my prayer…

what i want to do right now is basically pray here my own prayer to GOD.  if any part of this prayer speaks to you where you would say, “that’s how i feel about it too.  that’s the way i want to live my life too,” then you just whisper in that moment very quietly to GOD, “GOD, that’s my prayer too!”

LORD, help me make the biggest decisions first.  so that i can make the best decisions from now on.  i need to make the decision GOD to live life your way.  the decision to know YOUr word – the bible.  the decision to ask for YOUr help – to pray.  the decision to get good advice and the decision to take my time.  LORD, i’m not capable alone to make consistently good decisions yet i want to learn how.  become my teacher, LORD.  give me wisdom.  give me the ability to see life from YOUr point of view.  i commit the best i know how to following YOUr leadership in my life.  and i pray this in JESUS’ name.  amen.

just a thought from the front porch…

a step at a time...

the pages of the bible and the pages of the newspaper and the pages of our personal history all tell stories of how in our haste we have built our lives so poorly in our rush, in rapid decisions we have made some bad trades.  we’ve traded careers for embezzlement.  we’ve traded health and reputation for addiction.  we’ve traded marriage and children for an affair.  and we’ve done these so quickly.  in such a rush.  i don’t want to live my life like that.  and you don’t either.

in my study about the life of JESUS there’s something i’ve noticed.  as i really try to get to know JESUS, as i read about HIM in the bible, i realize that HE never one time ran anywhere.  not once.  HE lived HIS life a step at a time.  in unhurried fashion HE made HIS decisions and HE followed HIS FATHER’s will.  i thought that’s the kind of life i want to live.  in unhurried fashion, step at a time i want to follow my heavenly FATHER’s will.  that’s how i want to live.

how about you? 

just a thought from the front porch…

a breath, a prayer and pay attention to what really matters…

i’m learning lot about micro decisions these days.  i’m discovering more and more just how ready GOD is to help me and empower me to choose well and to live better.  if i’ll only take a moment, take a breath, whisper a prayer and pay attention to what really matters and do what’s right.

spend a little time thinking before you decide.  at least take a breath.  capture a moment and whisper a prayer and reflect on the kind of life you want to live. 

example:  you want to keep peace in your home so you think, maybe i shouldn’t mention this troubling issue i’m having with my spouse because peace is a value in our home.  but then you know… you’ve taken a moment, you’ve caught your breath, you’ve whispered a prayer and you feel deeply if i let this go then a higher value will be lost.  because more than valuing peace of the moment i really value a healthy relationship and if i let this go this feeling will turn into anger and anger will become the cancer of bitterness.  so you make a micro decision to speak about the issue.  and the next day you’re so glad that you did. 

or you’re recovering from alcoholism.  and you’re thinking about going to a bar just to eat the pretzels or to eat the cheap happy hour food.  but then you feel a thirst crawling up in your throat.  so you take a breath, you whisper a prayer and you go home instead.  you’ve made a good micro decision. 

i live in the same world you do.  i often made decisions on the fly.  honestly, i think most of us are addicted to the fast pace of life.  few of us want to wait on the LORD, take time to study, whisper a prayer or consult a friend.  delayed gratification doesn’t seem to be cool or in vogue these days so we tend to just rush in while the iron is hot, we say.  and we often live to regret those decisions.

just a thought from the front porch…

where we generally hurry in decision making…

i’ve noticed where we generally hurry in decision making it is in the micro decisions of life.  there’s this whole category of micro decisions that seem very small, very inconsequential.  but if we allow them to accumulate we will find that soon they become huge issues when we’re not careful. 

you take a tiny step to have lunch with a colleague of the opposite sex.  you give no thought to it.  it was just spur of the moment.  but that lunch becomes two and two lunches become three and then there’s secretive meetings.  and you decide not to tell your spouses about that.  then you’re headed down a very dangerous and damaging road.  you made the first decision spur of the moment, in a hurry.

or you make a micro decision to fudge on the office expense report for a business trip.  you get reimbursed.  the extra money comes in handy.  you did it first on a whim.  the second time you dug a little deeper and you did it again and again and again.

you’re in a hurry, maybe running through a store so you don’t discipline your child and the next time her behavior is worse. 

or you easily lose your temper and it brings embarrassment to you and if you’re a CHRISTian it brings embarrassment to the cause of CHRIST.

those episodes are played out dozens of times every day.  we find ourselves confronted with the decision to behave appropriately or inappropriately and it usually happens in a moment, without thought.  but if we had just taken a moment, taken a breath, whispered a prayer and thought about it just a moment maybe we would have made a better decision.

just a thought from the front porch…

if you can, take your time…

another way to use my choices wisely is to when you can decide to take your time.

now i understand that there are many decisions in life where we don’t have a lot of time to make a decision.  so i added an extra phrase for you: when you can take your time.  when you can’t, decide to take a breath. 

before you make a decision at least catch your breath, take a moment, whisper a prayer and then make your decision.  most of the bad decisions of my life are decisions i made when i was in a hurry.  i made them in haste.  i made them too quickly.  maybe i was in a bad mood.  i was flying by the seat of my pants.  most of those decisions have been poor decisions. 

i’ve watched people right on the edge of grief.  maybe a loved one has just died and they feel this compulsion to start making all these life-altering decisions.  sell the business, move cross-country, disinherit the children.  that’s not the time to make decisions.

when you can, decide to take your time.  we need to hear again the wisdom of the theologian songwriter, who penned these words “slow down.  you move too fast.  you’ve got to make the morning last.  skipping down the cobblestones.  do-do-do-do and feeling groovy!”

just a thought from the front porch…

some tips on seeking good advice…

three quick tips on seeking good advice.

1.  make sure it’s biblical counsel.  measure all of our decisions against the standards of GOD.

2.  make sure it’s experienced counsel.  get more than one person who has experience in the area of your decision.  you don’t want to ask somebody who doesn’t have a clue about what you’re going through about the issue that you’re facing.  you want somebody who has some experience in that area. 

3. make sure it’s honest counsel.  biblical, experienced and honest counsel.  in other words, don’t talk to people who like you so much that they’ll agree with you every time.

just a thought from the front porch..

run from or run to?…

another wise choice i can make is to decide to get good advice.

there’s a book in the old testament called proverbs.  peppered through that book is a recurring theme: we can be greatly assisted in life if we get good advice. 

proverbs 11.14 (niv), many advisors make victory sure.

           

proverbs 13.20 (niv), walk with the wise and become wise.  but a companion of fools suffers harm.  that’s why it says get good advise.  not just any old advice will do.  you need to get advise from people who have wisdom, who can give wise counsel.

proverbs 19.20 (niv), listen to advise and accept instruction.  in the end you will be wise.  the most successful women and men i have ever seen have surrounded themselves with good advisors and with wise counselors.

alfred p. slone for many years led the powerful general motors corporation.  one time after the board made a very vital strategic decision and the board had voted unanimously on the decision alfred sloan said this, “gentlemen, i take it that we’re all in complete agreement on the decision here.  so i propose that we postpone the decision until our next meeting to give ourselves time to develop some disagreement and maybe get some understanding of what this decision is all about.”  he knew that they had made that decision way too casually.  they had come to a unanimous agreement way too quickly.  he wanted to make sure that they weren’t just keeping silent because he was chairman of the board and they were inferior to him.  he wanted to make sure that they weren’t just people pleasers wanting to go along and not rock the boat.  he was trying to teach them, i want people on this board who will challenge very idea that’s put forward so we’ll make the best possible decisions.  he wanted good counsel.

some people don’t want good counsel.  they know that the good counsel will go against what they inwardly really want to do whether it’s good decision or not. 

let me ask you a personal question.  have you ever been in the midst of making a decision and you intentionally avoided your CHRISTian friends because you knew that they would disagree with the decision you were getting ready to make?  that should be a huge red flag about that decision.  foolish people run from advice.  wise people run to advise.

Just a thought from the front porch...

a selective listener…

has anybody ever accused you of being a selective listener?  we tend to hear what we want to hear.  isn’t that true?  we leave off the parts we don’t like and we accept the parts that we like and we want to do.

it’s like the story of the doctor who’s driving down the road.  he looks out his car window and he saw an elderly man jogging along the side of the road with a very young, beautiful woman.  as he looked at the old guy he realized that the old man was his patient.  so he stopped his car, rolled down his window and hollered to the elderly man.  “what are you doing?” and the old man said, “i’m just doing what you told me to do.  you told me to get a hot mama and be care free.”  the doctor said, “i told you, you had a heart murmur and be careful!”  we all have selective hearing.  we hear what we want to! 

psalms 25.4-5 (niv) gives us a good prayer to pray.  show me YOUr ways, LORD.  teach me YOUr paths.  guide me in YOUr truth and teach me.  for YOU are GOD my SAVIOR.

just a thought from the front porch… 

our decisions become better and better…

another decision that makes a positive effect on our life is to decide to ask for GOD’s daily help. 

this is called prayer.  did you know that we’re commanded by GOD to ask HIM for help when we’re making decisions in our life?  HE commands us to come to HIM for help.  james 1.5-6 (nlt), if you need wisdom, if you want to know what GOD wants you to do, ask HIM and HE will gladly tell you.  HE will not resent your asking.  we just need to ask for GOD’s help every day. 

look at this prayer, “i want to thank you LORD for being close to me so far this day.  with YOUr help i haven’t been impatient, lost my temper, been grumpy, been judgmental or envious of anyone.  but i’ll be getting out of bed in a minute and i think i’ll need YOUr help then.”  i think so! 

let me tell you how these first three points we have been looking at work together.  GOD, the HOLY SPIRIT, becomes the leader of our life and takes up residence in our life.  then the bible gives us teaching for all of our decisions, sometimes specifically and sometimes generally.  then through prayer we ask GOD’s help.  we say, “GOD, by YOUr SPIRIT become my teacher so that when i read the bible, YOU help me understand it and then YOU help me apply it to the situations in my life.” 

look what JESUS said about the HOLY SPIRIT in john 16.13-14 (nlt), when the SPIRIT of truth comes, HE will guide you into all truth…HE will tell you about the future. HE will bring me glory by revealing to you whatever HE receives from me.

GOD promises to be our leader.  HE gives us HIS word to help us.  then HE promises to be our teacher.  is it any wonder then that our decisions should start to become better and better decisions when we have GOD’s help at work in our lives. 

what’s our part?  we’ve got to listen to HIM.

just a thought from the front porch…  

a cautionary word to you as a student of the Bible…

let me give a cautionary word to you as you begin to be a student of the bible.  don’t go to the bible just to find what you want it to say.  i’ve seen a lot of people use the bible like a drunk uses a light post.  more for support than illumination.  they go to the bible and try to find support for their position rather than finding light to guide them into their future. 

if we’re honest we can go to the bible and it speaks so clearly on so many topics that there’s literally no debate about many, many parts of the bible, what it’s teaching us and how we should live our lives.  so it should never be a question.  for instance, “i’m a CHRISTian.  should i marry this non-CHRIStian man?”  the bible very clearly says no.  it’s very unwise for a CHRISTian to marry a non-CHRISTian.  that’s crystal clear.  we don’t even have to think about it.  it’s right there in the bible.  or, “i’m a CHRISTian now.  i’m having to decide whether GOD wants me to be baptized.”  guess what?  it’s right there in the bible.  GOD says, i want all the followers of JESUS to make a public declaration that JESUS is the leader of their life.  baptism is the public way that you show that you’re obeying the teachings and commands of JESUS.  it’s very clear.

many specifics are outlined very clearly in the bible.  but just as quickly i’ll have to admit that the bible doesn’t deal with all the specifics of life.  there are places in the scripture where we only get broad sweeps of GOD’s will and HIS plan is just given to us in the big picture format and it’s as if the details are left up to us. 

it’s kind of like GOD saying, i will give you the sidelines of the football field.  i’ll identify where the out of bounds markers are.  i will teach you the game rules and i will specify the penalty and i will train you how to advance the ball toward the goal.  but finally you’re going to have to get on the playing field.  you’ll get in the huddle.  you’ll make some plays.  you’ll make some decisions.  some will work and some will not.  but i’m going to give some freedom to you to play the game.  we submit to GOD.  HE becomes our coach.  HE gives us the bible.  that becomes our game book, our game plan.

just a thought from the front porch… 

the more we come to know...

do you believe that the bible has the power to help you be what GOD wants you to be? 

a CHRISTian was debating an atheist on this very topic.  the atheist said, “i put no stock in the belief that mere words printed on an old page of an old book can in any way impart power to someone’s life.”  the CHRISTian said, “let me give you a scenario.  let’s suppose that you were driving through south central los angeles in the middle of the night by yourself without a cell phone and your car breaks down.  and let’s just suppose you’re on this dimly lit street, your hood is up and you have no idea what to do.  you think you’re by yourself until you hear some nose and some shuffling down this street and you see the images of ten large men walking in your direction.  would it make any difference to you at all to know that those ten men had just finished their weekly bible study?”  the atheist had to admit, “i suppose it would make a difference.”

the bible helps us to know who we are to be.  it’s in the pages of GOD’s word that we get the best look at JESUS CHRIST.  we read about HIS priorities and HIS value system.  we can study HIM.  it’s like holding the mirror up to our life.  we can say, “do HIS priorities match my priorities?  i need to make some adjustments.”  we tally up HIS value system and our value system.  looking in that mirror we can say, “i’m not yet as much like JESUS as i want to be.  i’m not acting like HIM in the way i want to be.  i’m not reacting the way JESUS would react.  so i still have some adjustments to make.”  that’s why bible teacher beth moore says, “keep looking into the mirror until you no longer see yourself but you see JESUS CHRIST.”

colossians 3:16 (tlb), let the words of CHRIST in all their richness, live in your heart and make you wise.  the more we come to know the word of the LORD, and the more we come to know the LORD of the word, the better our decisions will be.

just a thought from the front porch…

human beings not human doings...

another decision we can make that affects our life in a positive way is to decide to know GOD’s word.

we can all decide to become better students of the bible.  the bible tells us why we have the bible.  the bible tells us the purpose of the bible.  2 timothy 3.16 (nlt), all scripture is inspired by GOD and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. it corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right.  GOD uses it to prepare and equip his people to do every good work.

this is not just 66 books of good advice.  that would never merit the kind of commitment that i’m advocating.  i am advocating that you base the majority of your decisions in this life on the bible because this book deals with it.  it deals with what you’re going to be facing in life.  it deals with what i’m going to be facing in life.  this is GOD’s wisdom to help us make decisions.

please note that in the bible i have all the guidance i need to be all GOD wants me to be in all of life’s decisions.  look at the word “be”.  all the guidance to be all that GOD wants me to be in all of life’s decisions.  notice i did not say to do all that GOD wants me to do.  we’re called human beings.  we’re not called human doings!  GOD is more interested in who you are rather than just dumping upon you this long list of things to do.  this is why i think we should decide to study GOD’s word.  it teaches us how to be who GOD created us to be.

don’t you think this point is often missed in discussions of what is GOD’s will for our life?  when you’re trying to figure out what GOD wants you to do isn’t it more often about what you’re going to do?  how often do you go and say, “GOD, who do you want me to be?  what kind of character do you want me to have?  what kind of thought patterns do you want me to live with?”  instead we go to GOD and say, “GOD, should i take a or b, curtain #1 or curtain #2?”  like GOD is this big monty hall in the sky.

just a thought from the front porch…

mixed, murky and manipulative motives…

the bible says in 1 john 4.1 (niv), dear friends, do not believe every spirit.  but test the spirits to see whether they are from GOD.  we make decisions on totally human bases and throw out a whole assortment of ouija board methods.  and then we will tag on to that, that’s how GOD is leading my life.  all these weird circumstances happen.  that must be GOD leading my life.

i heard about the college student needing a car.  he didn’t know which car GOD wanted him to purchase.  one night he had a dream.  in his dream everything was yellow.  so when he woke up the next morning, he believed GOD had given him his answer in that dream.  so after going to several used car lots, he found a car that was yellow inside and outside.  everything about the car was yellow.  he bought it without even test driving it.  appropriately it was a lemon.

we do try to know GOD’s will in some crazy ways.  “LORD, let this next traffic light be green and i know i should keep this appointment…  LORD, let my telephone ring by 9 p.m. and i’ll know this is the guy i should date.”  some of you are asking, “can’t GOD speak like that?” 

i believe that GOD can do anything HE wants.  in numbers 22 the bible says that GOD spoke through a donkey one time.  but that doesn’t mean i go to a barnyard every time i want to make a decision.  good decisions are not usually made in these weird fashions because so much of that can be manipulated and controlled by us. 

“he didn’t call by 9:00.  ok, GOD, if he calls by 9:10 it’s still your will for me to go out with him.”  we impose our motive into those weird kind of circumstantial things.  our motives are so mixed and so murky and can be so manipulative.  we say, “it’s GOD’s will for me to go to that college because the academics are so strong.”  but the truth is that’s where our boyfriend/girlfriend has decided to go to school.  we say, “i believe it’s GOD’s will for me to take that job.  i’ll use the extra money to support charity.”  but the truth is we want the extra money and we want the promotion.  we say, “i think it’s GOD’s will for me to do this now.  i have to catch the wave.”  but the truth is we’re bored and we just want extra stimulation in our lives.  some waves should be caught and the truth is no surfer catches every wave.  that’s why we need GOD’s help – to know the difference between waves, to know whether we should do it now or later or at all.  because we have such muddy motives.

proverbs 16.2 (ncv) says, we may think we know what is right, but the LORD is the judge of our motives.  the first decision we can all make that will help all the other decisions in our life is to be willing to live life GOD’s way.

just a thought from the front porch… 

typically how we make decisions…

romans 12.1 in the message says, take your everyday, ordinary life – your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life – and place it before GOD as an offering.  embracing what GOD does for you is the best thing you can do for HIM.  but then notice romans 12.2 (msg), don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking.

this is a very important point.  most of us live our lives just like everyone else lives their life. we listen to our groups of friends and we just go along with the crowd.  we’re making our decisions like everybody else is. 

yet the bible says there is a better way.  the bible talks a lot about good decision making.  proverbs 3.5-6 (nlt) is one of the best known parts of the bible on decision making.  trust in the LORD with all your heart.  do not depend on your own understanding.  it says, do not depend on your own understanding. 

isn’t that typically how we make decisions – on our own understanding?  “this is my choice a, choice b, choice c.  my understanding of the situation is if i go that way ‘these’ will be the consequences.  those will be the pros and the cons.  if i go that way that’s where it will get me.”  then we make a decision. 

that’s how everybody is making decisions and most people are getting in big trouble.  they’re not depending on GOD to trust in.  why do you think horoscopes and psychic hot lines are so popular?  that’s kind of the way of the world.  i’ve always wondered about psychics.  why aren’t all psychics rich?  why aren’t they living in las vegas beating the odds makers?  why don’t they just retire after the superbowl?  if you think about it, you should never have to call a psychic.  if they’re psychic they’ll know your needs and they’ll call you.  not long ago one of the hottest psychic hot lines went bankrupt.  you would have thought they would have seen it coming.

just a thought from the front porch…

HE will help us…

i heard about this teenage boy who was fed up with all the rules of his teachers.  so he dropped out of school early… and he joined the army.  that was worse!  the sergeants were barking out orders.  he couldn’t wait to be discharged so he could settle down and be free.  so he got married. 

deep down we resist authority.  we want to be in charge.  i’ll make my own decisions, thank you very much!  but for those who have lived enough of life to swallow your pride and admit that you need some help, even if it means submitting to authority, the bible tells us that if we will submit to HIM, HE will help us.  GOD will help us live life in HIS will if we let HIM guide our decisions. 

now that may be creating a question in some of our minds.  you’re saying, “you’re telling me that one of GOD’s gifts to us is the freedom to choose.  now you’re saying submit my choices to GOD.  doesn’t that mean i’ve just given up my free will?  now i am puppet.  now i am a robot.  and GOD will just start doing HIS programming on my soul.” 

that’s not what i’m saying at all.  that’s not what the bible teaches.  the bible does say that GOD is in control, moving history to a certain and preset conclusion.  GOD is all around us and has been working through the events and people of history from the very beginning.  and all of life is like a slow coursing river winding its way towards GOD’s ultimate destination.  there is a big picture, a big overall plan and will of GOD and GOD is working things towards that plan. 

but within that plan GOD gives you and GOD gives me lots of personal freedom.  GOD doesn’t control every aspect of life.  HE didn’t control what you ate for breakfast this morning.  HE didn’t control what you decided to wear to work/play today.  let’s not blame GOD for some of that! 

let me give you an example.  let’s say i asked you to drive to austin, texas where i used to live.  i draw out a map.  i set the course.  i tell you which roads to take.  i’d tell you which exits to take, which subdivision to enter.  but during that trip you’d have all kinds of personal freedom.  you could choose what time you left for the trip, how fast you drive, when to use a turn signal, whether or not to use cruise control, when to buy gas, eat a meal or spend the night.  i would have determined the overall destination, where this trip is headed but along the way you would have made almost all the personal decisions.  good decisions would have gotten you well down the road.  poor decisions could have led to a crash of your life. 

and the difference between crashing and getting down the road is utilizing GOD’s help in making decisions.  i would contend that we need GOD’s help more in our life these days rather than less.

just a thought from the front porch… 

decisions that help us make good decisions…

now there are some decisions that all of us can make that in turn will help us make every other decision in our life. they are decisions that help us make good decisions.

one of them is, i can decide to live life GOD’s way.  that’s a decision we can make.  romans 12.1 (esv) says, present your bodies as a living sacrifice to GOD.

in our modern world the idea of a sacrifices is a foreign concept.  we’re not all that familiar with sacrifice.  but in ancient times people would take animals, they’d put them on stone slabs, usually cut their throat or in some way have all the blood drain out and offer that dead animal as an offering to GOD.  but in this verse the bible says, GOD doesn’t want us to be dead on an altar.  HE wants us to be alive.  HE wants us to be a living offering to HIM, a living sacrifice.  it’s really the essence of giving the full yes to GOD.  “GOD, i’ll give you my whole life!”

if i could use a driving analogy, it would be the picture of you getting out from behind the wheel of the car of your life and getting over into the passenger seat and allowing GOD to get behind the wheel and allowing him drive.  so then, instead of you being the leader or the director or the boss of your destiny you’re looking to GOD and you’re wanting HIS ways to become your ways.  you’re submitting to HIM. 

i know this is quite a challenge for us independent types.  we have a hard time giving our whole life to GOD.  i’ve talked to enough of you to know the reasons why.  some people have said things like this, if i ever give a complete yes to GOD, if i ever say, GOD, you do what you want to with my life, some of you believe that from that moment on your life will be miserable.  you’ll have to stop having fun.  GOD will dress you weird.  you’ll have to talk funny.  you’ll have to move to the remotest parts of the world. 

where do you get the idea that living for GOD is a miserable life?  that’s not what the bible says.  the first sermon that JESUS ever preached was a message on how to find happiness in difficult situations. there’s a book in the bible called philippians.  the whole point of that whole book is about how to find inner contentment and joy in a very challenging world.  JESUS said in john 10.10 “I have come that you might have life and have that life miserably.”  that’s not what HE said.  (gnt),  I have come in order that you might have life – life in all its fullness.

just a thought from the front porch…

some reasons why we have problems…

why do we have so many problems in the world?  here are some reasons why we have problems in our lives:

1.  a fallen world.                                                                                     

in a nutshell, adam choked.  adam blew it.  he sinned.  sin entered the world and we live in an imperfect world ever since so because sin is in the world people do things that are wrong and you suffer as the result.  other people cause problems that you didn’t cause.  that’s one of the main causes of problems.

2.  you have an enemy.  his name is satan.                                                  

and satan wants to mess your life up.  he wants to destroy you.  he wants to make you ineffective as a child of GOD.  so you not only have the world working after you, you’ve got the devil after you too.

3.  your own poor decisions.                                                                  

you make a lot of dumb decisions, dumb choices and so do i.  most of the problems i bring on myself. 

if you’ve got your own poor decision making and you’ve got the devil and you’ve got the fallen world it’s no wonder.  that’s enough problems to keep you going the rest of your life but let me give you a fourth.

4.  sometimes problems are nobody’s fault.  sometimes GOD just allows them for a different reason. 

one time JESUS was walking down the street and HIS disciples saw a man who was born blind.  the disciples said, “LORD, this guy was born blind.  who did something wrong?  was it his parents who did wrong, who sinned?  or did he sin?”

and that’s such a contemporary approach to problems.  today when you get a problem you say it was either caused by my parents or by me.  it’s either blame your parents or blame yourself. 

so they said, who caused this problem, my parents or me?  and JESUS said, john 9.3 (niv), neither… this happened so that the works of GOD might be displayed in him.

sometimes you’re going to have problems that aren’t caused by the sin of others, aren’t caused by your own sin and aren’t caused by the devil.  you’re going to have problems because GOD let them in your life so that GOD’s power could be displayed in your life.

just a thought from the front porch… 

man’s oldest problem…

JESUS CHRIST came to earth to teach us a few things.  HE came to say you’re not here by accident.  GOD made you for a purpose, HE loves you, there’s niche for you.  the problem is, the bible says, that we’ve all gone our own way, done our own thing, made foolish choices, made decisions where we didn’t consult GOD but did what we wanted to do.  the bible calls that sin.  we choose to do what we want to do rather than checking in with the LORD so as a result, we’re separated from GOD.

GOD feels far away and distant.  JESUS CHRIST came to be the bridge.  HE died on the cross to make a way back for man.  you only need to make one major decision in your life:  who’s going to be number one in your life?  i challenge you to put JESUS CHRIST on the throne of your life.  it will produce incredible stability and as you lean on him moment by moment you’ll find guidance.

that is an extremely important decision for you to make.  but now james deals with what GOD has to say about man’s oldest problem: temptation.  we all eventually face it.  sometimes even when we know what’s the right thing to do it is difficult to say “no”.  it is difficult. 

oscar wilde once said, “i can withstand anything except temptation.”  the only way to get rid of temptation is to give in to it.

now the bible talks about two different kinds of testings.  one is called trials, the other is called temptations.  both of them use the same word in greek – “peirasmos”.  sometimes it is translated “trials” sometimes “temptations.”  it doesn't matter because sometimes a situation can be both a trial and a temptation but to distinguish them – trials are situations designed by GOD in order to help us grow and temptations are designed by the devil in order to cause us to sin.

james 1.12 (kjv), blessed is the man who endures temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the LORD has promised to them that love HIM. 

there is a prize, a reward for enduring temptation.  it says, blessed – happy.  happiness comes from having your life under control so that there is no bad habit that is devastating you.  when you know how to say “no” to temptation it produces happiness in your life.

just a thought from the front porch…

a determining factor for the quality of our life…

listen, the quality of your life is determined by the decisions and choices you make and the wisdom that is behind those decisions and choices.  james is saying that when we do not trust GOD it produces a lifestyle of instability in our lives.  the cause of all the frustration in my life is not my indecision over the job, the marriage, my kids, my health although those are important.  there is a deeper issue and that is my inability to trust GOD and lay it all in HIS hands and ask for wisdom.

where are you double minded?  where have you been wavering and trying to live two different ways, trying to live for the LORD when in church and then downplaying it the rest of the time.  that produces instability.

i want to talk with you about life’s greatest decision.  the greatest decision you’ll ever make in life is this:  who is number one in your life?  are you going to be number one?  is money going to be number one?  is your job number one?  listen, there is only one thing that will produce stability in your life.  that’s when GOD is number one in your life.  no man can serve two masters, JESUS said.  you will hate the one and love the other.  the most important decision you can ever make is to make JESUS CHRIST number one.  “LORD, you call the shots.  YOU’re the chairman of the board.  i’m going to check in with YOU on a regular basis.  YOU guide my life.  i want to find the niche for which i was created.”

when you do this it will not change you overnight.  not instantly but that is the starting point of a long journey.  it is the smartest decision that you will ever make to put JESUS CHRIST number one in your life and get in tune with GOD’s plan for your life.

just a thought from the front porch… 

making decisions the way GOD makes decisions…

if the problem in making up your mind is indecision then what’s the solution?  the solution, the prescription is wisdom.  get wisdom.

it says in james 1.5 (tniv), if any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask GOD, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.   he gives some practical steps.

first of all you admit your need.  verse 5 (tniv), if any of you lacks wisdom…

now i detect a little sarcasm here in that statement.  “if any of you don’t have it all together.”  james is the book of wisdom in the new testament like proverbs is the book of wisdom in the old testament.  we all lack wisdom.  it is universal.  we all lack wisdom.  you see, wisdom is different than knowledge.  wisdom is knowledge put into practice.  wisdom is seeing life from GOD’s point of view.  wisdom is making decisions the way GOD makes decisions.

the word for wisdom in greek is the word “sophia.”  “phila – sophia” equals “philosophy” – which means the love of wisdom.  wisdom means practical application of knowledge. 

the bible talks a lot about wisdom but we are interested in knowledge.  the world is impressed with knowledge but GOD is impressed with wisdom.  what do you do with your knowledge?  do you put it into practice and make use of it?  wisdom is the ability to make decisions the way GOD would make decisions.

proverbs 11.2 (tniv), when pride comes then comes disgrace.  but with humility comes wisdom. 

you can’t learn anything if you think you know it all.  one of the reasons why we never learn wisdom is we think we have it all together. 

he’s saying, “admission of the lack of wisdom is the beginning of wisdom, ‘i don’t have it all together.’”

for some of you it may be hard for you to go home and say to your wife, “i was wrong.”  when was the last time you said, “i was wrong.”  that shows how wise you are.  the admission is the beginning of wisdom.

i’ll be honest i have problems with knowing what the questions are, let alone the answers.

just a thought from the front porch…