Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Strong drink!

A clear warning from God's Word:



Proverbs 20:1

1 Wine is a mocker, Strong drink is a brawler,

And whoever is led astray by it is not wise.



God's Word makes it very clear about the unwise choice of drinking. I want you to think about something for a moment with me this morning. How many folks that you know that drink alcoholic beverages drinks just one? I don't know any. The reason most folks drink is to get the buzz. And when it messes with your mind that is exactly where it becomes sin. I have been around my share of drinking and God describes it so well in this first verse. When some get to drinking too much wine guess what they want to do mock you or argue with you. Even over stuff they have no clue to what they are talking about. How many times have you been around someone who is drinking and the next thing you know they want to fight! They can whip everyone or so they think!



In the next verse God sums it up for us....if we are led astray by drinking we are not wise. I think we had better think about what the Word of God says and respond accordingly!



Tom

Monday, November 29, 2010

Treat mom and dad good!

God's Word speaks!



Proverbs 19:26

26 He who mistreats his father and chases away his mother,

Is a son who causes shame and brings reproach. 



I hope your Thanksgiving was awesome! I also hope that your family time was good and had nothing even close of what this verse is talking about! As I thought a little on this verse this morning I realized that any one that I know of who mistreats their father or mother are not very good folks. Have you ever heard anyone say" I am so proud of Johnny, He smacked his daddy and then kicked his mom out of the house!" Of course not. God in His Word is very clear we are to respect and honor our parents. God makes it clear in this verse it is shameful and brings reproach or disgrace upon the one who mistreats his parents!



It really get under my skin these days to hear kids as well as adults mistreat their parents or grandparents! God says it is wrong and we had better heed His Word!



Tom

Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Give Thanks to God

Psalm 118:1

1 Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good!

For His mercy endures forever. 



Make sure this Thanksgiving you give thanks to the One who deserves it the most!



Happy Thanksgiving to all. Praying and thinking about our troops.



Tom

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

Not my plans but Gods!

I pray we all recognize the truth in this scripture and apply it!



Proverbs 19:21

21 There are many plans in a man’s heart,

Nevertheless the LORD’s counsel—that will stand.



This is an everyday struggle for all of us. We all have plans each day. Many times my plans are not Gods plans. I pray this morning that we all desire, as this verse reminds us, the Lord's counsel on our day for that is what will stand in the end. Our life needs to be consumed with God's will not our will. That is a clear teaching from the Word of God. We must every morning make a firm point of seeking God for the day. If we don't we will waste another day outside of the will of God! Any follower of Christ does not want to intentionally do that.



So this morning are you standing on the counsel of ________ insert your name there! Or are you relying on the counsel of God that will stand forever???



Tom

Monday, November 22, 2010

Getting wiser?

I hope we listen to this verse!



Proverbs 19:20

20 Listen to counsel and receive instruction,

That you may be wise in your latter days.



I have taken this verse to heart, have you? I realized some years back that we need to listen to our elders. Of course I was taught this at a young age but as most youth I did not listen too close until I got into my mid twenties. Reading my Bible also taught me a great deal because God mentions many times to listen to those who are older than us and who are godly. Why is it at a young age we think we are so smart and then as we get older we realize we are so dumb and should have listened more to those that are older than us including our parents! God makes it clear in the verse for today that we are to listen carefully and receive what we are told. Now don't miss this....many times we hear what is said but we don't receive it. We let it go in one ear and out the other. Grasp hold of the instruction of those around you. When we do this it will make us wise in our old age! My how I wish I would have grasped this at an early age. My hard headedness cost me in many areas of my life until I finally caught on! I still have much to learn but I have learned this verse and will listen and receive godly wisdom from others!



Now the question is.....will you?



Tom

Thursday, November 18, 2010

Mom, Dad you are not your child's best friend....

I bet that statement will get some to thinking this morning and maybe even wanting to argue with me!!!! Now let me clear up what I am trying to say. When your children are at home, we are to be there parents not their best friend. There may come a time in life when when they are older and on their own that we become best friends but when they are growing up we are their parents. I have seen this become a big problem in families today. Parents treat their children like their best friend instead of their child thus discipline in not applied like it should be and it is obvious in the child's behavior and actions.



Here is today's verse:



Proverbs 19:18

18 Chasten your son while there is hope,

And do not set your heart on his destruction.



Here is the definition of chasten: to inflict suffering upon for purposes of moral improvement; chastise.



You see God makes it plain that we need to correct our children while they are teachable. That is while they are under our care at home. I think back to my childhood and the corrections I received...I thank God for them now! I didn't at the time but I do now and wish I had received a few more because I needed them! Why oh why is society running from clear teachings from the Bible about discipline and turn to some worldly doctor who will tell us the exact opposite of God??? Look what the rest of this proverb says....if we do not correct our children we set our heart on their destruction! That is exactly what is happening right now! We are destroying our children both morally and spiritually by having this mentality of being their best friend and not their parent and correcting them when needed!



Now I will be the first to tell you it hurts to spank or correct my child, but it is for their good. God tells me I must do this for my child and their well being and so I will. Some even say well you may go to jail for spanking your child today...I guess they will have to lock me up because I will obey God and I want my child too also as they grow up!



So think about this this morning....are you your child's best friend or their parent?



I will be in the woods tomorrow on my day off, so have a great weekend and worship the King!



Tom

Wednesday, November 17, 2010

God will bless

A great verse to think about:



Proverbs 19:17

17 He who has pity on the poor lends to the LORD,

And He will pay back what he has given. 



As we near the Christmas season once again and are about to celebrate Thanksgiving, it seems this is the time of year when we think about others. Really it is pretty sad that for many of us we really don't think about the less fortunate other than this time of year! I find as I read the Bible that God makes it plain that we are not to hoard God's blessings, but we are to share what we have with others. When God blesses us he expects us to make sure others have what they need also. How are you doing with what God has entrusted you with? This verse in proverbs today says if we take care of the poor, God will return what we give....wow....think about that. God will bless us when we are faithful with what is really His in the first place. I am a firm believer that the Word teaches everything is God's and He expects His followers to share what he has given us. Somewhere along the line we have taught ourselves to hoard everything, but when I read the Word this is NOT God's design. We are to meet peoples need with the abundant blessings God has given us and we do have abundant blessings here in America!



So let us examine ourselves this morning, are we helping the poor?



Tom

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

Keep the Word!

Yet another warning from God to obey His Word!



Proverbs 19:16

16 He who keeps the commandment keeps his soul,

But he who is careless of his ways will die.



I just don't seem to get society as a whole today. As we see in this verse today God is very clear about obeying His Word. But society if they even know what the Bible says twist and turn it to tickle their own ears and to make it adapt to the life style they want to live. There are many commands in the Bible that we are to follow. Why do we choose some to try and follow and them completely ignore others? This is very dangerous. God makes it clear in His Word that faith in Jesus Christ alone saves the soul but He also makes it clear that our faith will be proved by our works. That includes keeping His commandments! If our walk doesn't match our talk then we are in danger of the last part of this verse spiritual death. So let me ask you this morning are you being careless in your walk with the Lord???? It could be very costly in the end!



Obey the Word...it is not a choice, it is a command!



Tom

Monday, November 15, 2010

Family problems.

We all have them don't we? God again in His great wisdom warns us of this foolishness that takes place in our families.



Proverbs 19:13

13 A foolish son is the ruin of his father,

And the contentions of a wife are a continual dripping.



The first part of this verse is talking about our sons. I believe we can also relate it to our daughters also. How many fathers have you known over the years who are devastated by the actions of their son? I know several. I am praying that one day I will not be among them as I have a twelve year old son myself. When sons do foolish things my how it brings a father down. What is a real tragedy is when the father is partly responsible for the actions of their son by teaching him sinful things through his own life. We as parents need to do all we can to teach our children the ways of the Lord and lean them in the right way and then pray hard that they will follow.



The second part of this verse deals with wives. Our Sunday School lesson was about marriage yesterday and the awesome responsibility that us husbands have in loving our wives as Christ loves the church. Basically we sacrifice everything for them and serve them for that is what Christ did for the church. If we treat our wives like that chances are this verse will never happen! But there are some wives who are naggers and thus are like a continue dripping and drive your nerves crazy! Let us as husbands do all in our power to love our wives like Christ loved the church and I think we will be pleasantly surprised at how our wives respond to this kind of love!



God bless....Tom

Thursday, November 11, 2010

Veteran's Day

I was thinking this morning about our Veterans and what they have done for me and our country. We are so blessed to have the men and women over history and and in the present serve us and give us the freedom we enjoy everyday. As I was thinking about this a verse popped into my mind that these folks fulfill in their service to this country. Here it is:





Matthew 22:39 (New King James Version)

39 And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’



This is where Jesus told us the second greatest commandment. Our men and women of uniform perform this command everyday. The reason they serve is for the love of their country and their love of fellow man. Thus they are living this command of loving their neighbor as their selves. When we think about what our military folks are doing it should make us here at home serve one another out of love. It only makes sense doesn't it?



So this Veteran's Day, I just want to say thank you to our hero's. God bless you and thank for our freedom!



Tom

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Not about money!

I am glad to be back. After my trip to Haiti I have been sick and now I am trying to get caught up at work! God is so good and I missed these devotions so let jump right in!



Proverbs 19:1

1 Better is the poor who walks in his integrity,

Than one who is perverse in his lips, and is a fool.



I seen this first hand in Haiti. The people there are just trying to survive from day to day. They are the definition of poor. We are so blessed here. Something simple like a clean drink of water that we take for granted many folks in Haiti can not find. With that being said we met many folks of integrity. Who are trying to do the right thing everyday. I seen folks who love God with all their heart. Before we went to work each day building concrete block huts, we would gather with out Haitian brothers and sisters and sing hymns and pray before we started the day. You could feel God in our midst. Sometimes I wonder if we miss God because we are blessed and things get in our way. When one is poor they have no where else to try and turn too. Something to think about.



The second part of this verse we also seen in Haiti. I had a man come up to me and ask me with hand signals if I wanted to have sex with this girl that was with him. I tried my best to explain I was married and a follower of God. A while later I seen this man and he was looking my way laughing with some other men, I have a good idea they were laughing at me but we must stand strong for our Lord. When our talk is perverse, our ways are perverse and we are fools and will have to answer to God one day. I prayed for this young man and girl and still am asking God to work in their life.



So lets make sure we are walking in integrity this morning and not walking in the way of the fool!



God bless....Tom