What A Beautiful Day

Psa 118:24 "This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice we will rejoice and be glad in it."

Today is such a beautiful day. At least as I write this, a few days ahead of when you may read it. The sun is shining and the temperatures are fore casted to be mild. Without a doubt, it is a day the Lord hath made and so easy to be glad in it. As I mentioned, I am writing this a few days before you will read it and I have no idea what the day will be like when that time comes. But one thing I do know, is that it, too, will be another day that the Lord will make and worthy of our praise. But, what if it is rainy, or windy (windy, in Kansas?) or cooler? True, we are less likely to be grateful for days like that. And that begs the question, why? I think it is because we are not as faithful to be grateful for the great days! We are so blessed of God that we are prone to expect God's to bless and let's face it, we just aren't thankful for what we expect to receive. I hope you will take a moment and realize where your prosperity and blessings come from and give God the praise He so rightly deserves. Take a moment and just say "Thank you Lord, for all You have done!" I promise it will make the day that much nicer.

Is Sunday The Sabbath Or What?

Exodus 20:8 "Remember the Sabbath Day, to keep it Holy".

There are some who still hold to observing the Sabbath Day. Without going into great detail, let me just say that I do not agree with their doctrine of keeping the Sabbath, but I do agree with their idea of setting aside a day to worship and honor God. Part of their reasoning for observing the Sabbath is that God set aside the 7th day as a day of rest. And, long before the Law was given to Moses and the Israelites, He had commanded man to honor that day. Sadly, it has become just another day to do just about anything that you want to do. I remember growing up as a child and even into my adult life that most stores were not open on Sunday and certainly beer could not be sold on "the Lord's Day". Over the years things have change and now so many churches don't even have services on Sunday night. I know that there is nothing in scripture that says you need to meet again on Sunday night, but with the world situation the way it is, the more you can get in out of it and be with your brothers and sisters in Christ, the better off you will be. We need that fellowship and encouragement that we get from being together. The idea behind the Sabbath was to rest and to honor God by remembering what He had done during the first six days. I think the biggest problem is that we have put too much emphasis on the things of the this world and taken our eyes off of the One Who made it for us. Now, don't get me wrong. I don't think you need to sit in Church from sunrise to sunset. But, you can put God first on that day and honor Him with your presence and your presents.

Where Has The Time Gone?

Hebrews 2:1 " Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip."

As I got into the office this morning I was running a little late. For those of you who know me, that just isn't a good thing. I had to wait a little longer at the bank than expected so now I find myself in a bit of a rush to get things done. What is the problem? Well, it is really very simple. I had made my plans, but they didn't work out the way that I expected them to. The time that I thought I had to get ready for the morning's activities has come and gone. Isn't that the way it is in life. Some people are confronted with the need for Salvation, but because they are young and "have plenty of time" they put it off. They think that they too have a lifetime ahead of them and can make this decison later. Then, one morning they wake up with some aches and pains that they haven't felt before and realize it is from playing with the grandchildren. Where has the time gone? That decision to accept Jesus as Lord and Savior is still waiting because God has been so gracious as to give them more time. They are confronted with that decision once again and decide that there is too much to do today, but tomorrow they will seriously give it some thought. Only to realize that tomorrow never comes! We may plan for the future but we only live in the present. James reminds us that our life is nothing more than a vapor that comes and goes and that each day is a gift from God. Please, don't waste what God has blessed you with. Use today wisely, lest you also ask "where has the time gone.?"

People Passing Through Your Life

Matt 5:16 "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in Heaven."

It would be interesting to know just how many people pass through our lives in a days time. Just think about it for a moment. You jump in your car and head for the store, but before you do you have to stop for gas and then there are the people in other cars that pass you by and the people in the store that you just walk right on past. On occasion, usually when we don't want to, we will meet someone in the store that we actually know. But, for the most part, you know nothing about these people and they know nothing about you. Most people would say that is just fine with them. Oh, but there is something that we do know. They have a life and they are in the process of living it right at this moment. It may be a good life or maybe not so good. This may be a great day for them or they may be facing some difficult times ahead. For whatever reason, God, in His great Wisdom, has seen fit for you to encounter these people on this particular day. Maybe they just need to see someone smile and greet them. Maybe they need to see that not everyone is going to blow their horn at them when they almost pull over in front of them. Maybe they need to see you and think to themselves "there is just something different about that person" - that difference being Jesus Christ. Just remember, regardless of the time of day or how you are feeling at the time, you are still an Ambassador for Christ to those He brings into you life. Be sensitive to them and allow God to use you to make a difference in their life. You have in mine.

It's Monday

Psa 118:24 "This is the day wich the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it."

There is just something about Mondays that people seem to dislike. Could it be that it is the first day back to work for most people? They have enjoyed the weekend and now it is back to the same old grind. Let's see if we can't put a little different perspective on this blue Monday idea. Obviously, the first thing to consider is that even Monday is "A day the Lord hath made" and we are to rejoice and be glad in it. So, what is there to rejoice about, you may ask? I have to go back to work. Well, there is one thing to rejoice over - you have a job to go to, which means that you have a paycheck coming so that you can enjoy the weekends. Something else about Mondays is the anticipation of the coming week. From Monday, we look forward to Friday, but wait a minute, I have to work on Friday. Why don't we complain about Fridays as we do about Mondays? Maybe it is because we know that tomorrow is the weekend - Saturday, when we begin dreading the fact that the next day is Sunday and we have to go back to work on Monday. It seems like a vicious cycle, doesn't it? Monday should be an exciting day, because we have had time off to rest and get away for awhile. We have also had the privilege to be in Church on Sunday and to worship God with our brothers & sisters in Christ. We have had the opportunity to become revitalized and ready to face the wicked world because we have been reminded of God's abiding presence with us and His power that will help us through every day - even Monday. Yes, it's Monday and a wonderful Monday it is. Enjoy it.