Same!

Don’t trust your heart!

Thomas Kempis wrote “What, indeed, gives more trouble and affliction than uncontrolled desires of the heart?”

So many times we have heard folks say...”go with your heart”! NO!!! Until your have a new heart in Christ Jesus we should not go with our hearts! Why you might ask? 

Jeremiah 17:9 “The heart is deceitful above all things, And desperately wicked; Who can know it?

God tells us about our hearts! They are wicked! But I have good news....Ezekiel 36:26 I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.

If we will trust Jesus we can have a new heart, one we can trust by the guidance of the Holy Spirit! Praise the Lord!

So be very careful with trusting your heart unless it is controlled by God! It will lead you astray otherwise!

Tom

This one may hurt!

Recently some men from church did a study about being a Godly Man. In this book Kent Hughes had one chapter about integrity. In this chapter he listed some things that spoke to our lack of integrity, see if any of these get you!

In a study by Sherman and Hendricks, Christians were as likely as non-Christians to:

Falsify their income tax returns
Comment plagiarism
Bribe to obtain building permit
Ignore construction specs.
Illegally copy a computer program or steal music online
Steal time at work
Commit phone theft
Exaggerate a product
Tell people what they want to hear
Selectively obey the law...like speed limits, texting and driving, seatbelt. etc.

Any of these get you? I bet the last one got most!

So as followers of Jesus we must be people of integrity and truth at all times no matter the circumstance. Even when no one is watching because God is always watching! 

Romans 3:10 as it is written:“None is righteous, no, not one; 

The reason why we are not what the verse says above?

Romans 3:18 “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”

So how is your integrity this morning? With the power of the Holy Spirit, us followers can overcome, let’s do it!

Tom

Boast in God!

God has it!

Whom do you long for?

We are here for one reason....God. He made us to worship and glorify Him. Everything else is secondary. So let me ask you again...whom do you long for each day? Is it God? Thomas Kempis said “in YOU is all that I long for.” Can we honestly say the same thing?

Do I long for God’s Word Psalm 119:20 My soul is crushed with longing After Your ordinances at all times.

Is my complete desire God? Psalm 73:25 Whom have I in heaven but You? And besides You, I desire nothing on earth.

Do you crave God? Psalm 63:1 O God, You are my God; I shall seek You earnestly; My soul thirsts for You, my flesh yearns for You, In a dry and weary land where there is no water.

Are you working for eternity not earthly? John 6:27 "Do not work for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you, for on Him the Father, God, has set His seal."

God promises to provide for those who thirst after Him. Revelation 21:6 Then He said to me, "It is done I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end I will give to the one who thirsts from the spring of the water of life without cost.

May we all sit down and think honestly about what our deepest desire is and if it is not God changes must be made!

Tom

God is....

One with Christ

As a follower of Jesus our goal is to become like Him as He is our example of how to live. Thomas Kempis said “O God, You Who are the truth, make me one with You in love everlasting.” Is you desire to be like Jesus? 

1 Corinthians 6:17 But he who is joined to the Lord becomes one spirit with him.

Colossians 3:1-3 If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. 3 For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.

1 John 2:6 whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.

Jesus is love, He is truth, He is kind, He is compassionate, and He is perfect! Let us strive to be like Jesus!

Tom

Are you top priority?

“To think of oneself as nothing, and always to think well and highly of others is the best and most perfect wisdom.” Thomas Kempis in his book “The Imitation of Christ”.

What do you think about yourself compared to others? The world would have you think you are the best, you are above all, and you deserve all. But that is not what God teaches us:

Philippians 2:3 Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.

Matthew 20:26-27 It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, 27 and whoever would be first among you must be your slave,

Romans 12:10 Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor.

Mark 12:31 The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”

Putting others before ourself is what God has said to do and what Jesus Himself did for each one of us by going to the cross and dying for our sins not His because He had none. 

So again I ask what do you think of yourself compared to others, we may need to adjust our thinking and actions very quickly!

Tom

The Christ?

You know little....

Thomas Kempis says “If you think you know many things and understand them well enough, realize at the same time that there is much you do not know.”
It is important we remember this point and remain teachable all of our lives as we grow in the knowledge and wisdom of our Lord.

Proverbs 3:5-8: Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and DO NOT LEAN ON YOUR OWN UNDERSTANDING. 6 In all your ways acknowledge Him, and he will make your paths straight. 7 BE NOT WISE IN YOUR OWN EYES; fear the Lord, and turn away from evil. 

Ephesians 4:18 They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart.

We know little compared to God but what God wants us to know can be found in His Word...so get in it and learn!!!!!

Tom

Are you a sheep?

Are you a church hitch-hiker?

We seem to have a major problem in many churches today. We have church hitch-hikers and it is explained well by Kent Hughes in his book “Disciplines of a Godly Man”:

“Church attendance is infected with a malaise of condition loyalty which has produced an army of ecclesiastical hitchhikers. The hitchhiker’s thumb says, “You buy the car, pay for repairs and upkeep and insurance, fill the car with gas--and I will ride with you. But if you have an accident, you are on your own! And I will probably sue.” So it is with the credo of so many of today’s church attenders: “You go to the meetings and serve on the boards and committees, you grapple with the issues and do the work of the church and pay the bills--and I’ll come along for the ride. But if things do not suit me, I’ll criticize and complain and probably bail out--my thumb is always out for a better ride.”

Wow! So on point. Being a member of the church is not about “you”! It is about serving Jesus and others. The church is full of church hoppers and those who sit back and do nothing but come on Sunday morning. What are you doing for the Jesus at your church?????

Here is a brief picture of the church...you are an important part and if you are not doing your part you and the whole church suffers!

1 Corinthians 12:12-27 For as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ. 13 For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free—and have all been made to drink into one Spirit. 14 For in fact the body is not one member but many.15 If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I am not of the body,” is it therefore not of the body? 16 And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I am not of the body,” is it therefore not of the body? 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would be the hearing? If the whole were hearing, where would be the smelling? 18 But now God has set the members, each one of them, in the body just as He pleased. 19 And if they were all one member, where wouldthe body be? 20 But now indeed there are many members, yet one body. 21 And the eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you”; nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” 22 No, much rather, those members of the body which seem to be weaker are necessary. 23 And those members of the body which we think to be less honorable, on these we bestow greater honor; and our unpresentable parts have greater modesty, 24 but our presentable parts have no need. But God composed the body, having given greater honor to that part which lacks it, 25 that there should be no schism in the body, but that the members should have the same care for one another. 26 And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; or if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it. 27 Now you are the body of Christ, and members individually.

So are you a hitchhiker or a working servant? Jesus desires servants!

Matthew 24:46 Blessed is that servant whom his master, when he comes, will find so doing.

Tom

First thing in knowlegde....

Thomas Kempis says “EVERY MAN naturally desires knowledge; but what good is knowledge without fear of God?”

Oh how wise Thomas was as the scriptures say this: Proverbs 1:7 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, But fools despise wisdom and instruction.

You can be the most wise, knowledgeable man alive but if that beginning of your knowledge and wisdom in not to fear the Lord...then you are a fool! That is not what I say but what the Word of God says!

Chew on that for a while and it speaks volumes about the state of man in the world in relation to God!

Tom

Are you growing?

Everything in love!

Remember what Soloman said....

Soloman according to the bible is the wisest man who has ever lived. So when he speaks we need to listen. He tells us in Ecclesiastes that everything is vanity except to fear God and keep His commandments. Think on that!

Ecclesiastes 12:8b “All is vanity.”

Ecclesiastes 12:13Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep His commandments,
For this is man’s all.

Then Jesus sums it up by telling us to worship God and serve Him alone!

Luke 4:8b And Jesus answered and said to him, For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.’ 

Life is all about God...can you say that of your life? The reason God put us here is to worship, serve, and love Him alone! 

May we learn from Soloman...life is all about God, NOTHING else will satisfy!

Tom

Rejoice in Him!

Imitate Christ.

I have started reading a classic book called “The Imitation of Christ” by Thomas Kempis. I highly recommend it. Of course as the title implies much of it is about as followers of Jesus we are to imitate Him as closely as possible in our daily lives. A quote from the book says “Let our chief effort, therefore, be to study the life of Jesus Christ. An another “Yet whoever wishes to understand fully the words of Christ must try to pattern his whole life on that of Christ.” Wow! Take a moment to think about those two statements. Are you studying the life of Jesus and then patterning your life after Him?

Ephesians 5:1 Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children.

1 Corinthians 11:1 Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.

1 Peter 2:21 For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps.

1 John 2:6 whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.

This lesson is very biblical as you can see, let us imitate Jesus! 

Tom

View the WORD correctly!

Standing before God

In his book “The Imitation of Christ”, Thomas Kempis, gives us a very important warning, “In ALL things consider the end; how you shall stand before the strict Judge from Whom nothing is hidden and Who will pronounce judgement in all justice, accepting neither bribes nor excuses.

This is truth folks! We all will stand before God! Are you ready? You better be as we never know if we will live through today. Do you each moment of today as if you could be standing before God at any moment? We had better because we could be!

Romans 14:10-12 Why do you pass judgment on your brother? Or you, why do you despise your brother? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God; 11 for it is written,“As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me,
and every tongue shall confess to God.”12 So then each of us will give an account of himself to God.

So the most important question of your life is this....are you ready to stand before God? If you are saved by the blood of Jesus you are!

Tom

Put Jesus and others first.

Kent Hughes says in his book Disciplines of a Godly Man, “True spiritual leadership knows nothing of a self-promoting spirit.”

As a servant of Jesus, He is to be first and others are to be second. Ask your self right now...does that describe me? If not changes need to be made immediately! Remember what John the Baptist said about Jesus:

John 3:30 He must increase, but I must decrease.”

And then what Jesus tells us Himself:

Matthew 22:36-40 “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” 37 And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. 

Can it get any plainer? Is your life about you? Or is your life about Jesus and others?

Tom

Is it a delight?

We don't really know the work of God!

Master Creator!

National Day of Prayer

Today is National Day of Prayer. I will make this devotion very short. Stop what you are doing and pray for our Nation and that a great revival will take place.

2 Chronicles 7:14 if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.

Tom

Your faith has made you well!

Every good thing...

We as followers of Jesus need to make sure we know this:

Philemon 1:6

6 that the sharing of your faith may become effective by the acknowledgment of every good thing which is in you in Christ Jesus.
Outside of Jesus there is nothing good about us:

Luke 18:19 So Jesus said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God.

So we only become good through the shed blood of Jesus and our faith in Him. His righteousness then dwells in us! Thank you JESUS!

Romans 3:22 even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe. For there is no difference;

So let us praise Jesus today, for through Him and only through Him, we have some good things flowing through us!!!

Tom

Tribute to David Hazelwood, man of God

What I will do.

I have had this poster in my office for years. It is a reminder of what I am to be about until my Lord and Savior comes back. Let me if you will lay out of you what it says:

I will be prepared.
I will be courageous.
I will be persistent.
I will remember what I am here for.
I will spread the good news every chance I get till Christ comes back.
It is what the Lord asks me of me and it is what I will do!

As a follower of Jesus this is my duty and I want to be a faithful servant of my Lord. Here are some verses where these points were drawn from:

2 Timothy 4:1-8 I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom: 2 Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. 3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; 4 and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables. 5 But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.6 For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure is at hand. 7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8 Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing.

Mark 16:15 And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.

1 Peter 3:15 But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear;

I pray brothers and sisters this will be your priority as well and let us be faithful to King Jesus!

Tom