Return to the Word of God Part 9

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Return to the Word of God Part 9

First I want to say I am sorry for not posting a devotion on Friday. I went turkey hunting one last time with a friend of mine and was unable to get back from west Tennessee in time to get it done. I hope everyone had a great Mother's day weekend.

In our last visit together we talked about being doers of the Word not just hearers. To go right along with that we as Christians have created another problem in our lives which I like to call "Pickers and Choosers". What I mean by that is, if we are actually reading our Bibles, we pick and choose which scriptures we want to follow and which ones we don't. This is very dangerous!!! God expects us to obey all of His Word not just the portions we have decided are going to fit into our lifestyle. So with that said this week we look at several examples where we have done this in this great nation of ours.

The first example I want to look at is our children. I am positive this morning that your children are near and dear to your heart as are mine. I see myself and my friends and society doing everything under the sun for their children to ensure their happiness but there is one thing missing. One major thing! Look at this scripture:

Deuteronomy 6:4-9 (New King James Version)

4 “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one! 5 You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.
6 “And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. 7 You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. 8 You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. 9 You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

How many of us spend time training our children in the Lord's ways? Look at how many hours we will get training for our kids in a sport such as baseball or softball. Hours upon hours and we will have them at practice at all costs. But when it comes to church we are very slack. We run late and skip Sunday school. Now in the long run which training will be of more value? God or the sport or the hobby? I also want you to look at the at home teaching the Lord has demanded. Look at the scripture again. It says to teach that we love God with everything we have....at home, when we walk, when we go to sleep, when we get up, and to put reminders all around us!!! Wow!

Brothers and sisters we need to look at the way we are raising our children! Does our nation appear like we are raising our children in the Lord??? We are putting way to many things in their way. I can think of one example right now that just jumps out...cell phones. The majority of kids I know if given a choice would pick their cell phones over God with out much thought about it. What about your child?

It is never to late to get on the right track with God but the older our children get the harder it is! Let's do what God has told us to do and pick and choose God!!! His ways have eternal value!

Have a great Monday!

Tom

I am blessed!

I am greatful for have a loving mother. She has always been there for me and provided for all my needs. Thank you mom for everything you have done in my life. May God bless you greatly! Happy Mother's Day! I love you!

I am also blessed with a great wife who is a wonderful mother. Thank yopu Lea Anne for all you do for me and for the kids. We love you and appreciate you! Have a great Mother's Day!

Return to the Word of God Part 8

Lets get right into the devotion today. I ended with this scripture yesterday:

2 Chronicles 7:14

14 if My people who are called by My name will 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.

What an awesome verse! I am a firm believer that if we would get right with God as individuals and as a nation we would see some blessings that would blow us away. Unfortunately until we have a return I am afraid our economy and our values will continue to crumble.

God is very clear to us in His word that we are to be doers of the word not just hearers.

James 1:21-25 James 1:21-25

Doers—Not Hearers Only

21 Therefore lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness, and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.
22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. 23 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; 24 for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. 25 But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does.

This is soooo right on point. Our nation is the man who has forgotten what kind of man He was....a Christian nation founded on the Word of God! Today is the day we need to sit down and examine ourselves individually and see what kind of man we are. Again I must stress the point that if we are not in God's word then our mirror is broken because we can't even see what we are suppose to be!!!

Look at theses verses:

James 2:14-20 (New King James Version)

Faith Without Works Is Dead

14 What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him? 15 If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, “Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,” but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit? 17 Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.
18 But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without your[a] works, and I will show you my faith by my[b] works. 19 You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble! 20 But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead?

Once you become a believer you should be working for the Kingdom of God! Where are the workers? If your church is like most churches 10% do all the work and the other 90% complain about how the 10% are working! This should not be! All of us should be working it proves our faith.

I am gonna stop here today....PLEASE take time to reread the verses for today and meditate on them and let the Holy Spirit move through your heart and mind today.

We must be doers of the word.....the church is failing as a whole in this area....it is time to wake up!

God bless my brothers and sisters....I am praying for you!

Tom

Return to the Word of God Part 7

Return to the Word of God Part 7

In middle Tennessee we woke up to some more rain this morning. We are pretty well full to the brim here with water but we are praising God that we have come back from that 3 year drought we have been in. Thank you Jesus!

On to the devotion.

Yesterday we talked about how ignorant our nation really is these days about the Word of God because we don't read it therefore we don't even know what God expects from us. Today I want to look at something that a few folks have done to our nation while we as Christians have set back and let it happen and now are asking "How can this be?"

Separation of church and state. If one would take the time to go back and study the history of our nation and what our forefathers thought and tried to establish it is very simple to see that they DID NOT mean that our government was not to be under the guidance of God. What they did mean was that our government was not to run the church. My oh my have we allowed this to get way out of hand.

Let me share you a few of the original state charters:

Rhode Island 1683: "We submit ourselves, our lives, our estates unto the Lord Jesus Christ, the King of Kings, and the Lord of Lords, and to all those perfect and most absolute laws given in His Holy Word."

Maryland: says it was "formed by a pious zeal to extend the Christian gospel."

Delaware was "formed for the further propagation of the Holy gospel."

Connecticut was there to "preserve the purity of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ."

Wow...when I read these it really makes me think of what our nation was founded on....God's Word. I challenge you this morning to go back and due a little research of the how our nation was set up and by which principles we were to live by and tell me what you find.

You will find we were set up to be a Christian nation but you had the right to worship how ever you wanted if you even wanted. The majority of our nations first leaders made statements that we will crumble without God in our nation and leading out nation. I believe they were prophetic and did not even know it at the time.

Please, please, please do some research yourself....I want you to see it with your own eyes. I believe the evidence is easy to see....look around and see the blessings of past and of now what do you see?

2 Chronicles 7:14 (New King James Version)

14 if My people who are called by My name will 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

Return to the Word of God Part 6

Return to the Word of God Part 6

Good morning to all. I am about ready to see the sun! Seems as though in our neck of the woods it has been a long time since the sun has shown itself....maybe today is the day!

Yesterday we talked about how King Josiah had been given the Word of God and was overwhelmed by the nations falling away from the Word. Just the same we should also be blown away by our nations falling away from the Word of God.

Here is the thought I want us to think about today. I believe we live in a day where we are more ignorant of the Word of God than ever! Here are a couple of thought provoking but revealing questions we should ask ourselves and others:

1. Do you read your Bible? How often?
2. Do you ever or even rarely see someone outside of church reading or carrying a Bible.
3. Do you study your Bible? We need to dig deep to find what God wants to show us.
4. Have you ever read your Bible from cover to cover?

Think about this....God has given us the guide book for our lives and many of us who call ourselves Christians have never read the Bible from cover to cover. We can come up with all the excuses we want to but none of them will cut it. We watch three hours of T.V. a night on average but we don't read our Bibles. We read hunting magazines, Good Housekeeping, Sports Illustrated, John Grishom books, ect, ect,ect, but we don't have time for the most important words in our life that come straight from God.

Are we seeing a problem here yet? It seems pretty clear to me why this nation of ours is turning away....we don't even know what God wants because we are not in His Word.

2 Timothy 2:15

15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

Pray my friends for a turning back...PRAY!

I love you in the Lord...Tom

Return to the Word of God Part 5

Return to the Word of God Part 5

Good Monday morning to everyone I hope you had a blessed weekend and took some time to worship the True and Living God!! On to today's devotion.

Last week we looked at some very obvious reasons why our nation is not 84% Christian as a news source reported during the Presidential election. So what is the problem with our nation? It is really quite simple. I found the answer in 2 Kings 22:8-13,20.

2 Kings 22:8-13 (New King James Version)

8 Then Hilkiah the high priest said to Shaphan the scribe, “I have found the Book of the Law in the house of the LORD.” And Hilkiah gave the book to Shaphan, and he read it. 9 So Shaphan the scribe went to the king, bringing the king word, saying, “Your servants have gathered the money that was found in the house, and have delivered it into the hand of those who do the work, who oversee the house of the LORD.” 10 Then Shaphan the scribe showed the king, saying, “Hilkiah the priest has given me a book.” And Shaphan read it before the king.
11 Now it happened, when the king heard the words of the Book of the Law, that he tore his clothes. 12 Then the king commanded Hilkiah the priest, Ahikam the son of Shaphan, Achbor, the son of Michaiah, Shaphan the scribe, and Asaiah a servant of the king, saying, 13 “Go, inquire of the LORD for me, for the people and for all Judah, concerning the words of this book that has been found; for great is the wrath of the LORD that is aroused against us, because our fathers have not obeyed the words of this book, to do according to all that is written concerning us.

20 “Surely, therefore, I will gather you to your fathers, and you shall be gathered to your grave in peace; and your eyes shall not see all the calamity which I will bring on this place.”’” So they brought back word to the king.

As they brought the Word of God to Josiah the King, the king discovered the nation was not obeying the Word of God!!! Sound familiar? Look at the reaction of the King....He tore his clothes! He was in great distress at the nations rebellion to the word of God. Folks we should be in great agony ourselves at our outright rebellion to the word of God. God has blessed our nation for so long. I believe right now we are seeing a turning of God away from us. Why? Because we as a nation have turned away from His Word!!!

Look in verse 20...it tells us a great calamity was going to come upon Judah and up in verse 13 it tells of the wrath of the Lord that is aroused against them. Brothers and sisters this is where the good ole USA is headed if we don't get back to the Word of God! I really wonder if we as a nation have gone too far that we can't get back???

One last thing to look at for today....in verse 20 Josiah because of his faithfulness would be gathered to his grave in peace. Folks we have to do what God wants in our own lives first and then try to help others. Blessings will come if we do right in our own lives!

Our nation is dear to my heart as I am sure it is yours...this is a message we must get out....Return to the Word of God and obey before it is too late. We can have revival in this nation of ours but it must start with a return to our guide book for life...God's Word!

Have a blessed day and share this message with others....we got to get busy!!!

Love in the Lord....Tom

Return to the Word of God Part 4

Good Friday to all! I hope you all have a great day. It is raining here and everything is turning very green!!!

On to the devotion!

So far we have looked at 3 signs that out nation is not 84% christian as reported by a Cable news station during the Presidential election. I have one more sign I want to look at before we move on with some other thoughts. So here it is:

4. The church can't even get along!

Why do you think there are so many denominations? Basically it comes down to a difference of opinions about the Word of God or maybe it don't even have anything to do with God's word. So instead of working the problem out in love we split. What do you think God thinks about this? What are we gonna do when we get to heaven and we are all together? Let's look at God's word.

Romans 14:10-13

10 But why do you judge your brother? Or why do you show contempt for your brother? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. 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 shall give account of himself to God. 13 Therefore let us not judge one another anymore, but rather resolve this, not to put a stumbling block or a cause to fall in our brother’s way.

As always we find in God's word what we suppose to be doing. It says not to be a stumbling block. Now let me be clear there are some things in God's word we must not be moved on for example.....virgin birth, death, burial, and resurrection of Christ. Those are fundamentals and there are many others but there are many things in God's word that are open for interpretation as God reveals to each individual. Here is where the problem lies though....many do not read their Bibles for God to reveal it to them they just take it from hearing another person not learning from the Holy Spirit through Bible study!!

Oh brothers and sisters in Christ....how can we bring others to Jesus when we argue and split over silly things like what color the carpet is going to be? Of my years in the church most of the problems arise over something that is of very little importance to the Kingdom of God.

So church lets get our stumbling blocks out of the way for one day we will stand before and give account for ourselves!

Chew on this for a while and let me know what you think....God bless.....Tom