Meat for the Hungry

It's official. There's a new sheriff in town, and the outlaws…well…they are a-runnin'!   Many of us prayed so hard for this, and joy fills our hearts. We know the LORD said yes. But even if He had said no like He did four years ago, that does not change His sovereignty for the Almighty Triune God does not change. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. [1]   His changelessness diminishes fear and allows true believers to have unspeakable joy no matter the condition of our lives or the situations in our world. [2] Why? Joy comes from within our soul since we are filled with God's Spirit. Joy transcends the things we see and experience because God Most High is on His throne, and He loves us with an everlasting love. He is in total control, orchestrating events in our lives and on Earth, whether trials to refine us or gifts to bring us joy and Him glory. [3] We, above all, know how God works things around for the good of those who love Him. [4] So...

Many moons ago, when I was a freshman in high school, smoking was about the worst thing kids would do. By the time I was a senior, it was “going all the way,” if you catch my drift. Perhaps that’s when sin began to be erased, or at least the idea of sin .   Since then, humans have worked tirelessly to accept, normalize, and even protect sinful actions. What we once knew as sin —because the Bible said so and because our consciences made us feel it—no longer has that label.   Think about it. What thing, considered wrong and sinful when you were young, is fully accepted today?   The big one I mentioned earlier hits a bit closer to home:  sex outside of marriage, aka sexual immorality, or fornication, as some Bible translations call it. [1] Not only was it wrong, but we knew it was wrong and tried to hide it. (I didn’t come to Christ until I was married with two children, so that should explain a lot. And I take full responsibility for my part in the dissolving sin —wh...

Painting by Sara Hancock (used with permission) COVID-19 and the state of emergencies have caused widespread distress. Fear and anxiety are rampant, and bordering on panic. Rapidly dwindling stock in stores has amplified fear. I must admit, when I saw Dollar General’s empty shelves, it unnerved me. In fact, I teared up as I realized just how much our lives have changed in only a few days. When we should be focusing on our upcoming Resurrection Day celebrations, we are smacked in the face with a pandemic and FEAR. In response, some believers have shouted the first part of II Timothy 1:7, saying, “The Lord has not given us a spirit of fear ...” While this is true, these believe we should not cancel church, etc. because we can trust God to keep us healthy. God is able to keep us healthy just as he was able to keep the three Hebrews safe in the fiery furnace. [1] But, the world sees this as being irresponsible.

DOCTRINES OF DEMONS Are you grieved that our culture thinks so little of the God who created us and the world in which we live that they accept when our Sovereign, Holy God is reduced to a caricature or a joke in a monologue? I mean, where is their fear? Not just reverential fear, I’m talking real out and out fear of Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. [1] Do you think it’s just a sign of the times and the prophesied falling away? [2] In Luke 18:8, Jesus asked a question, “Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?” You might think this is a rhetorical question, but it’s not. He’s telling of things to come and trying to make us think. So, what type of thing would cause a believer to lose faith and possibly walk away from the TRUTH of the Holy Scriptures they may have known from childhood [3] or as an adult that brought us to Christ?

https://pixabay.com 229117 Wisdom . Have you ever contemplated this word and its meaning? No, of course not. Why would you waste time thinking about something humans gain with study, life experience, or just seem to possess? Still, as wasteful as it may seem, lately I’ve been pondering wisdom . It’s true, wisdom abounds. There’s academic wisdom, science wisdom, business, sports, etc. Yet, this is acquired wisdom – knowledge gathered and expanded over years of study, trial and error. When knowledge in any subject is learned, wisdom usually follows. Wisdom applies the knowledge and these two fit together like a nut and bolt. Isn’t it interesting we even have the capacity to develop wisdom? How do we do it? And why is our amazing brain able to take in all we learn and experience and then produce wisdom ? The explanation can only be God .

www.timeanddate.com It’s C h r i s t m a s t i m e and all we should be thinking about is love, joy, peace, and the Baby born in Bethlehem. But we have yet another glaring reminder of evil. 2015 began with violence. Then as months flew by, almost at every turn violence appeared somewhere, and now, it’s ending with violence. Why? Because brainwashed, malicious people are overturning our world. These, either by blood or osmosis, have assumed the characteristics of the ancestor they claim.  Ishmael, God said, “…shall be a wild man; his hand shall be against every man, and every man's hand against him..." (Genesis 16:12) However, the recent San Bernardino shooting is not the only acts of evil we are seeing. “Stricter gun-control laws,” they chant. Why do politicians ignore the fact that gun-control laws only disarm law-abiding citizens, not criminals or terrorists? They seek to take away the right of the people to keep and bear arms, which our second amendment sa...

“If you can keep your head when all about you are losing theirs and blaming it on you” is the first line of Rudyard Kipling’s poem entitled “If”. As a kid, I loved poetry and still do.  I love the pulse and rhyme of poems.  My first poetry book was Read-Aloud Poems where “Eletelephony” by Laura Elizabeth Richards, quickly became my favorite. But as I grew, I moved on to more thoughtful and introspective poetry like “The Duel” by Eugene Field: “The gingham dog and the calico cat side by side on the table sat…” Just kidding. But seriously, this poem remains one of my favorites, even if it’s a bit morbid. One Christmas my mother purchased the book, One Hundred and One Famous Poems as a stocking-stuffer. Perusing through its pages and remembering my youth, I came across Kipling’s poem. All those years ago the poem’s full message escaped me, but now Kipling’s words made sense. I wondered what persecution this man must have suffered to write such poignant words. Kipling wro...