Thought of the Day !!

"Watch out! Don't let me find you living in careless ease and drunkeness, and filled with the worries of this life. Don't let that day catch you unaware, like a trap. For that day will come upon everyone living on the earth. Keep alert at all times. And pray that you might be strong enough to escape these coming horrors and stand before the Son of Man."
Luke 21:34-36 (NLT)

WATCH OUT! Don't let me find you dilly-dallying around when I come back! – (a pretty straight forward warning if you ask me)

Jesus tells us not to live our lives carelessly or in a drunken state. When a person is drunk, he or she doesn't know much about what's going on around them because of impaired judgment. He or she is always right and thinks mostly about himself/herself. The person has very little control and often times can do much harm to themselves or others. And this is pretty careless.

The thing is that we can all live a life of drunkenness without ever touching a drop of alcohol. We live lives of drunkenness and careless ease when:

1. We live for today and what today will bring us, without much thought of Jesus.

2. We live lives where our actions (and especially lack of actions) will cause harm to ourselves or others in some way or another.

3. We live lives that revolve around how much we earn or what position we have in the community or some other selfish ambition.

4. We live out our lives trying to be a bare minimum Christian who comes to church, gives ten percent, but can't really be defined as a Christian in our dealings throughout the rest of the week. Our judgment is impaired because we think we are something that we aren't.

OR - We can live our lives prayerfully and faithfully trying to be who Jesus wants us to be everyday, while showing our great love of God and each other.

Jesus says that the day where we stand before him will come for every one of us. It may be at the end times. And it may be at our own death. But it will assuredly come. His warning is to simply be ready, not living our lives for ourselves and the things of this world.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

"Notice the fig tree, or any other tree. When the leaves come out, you know without being told that summer is near. In the same way, when you see all these things taking place, you can know that the Kingdom of God is near. I tell you the truth, this generation will not pass from the scene until all these things have taken place. Heaven and earth will disappear, but my words will never disappear.
Luke 21:29-33 (NLT)

Verse 32 of this passage of scripture is one of the most difficult verses for me to understand in the whole bible. In it Jesus says that "this generation" will not pass away before he comes back. But wait a minute Jesus. Hasn't there been many generations to come and go since you walked this earth?

After checking out what some scholars have said, I will briefly paraphrase some different opinions.

1. Jesus (and Luke) believed that the end would come quickly –– within their generation. Jesus himself did say that no one knew the day or hour. But Luke writes this about 3 decades after Jesus' death and resurrection. Surely many people have been dying since then and Luke would have to wonder.

2. The word generation is imprecise. "The word can refer to a period of approximately thirty years or to a period of an indefinite number of years but characterized by a particular quality such as suffering or waiting or witnessing." (Craddock, Interpretation, 247)

3. This means "the evil generation of humankind", from Adam until the last man and woman who walk the earth.

4. Or, this might refer to the generation of the end. In other words, the end will occur within one generation; the same group that sees the start of the end will see its end" (This is my interpretation.)

It's clear that the interpretation of "this generation" is, at best, tentative. It's also clear that this issue is hardly the central theme of the scripture. So let's not get too bogged down with the issue of what this generation means and understand that the deeper meaning is that Jesus will come again.

Jesus concludes this section with "Heaven and earth will disappear, but my words will remain forever." --- A reason for hope. No matter how the earth changes…no matter how old it gets…we can be assured that the words of Jesus will still ring true for people. Nothing can stop the Word of God…not earthquakes or famines or floods or wars…and especially not Satan!

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

Again, you have heard that the law of Moses says, Do not break your vows; you must carry out the vows you have made to the Lord.' But I say, don't make any vows!

Just say a simple, `Yes, I will,' or `No, I won't.' Your word is enough. To strengthen your promise with a vow shows that something is wrong.
Matthew 5:33 & 37

Some people feel that they have to swear by God, a stack of bibles, their momma's grave or something to show that they are serious. This shouldn't be. Christians are called to be people of integrity. Our yes should mean yes and our no should mean no. We shouldn't have to go any further for people to believe us.

It's hard for us to be seen as people of integrity by a world that sees pastors who preach against sin and then have affairs...or people who go to church to worship a God that they profane later in the week...or Christians who talk about love of God and neighbor and then go on to speak in judgmental or hateful ways about others' particular sinfulness.

The problem with us Christians in today's world is that so many of us have lost our integrity. No one person can fix the problem totally. But we can begin with one person...and that's each one of us. Just think, if everyone of us decided to make our word mean something and to act the way we speak, Christians would be seen as people of integrity. And we might just have an easier time getting non-Christians to listen when we try to share the Good News of Christ with them.

Commit today to being a Christian of integrity.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.
Deuteronomy 6:6-7 (NIV)

God wanted the Israelites to learn His law, to make it a part of their lives, and to share it with their children and each other. Is this concept any different today? Are we not called upon to learn all we can about Jesus by studying the Bible? Would we not be better, more complete and happier people if we made Christ a part of our lives? Are we not supposed to share the Good News of Christ with our children and others whom we know or meet?

When Jesus becomes a real part of our lives the answer to these questions are obvious.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

Yet I am always with you; you hold me by my right hand. You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me into glory. Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
Psalm 73:23-26

Know that this life will fade away one day. But the thing that will always be there is God. He made you...He will sustain you...He desires to live out the rest of eternity with you. If you're not already living with Him in your heart and by His instructions, begin doing so now. And the journey of eternity will begin. So when this life does fade away, there will be another one that is like nothing you can ever imagine.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Interstate Batteries Commercial about God's Love

You gotta check out this commercial and testimony by the chair of Interstate Batteries. It's awesome.


Interstate Batteries Commercial

Thought of the Day !!

And all of us have had that veil removed so that we can be mirrors that brightly reflect the glory of the Lord. And as the Spirit of the Lord works within us, we become more and more like him and reflect his glory even more.
2 Corinthians 3:18 (NLT)

One purpose of being a Christian is to be a reflection of Christ. After we are born again from the Spirit, or come into the "New Birth", as John Wesley puts it, we take on a life with Christ. This is a life where Christ abides inside of us, glowing for others to see.

The question today for each of us to think about is this. If we were to open ourselves up, what would we find inside? The answer should be Christ and His love if we are truly Christians. But sometimes people forget what they are supposed to be reflecting and allow themselves and their own selfishness to take over where Christ once supposedly abided.

This life is not about you or me. It is about love of God and love of each other. If our lives begin being all about what we can do or what we can earn or what we have accomplished, then our reflections will be of ourselves.

If, on the other hand, people see in us kindness, humility, unselfish behavior and the other aspects of the love of Christ, then we are reflecting Christ. Which will you reflect today?

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

Welcome one another, therefore, just as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God.
Romans 15:7 (NRSV)

Paul teaches us to welcome others. We should be willing to welcome friends and neighbors. That's easy enough. We should be able to welcome all people who come into our churches, our conversations even our lives. We are called to welcome our neighbor, whoever that person might be, and to welcome him or her just as Christ welcomed us into His family.

How often is is hard for you to welcome someone into your life because of a past history or presuppositions about the person? Do you think if Jesus looked at your history or judged the kind of person you might be that he would have allowed you to be called one of His own?

Let us welcome one another, therefore, just as Christ has welcomed us.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?.. No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.
Romans 8:35-37

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
Acts 2:46-47 (NIV)

These are the original members of the Church. They started the Church under the guidance of the Apostles and the Holy Spirit. Maybe we could learn a thing or two from them.

First of all they continued to meet together. How many Christians today find other things to do on Sunday mornings or other times of worship?

They broke bread together. They shared meals together. They were sincere. They praised God and enjoyed the favor of others. Even when we do meet there may be those of us who are not sincere in our love for each other. We may half-heartedly praise God, all the while looking at our watches to see how long before the service is over.

Let us learn true worship from the earliest Christians. True worship is about sharing and showing love for each other. It's about coming together for God's glory and gladly giving Him our time and efforts.

May we come to see God as an awesome and powerful, yet gracious and merciful Lord. May we all realize that worship is about Him being glorified. May we all seek Him steadfastly today, much like the believers of old.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

Do you still think it's enough just to believe that there is one God? Well, even the demons believe this, and they tremble in terror! Fool! When will you ever learn that faith that does not result in good deeds is useless?
James 2:19-20 (NLT)

What James is trying to tell us is that simply believing that God exists and that He created us is not enough. It's not the kind of belief that Jesus speaks of in John 3:16 when he says that "all who believe shall never perish, but have eternal life". This kind of saving belief (or faith) has good deeds attached.

He is not telling us our good deeds will save us, but that true faith (or belief) in Jesus is life changing. When we accept, we not only accept Jesus as our Savior (the one who saves us), but as our Lord (the one whom we invite to run our lives). And when Jesus is in control, good deeds will naturally follow.

So it's not that good deeds save us, but that they point to a person who is living out his/her salvation. As Jesus said, "We will be known by our fruit."

So what kind of fruit have you produced lately? Are there signs that you are a Christian? Do good deeds pour forth from you? Or do you claim to have faith while having no deeds to show the authenticity of it?

May we all have a fruit-producing day today.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

Jesus declared, "I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again."
John 3:3

I once heard a revival speaker compare the physical growth of babies to our growth as Christians. As babies we need to be fed and taken care of. If we don't grow, then we will die. It's the same with being born again. If we try to stay the same old person we were without allowing the Holy Spirit to grow us and grow in us, we are going to wither away and die. Life is all about change. And the good news is that God will change us when we are born again. It may not happen over night, but it will happen if we will allow Him to work in us. Before I was born again I had a lot of desires that are either not as predominant now or I flat out don't have anymore. That's because Christ worked in me to change me and take away those desires. He comes to us where we are and calls us as we are. If we will simply have faith in Him and allow Him to work in us, things will change...things will become more complete.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

For Christ himself has brought peace to us. He united Jews and Gentiles into one people when, in his own body on the cross, he broke down the wall of hostility that separated us.
Ephesians 2:14 (NLT)

The Jews were the "chosen" ones of God. They were the ones that God made His covenant with to be their God. But God never meant for His love to be only for one group of people. Through Christ, He brought His love and salvation to all who would accept it.

He came to break down the walls that divided Jews and Gentiles. There should no longer be hostility between us. Of course if this is true for Jews and Gentiles, should it not be true also for us and anyone else? There is so much hostility in this world today by Christians and non-Christians alike. There are walls that we've built up that still need to be broken.

What are these walls that divide us today? They are numerous. Some are huge and made of stone and impossible to push over by our selves. Others are made of clay and can be broken easily if we simply try.

One wall is the wall of hate. It stands stronger than any wall. Sometimes we put it up because we have differences of opinion. This difference of opinion over religious or political views, or the color of the church, or how money should be spent or how it should be made, or who should do what and how they should do it….you get the point don’t you? How many times have you seen a difference of opinion turn to anger? And anger can eventually lead to hate if we aren’t careful. And the wall is up all because we couldn’t agree. Sometimes on a big issue, but more often on something that doesn’t mean a hill of beans when it comes to the Kingdom of God.

Hatred is a wall that is made out of a substance that can only be broken down with love. The only way that these walls today can come down is if we allow the love of Christ to work through us. The question today is, "Are we willing to love ALL people unconditionally so as to break down walls of hatred?"

In the love of Christ,
greg

Gone to Annual Conference

I will be away at Annual Conference beginning tomorrow. The devotionals will begin again next week.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

God began a good work in you, and I am sure he will continue it until it is finished when Jesus Christ comes again.
Philippians 1:6 (NCV)

Do you ever fill like a failure? Have you ever wondered why it is that you try to plant seeds for Jesus but never see any fruit? Do you think you ever make a difference for God?

Well, God created you, and He began a work in you. That makes us a work in progress, you might say. Sometimes we will see how this work plays out. Other times we won't. But know that if you allow God to do so, He will build and strengthen you, as well as calling you and seeing that you produce for Him.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest."
Matthew 11:28

Jesus never promised to fix things so that this world would be problem-free. As a matter of fact, he told us to take up our crosses and follow him. Our crosses can get heavy sometimes though, can't they? These crosses that we bear, or burdens, are not for us to carry alone though. Christ is with you always. He is there through the power of God's Holy Spirit. He watches, encourages, reprimands and even sometimes carries you. So when things are getting pretty hard to take and those burdens are getting heavy, go to Him. He will give you rest. And He will see you through anything.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him.
1 John 4:9 (NIV)

This is how God showed His love for us. How have you shown your love for God lately?

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

But since you excel in everything—in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness and in the love we have kindled in you—see that you also excel in this grace of giving.

I am not commanding you, but I want to test the sincerity of your love by comparing it with the earnestness of others. For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.

2 Corinthians 8:7-9 (TNIV)

We’ve all seen small children playing before. Sometimes they’ll get along, and sometimes they won’t. I’ve seen a child hoard all the toys, even the ones that he wasn’t playing with before, because he didn’t want the other one to touch his stuff.

I’ve also noticed a little girl who spent a great deal of time creating some craft, only to hand it to me when she was done.

The difference is not between little boys and little girls. For either can hoard their toys, and either can share generously. The difference is that one is showing love for self and the other is showing love for another.

We are the little boy with all the toys as well as the little girl with the newly made creation. But it’s up to us to choose which we will act like.

Are we insecure and afraid to give? Or are we satisfied knowing that what we have is not really our own, but something that is on loan from God?

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.
Jeremiah 29:13 (NIV)

I wonder how many half-heartedly seek God and how many truly seek with all their heart. What about you?

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

People were bringing little children to Jesus for him to place his hands on them, but the disciples rebuked them. When Jesus saw this, he was indignant. He said to them, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it." And he took the children in his arms, placed his hands on them and blessed them.
Mark 10:13-16 (TNIV)

What faith children have! They simply believe God is God and Jesus is who we say he is. No need for us to prove it…just say it. And they believe.

Children believe in miracles. Children believe that God will take care of them.

It's not until sin becomes evident to them and the world teaches them about pain and misery that they begin to doubt.

Jesus says that we must have the audacity to believe again. And when we do, we will join the Kingdom of God. This Kingdom begins here on earth with true believers. But it continues on into an eternity with Jesus in Heaven.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

Never stop praying.
1 Thessalonians 5:17 (NLT)

Let me ask you something. Do you wish your prayer life would be more fruitful? Do you wish you were more consistent or that you enjoyed praying more?

If asked, I think many Christians would say that they feel like they don’t pray enough or struggle with a prayer life for one reason or another. To be quite honest, it's something we must choose to work at. As with anything worth doing it doesn’t just happen by itself. There has to be effort put forth. But when that effort is put forth, it becomes not only something we can be good at, but also something we will enjoy.

Today I offer some practical tips for perseverance in prayer.

1. Find a prayer partner. Seek someone who will hold you accountable as well as pray with you.

2. Find a proper balance between routine and variety. By this I mean to make your prayer life a part of your routine. This might mean a certain time of the day or a certain kind of prayer. Then prayer becomes habit. But then also add a variety of other times or types of prayer. This will keep your prayer life from becoming just routine, which can be as bad as not praying at all.

3. Keep yourself motivated. You can do this in a variety of ways. First of all, remember why you're praying. Keep in mind how much you want to get closer to God. You can also keep motivated by learning more about prayer. This can be done by reading through the many passages in the bible about prayer, reading books on prayer and doing studies about prayer. Another way to stay motivated is by making your prayer life more meaningful or enjoying through aids such as music, prayer journals, prayer walks, or other such things.

4.Don't allow feelings or interruptions to dictate your prayer life. If you decide to only pray when you feel like it, the devil will soon have you convinced to put it off over and over again. And if you allow interruptions to divert you from your commitment, you'll soon find out that you aren't praying anymore.

5. Celebrate answers to prayer. People will praise God and thank you for your prayers when a healing or some other miracle has occurred. But celebrate the little things as well. Pray each morning for God to guide you and keep you safe and celebrate the answers to these and other such prayers daily. Thank God for listening.

These are but a few helpful hints. The key is to keep seeking God through prayer. When we do this, the bible says that we will find Him. Have a happy prayer life.

In the love of Christ,
greg