Last week my friend, Pastor Randy Snow, shared a devotion from 1 Samuel 30:6 which says, "And David was greatly distressed; for the people spake of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and daughters: but David encouraged himself in the Lord his God."
I'm not going to recap Randy's devotional, just believe me when I say it was excellent.
Every since that day I've been thinking about the last part of that verse: "...but David encouraged himself in the Lord his God."
There's a lot of stuff happening in my life right now, and I'm sure in your life too. Many days fly by and it seems we get little or nothing accomplished. Often it's easy to become discouraged.
1 Samuel 30 tells of an account where David and his men had been dealt a hard blow, and when the people became discouraged and afraid, they decided to take things out on their leader.
But notice David's response to his own discouragement and the threats of the people... "...but David encouraged himself in the Lord his God."
He encouraged himself in the Lord. He found reasons to rejoice, to be happy, to trust in the Lord his God.
We must daily trust in the Lord. We must daily give Him praise, in good times and in bad.
I've also been thinking of the words of the prophet Habakkuk, Habakkuk 3:17-18 says, "Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, 18 yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior."
The Joe Mayo translation, "Even though nothing is going right, even though I'm broke and not sure how things will work out, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior."
We must daily be encouraged in the Lord our God. He is our hope!
I heard a statement years ago that I think applies here, "If that don't light your fire, your woods wet!"
"David encouraged himself in the Lord... I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior."
Maybe today has been one of "those" days for you. Maybe it's been one of those weeks, months or years.
Encourage yourself in the Lord. Rejoice in the Lord.
Earlier today I listened to a sermon by Missionary Mark Buntain. At the end of the sermon he said, "I do not pray for an easy life. I do not ask for an easy road. I only pray for consistent, righteous, faithfulness, humility, honesty, sincerity and obedience to the divine Word of God."
Pretty powerful statement!
Be encouraged. God good, He is faithful and He is our hope.
Rejoice in Him.
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Thursday, August 19, 2010
1910
Earlier this week, I recieved this as an e-mail from my friend Billy Ray.
Thanks Billy Ray!
1910 Ford Model R
THE YEAR IS 1910
This will boggle your mind, I know it did mine!
************ ********* ***********
The year is 1910
One hundred years ago.
What a difference a century makes!
Here are some statistics for the Year 1910:
************ ********* ************
The average life expectancy for men was 47 years.
Fuel for this car was sold in drug stores only.
Only 14 percent of the homes had a bathtub.
Only 8 percent of the homes had a telephone.
There were only 8,000 cars and only 144 miles of paved roads.
The maximum speed limit in most cities was 10 mph.
The tallest structure in the world was the Eiffel Tower !
The average US wage in 1910 was 22 cents per hour.
The average US worker made between $200 and $400 per year ..
A competent accountant could expect to earn $2000 per year,
A dentist $2,500 per year, a veterinarian between $1,500 and $4,000 per year, and a mechanical engineer about $5,000 per year.
More than 95 percent of all births took place at HOME .
Ninety percent of all Doctors had NO COLLEGE EDUCATION! Instead, they attended so-called medical schools, many of which were condemned in the press AND the government as 'substandard.'
Sugar cost four cents a pound.
Eggs were fourteen cents a dozen.
Coffee was fifteen cents a pound.
Most women only washed their hair once a month, and used Borax or egg yolks for shampoo.
Canada passed a law that prohibited poor people from entering into their country for any reason.
The Five leading causes of death were:
1. Pneumonia and influenza
2. Tuberculosis
3. Diarrhea
4. Heart disease
5. Stroke
The American flag had 45 stars ....
The population of Las Vegas , Nevada , was only 30!!!!
Crossword puzzles, canned beer, and iced tea hadn't been invented yet.
There was no Mother's Day or Father's Day.
Two out of every 10 adults couldn't read or write and
Only 6 percent of all Americans had graduated from high school..
Marijuana, heroin, and morphine were all available over the counter at the local corner drugstores.
Back then pharmacists said, 'Heroin clears the complexion, gives buoyancy to the mind, regulates the
stomach and bowels, and is, in fact, a perfect guardian of health' ( Shocking? DUH! )
Eighteen percent of households had at least one full-time servant or domestic help ....
There were about 230 reported murders in the ENTIRE U.S.A. !
I am now going to forward this to someone else without typing it myself.
From there, it will be sent to others all over the WORLD - all in a matter of seconds!
Try to imagine what it may be like in another 100 years.
IT STAGGERS THE MIND!
Thanks Billy Ray!
1910 Ford Model R
This will boggle your mind, I know it did mine!
************ ********* ***********
The year is 1910
One hundred years ago.
What a difference a century makes!
Here are some statistics for the Year 1910:
************ ********* ************
The average life expectancy for men was 47 years.
Fuel for this car was sold in drug stores only.
Only 14 percent of the homes had a bathtub.
Only 8 percent of the homes had a telephone.
There were only 8,000 cars and only 144 miles of paved roads.
The maximum speed limit in most cities was 10 mph.
The tallest structure in the world was the Eiffel Tower !
The average US wage in 1910 was 22 cents per hour.
The average US worker made between $200 and $400 per year ..
A competent accountant could expect to earn $2000 per year,
A dentist $2,500 per year, a veterinarian between $1,500 and $4,000 per year, and a mechanical engineer about $5,000 per year.
More than 95 percent of all births took place at HOME .
Ninety percent of all Doctors had NO COLLEGE EDUCATION! Instead, they attended so-called medical schools, many of which were condemned in the press AND the government as 'substandard.'
Sugar cost four cents a pound.
Eggs were fourteen cents a dozen.
Coffee was fifteen cents a pound.
Most women only washed their hair once a month, and used Borax or egg yolks for shampoo.
Canada passed a law that prohibited poor people from entering into their country for any reason.
The Five leading causes of death were:
1. Pneumonia and influenza
2. Tuberculosis
3. Diarrhea
4. Heart disease
5. Stroke
The American flag had 45 stars ....
The population of Las Vegas , Nevada , was only 30!!!!
Crossword puzzles, canned beer, and iced tea hadn't been invented yet.
There was no Mother's Day or Father's Day.
Two out of every 10 adults couldn't read or write and
Only 6 percent of all Americans had graduated from high school..
Marijuana, heroin, and morphine were all available over the counter at the local corner drugstores.
Back then pharmacists said, 'Heroin clears the complexion, gives buoyancy to the mind, regulates the
stomach and bowels, and is, in fact, a perfect guardian of health' ( Shocking? DUH! )
Eighteen percent of households had at least one full-time servant or domestic help ....
There were about 230 reported murders in the ENTIRE U.S.A. !
I am now going to forward this to someone else without typing it myself.
From there, it will be sent to others all over the WORLD - all in a matter of seconds!
Try to imagine what it may be like in another 100 years.
IT STAGGERS THE MIND!
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Life is Precious.
Later today, I'll be attending the funeral of the mom of a 12 year old who was on my son's baseball team.
It's sad when a loved one is suddenly gone.
So many times we forget how precious life really is.
We rush through days and weeks, many times taking life for granted.
We get irritated and become impatient with friends and family members. Sometimes we get down right angry.
Never once thinking that we should make things right and part on good terms becausee that could be our last meeting together.
I am reminded of the scripture in James 4:14 that says, "Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes."
Life is short. Let's make the most of everyday we have with each other.
I'm thankful that death is not the end, but simply the beginning. The Apostle Paul reminds us that to be absent from the body is to be present with Christ. Paul also said, "O, death. Where is your victory?Where is your sting?"
Jesus Christ said, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me even though he dies, yet will he live."
Death is not the end. It's just so cruel and difficult for us to deal with.
But Jesus told us in John 14:1-3 "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. 2 In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. 3 and if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you may also be where I am."
Just some wondering thoughts.
Enjoy your day. Make the most of every opportunity. Say "I love you" to the ones you love.
It's sad when a loved one is suddenly gone.
So many times we forget how precious life really is.
We rush through days and weeks, many times taking life for granted.
We get irritated and become impatient with friends and family members. Sometimes we get down right angry.
Never once thinking that we should make things right and part on good terms becausee that could be our last meeting together.
I am reminded of the scripture in James 4:14 that says, "Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes."
Life is short. Let's make the most of everyday we have with each other.
I'm thankful that death is not the end, but simply the beginning. The Apostle Paul reminds us that to be absent from the body is to be present with Christ. Paul also said, "O, death. Where is your victory?Where is your sting?"
Jesus Christ said, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me even though he dies, yet will he live."
Death is not the end. It's just so cruel and difficult for us to deal with.
But Jesus told us in John 14:1-3 "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. 2 In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. 3 and if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you may also be where I am."
Just some wondering thoughts.
Enjoy your day. Make the most of every opportunity. Say "I love you" to the ones you love.
Thursday, August 12, 2010
Worried?
Do you worry?
Why?
Silly questions, I know.
But seriously, why do we worry?
When we worry about things, we are saying we don't trust God to take care of things.
Remember Jesus words in Matthew 6:25-34?
Go ahead and take a minute to read this passage. I'll wait.....
Pretty clear, isn't it? Jesus simply said, "Don't worry."
We know this truth and yet some many of us still worry.
The other night as I went to bed, I was praying for my son, who I think is stressed and worried about the start of a new school year, and a new chapter in his life.
As I lay in bed praying for him, I prayed, "Lord I don't want him to be stressed or worried." As soon as I prayed those words, I heard the Lord respond to me, "Now you are seeing worry from my point of view. You worry many times and I do not want you to worry or be stressed. I want you to trust me."
Wow! I hadn't ever looked at worry through God's eyes.
Our loving heavenly Father, hurts when we hurt. And we we worry and stress over things. His desire for us is that we would not worry.
Notice what Jesus said in verse 27, "Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?"
All worry does is raise or blood pressure, give us a headache, cause other physical problems. But worry doesn't really change anything.
A few weeks ago I heard one of my pastor friends say, "We should hold everything before God with open hands." And then he said this, "When we worry and fret, it's because we've closed our hands on something."
Instead of worrying over things (jobs, promotions, finances, marriages, kids, etc) hold them before God with open hands. letting Him take care of all those things.
Trust him.
Trust means letting go!
"God, I pray today for each one who reads this blog. You know everything about them. You know everything that has them worried or stressed. Father, remind them who You are. Remind them of Your great love for them. And remind them how You have always been faithful and trust worthy. Thank You for never letting us go, but for always holding us in the palm of Your mighty hand. Let today be the end of worry and the start of holding everything before You with open hands and simply trusting You. Amen."
Why?
Silly questions, I know.
But seriously, why do we worry?
When we worry about things, we are saying we don't trust God to take care of things.
Remember Jesus words in Matthew 6:25-34?
Go ahead and take a minute to read this passage. I'll wait.....
Pretty clear, isn't it? Jesus simply said, "Don't worry."
We know this truth and yet some many of us still worry.
The other night as I went to bed, I was praying for my son, who I think is stressed and worried about the start of a new school year, and a new chapter in his life.
As I lay in bed praying for him, I prayed, "Lord I don't want him to be stressed or worried." As soon as I prayed those words, I heard the Lord respond to me, "Now you are seeing worry from my point of view. You worry many times and I do not want you to worry or be stressed. I want you to trust me."
Wow! I hadn't ever looked at worry through God's eyes.
Our loving heavenly Father, hurts when we hurt. And we we worry and stress over things. His desire for us is that we would not worry.
Notice what Jesus said in verse 27, "Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?"
All worry does is raise or blood pressure, give us a headache, cause other physical problems. But worry doesn't really change anything.
A few weeks ago I heard one of my pastor friends say, "We should hold everything before God with open hands." And then he said this, "When we worry and fret, it's because we've closed our hands on something."
Instead of worrying over things (jobs, promotions, finances, marriages, kids, etc) hold them before God with open hands. letting Him take care of all those things.
Trust him.
Trust means letting go!
"God, I pray today for each one who reads this blog. You know everything about them. You know everything that has them worried or stressed. Father, remind them who You are. Remind them of Your great love for them. And remind them how You have always been faithful and trust worthy. Thank You for never letting us go, but for always holding us in the palm of Your mighty hand. Let today be the end of worry and the start of holding everything before You with open hands and simply trusting You. Amen."
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Stand in Awe of God
It's been awhile since my last blog post.
It has been a busy summer. Someday, I've got to make blogging a daily habit.
The other day, a friend told me that she regularly read my blog. I was surprised. I didn't realize how many people were reading my blogs.
If you're someone who regularly reads this blog, please sign-up as a follower. Maybe seeing who actually reads my blog will inspire me to blog more.
Today's thought.
Yesterday during my quite time I read Habakkuk 3:2 which is part of a prayer that Habakkuk prayed.
By the way how would you like it if your name was Habakkuk? (Thanks mom for going with something simple like Joe!!)
Anyway, the verse says, "Lord, I have heard of your fame; I stand in awe of your deeds, O Lord. Renew them in our day, in our time make them known; in wrath remember mercy." (Hab. 3:2 NIV)
Have you heard of God's fame? Do you remember the great things He has done in the past?
Do you want to see Him do great things today?
God is still God! The greats things He has done are just the beginning. He is wanting to do greater things for us today. Perhaps He is just waiting for us to remember His fame, and for us to ask and expect Him to do great things.
I love what the apostle Paul wrote in Ephesians 3:20-21, "Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, 21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen."
Today, stand in awe of God. Start praying like Habakkuk, "I stand in awe of Your deeds, O Lord.Renew them in our day..."
God is up to something great. Are you ready?
It has been a busy summer. Someday, I've got to make blogging a daily habit.
The other day, a friend told me that she regularly read my blog. I was surprised. I didn't realize how many people were reading my blogs.
If you're someone who regularly reads this blog, please sign-up as a follower. Maybe seeing who actually reads my blog will inspire me to blog more.
Today's thought.
Yesterday during my quite time I read Habakkuk 3:2 which is part of a prayer that Habakkuk prayed.
By the way how would you like it if your name was Habakkuk? (Thanks mom for going with something simple like Joe!!)
Anyway, the verse says, "Lord, I have heard of your fame; I stand in awe of your deeds, O Lord. Renew them in our day, in our time make them known; in wrath remember mercy." (Hab. 3:2 NIV)
Have you heard of God's fame? Do you remember the great things He has done in the past?
Do you want to see Him do great things today?
God is still God! The greats things He has done are just the beginning. He is wanting to do greater things for us today. Perhaps He is just waiting for us to remember His fame, and for us to ask and expect Him to do great things.
I love what the apostle Paul wrote in Ephesians 3:20-21, "Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, 21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen."
Today, stand in awe of God. Start praying like Habakkuk, "I stand in awe of Your deeds, O Lord.Renew them in our day..."
God is up to something great. Are you ready?
Saturday, June 26, 2010
Expectations
Just got home from Kids Camp.
What an amazing 4 days hanging out with 8-12 year olds and watching God do amazing things in their lives.
One of the boys in my cabin taught me a huge lesson about expectations.
The other night during the altar time after service, he walked up to me crying and said, "Pastor Joe can you pray for me?"
I said sure, what for? He replied through his tears, "I don't know?"
Moments later as I simply prayed with this little guy, he began to be baptized in the Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking in tongues.
For those of you doubting, yes God still baptizes people in the Holy Spirit and yes tongues in a real experience. (See Acts 2:4, 1 Corinthians 12:4-10, 28)
Anyway, as I was texting this little guys mom to let her know what her son had just experienced, she replied to my text by stating, "He went to camp on a mission. Before he left he said, Mom, camp is not just about the lake, water slides and fun, Camp is about getting closer to God."
Here's my thought, how often do we expect God to do something in us?
Tomorrow is Sunday, are you going to church out of habit or because you are expecting God to do something great in you?
What are your expectations?
Let's go to church tomorrow, expecting God to move and meet us there!
What an amazing 4 days hanging out with 8-12 year olds and watching God do amazing things in their lives.
One of the boys in my cabin taught me a huge lesson about expectations.
The other night during the altar time after service, he walked up to me crying and said, "Pastor Joe can you pray for me?"
I said sure, what for? He replied through his tears, "I don't know?"
Moments later as I simply prayed with this little guy, he began to be baptized in the Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking in tongues.
For those of you doubting, yes God still baptizes people in the Holy Spirit and yes tongues in a real experience. (See Acts 2:4, 1 Corinthians 12:4-10, 28)
Anyway, as I was texting this little guys mom to let her know what her son had just experienced, she replied to my text by stating, "He went to camp on a mission. Before he left he said, Mom, camp is not just about the lake, water slides and fun, Camp is about getting closer to God."
Here's my thought, how often do we expect God to do something in us?
Tomorrow is Sunday, are you going to church out of habit or because you are expecting God to do something great in you?
What are your expectations?
Let's go to church tomorrow, expecting God to move and meet us there!
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
10 Hard Questions
Getting ready to take some kids to Kids Camp. Thought I would clear out some of the e-mails still riding along in my Blackberry. As I was clearing them out I ran across this blog post from Perry Noble earlier this month. It was too good to read and delete, so I decided to share it with my blog readers.
One thing before you read Perry's post. Don't just read it, but find a way today to apply it to your life!
Perry Noble: 10 Hard Questions
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
10 Hard Questions
Posted: 03 Jun 2010 04:54 AM PDT
Too many times we believe that being busy is equal to being godly…when the Bible says quite the opposite.
Psalm 46:10 SLAYS me every time I read it…CONVICTED!
David said in Psalm 23 that the Lord makes him lie down in green pastures and leads him beside still waters.
The LONGEST, most detailed command in the 10 commandments is the one on rest.
Yet, all of us…especially those in the ministry…wrestle with this. One of our MAIN temptations is being busy…here are a few questions we can wrestle through to see how busy those of us in ministry are…
#1 – How many times a day do you check your email? Is there really any reason to check it as often as we do?
#2 – How many times a day do you check twitter?
#3 – How many times a day do you check your facebook page?
#4 – When you go home to do spend time with your family…or merely “tweet” about how you are spending time with your family?
#5 – Do you tell your kids you are too busy to go to their game…but then go to the game of the church members kid so you don’t get into hot water with them? (BTW…good luck explaining that one to your kids in 20 years!)
#6 – Do you have a time during the day when you turn off your cell phone so that you can uninterrupted study time, prayer time and time with your spouse?
#7 – Do you always have to have noise around you…such as do you always have to have the radio on in the car OR the TV on at home, even if you are not listening to/watching it?
#8 – How much time do you spend commenting on blogs and social media sites? (honestly, don’t know too many certified blog commenters that are actually changing the world!)
#9 – Are you accessible at any time of the day by anyone who needs you? (LOTS of pastors LOVE to make this claim…usually at the expense of their family and their own walk with God. If you want to walk with Jesus you can’t do it by always having a crowd around…you’ve got to have some time set aside.)
#10 – Are you willing to make the adjustments that you need to make based on the nine questions above? If not then you are most likely addicted to noise and being busy…which looks good to others but absolutely destroys our walk with God.
PSALM 46:10!
ONE MORE THING…this is absolutely the most convicting blog post I’ve ever written…He’s PRESSING into me to make some major adjustments in regards to the noise in my life, would appreciate your prayers as I try my best to fully obey Him.
Good stuff courtesy of Perry Noble. Leave a comment and let me know what you thought.
Well I'm off to Kids Camp!
One thing before you read Perry's post. Don't just read it, but find a way today to apply it to your life!
Perry Noble: 10 Hard Questions
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
10 Hard Questions
Posted: 03 Jun 2010 04:54 AM PDT
Too many times we believe that being busy is equal to being godly…when the Bible says quite the opposite.
Psalm 46:10 SLAYS me every time I read it…CONVICTED!
David said in Psalm 23 that the Lord makes him lie down in green pastures and leads him beside still waters.
The LONGEST, most detailed command in the 10 commandments is the one on rest.
Yet, all of us…especially those in the ministry…wrestle with this. One of our MAIN temptations is being busy…here are a few questions we can wrestle through to see how busy those of us in ministry are…
#1 – How many times a day do you check your email? Is there really any reason to check it as often as we do?
#2 – How many times a day do you check twitter?
#3 – How many times a day do you check your facebook page?
#4 – When you go home to do spend time with your family…or merely “tweet” about how you are spending time with your family?
#5 – Do you tell your kids you are too busy to go to their game…but then go to the game of the church members kid so you don’t get into hot water with them? (BTW…good luck explaining that one to your kids in 20 years!)
#6 – Do you have a time during the day when you turn off your cell phone so that you can uninterrupted study time, prayer time and time with your spouse?
#7 – Do you always have to have noise around you…such as do you always have to have the radio on in the car OR the TV on at home, even if you are not listening to/watching it?
#8 – How much time do you spend commenting on blogs and social media sites? (honestly, don’t know too many certified blog commenters that are actually changing the world!)
#9 – Are you accessible at any time of the day by anyone who needs you? (LOTS of pastors LOVE to make this claim…usually at the expense of their family and their own walk with God. If you want to walk with Jesus you can’t do it by always having a crowd around…you’ve got to have some time set aside.)
#10 – Are you willing to make the adjustments that you need to make based on the nine questions above? If not then you are most likely addicted to noise and being busy…which looks good to others but absolutely destroys our walk with God.
PSALM 46:10!
ONE MORE THING…this is absolutely the most convicting blog post I’ve ever written…He’s PRESSING into me to make some major adjustments in regards to the noise in my life, would appreciate your prayers as I try my best to fully obey Him.
Good stuff courtesy of Perry Noble. Leave a comment and let me know what you thought.
Well I'm off to Kids Camp!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)