform. He has built no other platform just alike and you are on stage today. Someone is watching you and you too will influence someone with your words and your actions. 

In the bible it states that a Scribe by the name of "Ezra stood on the platform in full view of all the people. When they saw him open the book, they all rose to their feet. Then Ezra praised the Lord, the great God, and all the people chanted, 'Amen! Amen!" as they lifted their hands. Then they bowed down and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground" (Nehemiah 8:5,6NLT).

Today, may your place in life bring others to a place of worship.

"Is this not the carpenter's son? Is not His mother called Mary...?"
Matthew 13:55NLT

The Light At the End of the Tunnel

Thomas Edison learned thousands of ways of how not to invent the light bulb before being successful at his goal.  Many things that we attempt in life will come with failure but failure is part of the process, not our identity.  Failure does not identify who we are but helps to develop our character.

In my arena of life they are times in preaching that (to use an analogy Bishop Oscar Moore once used) "I felt I came in on four flat tires and the spare tire leaking."  Okay, maybe that analogy is a little to the extreme but hopefully you get the point.  I have been in places attempting to minister to someone and leaving, feeling I failed in what I hoped to accomplish.  However, I'm still preaching, I'm still visiting the sick, I'm still attempting to do ministry.  Why?  Because this is the call on my life and among all the failures there are many success stories to be told.
Today, you may fail miserably at something you attempt, but if it is a worthwhile goal, get up and try and try again.  Eventually you will find the light at the end of your tunnel that will lead to success while on this journey!

"Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me."  Philippians 3:12 NIV

Communication and Prayer

The way to communicate has changed considerably, and is still forever changing! And I am thankful for the way of communication that we are privy to today. 
For example, if Paul Revere had lived in our day he would not have had to ride a horse warning the people the enemy was approaching. He possibly could have just posted it on face book, e-mail, or blogged.
However communication has never changed between God and human beings. Prayer to God is the most powerful and productive way of communication that has ever been created. 
"Are any of you suffering hardships? You should pray...Are any of you sick? You should call for the elders of the church to come and pray over you...The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results." James 5:13-16 (NLT)
Lord, give me a "spirit of prayer."

Taking Longer to Lose...or to Win?

According to USA Today Sports 49ers linebacker Ahmad Brooks stated in an interview "I don't know why the power went out, it just took us a little longer to lose."  What a profound statement!

As I read that statement my heart sank as I realized that many come to the end of their life feeling the same.  If you know me you know I speak a lot about finishing well.  The 49ers actually finish the game rather well, including Brooks, and maybe the delay did helped them to make some adjustments needed.  In fact I only watched the last 16 minutes of the "power outage" show and then the rest of the game and both was pretty good.

  Sometimes God allows "delays" in our life so that we too can make adjustments to what the opposition is trying to do to us.  If you find yourself being delayed today, make the best of it, make any adjustments needed, and let's finish the day well.  Days that are finished well will contribute to having a good finish in life.

"Don't overlook the obvious here, friends.  With God, one day is as a thousand years, a thousand years as a day.  God isn't late wit his promise as some measure lateness.  He is restraining himself on account of holding back the End because he doesn't want anyone lost.  He's giving everyone space and time to change"  2 Peter 3:8,9 (The Message).

Brace Yourself...

"Brace yourself, this is not going to be good" were the words that came out of my mouth just moments before being involved in an automobile accident this week.  Traveling down Highway 184, 3.5 miles from Iva, South Carolina (U.S.A.), I noticed someone pulling out into the highway and realizing immediately that there was going to be a coliseum.  "Bam!  Crunch! Crunch! Bam!  Air bags inflated, dust from the air bags going everywhere, and the smell of a busted radiator.  This was not the way I had planned the day. 


Anyone that knows me knows that I will often "map out" a trip and plan to visit with a few friends along the way.  If it is a trip to the nearby town that I do my personal business or a trip cross country to do ministry, I usually try to make the best use of my time and resources while traveling.  I will estimate distance to different points and estimate time of travel as well as time of stay in each location.  Wednesday morning I left early with plenty of time to spare and to accomplish all of my goals for that day, when this accident occurred.  How quick our plans can change!

This is true with our life.  James says it well when he says, ""whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow.  For what is your life?  it is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away" (James 4:14 NKJV). 


My statement the last couple of days, after the accident, is "I am just glad to be alive."  I know God's hand of protection is always on my life and especially this week with just a minor cut on the hand from the wreck.  Thank God for His goodness and His hand of protection!

I did take a few detours that day including a trip to the hospital in an ambulance, but God still allowed me to make all of my appointments for that day.  God always makes provision to get us where He wants us and that day it included having a great friend in the area that took his day to transport me around the rest of the afternoon.

 And yes, I do have plans for tomorrow but plans often unexpectedly change!

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER?

A sobering question came into my mind this morning, "Am I adding value to the team?"  John Maxwell asked the question in his book The 5 Levels of Leadership "Are other members of the team improving or producing more as a result of my presence?  If not, why not?"  And if not, what are some things I can do to help others live more productive lives?  Jesus knew the value of people and so people were not a source of stress but a source of joy to Him.

My prayer this morning is: Lord help me to"...think about each other and help each other to show love and do good deeds."  Hebrews 10:25 (NCV) Help me to invest wisely in the lives of others so that it will yield a high return.

When this happens it not only affects that person you are investing in, but an immeasurable number of people that they also will influence possibly for years to come.  What do you have to bring to the table today to offer your team?  The greatest investment you can make today is by adding value to someone else. 

Five simple suggestions of how to make a wise investment:

1. Don't procrastinate - the opportunity to invest in someone close to you may be here today but gone tomorrow. 
2. Pray daily - Ask God daily to help you to be in the right places at the right time to make the right investments in people.
3. Use the right tools - Words can be the best tool you have if use rightly.  Be an encourager to others.
4. Be a team player - If you were playing the game basketball I would say "don't hog the ball".  Let others contribute to the game of life.
5. Praise others - for their accomplishments and for being a team player. 

I am sure there are many other things you can do to be the most valuable player on the team but remember being the most valuable player is not necessarily always the one that get the most points.  Sometimes it is the one that is the greatest leader on the team.

HE IS RISEN!

 This morning, while making last minute preparations for a "Sunrise Service" where I serve as pastor, I thought of the scripture in Matthew 28 where it makes the following statement:
 "He is not here, He is risen. Come, and see the place where the Lord lay. And go quickly, and tell his disciples that he is risen from the dead, and behold, he goeth before you..."

After hearing these words Matthew's writing tells us it was "Mary Magdalene and another woman named Mary" that ran quickly to tell Jesus' followers what had happen. Matthew 28:8 (NCV) tells us that "The women left the tomb quickly. They were afraid, but they were also very happy. They ran to tell Jesus' followers what had happen."

Talking about mixed emotions!  The women were afraid but also very happy. This is not exactly what they expected to find when they arrived at the tomb but they were very glad to know that Jesus was no longer in the tomb and that He lives.

Today as you celebrate Easter remember what Easter is about,   remember that He is no longer in the tomb, and that He lives today. My prayer is that all of us will have a real sense of urgency to tell others that Jesus is alive!

I rejoice today because my Lord and Savior lives!

He lives, He lives, I know He lives. He lives within my heart!

BLESSINGS TO YOU AND YOUR FAMILY ON THIS EASTER SUNDAY!

 Scriptures for today:  John 20:1-31    Luke 24:1-12   

WHAT DO YOU REMEMBER?

One of my friends once stated that he used to have a pretty good memory but was now to the point that he could hide his own Easter eggs. Memory is a funny thing. Some things seem to be imprinted on our mind while other things we forget immediately.

During Holy Week, the day after the crucifixion of Christ and the day before his Resurrection we see several things that have been imprinted on the minds of many.

Matthew 27:55 (NCV) says, Many women who had followed Jesus from Galilee to help him were standing at a distance from the cross, watching. I am sure that what they saw on Friday was still imprinted on their mind Saturday morning.

On the next day the leading priests and the Pharisees went to Pilate. They remembered the words of Jesus when he said, "in three days I will rise from the dead (Matthew 27:63)."  I am sure this was imprinted on their mind.

Then we have the disciples that had followed Jesus but we find in John 20:19 that on the evening of the first day of the week, they were together. The doors were locked, because they were afraid of the elders. These disciples probably had spent most of the weekend together with imprinted on their mind the many teachings of Jesus.

What is it that you remember the most about this week?  What event or words lay heavy in your mind and on your heart?  What is it that leaves a lasting impression on your mind?  Today, may we remember the events of this week and at the same time look with expectation of great things to happen on Easter Sunday! 

Scripture for today:  Matthew 27:62-66; Luke 23:56

WHAT HURT JESUS THE MOST?

I wondered what hurt Jesus the most. Was it when they tied him and led him to Pilate, the governor? Was it when he heard that Judas had hanged himself? Was it the cry of the people to "crucify him, crucify him"? Was it the beating with whips? Was it the crowning with a crown of thorns? Was it when the people bowed before Jesus and made fun of him, saying, "Hail, King, of the Jews!" Was it when someone spit on him? Was it when some of the soldiers "cast lots" for his clothing? Was it the insults from the people that walked by and said, "You said you could destroy the Temple and build it again in three days. So save yourself! Come down from that cross if you are really the Son of God!" Or was it the nails being driven through the hands and feet of Jesus that hurt Him the most?

Unlike many of us, Jesus did not dwell on His hurts.  No where in scripture do I hear Jesus saying, "What hurt me the most is..."  What Jesus did think about while on the cross was what came forth out of his mouth, "It is finished!"  Triumph, not defeat, was on his mind.

My prayer today is:  "God help me not to dwell on my "hurts and disappointments" but help me to dwell on the victories in my life."  For the "The sufferings we have now are nothing compared to the great glory that will be shown to us" (Romans 8:18).

Scripture for today:  Matthew 27; Mark 15; Luke 22:66-23:56; John 18:29-19-37

WHO IS POURING INTO YOUR LIFE?

It is Thursday evening and Jesus sat down with his disciples for the Passover meal. During the course of the evening Jesus took the bread, blessed it, broke it, and gave it to his disciples. Then he did a very symbolic thing in taking a cup, probably pouring into the cup, thanked God for it and gave it to His followers. Another part of that passage of scripture tells us that Jesus "poured water into a basin, and began to wash the disciple's feet" (John 13:5).  Jesus also had spent the last three and a half years "pouring into" the lives of his disciples his teachings and about righteous living.

Think about it for a moment.  Who are those that have "poured" into your life?  Who are the people that have invested time, money, and patience into your life?  People that when you did foolish things, they didn't give up on you.

The one single person, besides Christ, that I believed poured more into my life then anyone in my entire life was my dad.  He kept pouring and even though sometimes I did very foolish things, he didn't give up.  He just kept pouring.  Like a dad would, he saw possibilities in me that no one else saw.  Many others have poured into my life, and are still pouring.  Thank God for those that will invest in others!

Jesus saw potential in his disciples that no one else saw.  Our heavenly Father sees potential in you and me that no one else can see and will pour into our lives, if we will allow Him to do so.  I encourage you to read the bible daily and pray and allow our heavenly Father to pour His Word and His love into your heart.  Also, connect with godly people that can pour into your life the things of God.

Who are you allowing to pour into your life and what are they pouring?

Scripture for today:  Matthew 26:17-30; Mark 14:12-26; Luke 22:7-23; John 13:1-30

THIRTY PIECES OF SILVER

"During the day, Jesus taught the people in the Temple, and at night he went out of the city and stayed on the Mount of Olives.  Every morning all the people got up early to go to the Temple to listen to him."  Luke 21:37, 38

Some believe that Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday, that Jesus spent time going into the temple teaching.  It is clear that despite the wrong that was in the temple that Jesus did not desert the temple but continued to go and teach each day.  The routine seem to be that Jesus would spend time in prayer at night and early every morning he could be found in the temple teaching.

At night he did not stay at any of the local inns but "stayed on the Mount of Olives."  This is the same place that:

• Jesus often resorted (Luke 22:39)
• Jesus often spent the night when in Jerusalem (John 7:53-8:1)
• Jesus preached a great sermon on the end time (Matthew 24:3; Mark 13:3)
• Jesus' Triumphal Entry began (Luke 19:37)
• Jesus' terrible agony in the Garden of Gethsemane took place (Mark 14:26-42)
• Jesus' ascension took place (Acts 1:12)

By Wednesday morning most likely Judas had went to the priests and teachers of the law and talked to them about a way to hand Jesus over to them.  They agreed on a plan and Judas watched for a time that Jesus was away from the crowd to betray him.  For thirty pieces of silver, what is believe to be the price of a slave in that day, Judas will soon betray the Lord.

Before leaving the scene of the temple Jesus address the "religious leaders" of that day as hypocrites.  He calls them "snakes" and asked them the question, "How are you going to escape God's judgment?"  I can hear someone saying "Why don't you really tell them what you think of them?"

Both physically and spiritually the next couple of days of the life of Christ will be rather demanding for him.  Jesus spent time in the garden praying and talking to the Father about this and concluded his prayer with "...Father, all things are possible unto thee; take away this cup (suffering) from me: nevertheless not what I will, but what thou wilt."

This week as we prepare our hearts for Easter weekend think about the sacrifices that Jesus made for us and then write down any sacrifices you have made for him in the past week, month, or year.  When I think about what he has done for me, then things that I use to consider a sacrifice is no longer a sacrifice.  It becomes a blessing and a honor to live for the one that died for me.

Scriptures for today:  Matthew 23:1 - 24:51       Mark 12:35- 13:37           Luke 20:41 - 21:36

WHICH CHALLENGES DO I ACCEPT?

The last week of Jesus' ministry on earth, before his crucifixion, he spent a lot of time teaching and a lot of time dealing with confrontation.  On one of these days during this week Jesus was challenge by the chief priests and the scribes, along with the elders of his day with the question, "Who gave you this authority?"  Jesus was teaching in the temple when the "religious people" of his day brutally interrupted him and questioned his rights to be teaching in the temple.  Imagine, someone challenging Jesus and his right to teach while in the temple!

Several years ago I was preaching when a visitor stood up in the middle of the church service and claimed that God had given him the other half of my sermon.  Needless to say this confusion was not of God and disrupted that particular church service.  I felt at that moment that my authority to preach the word had just been challenge.  To this day I am not for sure that as a young pastor I responded wisely to the challenge.
 
But Jesus knew how to answer every challenge of life.  When Jesus was asked the question "Who gave you this authority?" Jesus in returned asked, "When John baptized people, did that come from God or just from other people?"  The religious leaders fearing if they said, "It came from God," then Jesus would say, "Then why didn't you believe him?"   And if the religious leaders said that it came from people they were afraid of the crowd, because the crowd believed that John was indeed a prophet.

The religious leaders answered, "We don't know!"  Jesus said, "Then I won't tell you what authority I have to do these things."  It seems that Jesus always had the right answer for every challenge, and sometime Jesus just didn't answer the challenge at all! 

I learned years ago that I do not have to answer every challenge; Jesus didn't.  Some challenges are nothing more than a distraction and is not worth the energy that we invest in the fight.  If Jesus had answered every question and accepted every challenge, he never would have made it to the cross and died for my sin.  I am glad that Jesus was wise enough to see that some challenges was no more than an attempt from the enemy to cause a distraction.

Don't feel pressured into accepting every challenge in life.  You too need to make it to the foot of the cross and some challenges will hinder your vision of the place that Jesus died for you. There are some things I know I have to confront with God's help, but I believe there are some things that I hear God saying, "Let me take care of this for you."

Thank you Lord for the challenges of life that I never have to confront because you have my front and my back side!

"But you will not leave in haste or go in flight; for the Lord will go before you, the God of Israel will be your rear guard."  (Isaiah 52:12 NIV)

Scripture for today:  Matthew 21:23-46; Matthew 22:1-46;Luke 20:1-40

STAYING FOCUS (Monday)

Read: Matthew 21:1-17

Palm Sunday was a very emotional time for Jesus. He entered Jerusalem and multitudes followed him crying Hosanna to the Son of David. Great rejoicing happened in the streets as they witness Jesus riding into Jerusalem on a donkey. Later in the week some of these same people possibly cried, "Crucify Him, Crucify Him!" 

On Monday morning Jesus enters the temple to find men that had made His house a hiding place for thieves. Jesus turned the tables over and rebuked the activity happening in the temple.  Jesus literally ran out the thieves from the temple!

But something else more significant happened in Jerusalem. 

"Then the blind and the lame came to Him in the temple, and he healed them."

As we take this journey this week through Jerusalem and the surrounding areas I encourage you to notice three things:

1. Jesus provided a safe place for people to come to worship Him.
2. The blind and the lame came to Him and He healed them.
3. The children sing praises to God and it was noticed by the rulers of the city.

This week let's provide that "safe place" for people to join us in worship. Let's pray and believe for miracles this Sunday. Let's sing out a song of praise so that others may hear. 

It is my prayer that this Easter Sunday is the best yet in your place of worship.

LEAP DAY: ANY PLANS?

This is "Leap Day" and it usually happens every four years according to the Gregorian Calendar.  (If you use a Hebrew Calendar then you simply get one extra month every 19 years.)  Imagine a year with 13 months instead of 12!

Now this is probably a little too much of a science lesson for me but I am reminded of Joshua10:13.  It says, "So the sun stood still, and the moon stopped until the people defeated their enemies..."The sun stopped in the middle of the sky and waited to go down for a full day (Joshua 10:13 NCV)."  Joshua prayed for this miracle and God's divine intervention enabled the children of Israel time to defeat their enemy.

Now I am not praying for the "sun to stand still and the moon to stop" but sometimes I have to admit that I do say "I wish I had more time."  Well I do!  This year gives me an extra day.  Now that I have an extra day on my calendar for this year, what will I do with it?  Will it become absorbed into the other 365 days and just become another day? 

Time is the most valuable thing that any of us have.  Once time is spent it cannot be retrieve.  Life goes on, regardless if we plan for it or not.

My prayer really should not be "Lord, give me more time," but "Lord, help me to use my time wisely.  Help me to add value to the life of others by doing for others what they cannot do for themselves.   Help me to speak words of encouragement when I speak and to know how to listen with my heart.  To point out the strengths in others lives and not their weaknesses..."

"Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow.  For what is your life?  It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away."  (James 4:14 KJV)

"Lord, help me to spend this day, and every day wisely helping others!"

WHAT ARE YOU READING?

"Goals are visions and dreams with work clothes on," states Dave Ramsey in his book "EntreLeadership".  

Several months ago one of my friends posted in a social media network that he was in the process of laying aside the books he wanted to read in the next 12 months.  The point is, being intentional about what goes into the mind.

Eugene Peterson's paraphrase of Philippians 4:8 is "Summing it all up, friends, I'd say you'll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious-the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse."

So for several weeks I have been thinking on what to read in the next year and intentionally this morning I set aside a section on my book shelf, and placed these books there for the months ahead.  (Some of these books were gifts given to me for Christmas.)  I realize that during the year new books will come available and so I only put about 50% of the books aside that I plan to read.  The other 50% I read during the year will be books given to me, books loaned to me, or books I purchase.

Obviously we all have likes and dislikes in the book world but below is a few of the books, based on what I read this year, that I would recommend to be a good read.   You may want to read the reviews on these books to see if they are something that would benefit you.

"The Difference Maker", John Maxwell

"ReThink Your Life", Stan Toler

"Mississippi Wind", Dennis Patterson

"The 360 degree Leader", John Maxwell

"Ordering Your Private World," Gordon MacDonald

"The Church God Blesses", Jim Cymbala

"Radical Together" David Platt

"Purpose Driven Life" Rick Warren

"Simultaneous Principles" Frank Tunstell

"A Resilient Life", Gordan MacDonald

"The Purpose of Christmas", Rick Warren

"Unwrapping His Presence", by Chris Maxwell

My reading plan also should include reading the bible through and I love to start my day with a short "daily devotional" as well. 

Being realistic now I have to decide how much time a day I want to spend reading and then set aside that time each day for that purpose.  Since one of the most recent polls indicates that the average person will spend 10 hours watching television, movies, or on the Internet each day, a hour or two each day reading sounds reasonable to me but I know may not be realistic for everyone.  Circumstances in life sometimes will alter that plan but I encourage you to be intentional about what goes into your mind this coming year and set aside at least 30 minutes of your day to read the bible. 

Wishing you all a Happy New Year, one filled with joy and happiness as you walk through your journey with God.

GOD'S GRACE AND MERCY SHALL FOLLOW ME ALL THE DAYS OF MY LIFE

It all started this morning when I went to use the mouse on my computer and it was doing crazy things, my first thoughts was "my computer has a virus."  I happen to pick up the mouse in desperation to get it to work correctly and realized that there was a “mustard-seed size" of paper wedge by the sensor that causes a "distraction" to the mouse, causing a malfunction.  I chuckled as I thought how easy it is for us to imagine the worse, even with our computer.  Once I removed the tiny piece of paper the mouse worked properly.

People get up every morning of the week thinking the worse.  Being very transparent this morning just a few days ago I got up feeling down.  This is somewhat not my nature.  Why was I feeling down?  I really don't know.  Maybe a chemical imbalance; maybe some medicine I took the night before to relieve me of some aches and pains; or maybe simply an attack of Satan.   I really don't know why but I know how I felt.  Facing reality I prayed through out the day for God's strength.

At the end of the day it occurred to me that I had weathered through the storm.  There was a sense of peace that came over me as I realized that I had made it through the storm and "this house" still stands.  I penned these words in my bible that evening:  Thank you God for your grace and mercy that followed me today.  I made it another day and my faith in you is stronger than the day before.

I am sure there will be another day that Satan will try my faith but thanks be to God who gives me unmerited favor and his mercies are new every morning! 

"It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.  They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness."  Lamentations 3: 22 & 23 

IT'S JUST A HABIT!

The word "habit" means, "pattern of behavior or customary practice".  In my opinion it is very closely associated to the word "addiction."  Habits are something that all of us have.  One unknown author wrote, "Habits are like a comfortable bed, easy to get into, but hard to get out of."   Another writer stated that "The second half of a man's life is made up of nothing but the habits he has acquired during the first half."

 
In reading and studying 2 Peter 1 recently I was reminded to take a look at my habits.  The first thing I had to do was to come to realization and admit that I have habits.  The second thing I had to admit is that some of my habits are annoying to others.  And third I had to confess that some of the habits I have, I have had most of my life!  (Habits like pouting when we don't get our way!  The difference is that when I was a child, I didn't care who saw me pout and in fact wanted people to notice that I was pouting.  Now that I am an adult I try to pout only when no one is looking, and I no longer call it pouting but just call it "being in a bad mood.”)

Bad habits like "saying goodbye on the phone to someone first" when they are the one that called.  Or bad habits like "not looking up when I am walking" and almost having three head-on “walking collisions” recently.  Bad habits like “checking facebook” way too often are one of those habits that I have added to my collection of habits in the second-half of my life.   "I am sure of this one thing" (as the Apostle Paul would say) that these are not the only bad habits I have but I didn't want to hang out too much of my laundry in this blog.  However, all of these are things I need to work on.

Not all of my habits are bad.  Simple habits like saying "yes sir" and "no sir".  Habits like saying "thank you" every time the waiter or waitress refills my glass of tea at the local restaurant (which may be quite often).  Habits like "holding the door open for the person that may be following me into a building, even if they are several steps away."  Some habits are as simple as getting out of bed in the morning time.  These habits I hope that I will always have.  Then there are more serious habits I have, and continue to work on like reading my bible daily and spending time in prayer and meditation on a daily basis.

Then there are things (or habits) that I need to add:

"Because you have these blessings, do your best to add these things to your lives:  to your faith, add goodness; and to your goodness; add knowledge; and to your knowledge, add self-control; and to your self-control, add patience; and to your patience, add service for God; and to your service for God, add kindness for your brothers and sisters in Christ; and to this kindness, add love. If all these things are in you and are growing, they will help you to be useful and productive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.”  2 Peter 1:5-7 NCV

What habits do you need to get rid of and which habits do you need to keep?  Is there change that needs to happen in your life?  Howard Hendricks, in his book Teaching to Change Lives challenges his readers to "write down somewhere...your answer to this question:  How have you changed...be very specific.  You say you're growing.  Okay...how?" 

What about you?  How you change lately?  Are there old habits that need to be broken and new habits that need to be added?

Godly Mothers and Wives

Pastor Tim has been using Oswald Chambers’ My Utmost for His Highest this year as his morning devotional guide. He has made reference to it in his postings as well as sermons. It is the most powerful devotional guide I have found and is now in print in over 40 languages.

Doing a little research, I found that it was first published in 1927 and has been in print ever since; over 70 years. But, since Chambers died in 1917 how could he have written a book that was published 10 years later? Who actually wrote it and the more than 30 titles that bear his name?

The answer: his Godly wife.

Gertrude (Hobbs) Chambers, nicknamed “Biddy” by her husband, suddenly became a widow and single mother of a four year old at the age of 33, when Oswald Chambers died unexpectedly while serving as a YMCA chaplain in Egypt during WW I. When Oswald died, he had published one book.

Oswald and Biddy had one daughter, Kathleen who remembers her mother as a loving mother with a gift for hospitality. But God had uniquely prepared Biddy for what became her life’s work; transcribing her husband’s sermons into books. She did this for most of the rest of her life.

Biddy was a sickly young girl, and had studied shorthand from a book. By the time she was old enough to work, she could take dictation at 250 words a minute; faster than most of can talk, particularly those of us from the south. Little did she know that God was preparing her for her life’s work.

Oswald and Biddy had both felt called to ministry. They founded the Bible Training College to fulfill that call. They operated the college, and ministered to a large number of students until Oswald left to minister to soldiers in Egypt. That school touched innumerable lives during its short existence, sending many to the mission field.

For most of their seven years of marriage, during lectures in his bible school as well as sermons in England and Egypt, Biddy was there, taking verbatim notes of his every word. I don’t find any record of either of them saying why she took these notes, but there is no doubt that God had a hand in it.

After Oswald’s death, Biddy returned to England with her daughter. She operated what amounted to a boarding house to ministerial students. In addition to being a mother to her daughter, she spent countless hours poring through her notes of his sermons, turning them in to the books we think of as Oswald Chambers’ books. Over the next 40+ years, she remained in the background as many around the world continue to read what she wrote down and edited. Without her, Oswald Chambers’ timeless words would probably not be known. Without her we would have never read a single page of My Utmost for His Highest.

I thought that this Mother’s Day would be a good time for this story, not just for her, but to honor all of the Godly mothers and wives around us, who do all the “behind the scenes” work in our homes, our churches, and our lives.

God Bless You! God Bless You All!

Happy Mother’s Day!

This is a guest post by Bill Davis, who occasionally guest posts here. You can see his blog at http://chickenroadwisdom.blogspot.com/