🤔Think Before Speaking🗣️

You can't control the length of your life. You can control the depth     ~ Billy Graham ~

Colossians 3:21 (KJV) Fathers, provoke not your children to anger, lest they be discouraged.

“Fathers” Why not mothers? Don't mothers provoke their children? {to stimulate (especially to anger} You know they do from time to time. So why is only “Fathers” mentioned? Let me explain it this way. I was talking to my grandson this morning and he began to tell me about a superintendent over the job he was working at. I guess he thought I didn’t know what a superintendent was. Because he told me he was the one who made sure everything on the job ran smoothly. I said this because it doesn’t matter if it is a construction site, corporation, small business, candy store, our home or whatever someone has to be responsible or in charge. 

Ephesians 5:23 (KJV) For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body. In the home it just so happens it’s the husband. I know that doesn’t sit well with all but God said the “husband is the head” there is always someone in charge. Fathers are the head of the home they are not to discourage their children. If the dad is not to discourage then he may be the one who is to encourage. Many children never hear words of encouragement from their dad. Well if they aren’t hearing words of encouragement then they are more than likely hearing words of discouragement. Oh what a difference it would make in our children’s lives if they  were hearing words of encouragement.  My business has taken me into many homes over the years. The man I worked for when I first started taught me a valuable lesson that has helped me tremendously. He said no matter what type of home you go into, always find something there that you can say encouraging words about. That is not hard: the baby, the child, the picture, the dog, the way the room is arranged and many more ways, just look. Myself as well as everyone else wants to hear kind encouraging words. I was in one of my accounts at a post office and I noticed that a lady had changed the way she was fixing her hair. I told her “I like the way you have your hair fixed now.” I was just being nice and giving words of encouragement and letting her know she wasn’t just another lady sorting mail that wasn’t  noticed. This was her response: “I wished my husband would notice.” Oh my I wasn’t expecting that. Fathers, husbands provoke not “lest they be discouraged.” I gave her words of encouragement being kind but what she really wanted was that her husband give her those words. It’s easy to notice the bad, it takes work to notice the good. What have you seen today?  The young boy cut the grass for his dad hoping to hear some type of words of encouragement from his dad. His dad arrives home from work. His son was looking out the window hoping his dad would notice that someone had taken time to cut the grass. His dad got out of the car, stood still, looked over the yard and then went straight to the tool shed. He then turned the lawn mower over and went into the house. He found his son who was hoping to hear words of encouragement; only to hear words of disengagement of how he had chipped the lawn mower blade. We as fathers must remember lawn mower blades and the likes can be replaced but children can’t. Think before you speak. 

 

🏃‍♂️‍➡️I’m going to 🏃‍♂️‍Eat well 🍲 and live long🧌 Wrong Plan❗️

My hope does not rest in the affairs of this world. It rests in Christ who is coming again. — Billy Graham —

Colossians 3:20 (KJV) Children, obey your parents in all things: for this is well pleasing unto the Lord.

Children are very vulnerable. When I was a kid some Saturday’s my brother, me and some friends would jump on our bikes and take off. We might go miles from home and wouldn’t come back for hours and some day not until late afternoon. That wasn’t a problem back in those days but today things are much different and I have to ask myself why? Now I agree we went to places that mom and dad told us not to go. One place was Carol’s Lake. It was a lake off the road and down in the woods about 3 or so miles from the house. It wasn’t a public lake but a private lake where no adults were present. It could be very dangerous thankfully no one ever drowned there that I know of. Nonetheless, we disobeying our parents by going there. The Bible is plain “Children, obey your parents” that would be honoring. God told us to honor our parents 

Exodus 20:12 (KJV) Honour thy father and thy mother: It’s the only commandment with a promise from God if you do so. “that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.” Who doesn’t want a long life? I read a story of a young man in his late 20’s that was going on a trip with his friends. This young man’s mother asked him not to go because she didn’t feel comfortable about it. The young man talked with his mother trying to get her to change her mind but she would not. His friends put the peer pressure on him  calling him a mother’s boy and other little names trying to get him to go but they couldn’t. The day came for the trip and his friends boarded a plane and took off on their trip. About 45 minutes into their trip the plane began to have problems and soon crashed in the ocean killing everyone on board except the young man who obeyed his mother who wasn’t on that plane. I know that’s a simple story but it shows the promise of what God said. If we honor our mother and dad our days will be long upon the land more so than diet and exercise. That’s A Written Promise From God Himself. 

Psalms 119:140 (KJV) Thy word is very pure: therefore thy servant loveth it. Don’t you just love God's Word?

💃To Intoxicate To Care🙈

We hurt people by being too busy. Too busy to notice their needs. Too busy to drop that note of comfort or encouragement or assurance of love. Too busy to listen when someone needs to talk. Too busy to care.   — Billy Graham —

Colossians 3:18 (KJV) Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as it is fit in the Lord.

 Wait a minute is the wife being told or asked to be submissive in all things?? Of course not and here’s two reasons why. Wives submit yourselves “as it is fit in the Lord.” Then in verse 19 we read 

Colossians 3:19 (KJV) Husbands, love your wives, and be not bitter against them.

“Husbands, love your wives” a loving husband is not going to ask his wife to do what’s not fitting with the Lord. We read of a King in the book of Esther chapter 1 by the name of  Ahasuerus as we began to read. We read that King Ahasuerus made a feast and invited other leaders to come.  Now on the seventh day; can you imagine food and wine, all you could eat and drink and now on day 7, oh my this isn’t going to end well. 

Esther 1:10 (KJV) On the seventh day, when the heart of the king was merry with wine, he commanded Mehuman, Biztha, Harbona, Bigtha, and Abagtha, Zethar, and Carcas, the seven chamberlains that served in the presence of Ahasuerus the king,

I just don’t think this is going to end well!! What did the King command? Read it for yourselves.

Esther 1:11 (KJV) To bring Vashti the queen before the king with the crown royal, to shew the people and the princes her beauty: for she was fair to look on.

No loving husband would do such. Alcohol makes you do wrong things. The King sends for his wife and he wants her to do what? I think you get the picture here. Her beauty was not just in her facial features, remember the King is asking to bring his wife into a room of men who have been drinking for a week. Now is she to be submissive to her husband's wishes? Let’s read how his wife Vashti responded to his request.

Esther 1:12 (KJV) But the queen Vashti refused to come at the king's commandment by his chamberlains: Oh my this is an awful request and the results of refusing not just her husband but the King could end in death. How did the King feel about this rejection in front of not just men but leaders? He too had been drinking for a week therefore was the king very wroth, and his anger burned in him. The point I am making is that a husband that loves his wife is not going to ask her to do such. Wait a minute I might be wrong, just the other day I saw a husband and wife and she was dressed so your eyes didn’t see her face. That was worse than King Ahasuerus was asking his wife to do. Oh that’s different, yeah I guess it is that man wasn’t drunk he knew what he was doing.

❤️‍🔥One Night of Selfish Pleasure🚼

 It is not the temptations you have, but the decision you make about them that counts. — Billy Graham —

Colossians 3:16 (KJV) Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.

there it is again “Let the” in verse 15 we read “let the peace of God rule” here in verse 16 it’s “Let the word of Christ dwell” for anything to dwell  it abide as a permanent resident. I live or dwell at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. To let the Word of God dwell you first have to have the Word of God. In Psalms 119:11  We read this “Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.” in order to let the Word of God dwell, you have to be doing something to know how to let it dwell. Have you ever hid anything? One can’t hide something if they don’t first have it to hide. David’s purpose was to keep himself from sinning. Wait! Wait a minute, is this not the David that became King of Israel? The one that had the affair with Bathsheba, the wife of  Urias? The same David that had the main part in Urias’s death? Yes it's all true. But let us not forget David even though he was a King appointed by God he was still a sinner. I would say it was set up by none other than satan himself. Like the fruit in the garden with Eve. The anger of Cain, the alcohol of Noah, the disobedience of Abraham, and on and on we read of great men and women failing God. Don’t just read and remember the failures, oh no these men and women personally asked God for forgiveness. And God used them greatly.Temptations come into our lives and many but not all are by our enemy the devil. I like what Billy Graham said “It is not the temptations you have, but the decision you make about them that counts.” Yes King David saw, then he looked and the look lingered and then he partook of that which was not his. One night of selfish pleasure cost him a lifetime of regret. We all are sinners, we can't help that. We will fight sin all our lives, that's a fact. The problem comes when our sin doesn’t trouble us. When we like David, work to cover up what we have done. If our known sin does trouble us we then must ask ourselves this question, why not?

🆕Put On Charity♥️

Don't worry about what you can't do; focus instead on what you can do... and then do it.

— Billy Graham —

Colossians 3:12 (KJV) Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering;

Colossians 3:13 (KJV) Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.

“Put on” We read that phrase 3 times in this chapter. In verse 10 we read put on a new man. Then in verse 12 we read that after we have put on the new man it bring mercy, kindness, humbleness, meekness, long suffering. Then we read “forgiving one another” and then the example of forgiving “as Christ forgave you” But you don’t know what they did! No, but I know what Jesus Christ did and if anyone should be unforgiving it should be Jesus for what you and I did to Him. We don’t own enough paper and pens to write that down. Then in verse 14 we read Colossians 3:14 (KJV) And above all these things put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness. Don’t you just love it “above all these”  Don’t do all the above out of a "I have too attitude but instead do it out of a loving attitude. Because it is out of the bond we have in Christ Jesus and He is perfect. Remember the saying “what would Jesus do?” In order to know what Jesus would do we first have to have a bond with Christ Jesus. That word “bond” jointed together, cements together. ¡Put on “charity”!

🫣See You At The Party💨🎂

 Colossians 3:9 (KJV) Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds;

As Colombo would say “there’s just one more thing.” “Lie not one to another” That’s a very hard thing for us to do. We just have to from time to time, everybody does it. I understand. Let’s say you are planning a surprise birthday party for your wife. On the way home from work you stop at a bakery to order the cake. It takes a lot longer than you had expected it to. Which puts you later getting home. As you walk in the door your wife asked the question you were hoping she wouldn’t. Why are you so late? What’s your answer? Depending on how inquisitive your wife is to how your answer would be. If not too inquisitive “oh I stopped to check on something.” But if she is really inquisitive I can’t see how you aren’t going to have to lie here. I’m sorry I’m not going to be much help here because my wife is inquisitive. The reason we aren’t to lie one to another is because? “ye have put off the old man with his deeds;”  I’m glad for that word in verse 5 Mortify; put to death. To be truthful with you I’m still putting to death lying. Because if my wife would have asked me why I was so late (and she would have) I would have told her a lie. You might say I can’t believe you would do such a thing? Well what was I supposed to tell her? That I had stopped by the bakery to order a birthday cake for your surprise party this coming Saturday at 2 o’clock. I’m sorry I don’t know the answer to that. I’ll. Ask my Pastor this morning and I’ll let you know what he says. Well this thought of lying with the question above has intrigued me. I talked with 3 individuals and one said well that’s different. I was not really satisfied with that answer. Another said yes that would be lying. Once again I wasn’t really sure either. I asked one last person and this is what they said no that would not be lying because a lye is the act to deceive. Then I thought I would see what Webster had to say. Webster “To utter falsehood with an intention to deceive”  The above question was not to deceive but to temporarily hide. You’ll have to decide I’m still not sure. I can hear my kids saying thanks a lot for ruining mom's surprise. Here’s the answer, you kids pick up the cake.  Now I’m off the hook for you see 

 “Lie not one to another” see you at the party.

📴Putting Off ✴️

The more one walks in the wrong direction the further away they get from that which is right.

Colossians 3:8 (KJV) But now ye also put off all these; anger, wraft, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth.

We’ll have you? “put off” As my Pastor said “one never takes off, that he doesn’t put on.” In verse 10 we read just that. Colossians 3:10 (KJV) And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him: In verse 8 we read what’s being removed. First thing “anger” have you or are you working at putting off your anger??? Maybe you have allowed your anger to get out of hand. That’s what “wraft” is: violent anger. What about “malice” injuring others without a cause? Do we think before we speak about others?  My mother used to say to us “sticks and stones may break my bones but words can never hurt me.” Nice saying for a kid but in real life words others speak can and do hurt. You don’t have the time to read what others have said about me that really hurt. You know what? The same is true with you my reader. Bottom line, words do hurt and do real damage at times. How about “blasphemy” an injury offered to God by words or writing that are reproachful, denying that which is due and belonging to God or attributing to God that which is not agreeable to His nature. Is the next word after blasphemy a coincidence or on purpose? I think the next word “filthy communication” which comes “out of your mouth” is right on target. Angry words, violent words, injuring words, denying words which most likely will result in filthy words.