All Is Fair In... Or Is It?

There is an old saying that goes "all is fair in love and war". But is it? And what is fair. One of the things that I have found over the years is that fair is relative. And to be more specific, it is how it relates to "me". You see, we all want things to go our way and if they don't, they we cry - Not Fair!!!. And that applies to God as well. We want our life to always be peaches and cream and when God allows trials and tribulation to come our way, once again we demand fairness. I want to make something perfectly clear from the onset. No where in the Bible does it say that God is fair or must be fair. What it does say is that God is "righteous" and therefore everything that He does is right. Deut 32:4 says "He is the Rock, His work is perfect: for all His ways are judgement: a God of Truth and without iniquity, just and right is He". Usually, when we begin to complain about what God is doing and proclaim His unfairness to us, there is something that we are forgetting. That is the Love of God. God dearly loves us and always does what is best for us. Let me ask you this question. Was it fair that God should allow His only begotten Son to die a horrible crucifixion to pay your sin debt, so that you might go free? I think we would all agree that it was not. But, it was the "Right" thing to do. Why? Because nothing else would do. We also need to notice that along with God's righteousness comes God's mercy. God would be right in condemning us to hell, but His mercy allows us the opportunity to accept His free gift of Salvation. No, all is not fair, but God is always right. And I am sure glad.

Do You Know What You Believe? Do You Believe What You Know?

Most people go to Church because they were raised in church. Now don't get me wrong, being raised in Church is a good thing. Most people go to the particular denominational church that they attend because they were raised in that denomination. And that is not necessarily a good thing. If you were to ask the average person in the pew today, he probably could not tell you what the major doctrines in his denomination are, much less be able to defend them with his Bible. His response would be "I know what I believe...". But, it is more than likely just a matter of being something that he has heard over the years and he accepts it as being true. Unfortunately, that is the reason so many are lead astray in our modern culture of "believe whatever you want". Then there is the problem of, do we really believe what we say we believe? Do we believe that the Bible is God's Inspired Word written to us so that we can know Him better and live better in this sinful world? If so, why don't we read it more? Do we really believe that God wants us to be gathered in His presence, together as a body, and worshiping Him? If so, why do we have such a hard time coming to Church? Do we really believe that God will take care of us and supply our every need? If so, why is so difficult to turn lose of our tithes? Let me remind you that the word believe actually came from a combining of the two words live & by. In other words, "we live by what we believe". Or do we really believe?

Its All In How You Look At It

Several years ago, while in the Air Force, I was flying back home from a temporary duty assignment. As we flew above the clouds, it was one of the most amazing sights I had ever seen in my life. The clouds were so thick you couldn't see anything else in any direction except the bright white glistening of the sun. The reflection of the sun was so strong that you needed sunglasses to protect your eyes. As we began to slowly make our way down through the clouds, they gradually covered the windows of the plane from the bottom to the top. Then came the unthinkable. As we broke through the bottom of the clouds we found ourselves in one of the most severe storms I have ever experience. It was as pitch black on the lower side of the clouds as it was bright on the top. After the shock wore off, I began to think of the lessons that could be learned through this. These were definitely storm clouds. There was no denying that. And from man's vantage point on the ground, looking toward the sky, it was a scary sight to say the least. On the other hand, from God's lofty abode, high above the storm, it was majestic. From either side, it was the same storm. So what made the difference? For one thing, God made these clouds and God controlled them. They were designed and placed in that particular location for a reason. A reason that only He knew. Sometimes we just need to remind ourselves that God is in control of all things - even the storms in life. And things look much different from His perspective.