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17/9/2019 0 Comments

Strap on Our Sword

Pastor Rusty Hayes is preaching a series on “Uphill Habits.” On Sunday he spoke on “What We Think.” The habit he asked us to address is the need to control our thoughts, because: we are not just what we eat; we are what we think; everything begins with a thought; what we think determines how we feel; and, our thoughts determine our destiny. In order to master this habit, we need to find a plan to control our thoughts, a safe place to think, a person to stretch our thinking, a purpose to land our thoughts and a power to fuel what we think.

10/9/2019 0 Comments

Seven Hindrances to Piety

Lewis Bayly was a Scotsman educated at Oxford and the vicar of Evesham, Worcestershire. It is believed that in 1604 this staunch puritan became the rector of St. Matthew’s Church in London. Lewis was the Chaplain to Henry Frederick the Prince of Wales and to King James I who would go on to appoint him the Bishop of Bangor. But Lewis is most famous for his short book The Practice of Piety.[1] I highly recommend this insightful work for the author’s wisdom regarding suffering and the importance of piety.

5/9/2019 0 Comments

Establish the Work of Our Hands

Meditation
Psalm 90:17—Let the favor of the Lord our God be on us; establish for us the work of our hands—establish the work of our hands!

Psalm 90:17 is my verse for 2019. It has dual meaning for me because of my book The Strong Leader’s Handwhere I heavily utilize the hand to illustrate six leadership principles. For example, what we put our hands to often reveals our vision. I also love the fact that the psalmist seeks the Lord’s favor. Without God’s favor life turns into a burdensome struggle. With His support life is pregnant with meaning.

29/8/2019 0 Comments

What's Your Flavor?

Meditation
Matthew 5:13--You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt should lose its taste, how can it be made salty? It’s no longer good for anything but to be thrown out and trampled on by men.

19/8/2019 0 Comments

Prospecting

My friend Bruce and his son, Joe, took me out into the Colorado hills where they hoped to find topaz. Carrying tools we would need to dig, we crossed a shallow stream and hiked alongside a steep cliff. According to Bruce, topaz is formed by fluorine-bearing vapors given off during the last stages of the crystallization of igneous rocks. This process typically occurs in cavities in rhyolites, granite, in pegmatite dikes, and in high-temperature veins.Despite several promising sites, we were not able to find any gems but our day of hunting was still enjoyable.

12/8/2019 1 Comment

Daniel

If you have never read through the Old Testament, I would highly recommend you read the book of Daniel. For one thing, the prophetic material found in the book of Revelation cannot be rightly interpreted without a general knowledge of Daniel’s writing. This small book of 12 chapters is highly organized and by its intricate arrangement reveals how incredibly wise Daniel was. Daniel’s ministry covered the length of the Babylonian exile with his last dated prophecy made around 536 B.C. when he was in his eighties.[1]

6/8/2019 0 Comments

Focus

Stephen is the project manager for a large construction company. Currently his job is to oversee the creation of a new apartment complex. Ed, a close friend, asked if he would be willing to be the Scout Master for the Boy Scout chapter in their town. Because Stephen has three sons, two of whom were involved in the Scouting program, he was very interested in the offer. His wife, Rachel, who is in charge of their church’s children ministry, asked him if he would be willing to take responsibility for building a new children’s wing—a worthy project that would really help the church. Four of his college friends have put together a softball team and they would like Stephen to pitch, a position he excelled in both high school and college. Stephen is feeling overwhelmed. While he would love to do all of the above, he knows this would be unwise and probably unhealthy. What should he do?

30/7/2019 2 Comments

Struck By Lightning

Did you know that eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo and Lake Maracaibo in northwestern Venezuela have the most lightning in the world?[1] Did you know that in the United States26 people died from lightning strikes in 2015 and that Florida by far is the state most often hit?[2] Incredibly in July and August (the most active months), Colorado averages 5,350 and 4,811 flashes per day with most of them occurring in the Colorado Springs-Denver area.[3] Why you wonder is this important?

25/7/2019 0 Comments

The Green Light

Harry Generaux was 18 years old when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. The U.S. Air Corps was suffering from a shortage of bomber pilots and Harry wanted to fly. He signed up for service and underwent an intensive nine-month program to fly the B-17 Flying Fortress. On November 10, 1944, Harry was assigned to fly with a new crew. His 19thmission was the first test of this band of young flyers and it would prove to be perhaps the most memorable of their military career. Their main objective was to attack and destroy key German targets. Harry navigated the plane into the 36-ship formation. Finally arriving at their destination, the attack commenced in earnest as clusters of bombs tumbled from B-17 bellies.

17/7/2019 1 Comment

These Aren't My Pants!

I heard a story on the radio recently of a policeman who was searching a man. As he went through his pockets he discovered several bags full of illegal drugs. Before he could say anything, the man gave him an exasperated look and said, “These aren’t my pants!”

12/7/2019 0 Comments

Gratitude

Meditation
Colossians 3:16--Let the message about the Messiah dwell richly among you, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, and singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, with gratitude in your hearts to God.

6/7/2019 1 Comment

Point Man

The best book I have read for men to be godly husbands and fathers is Point Man by Steve Farrar. I gave this book my highest rating of 5 stars because of the frankness, realness and quality content Steve delivers. Dr. Farrar describes the challenge of leading a patrol in Vietnam and likens it to leading a family through the chaos of American culture.

29/6/2019 1 Comment

I Have What I Need

Meditation
Psalm 23:1—The LORD is my shepherd; I have what I need. (CSB)

As I read Psalm 23 for my devotions I was struck in a new way by verse one. What David declares is very powerful for several reasons.

18/6/2019 0 Comments

You Will Be Happy

Jadon is almost seven and fairness is extremely important to him. We have been working on manners at the table with a reward system. If there are no infractions he and his five-year-old sister, Leili, get six MMs each after dinner. But, if he has an infraction and Leili has none, in his mind it becomes unfair. He would rather get zero MMs and have her also receive none then for her to have six to his five.

14/6/2019 0 Comments

Psalm 15--Unmovable

Have you ever wondered, What do I have to do to live a stable life, to not be twisted with every fierce wind of opposition or pulled from what is right to what is ultimately degrading? How can I have the kind of healthy fellowship with God that will bring joy and fulfillment?

7/6/2019 0 Comments

Hail

Hail is mentioned 36 times in the Bible. The majority (16x) are recorded in the book of Exodus. Thirty-one times hail is used as an instrument of God’s anger and judgment. We see this particularly evident when God devastated Egypt with hail as one of the ten plagues to force Pharaoh to release the Israelites from captivity. Forty some years later, God used hail to wipe out the armies of five Amorite kings who attacked Israel.

31/5/2019 0 Comments

Will You Take Her?

Sarah and Mark dropped me off at the Atlanta airport along with Jadon and Leili, my two oldest grandchildren whom I would be bringing back with me to Colorado. They were excited for the opportunity to stay with Kathleen, Bryan and me in a home they had often spent time enjoying. But traveling was not as easy as I thought.

22/5/2019 0 Comments

If the Trumpet Makes an Unclear Sound

Did you know that bugle calls are sometimes used for giving commands to large formations of soldiers? Rather than have the adjutant or commander of troops yell out the command, a simple bugle call suffices. But if the bugler accidently sounds the wrong tone or series of notes, the formation will be in trouble. They might present arms (salute) instead of coming to attention, or go to parade rest instead of making a facing movement.

14/5/2019 0 Comments

Why We Were Created

Sometimes to understand the present we have to examine the past. Purposeless people wander the earth and wonder what is the meaning of life? Fortunately for us, the Bible clearly defines why God created us. If we look to the past, King David prayed, “Yours, Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the splendor and the majesty, for everything in the heavens and on earth belongs to You. Yours, Lord, is the kingdom, and You are exalted as head over all”(1 Chronicles 29:11). David recognized that everything belonged to God and that He was therefore exalted. The prophet Isaiah wrote “Bring My sons from far away, and My daughters from the ends of the earth—everyone called by My name and created for My glory. I have formed him; indeed, I have made him” (Isa. 43:6b,7). Isaiah tells us that we were created for God’s glory—this is our purpose.

8/5/2019 0 Comments

Overcomers!

Fitbit likes to encourage me when I surpass my daily goal of 12,000 steps. I receive a message on my phone that congratulates me for being an overachiever. The dictionary defines an overachiever as someone who performed better or accomplished more than was expected, especially by others. But to be an overachiever is really not all that great because I’m only surpassing the expectations of someone else. Left to our own effort, we may overachieve all of our lives but end up empty in the end. Death conquers life. Youth succumbs to aging. Health is battered by disease. Human achievement in the end is hollow. Perhaps this is why so many overachievers feel empty and despondent.

Photo used under Creative Commons from Rachel Maxey Miles