Covers Off

A man called home to talk to his wife; and got a serenade.  It wasn't from her but from a canary they had gotten a couple of weeks before. Man, did he sing up a storm!  The whole time he was talking on the phone to his wife, the Yellow Bird Symphony was going on in the background.  It was hard to hear that canary sing and stay gloomy for long!  Every night they would put this cloth over the cage and all the singing stopped.  The next morning, when they went into the living room, there was not a sound coming from under that cloth.  Had something happened to him? No, as soon as that cover came off, the canary started jumping all over the cage and singing his wake-up song.
Each day in the life of that canary it is as if life begins when the cover comes off the cage.  In a way, it's like that for you and I.  Your cage might be your painful memories; a broken heart or a broken dream.  Maybe you're caged in by an addiction or a habit, or some anger that's eating you up on the inside.  For some of us, it's depression, maybe even suicidal thoughts. That's the stuff that's held us in.  There's a cover on that cage, whatever it is.  Even as you read this today, it's dark in there, and maybe there's nothing to sing about.
There's some good news for you from the Word of God,

Psalms 40:1 King David said, "I waited patiently for the LORD; and he inclined unto me, and heard my cry. He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings. And he hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God:" Now David's imagery is a little different, but in canary terms, the cover came off his dark cage and gave him a reason to sing! The same Lord, who did that for King David years ago, wants to do that for you right now.  In fact, that is exactly why Jesus Christ came.  He said,

Luke 4:18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, - Just like the little bird in the dark world that he cannot change - until someone bigger and more powerful comes along to remove the cover and release him from the darkness.
The Savior came to do that for you. He literally came to die for our darkness and our sin; to remove the death sentence that you and I have on our head because of our sin.  And when you tell Jesus you are trusting Him completely for a relationship with God, the cover comes off!  All the guilt; all the shame of the past is forgiven. So many people have told me right after they've trusted Christ, "I feel like a hundred pounds has just been lifted off my shoulders."  And the pain is suddenly lightened because God Himself has picked it up  the dark feelings and the power that may have kept you in the darkness are replaced by an unexplainable personal peace. That canary had no choice about when the cover came off his cage  but you do.  The release from darkness comes when you open your heart to Jesus Christ; which could be this very day.  If you're tired of the darkness  if you're ready to let Jesus come into your heart, let me encourage you to tell Him that today. "Jesus, I will run my life no more; You will from now on. I was made by you. I was made for you. You gave your life for my sin. I am yours."Oh bless the day you come to that conclusion and the cover comes off.

Abandon

Proverbs 28:4 They that forsake the law praise the wicked: but such as keep the law contend with them.

Proverbs 28:5 Evil men understand not judgment: but they that seek the LORD understand all [things].

Proverbs 28:7 Whoso keepeth the law [is] a wise son: but he that is a companion of riotous [men] shameth his father.

In any sport there is a playing field, there are rules to be played by, there is a team that plays, and there are umpires who make sure the game is played by the rules. When the rules or laws are broken there are penalties that must be enforced. In verse 4 we see the word "FORSAKE" Webster says it means; To quit or leave entirely; to desert; to abandon; to depart from. To forsake means that you had to first be apart before you could abandon. There’s always a reason why a person abandons. When one abandons then they will always do something else as in the case before us they start praising the wicked and they did so because they were not content with the law.

Content- To satisfy the mind; to make quiet, so as to stop complaint or opposition; to appease; to make easy in any situation; For whatever reason this person has departed from that which is right, that which was very satisfying and now wanting wickedness to satisfy by praising the wicked. Evil men do not understand judgement and the reason they don't is because they don't know the rules. They have never asked The Lord Jesus to forgive them of their sins and received the gift of salvation. If they do believe somewhat in heaven and hell they know that they are probably not going to heaven but hope they have done enough good that hell will not be as bad on them as someone who just didn't even try to play by some of the rules. No! That's not the way it works in football or any other sport you mess up on the playing field you're whole team suffers. Our sins not only affect us but they also affect those who follow us. Before deciding on who to praise the question that should be asked is who else will this affect? 

First Camouflage

Camouflage is a set of methods of concealment that allows otherwise visible animals, military vehicles, or other objects to remain unnoticed by blending with their environment or by resembling something else. Hunters use camouflage clothing as they hunt, we use camouflage clothing in the military. God created and put camouflage on animals so they could hide from their predator, but that camouflage also works for them to catch their prey. Did you know that was the first clothing that man made for himself?

Genesis 3:7 And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they [were] naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.

Genesis 3: 8 And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden.

Adam and Eve ran out and camouflaged themselves amongst leaves in the garden, and you know what? They thought they were camouflage extremely well for they heard God say "Where [art] thou?"

Genesis 3:9 And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where [art] thou?

Unfortunately their camouflage didn't work out for them; you can't camouflage yourself from God.

Genesis 3:10 And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I [was] naked; and I hid myself.

Do we not do the same things? As one lady told me and my wife she had church friends and worldly friends. What does that mean? Does it mean that she was like a chameleon lizard camouflaging herself in with her surroundings? I'm not sure for I didn't know her at all. It's easy to camouflage into the crowd.  We don't have to live wrong; just don't talk about The Lord. We can tell ourselves that it’s a personal choice anyways and what real difference could I make anyways? Good question! How about where you work? Have you made a difference there? Maybe a suggestion on how something could be done better. Someone listened and now a product is being produced more efficiently and better for others, and you're the reason. What if you would have just kept quiet? That is why we can't camouflage ourselves, we can't keep quiet. There was a man named Ken who didn't keep quiet about who he was and he told me about Christ and because of him my life is different. I just will not keep quiet about what The Lord has done and is doing in my life and because of that other lives have been and will be changed. We do affect others! Don't camouflage yourself amongst the crowd or in the crowd. I assure you it's not God's plan for you.

Dumb Decision

I read it in my Bible and found it hard to understand. I just couldn't believe what I was reading, how in the world could someone be so dumb. It was a plague, this plague included frogs. These frogs were everywhere, in the yard, in the ponds, in the creeks but they were also in the house. They were in the kitchen cabinets, in the oven, even in the bed in the bed rooms, these frogs were everywhere. Reading about the frogs isn't what I didn't understand it was when Moses asked Pharaoh when he would like the frogs to be gone and Pharaoh said tomorrow. I thought how could he or why would he want to spend another night with all those frogs, I just couldn't understand that. That had to be the dumbest decision of the year for a leader.

Would anyone really be that dumb, I had to ask myself? It was on yesterday that I must have met a man kin to Pharaoh. I do pest control to put bread on our table. I had just arrived at one of our accounts when a man ran to meet me. He then asked me about an ant problem he was having. He told me what all he had done to get rid of these ants with no avail. He told me they were everywhere in his closet all over his clothes, in his bed, in the kitchen in the drawers and cabinets and he just couldn't get rid of them. He asked how could he, I told him that I would be more than glad to get rid of them for $125.00; he had already spent around $200 00. He didn't want to go that route. I then told him of a product that he could purchase for about $85.00. That is when I began to notice the kinship with Pharaoh. He asked if I would sell him some of that product, I told him I didn't have any to sale. That is when he said he could wait until he saw me next month. Next month! Not one more night with the ants but 30 more nights with the ants. All pharaoh had to do was let the people of God go but he decided to have one plague after another until he made the decision to let them go. We all make dumb mistakes and some of them are costly like the man I talked with this week. He has cancer in his liver and doesn't know how much time he has left. I asked him what he thought would happen when he closed his eyes in death? His answer was I don't know it's scary. I will meet again with him this afternoon would you please help me pray that I can help him to know what's on the other side. We all must remember he that has the Son has life and he that has not the Son of God has not life.

1 John 5:12 He that hath the Son hath life; [and] he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.

1 John 5:13 These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.

Dumb decisions are made when we decide to keep what we have instead of receiving something much better as in the case of the frogs and ants.

Losing Air

It was just a small leak in my tire, all the air wasn't rushing out just a small amount. Every morning I would put air back into the tire, you see I was busy, now I was going to get that tire fixed but not today maybe tomorrow. It wasn't forgotten I had considered doing something but not now. Webster says this about the word Consider -To fix the mind on, with a view to a careful examination; to think on with care; to ponder; to study; to meditate on.

That's what I was doing thinking, pondering, studying on getting that tire fixed. All that is fine except for one thing, nothing was being done about fixing the problem. You know what happened? That little bit of air turned into more and more until a small problem that I had considered fixing now was a large problem that wasn't easily fixed.

 Proverbs 24:32 Then I saw, and considered it well: I looked upon it, and received instruction.

Here we read of a person who saw and fixed their mind on and viewed with careful examination. They looked and they received instructions.

Proverbs 24:30 I went by the field of the slothful, and by the vineyard of the man void of understanding;

[31] And, lo, it was all grown over with thorns, and nettles had covered the face thereof, and the stone wall thereof was broken down.

[33] Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep:

Here we read of a person going by the field of a lazy person (maybe too lazy to get their tire fixed) it was all grown over. How did this happen? Little by little; they were going to plow but not today tomorrow will be fine. They were going to plant, but not today tomorrow will be ok. They went to sleep and never got any of those things done. As my father-n-law always said "they must have fell asleep at the switch." They had the ability, the power was in reach but instead of applying themselves, committing themselves to the task set before them, they slept; can't do anything while sleeping. We have considered getting committed and doing something at the Church, in the Community, for the poor, for the addicted, for the homeless, for the hungry, and for the......... Being committed and considering are two different things one is doing the other is thinking about doing. How much air are you losing by not being committed to getting the tire fixed?

Amazing Facts

Proverbs 23:7,12,15,17,19,26,33

[7] For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; but his heart is not with thee.

[12] Apply thine heart unto instruction, and thine ears to the words of knowledge.

[15] My son, if thine heart be wise, my heart shall rejoice, even mine.

[17] Let not thine heart envy sinners: but be thou in the fear of the Lord all the day long.

[19] Hear thou, my son, and be wise, and guide thine heart in the way.

[26] My son, give me thine heart, and let thine eyes observe my ways.

[33] Thine eyes shall behold strange women, and thine heart shall utter perverse things.

Watch out for the heart. We sure want to do that in our fleshly life. Don't eat this or don't eat that for its not good for your heart. I was talking with a man this week when another man showed up. He was smoking a cigarette, the other man told him that it was bad for his heart; he responded I know, I need to quit. Needing and knowing but not taking action is useless. In these verses before us did you catch how important your heart is? The heart can think, it can apply instruction, it can rejoice, it can envy, it can guide, it can give, it can also utter perverse things. Just as we protect the heart that pumps blood throughout our bodies by what we take in we can also do the same thing with the heart that controls us. If we have envy in our heart; we allowed it in. ENVY painful or resentful awareness of an advantage enjoyed by another joined with a desire to possess the same advantage. We do and say things not by accident or a slip of the tongue we do because that is what’s in our heart.  

Matthew 12:34 O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.

It's like taking in the wrong things and expecting to have a healthy heart, no in order to have a healthy heart one must take in that which is right. Take the time to follow the word "heart" through your Bible and you will discover some amazing facts. I'll get you started. The first time we see the word heart it’s in;  Genesis 6:5 And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. We must be careful how we use our imagination;  

2 Corinthians 10:5 Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;

 Psalm 9:1 I will praise thee , O Lord , with my whole heart; I will shew forth all thy marvellous works.

Not part or even 99.9% but ALL or WHOLE heart we should praise The Lord . What's going on in our heart will come out in our walk, our talk and our actions.

Matthew 7:20  Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.

 Take some time and see what The Lord will teach you about your heart. 


Wealth Untold

Proverbs 22:2 The rich and poor meet together: the Lord is the maker of them all

When you saw the word "rich" did it jump out at you? Wealth, we all want it. We hear of those who have wealth and we think to ourselves wish I had just half of that. The Church may listen to those who give large sums of money more than those who give little amounts. Wealth is power; the poor want it and the rich have it. While one is trying to get it the other is trying to keep it. To the Lord there is no such thing, He doesn't have more respect for the wealthy than the poor the same Lord is rich unto both.  If we allow our mind to think of wealth as money then we will miss the wealth we already have. Wealth; what is it really? If you got out of a bed this morning in your home; then you're a wealthy person. If you're able to look across the table and see a wife and children, you're wealthy. If someone said these words to you within the last 12 hours "I love you" you are wealthy. If you have just one friend you're wealthy; and we all have more than that. If you have grandchildren then you know you're wealthy. If you were able to see the sun rise this morning, you're wealthy for there are many who can't. How can one be poor while living in one of the wealthiest countries in the world? We become poor when we allow ourselves to think life would be better if. If I had more money so we race through each day and from town to town chasing the dollar only to find it to be a sand castle that will soon be washed away. We become poor when we think that someone else would make us happier than the one we chose to marry. The grass may look greener on the other side but once you decide to cross over it too becomes just as brown. Could it be you? You are wealthy; you just don't understand the word wealth. Wealth doesn’t mean having lots of money but it carries the meaning of external happiness. If one keeps looking for something better, they will always be on the run and never find the wealth they already have. Learn to count your blessing!

When upon life’s billows you are tempest-tossed,
When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost,
Count your many blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.

Refrain:
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
Count your blessings, see what God hath done!
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
*Count your many blessings, see what God hath done.
[*And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.]

Are you ever burdened with a load of care?
Does the cross seem heavy you are called to bear?
Count your many blessings, every doubt will fly,
And you will keep singing as the days go by.

When you look at others with their lands and gold,
Think that Christ has promised you His wealth untold;
Count your many blessings—*money cannot buy [*wealth can never buy]
Your reward in heaven, nor your home on high.

So, amid the conflict whether great or small,
Do not be discouraged, God is over all;
Count your many blessings, angels will attend,
Help and comfort give you to your journey’s end.

Elementary

Good Monday Morning what a day this is going to be for this is the day the Lord has made, now let’s rejoice and be glad in it. Last week my wife and I took a cruise and had to once again put on sun tan lotion to keep from getting too much sun. We enjoyed ourselves; we had not been on a vacation in four years. No phones, computers and for one week we could devote time to each other without anything interrupting us. While we were away I spent time with the Lord, and this morning I want to share with each of you something very elementary that He showed me. In Proverbs chapter 17 and verse 3 we read these words “The fining pot is for silver, and the furnace for gold: but the LORD trieth the hearts. “

The fining pot is for removing the impurities from the pure.  So it is in our lives, God has to remove the impure from the pure. From time to time we allow impure things to come into our lives and God must deal with them. How does God do this? He refines in many ways. He may use the Bible, as we read He drives His Word into our heart and drives out those impurities.  He may use the place of Worship to point out the impurities that have settled in. He may use our Prayer time as He speaks to our heart and then sometimes He may use other people but whatever method He chooses His goal is to remove that which will keep us from shining for Him. Then we read about the furnace, we are told that the furnace is for gold. The furnace not only removes the impurities but it also brings out the real; in other words the furnace shows what is real. We read of the furnace in the lives of men in the Bible. We are told about a man by the name of Job. All is well but then he is placed into the furnace and when we come to the end of the book of Job we see and learn from his gold refining moments. We read of a man named Joseph and of Daniel, the heat of the furnace proved what they were made of. In the lives of Peter and Thomas it took the fining pot to remove the impurities. It all boils down to “If we confess He’s faithful to forgive.”

John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

The question is do we want to shine?

Daniel 12:3 And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever.

Green Beret

Anything ever happened to you that you just could not get over? Captain Brien Thomas Collins lost an arm and a leg in Vietnam.  He was a Green Beret on his second tour of duty when the grenade exploded, shredding his body and nearly ending his life. He spent 22 months in seven military hospitals as doctors pieced him back together. His attitude about what he lost; outstanding. “So I lost an arm and a leg in Vietnam, then with a smile on his face he says, but I still have an arm and a leg.” It’s never about what you lose it’s about what you have. We have all lost something, as we go through this life but we must never spend our time on what we’ve lost for that will only bring a depressed life and an attitude of sorrow. I am reminded of a man and his wife who were in a Church service when their Pastor read a note from the pulpit. It was a note from a mother who had lost her son in an ongoing war and with the note a check. That is when this man’s wife elbowed him in the ribs and told him that they should write a check too. Her husband said “sweetheart we didn’t lose our son in a war.” Her response was simply “I know and that is why we should be thankful.” The lesson here is sometimes we spend too much time on what we have lost and not what we have. We can name what we have lost and use up two to three or more sheets of paper writing them but how much paper would it take to write what we have. The Bible says that men love darkness; think about it, on a day to day basis what do we hear? Will we hear more good or will we hear more bad? The bad will far outweigh the good on a daily basis.  In our own lives do we remember what we have lost or what we still have? I remember while in the Military being told by another soldier these words. He said “years from this night and all the bad things you have experienced what will stand out in your mind the most is not the bad but the good.” He was right and today I still covet the attitude, and this will pass too. Weren’t you glad you were able to get up this morning? Are you glad you have enough air to breathe? Are you glad you could still hug your children and see the sun rise? Aren’t you glad others love you? Aren’t you glad you love others? My best friend called me this past Saturday and said let’s meet for breakfast one morning next week. I said sure; now I’m not excited about breakfast or even the place we’ll meet but I am excited about the time we will spend together. I’m thankful that I have friends that want to be around me. Now think, what do you have to be excited about? It has to be something that you have not something you have lost.

Galatians 6:9 And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.

Galatians 6:10 As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith. 

Buried in Backyard

There was a man who buried his money in a can in the back yard at his home. The problem is that he never told anyone just where he had placed it. Then the unexpected happened he had a stroke and he too forgot where he had put it, all he could remember is that it was somewhere in the back yard. We all have things we haven’t told others, not because it is some big secret we just don’t. I am trying to let my wife know as much as I can my pass words and where I keep them so if she needs them she’ll know where they are. Our treasures what are they? The man I told you about had his treasure buried in his back yard. He just forgot where and as his grandson told me he wasn’t sure that he had ever buried anything back there anyways.  Have you ever thought about what your treasures are? Some think that winning a large sum of money would be a wonderful treasure. Some feel if they could just get that promotion that would be the treasure of a life time.  Merriam Webster gives this meaning to TREASURE wealth (as money, jewels, or precious metals) stored up or hoarded  (2): wealth of any kind or in any form: riches b: a store of money in reserve 2: something of great worth or value; also: a person esteemed as rare or precious 3: a collection of precious things

The first meaning had to do with money stored up or buried treasure. I was more interested in the meaning that said “of great worth or value, a person esteemed as rare or precious and a collection of precious things.”  The first time we see the word used in the New Testament deals with our heart.

Matthew 6:21 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. The man earlier had his heart buried in the back yard he just did know where. Where are our real treasures? Sure we all want better pay but is that a treasure? I think not a treasure is something of great worth. What could that be? I don’t know what it is for you but for me it’s hiding and placing God’s Word in my heart. I read God’s Word daily and I meditate on God’s Word until He ministers to me. Sometimes that’s in the first 15 minutes and sometimes its and hour but I want to hear from HIM! Then I have a treasure in my family there is nothing that thrills my heart more than for one of our children calling me just to talk; not asking for anything just talk and then as we say goodbye to hear them say Dad I love you; that’s  priceless. What a treasure that is. Then there is the treasure that the Lord gave me in my wife what a wonderful woman she is and what a lucky man I am. Now where are your treasures? Stop and look around see what and where they are and please don’t bury them in the back yard for you might just forget where you buried them.

Some

Newark, NJ 4/13/12 Newark Mayor Cory Booker arrived home to find the house next door on fire. Booker and two of his security detail entered the home to help its residents escape. There were no emergency responders present at the time, but Booker rescued one woman who was taken to the hospital. Booker told reporters that he feared for his life as the kitchen erupted in the flames and he couldn't find the woman until she called out. Booker said he could hear, "I'm here, I'm here, help I'm here." He grabbed her from a bed and threw her over his shoulder. "I punched through the kitchen and the flames and that's when I saw Detective Rodriguez. He grabbed her as well and we got her down the stairs and we both just collapsed outside," Booker said. Booker says he didn't feel brave, but did feel terrified as he dashed through flames with the woman over his shoulder. He described the rescue as a "come to Jesus moment." He couldn't breathe after he got outside, he said. "I felt fear. I really didn't think we were going to get out of there," the 42-year-old mayor said it was very difficult to breathe as he looked for the woman, whose mother had screamed she was still trapped inside the burning house.

His security detail tried to drag him away, but Booker told them that the woman was going to die, Detective Alex Rodriguez said. Booker said as he struggled to find the woman, he feared that he might die also. Honestly it was terrifying and to look back and see nothing but flames and to look in front of you and see nothing but blackness," Booker said. The mayor said he now has an even more profound respect for firefighters.

The mayor was also taken to the hospital suffering from smoke inhalation and second-degree burns on his right hand. He was treated and released. He followed her “voice,” he saw "sparks flying everywhere." When he reached the room where the woman was, it was totally in flames. Well, he picked her up over his shoulder, carried her as these burning embers were falling from the ceiling, burning her back and burning his hand. Mayor Booker saw a house in flames, but when he heard the screams of a mother saying her daughter was still inside the burning house, Mayor Booker saw the need and took action and did so against others trying to hold him back. Wow what an exciting story. Wait, what if that had been you or I, would we have done the same? We'll never know what you and I would have done, but the child of God will be faced with a similar situation. Jude said it like this.

Jude 1:20-23

But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost,

[21] Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.

[22] And of some have compassion, making a difference:

[23] And others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire; hating even the garment spotted by the flesh.

Mayor Booker made a difference; he had compassion for his neighbor to the point of running into a burning house after her. Do you and I have compassion for those that don't know where they will spend eternity? Do we have enough compassion for those others have forgotten? Jude said that there are only going to be "some" that have compassion and there are only going to "some" that make a difference. Merriam Webster says the word some means being unknown, undetermined. We must be people of action making decisions to reach those who otherwise will not be reached. We need to ask ourselves "am I a person of action?"

Five Frogs

Bill was the apple of his mother's eye. He had a great job, a good income - and an insatiable appetite for alcohol. From the time he was nine years old, he entertained the men at the local store by lapping booze from a saucer like a kitten.

By the time Bill was in his 20s, his drinking cost him his job, his dignity and almost the people he loved. After drinking heavily one night, he returned home, flew into a rage and chased his sisters with a butcher knife. Later, his drinking - and ultimately even cocaine use - took him to jail and then prison. Hopeless, one night he was walking down Chicago's South State Street, his feet protected only by shoe soles tied on with rags. He was heading for Lake Michigan to end his wasted life. Then he heard the music - a hymn he remembered from his childhood. It was coming from a rescue mission. And it drew him inside. There a mission worker reached out to him with these words from the Bible: "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life" (John 3:16).

On the night Bill planned to end his life, he gave his life to Jesus. And he would say, from that day on, "I wasn't a reformed man - I was a transformed man." A young man who had thrown his life away with booze and drugs ends up with wrong thinking. Our jails and prisons are full of men and women that who were productive citizens but now have sold themselves way too cheap for a life with a dead end. The stories are countless of those who have wrecked their lives and some even to the point of ending them. Not long ago a man who lived just a few miles away from our home had kicked his cocaine habit of many years. He had been clean for awhile, no police had been by to pick him up and all looked as if the past was the past. Then it happened he got over confident went on a trip and before he knew what had happened he was using cocaine again. Then the police came and he was in big trouble. He couldn’t face up to his failure so he came up with a solution; he would just end his life. I wish his story ended the way Bill’s did but unfortunately it didn’t. He went out the door of his home with a pistol in his hand his wife right behind him she was begging him not to. He turns and tells her to get back in the house or he will kill her too. Around the house he went and the next thing his wife heard was a gunshot, he had ended his cocaine habit but in the process he destroyed lives. It would have been much better had he been transformed from his awful habit. The answer is still the same as it was for Bill; JESUS!

John 8:31 Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;

John 8:32 And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

 Sin will always take you further than you want go, keep you longer than you want to stay, and cost you more than you want to pay but the TRUTH SHALL MAKE YOU FREE. This should be a no brainer but the simplest things are often overlooked. Just remember there were five frogs sitting on the edge of a log. Four of the frogs decided to jump into the water. How many frogs were left sitting on the log? Five, deciding to jump is not actually jumping, jumping and deciding to jump are two different things. Deciding to work at a problem is not the same as working on the problem. You may sit on the side lines and watch the game but it is not playing in the game. Knowing where the truth maybe found is not the same as knowing the truth. “If” you continue in my word Jesus said then you are my disciples indeed. Webster says the word “Disciple” A learner; a scholar; one who receives or professes to receive instruction from another; 

 The Word of God which is the truth MAKES FREE.

Pointed Finger

Caught; Yes red handed. No question about it. No defense needed; Guilty. Made to sit, while the law was quoted? What? Death, oh my. That's when it all began to happen, Jesus sitting and hearing the law now stoops and writes something in the sand. He then stands and makes a statement; it's true this woman was caught in the act of adultery and you want to stone her? Great, here's what needs to be done. He that is without sin among you let him first cast a stone at her.

John 8:9 And they which heard [it], being convicted by [their own] conscience, went out one by one, beginning at the eldest, [even] unto the last: and Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst.

No stones are thrown and everyone leaves. Jesus turns and asked;

John 8:10 When Jesus had lifted up himself, and saw none but the woman, he said unto her, Woman, where are those thine accusers? Hath no man condemned thee?

Very interesting, we see those that are quick to point their finger at someone else for their wrong doing. When it was brought to their attention that they too were guilty of something, their conscience convicted them and they all left. Wouldn't it be nice if those that accuse us would think before they point their finger and think about their wrong doings in the past? You'll find those accusers where you work, where you worship, you'll even find them where you walk. They're everywhere; but you and I must make sure we're not the ones accusing.  We can do that best by remembering we too have done wrong ourselves.

Point Man

Point Man- A soldier who is assigned to a position some distance ahead of a patrol as a lookout. A man who has a crucial, often hazardous role in the forefront of an enterprise: Taking point means you are the lead soldier of a patrol, the figure who guides the unit through enemy terrain. The point man walks ahead, scanning for danger. It is the most exposed position in a war zone. Taking point guarantees you will be first to wander into an ambush, first to tread upon a hidden bomb, first to be framed in the sights of an opposing sniper. Those who take point accept a vastly reduced chance of surviving. Men can "take point", "walk point", "do point", "be point", but it all amounts to the same thing: high risk. There's NO such thing as a comfort zone if you become the point man. You say I'm not in the Military so therefore I haven't much to worry about. I'm not talking about the Military I'm talking about you and I in our Christian walk. The Apostle Paul as he wrote to young Timothy he had this to say.

2 Timothy 2:1-Thou therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.

2- And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also.

3- Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.

The fist thing Paul tells him is to be strong; not in himself but in The Lord. Then he tells him to commit what he has been taught as well as what he has experienced unto faithful men; but wait these faithful men must be men that have the ability to teach others what they had been taught. Paul tells Timothy, Timothy you're the point man, you're the soldier that's out front, watch out for  the ambush, the sniper, for you are in a war zone; it all amounts to the same thing: high risk. Now you might say to yourself, "man that would be exciting, having that point man position?” That may be the way you think "exciting" but when asked or challenged for that position or any position no one waves there hand saying pick me, pick me. So what is it you do? Ride the pine at your Church? Do as little as possible just so you can say you're doing something. Does that sound exciting? Does that sound like a point man? I think not! Why not be that point man?  Pray for your Pastor before he preaches and watch what happens. Be that point man for your Sunday School teacher, when you become that point man watch out for the ambushes will come and the snipers will put you in their sights, the plan keeps that person off their knees. If you want to do something exciting you're going to have to do something different than you've been doing or you’re going to get the same results. Now that's a hidden bomb.