Thought of the Day !!

[Jesus says,] "Do for others as you would like them to do for you."
Luke 6:31 (NLT)

Have you ever spoken about someone behind their back?

Have you ever cut someone off on the highway?

Have you ever used some information about someone to better yourself?

Have you ever stolen someone's idea?

Have you ever called someone a name that you didn't really mean?

Have you ever gotten mad and told someone something that hurt their feelings?

Have you ever been a part of a group who were making jokes about another (even if you weren't actively participating, but just laughing)?

Have you ever neglected someone in need?

Have you ever pointed an accusing finger at someone?

Have you ever lied to someone to get out of doing something with them?

Have you ever ignored someone?

Have you ever intentionally or unintentionally hurt someone's feelings and not apologized?

Have you ever thought about how ugly, fat, stupid, etc. someone was?

Have you ever chosen not to befriend someone who was different or outcast or simply not "cool"?

Have you ever refused to listen to someone who was trying to speak to you?

Have you ever not cared about someone else's feelings?

Have you ever hit someone in anger?

Have you ever judged or labeled someone for something they did one time?

Have you ever refused to forgive someone?

Have you ever sought revenge?

Have you ever benefited from someone else's failure?

Have you ever made a mockery of someone else's life?

Have you ever made it all about you and not the others in your presence at the time?



Have you ever wished that people would not do these things to you? Do unto others as you wish they would do unto you, not as they do unto you. And you will be the one who is truly following Jesus.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Question of the day ??

If you had your choice, which would you prefer having?

1) John the Methodist's sense of humor
2) Questing Parson's ability to weave a good story
3) Mark Winter's ability to act
4) Andy Stoddard's studiousness
5) Ben Witherington's intelligence

Thought of the Day !!

Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.
Hebrews 12:2-3 (NIV)

"Let us fix our eyes on Jesus." We may not be able to see the physical body of our Lord and Savior, but when we fix our eyes on him, we have him out in front of us. He is first in our minds and hearts, being ahead of us and not behind us. This makes him our priority. How many times during a day's time might we find our eyes fixed on ourselves instead of Jesus?

Our life is a journey. Even though some of us wake up one day and wonder where it all went, the journey is long and can be filled with difficulties. Jesus never promised us a rose garden. As a matter of fact, he commands us to do things like take up crosses and suffer for him. He knew all along that the life of a Christian in an unchristian world would not be easy.

But Jesus also makes statements like "Carry your burdens to me." He is the one whom we can turn to when the road gets long and weary. He is the one who can bring us a peace that allows us to get through tough times. He is the one who brings the promise of a future.

So let us keep Jesus first and foremost in our minds and hearts. This can be helped by simply talking to him throughout the day. It can also be helped by studying God's Word about him. And as we keep Jesus before us and our struggles behind us, we "will not grow weary and lose heart."

May God bless you today with His love, His patience, His peace.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.
Matthew 7:12

Remember, Jesus didn't say, "Do to others as they have done to you". He wants us to do to others as we wish they would to do to us. This would erase revenge and spiteful acts. And this would increase the act of loving our neighbor, as well as our enemy - two more acts that Jesus commands of us.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Question of the day ??

What will you do this weekend for fun?

Thought of the Day !!

The LORD detests lying lips, but he delights in men who are truthful.
Proverbs 12:22 (NIV)

God knows when you are lying. And He wants none of it.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked people, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false.
Revelation 2:2 (TNIV)

I am reading about the seven churches in Revelation right now. The first is Ephesus. And the letter that Jesus has John send begins with the words above.

William Barclay notes that Jesus "praises their toil (hard work)" and that in the original Greek the word means to work by giving it all we have. He also suggests that the word endurance (perseverance) means that we not only endure/persevere, but that we do so with glory.

We can be Christians who endure hardships, but do so bitterly. We can be the kind of people who persevere through different types of suffering, but live to complain about them. Or we can be the kind of people who have "courageous gallantry which accepts suffering and hardship and turns them in to grace and glory" according to Barclay.

Which do you want be today?

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

I came to my computer this morning and pulled up these words as a daily devotion sent to me. As I do from time to time, I thought I'd pass it on to you. It comes from Bibleleague.org.


Romans 14:13 -- Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in your brother's way. (NIV)

You tend to criticize people. But your friends need to hear you like being with them. Your teachers need to be encouraged. Your parents want to know you still love them. Your siblings need to see you care. List five people you could "stop passing judgment on" today.


In the love of Christ,
greg

Question of the day ??

I just got my first TNIV Bible. Who else uses one of these? And what do you think of it?

Thought of the Day !!

So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.
Matthew 7:12

Remember, Jesus didn't say, "Do to others as they have done to you". He wants us to do to others as we wish they would to do to us. This would erase revenge and spiteful acts. And this would increase the act of loving our neighbor, as well as our enemy - two more acts that Jesus commands of us.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

Be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other's faults because of your love.
Ephesians 4:2 (NLT)

Today we can be proud and boast about ourselves or humble, not bringing attention to ourselves. We can complain about others or be patient with them. Which do you think Jesus would do?

In the love of Christ,
greg

Question of the day ??

My wife is out of town this weekend. What in the world will I do?

Thought of the Day !!

But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us from every wrong.
1 John 1:9 (NLT)

I was reading somewhere yesterday that God didn't care about excuses. All He wants is to forgive. When we have sin in our lives we can find ourselves feeling guilty and so it's more difficult for us to face God. So confess what's wrong in your life and ask for God's help. He would much rather forgive you than punish you. That's because our God is a loving God.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Can this man get any worse?

I was over at Gavin's blog and saw this very disturbing YouTube video of Fred Phelps. He actually says that he wishes 33,000 people were massacred at Virgina Tech instead of only 33. But they're thankful for what God did do. Only watch if you have your blood pressure meds handy.

Question of the day ??

What's the first thing that you would like to say to God when you meet Him face to face(assuming you have your wits about you and are not struck dumb by fear and reverence)?

Thought of the Day !!

Yet we hear that some of you are living idle lives, refusing to work and wasting time meddling in other people's business.
2 Thessalonians 3:11 (NLT)

One of the ways I decide on the scripture passage each day is to choose from a daily verse that is emailed to me. Sometimes I use it. Sometimes I save it for another day. And sometimes I simply discard it.

When I saw this verse this morning, I started to put it in the discard category. But something stopped me. My first thought was that I wanted to share some comforting thoughts today instead of speaking some hard truths that we all of us need to hear from time to time. And then the second thought about this scripture was that many of us can read this and say to ourselves, "Yeah, there are a lot of lazy folks out there living idle lives and being taken care of by the government and my tax money because they refuse to work." This idea only comes to mind because I've heard it said by so many "church" folk.

But then I thought about the fact that we can all live idle lives when it comes to living for God. We are no better than anyone else when we don't work at our relationship with Christ, which also entails our relationship with others.

And then there's work and church and home. We can complain about these things. We can talk about the people at work and church and how they aren't doing this or that. Or we can work at fixing ourselves and then whatever situation we're complaining about.

What is it that you might be sitting idly by and complaining about instead of working on and fixing?

In the love of Christ,
greg

Jerry Falwell is dead

Questing Parson wrote an absolutely wonderful post about the death of a person that he didn't see eye to eye with. I hope you will take a second and check it out.


So Long Brother Falwell

Thought of the Day !!

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come.
2 Corinthians 5:17 (NIV)

When we accept Christ as our Lord and Savior, it means that He is the one who rules our lives. He becomes our center instead of ourselves. By God's grace, we change in that respect. All aspects of our lives may not immediately change. There very well could be many things about our past lives that we have a hard time giving up, or simply don't want to stop. This happens when people have accepted God's grace but are still clinging on to their old lives.

We have to choose though. Jesus teaches that we cannot serve two masters. Only one can come first. Does that mean that once we become Christians, God expects us to quit all our sinful behavior cold turkey? I believe that God knows how hard it is for us. And all He expects us to do is try to live for Him instead of ourselves. When we do that, and ask for His help, He will help us work things out. He's not looking for perfection out of us all at once. He made us. He knows how imperfect we are. He is, however, expecting us to try. His grace will be sufficient when we fail. And He will guide us to perfection in time.

If your claim is to be a Christian, but your life is the same as before, maybe you should re-evaluate your claim. Remember, Christian means to be Christ-like. Are you really making your best effort to become Christ-like in ALL aspects of your life?

In the love of Christ,
greg

Question of the day ??

Do you believe that Jesus will come back in our lifetime (say within the next 40-50 years)?


I know...I know...Nobody knows the day or hour. I'm just curious to see who believes as Paul believed when he lived...that Jesus was coming very soon. So how bout it? What'cha thunk?

Thought of the Day !!

"I am the Real Vine and my Father is the Farmer. He cuts off every branch of me that doesn't bear grapes. And every branch that is grape-bearing he prunes back so it will bear even more. You are already pruned back by the message I have spoken.

"Live in me. Make your home in me just as I do in you. In the same way that a branch can't bear grapes by itself but only by being joined to the vine, you can't bear fruit unless you are joined with me.

"I am the Vine, you are the branches. When you're joined with me and I with you, the relation intimate and organic, the harvest is sure to be abundant. Separated, you can't produce a thing. Anyone who separates from me is deadwood, gathered up and thrown on the bonfire. But if you make yourselves at home with me and my words are at home in you, you can be sure that whatever you ask will be listened to and acted upon. This is how my Father shows who he is—when you produce grapes, when you mature as my disciples.

"I've loved you the way my Father has loved me. Make yourselves at home in my love. If you keep my commands, you'll remain intimately at home in my love. That's what I've done—kept my Father's commands and made myself at home in his love.

"I've told you these things for a purpose: that my joy might be your joy, and your joy wholly mature. This is my command: Love one another the way I loved you. This is the very best way to love. Put your life on the line for your friends. You are my friends when you do the things I command you. I'm no longer calling you servants because servants don't understand what their master is thinking and planning. No, I've named you friends because I've let you in on everything I've heard from the Father.

"You didn't choose me, remember; I chose you, and put you in the world to bear fruit, fruit that won't spoil. As fruit bearers, whatever you ask the Father in relation to me, he gives you.

"But remember the root command: Love one another.

John 15:1-17 (The Message)

Look over this passage today. Stop what you're doing from time to time today and simply read it, asking God to speak to you through His Holy Word. Then don't forget to listen.

What might He have to say to you, one of His branches?

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

My dear brothers and sisters, how can you claim that you have faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ if you favor some people more than others?
James 2:1 (NLT)

The real problem is that we can show favoritism by neglect. I will be honest. I will favor my wife over others. I will want to spend more time with her and show her love more often. But this scripture is not about having a favorite person or persons in your life. It's really about neglect.

We might be tempted to favor people with money, power, prestige or celebrity status over those who have little or can do little to help us. But our faith is a faith of love for each other regardless of status.

We can begin this by doing away with our preimagined ideas about status. Don't automatically think that just because of the way a person is dressed or how many places they've got tattooed or pierced or where they live that they are less important than other people.

God loves each of us. He created us. And we are all special to Him. I think He'd like for us to put away favoritism and show His love to everyone.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the LORD, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.
Isaiah 43:2-3

We are precious in God's sight. He promises to be with us through the troubling times in our lives and to lead us out of them if we will allow Him to. This is one of the greatest promises that God offers us...to not abandon us. People often times abandon Him. But even in the case of those, He never forgets them and accepts them back if they wish to come.

As His children, we should emulate this kind of behavior. I once knew a lady that didn't care much for the Church. That is, until her father was on his death bed. When she saw how her parent's church members gathered around, supporting and showing love to the family, she was changed. And she began going to that church. In her deepest hours of need, she found something out about God. She found out that He would never abandon her. He is not only there when we need Him, but He's not opposed to presenting Himself in tangible ways either. You might not hear Him speak through a burning bush, but you just might through a friend.

Life is supposed to be about relationships with God and each other. It can be as long as we realize that God will not abandon us...and we commit ourselves to never abandoning Him or each other.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

Then God looked over all he had made, and he saw that it was excellent in every way.
Genesis 1:31 (NLT)

As we drove through the mountains last week I could not help but notice the beauty of God's creation. Even though there were no fall colors of leaves turning or fresh spring flowers blooming everywhere, the mountains were gorgeous. And I just couldn't help but give God thanks and praise for all He'd created.

We don't have to go to the mountains or the beach or some far away land to see God's created beauty. Take special notice today to see where you might be missing God's beautiful creation. And when you see it, stop and give Him thanks that you have been blessed with the opportunity to do so. Give Him praise for only He is capable of such magnificence.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Question of the day ??

Who remembers the answer to this old joke from when I was probably 10?

If you're American when you go into the kitchen,
and you're American when you go into the bedroom,
what are you when you go into the bathroom?

Now, what's your favorite corny joke from your childhood?

Thought of the Day !!

Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it.
Hebrews 13:2

In today's world of suicide bombers, rapists, killers, muggers, etc. there may be very little desire to entertain strangers for many people. As if the real world stuff wasn't bad enough, we then turn on the TV or watch movies that are more violent than ever. And we believe we have to think of our safety and those with us when a stranger comes up to us looking for a handout.

It used to be ok to pick up someone on the side of the road who needed a ride. But how many are willing to pick up hitchhikers today? And then, of course, there's all those out there that are trying to take advantage of us. There really are people who don't want to work for a living and would rather con me and work the system.

And still the Bible teaches us to entertain strangers. Jesus says that those who give the hungry something to eat and the thirsty something to drink, who welcome the stranger or visit the sick or imprisoned, will be the ones who will have a place with the King.

Sometimes we just have to step out on faith and ask God to protect us. At other times we have to use our common sense. Cell phones can be used to call for help for someone on the side of the road (instead of stopping) if we're not sure. If somebody comes to us each week needing money for gas to get their momma to the same doctor's appointment, we can say "No more". Or even better, we can buy the gas (instead of giving cash) or help them find a job. The truth of the matter is that even if we're being conned, duped, taken (or however you want to put it) nine out of ten times, we may entertain an angel once. Or to put it another way, we may entertain Christ. For He said if we do for the least, we've done for Him.

I, for one, would rather be duped 9 out of 10 times and do the work of Christ once than let my Savior down.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

In the morning, O LORD, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait in expectation.
Psalms 5:3 (NIV)

It's good to be back after a week off in the mountains of East Tennessee. I slept in each morning and felt a great sense of relief not having to be anywhere at any certain time. I might get up and sit on the front porch of our cabin or take a long hot shower. But however the day was started, it would be a crime not to thank God first for all the beauty around me that He had created.

I like to say a "Good morning" to God each day as I wake. It just seems to get the day started better. But as the scriptures say, we can also lay our requests before him after we wake.

They also say that we are to wait in expectation. There are two key words here, "wait" and "expectation". Don't expect God to fix all your problems with a single word or motion right then. God works in His own time, sometimes immediately...but more often later, teaching us patience.

Even though we shouldn't expect God to answer us immediately every time we come to Him, this doesn't mean we shouldn't expect Him to listen and respond. He hears every word that you breath or think. I shudder to think of all He's heard me say (good and bad). And He does respond in His way and His time.

So each morning (or anytime for that matter) don't forget that God is listening. Give Him thanks and praise first. Then lay your requests before Him. And then wait in expectation.

In the love of Christ,
greg