By Waylon Bailey More and more I find myself being drawn to the Proverbs. I am afraid that in the past I have not taken this teaching of God seriously enough. God gave the Proverbs to teach the people of Israel to learn from God and to live for Him. As you go through the Proverbs, this twin teaching seems to be found again and again. All of us are to Learn from God, and we are to live for Him. Not only is this the theme of the Proverbs, but it is also the theme of the Scripture and of our relationship with God. God wants us to be conformed to His image. When we are like God, then we shall do as He does. We will live for Him. God wants us to learn from Him. The Proverbs begins by a proper relationship with God. Only from God can we get wisdom and understanding. “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and understanding” (Proverbs 1: 7). God Himself is the source of wisdom, knowledge, and understanding. The person who would live wisely must learn from God. We are always tempted to assume we have all knowledge and all understanding. Even now, we seek to conform God to our image instead of being conformed to His image. Until we learn from God, we really can’t learn. God wants us to … [Read more...]
Won’t I be your neighbor? And won’t you be mine?
By Joe McKeever “I have always wanted to have a neighbor just like you. I’ve always wanted to live in a neighborhood with you….” (from Mister Rogers Neighborhood. Opening theme) “Love your neighbor as yourself” (Leviticus 19:18). This verse is quoted in the New Testament in Matthew 5:43 and 19:19; Mark 12:31; Luke 10:27; Romans 13:9, Galatians 5:14 and James 2:8. Mr. Fred Rogers, who left us in 2003, is back in the news these days. Books and articles, television specials and a couple of movies remind us just how special this good man was. Anyone who reads Mr. Rogers’ words or dwells on his life for even a few minutes comes away thinking more about being a good neighbor. My wife and I saw the movie “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” Thursday of this week. There were perhaps 25 or 30 others in the theater, most of them seniors. This was not the Tom Hanks movie on Mr. Rogers which I had expected, but is more of a documentary or biopic, I think they call it. The Hanks movie will be out soon, we’re told, and is not so much a biography as a story about Rogers’ interview with a magazine writer. A couple of observations about Mr. Rogers from the movie we just saw. One, the man truly was almost too good to be true. As a … [Read more...]
Integrity means you’re the same person in private and in public
By Rick Warren “God blesses those whose hearts are pure, for they will see God” (Matthew 5:8 NLT). As you strive to build a life based on values that last, it’s important to establish and maintain integrity. The Bible says in Matthew 5:8, “God blesses those whose hearts are pure, for they will see God” (NLT).To “see God” means to experience the presence of God. Believers who have a pure heart get to feel the power of God. They get to know the purpose of God for their lives. They get to live in the peace of God. They experience the pardon of God. Do you want to be one of those people? We don’t talk a lot these days about being pure in heart, but we do use the word integrity. To have integrity does not mean you are perfect, because if it did, none of us would have it! So, what does it mean to have integrity? Integrity is wholeness. A lot of people think of their life like a pie, and the different parts of their life are the pieces of the pie. This slice of the pie is my career. This is my work life. This is my spiritual life. Then this is my family life. That one is my social life. Then over here is my secret life — my compulsions, addictions, and the things nobody else knows about. If you segment your life … [Read more...]
Christ’s answer to every problem
By Steve Horn I find myself thinking and praying for multiple friends today who are going through a hard time. One of the difficulties of being a pastor is to help people through difficult seasons of their life. Usually, there is no advice to give or anything to say that will really change the circumstances. At the same time, saying something like, “Just trust God,” seems so hollow and void of real compassion. And yet, is there any better answer to all of our problems than the answer that Christ gives? Jesus said to Paul and He says to us, “My grace is sufficient for you.” I always think of this passage in hard times. I hope it blesses those today who need to hear it again. Therefore, so that I would not exalt myself, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to torment me so I would not exalt myself. 8Concerning this, I pleaded with the Lord three times to take it away from me. 9But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” Therefore, I will most gladly boast all the more about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may reside in me. 10 So because of Christ, I am pleased in weaknesses, in insults, in catastrophes, in persecutions, and in pressures. For when I am … [Read more...]
Kennedy: Louisiana families are paying higher taxes because of DHH’s incompetence in managing Medicaid
By U.S. Sen. John Kennedy Sunday was supposed to be the day that Louisiana’s state sales tax finally regained some semblance of fiscal sanity. After a year of paying sky high taxes. Louisiana families were in line for much-needed relief when sales tax dropped from 5 percent to 4 percent. Instead, they’ll be paying a rate of 4.45 percent. The reason for the ludicrous tax burden isn’t difficult to decipher if you read recent news reports about an audit by the nonpartisan Louisiana Legislative Auditor’s Office. That report uncovered the truth behind Gov. Edwards’ threats to yank TOPS from your kids, evict your grandmother from the nursing home and close your community hospital. The state isn’t strapped for cash because you need to pay even more in taxes. The state is strapped for cash because it can’t competently manage a program that consumes nearly half the state budget. That’s what the Louisiana Legislative Auditor’s Office discovered when it peeked behind the curtain at the state Department of Health and Hospitals’ Medicaid program books. Auditors looked for errors in DHH’s paperwork for management of the Medicaid program. The results were far from pretty. The scathing audit found that DHH has been downright sloppy … [Read more...]
Forgive because God forgave you
By Rick Warren “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you” (Ephesians 4:32 NIV). We will all be hurt in this life. Many times we’ll be hurt intentionally by what people say about us or what people do to us. In fact, any time we read the word “forgiveness” we instantly call to mind certain heartaches, hurts, and problems from our past. The memories are still fresh because we’ve been hurt very deeply. Because of how deeply we’ve been hurt, it’s hard to consider forgiving the perpetrators. But the Bible gives us one very important reason we need to forgive. We forgive others because God forgave us. The Bible says in Ephesians 4:32, “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you” (NIV). Ponder how much God has forgiven you, and it’ll cause you to be more forgiving of those who have hurt you. The opposite is also true. If you don’t feel forgiven, you’ll have a hard time forgiving others. If you typically have a tough time forgiving others, you may not truly feel forgiven yourself. Think of it like this: God has completely wiped your sin slate clean because of what Jesus Christ did on the cross. All of the … [Read more...]
Abraham’s altar
By Steve Horn Abraham’s story in Genesis 12 is a model story of what it means to take God at His word and obey. I have always been amazed at Abram’s faith depicted in this account. As I have often summarized about this story, “God said to Abram ‘Get up and go,’ and Abram got up and went.” The part of the story that I want to isolate today is not Abram’s journey to the land of Canaan, but instead what he did when he got there. He built an altar. In fact in Abram’s case, we see a series of altars. In chapter 12, we have two initial altars. • 7 Then the LORD appeared to Abram and said, “I will give this land to your offspring.” So he built an altar there to the LORD who had appeared to him. • 8 From there he moved on to the hill country east of Bethel and pitched his tent, with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east. He built an altar to Yahweh there, and he called on the name of Yahweh. In chapter 13, we see the indication of additional altars. The first is the return to the altar between Bethel and Ai. • Then Abram went up from Egypt to the Negev—he, his wife, and all he had, and Lot with him. Abram was very rich in livestock, silver, and gold. He went by stages from the Negev to Bethel, to the place between … [Read more...]
Why you need a church and friends
By Waylon Bailey You need a church, and you need friends. From the very beginning, God put people together to worship, serve, and follow Him. While you find this throughout Scripture, it is particularly evident with the apostles and disciples of Christ. What would Paul have done without Aquila and Priscilla? How would he have carried out his purpose without Luke, Timothy, Silas, or any of the others. These people helped and supported Paul in accomplishing his work. It’s amazing what Paul and the other apostles accomplished in such a short time, but they did not do it alone. God never intended for us to do His work alone. He intended us to be part of the church, members of the body who help and encourage one another. Last night after our Wednesday meeting I was blessed by a young woman who said, “I pray for you daily.“ And, she meant it. She spent just a few seconds last night praying over me and praying for God‘s blessings and protection. I reminded her, “I am sustained by the prayers of God‘s people.“ Acts 19 describes a riot by the worshipers of the goddess Artemis in Ephesus. The riot spilled over into the theater in Ephesus (it’s still in existence and probably held 25,000 people). Paul wanted to go … [Read more...]
Give the gift of encouragement to your pastor
By Michael Evans Most everyone has heard the story about the turtle found atop the fence post and how that we can be sure that the turtle did not get that high by himself and must have had help. Pastors and these turtles are somewhat alike in that they find themselves at heights they may never have expected to be and they are there because of the support of the Holy Spirit and their family and hopefully, their congregation. Most good pastors know that their position is a precarious and a fragile existence and they have heard the horror stories of pastors being let go faster than the forming of a Texas tornado. They have also heard the dreaded phone call after midnight when a member frantically begs for help after losing a loved one unexpectedly. Never mind that the same voice on the line may have once half jestingly told that pastor that he should be ashamed for taking a salary for only working 2 hours a week. The pastor will dutifully get going to help as fast as possible and though he may think as he drives about how that comment hurt him and his wife then, he will not protest openly that for that one salary the church is getting at minimum two for one and sometimes more from him and his family. I feel almost guilty … [Read more...]
You can know truth by looking to God
By Rick Warren “I“[God] shows how to distinguish right from wrong, how to find the right decision every time” (Proverbs 2:9 TLB). Three philosophies — individualism, secularism, and relativism — have devastated our society’s moral thermometer over the past few decades. The consequences have been dramatic on society in general and on each of us individually.So what do we do about it? You have to start with God. He embodies truth. What is right and wrong gets its meaning in the character of God himself. Dishonesty is wrong because God is honest. Unfaithfulness is wrong because God is faithful. You can know truth by looking at how God interacts with us. The Bible says, “[God] shows how to distinguish right from wrong, how to find the right decision every time” (Proverbs 2:9 TLB). We can know the character of God through his Word. The Bible tells us what’s true, whether or not we like what it says. Once we encounter truth, God’s truth, we’ll recognize two key features of it every time we see it. It’s universal. It applies to everyone. If it doesn’t apply to everyone, it’s not truth. It’s an opinion. It’s unchanging. It won’t be moved by fads or fashions. Adultery was wrong 2,000 years ago, it’s wrong today, and … [Read more...]
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