The good news of Christ
I trust you — There! I’ve said it!
The future — how I dread it!
I know not what’s ahead
Beyond my daily bread.
I need you — How I feel it!
The devil mustn’t steal it!
He says you’re not for real,
He’d rob me of my zeal.
I love you — I need to say it!
For yours, I cannot weigh it!
Your reign is why I pray,
To come the final day.
by Jerry Elder
In 1979 (yes, I know that was a while back) my freshman year in college, I had a Hispanic friend, Enrique, who went to a store to purchase a few things. When leaving the store, he heard the words “COME BACK”! So he turned around went back to the counter and stood there.
The lady was checking out another customer and did not acknowledge him. So he turned around and was walking toward the door when he heard those words again, “COME BACK”!
Again, he turned around, walked back to the counter, and stood there while she checked out another customer. The lady notices him there and then asks him, “Can I help you”? Continue reading “Come back”
Be near us, God of me and mine,
Show yourself as Lord sublime,
Protect, defend, and bless this day,
Uphold our hands upon your Way.
If you like alliteration, this is the outline for you. Ten — count ’em — ten Ws to form upon your lips and wave your hands over. You can supply a ton of Bible texts for each point. This is a good summary of the whole of the Faith.
UPDATE: I’ve reordered a couple of these, to reflect a more logical progression. I flipped nos. 3 and 4 and nos. 9 and 10.
Put my mind behind the eyes of my neighbor, dear God, that I might see from his perspective and have insight in how to speak to him and reach him for eternal salvation.
At the same time, let me be, to a point, careless with the gospel, seeking to share it at every moment, with every person, regardless of their station in life.
Give me compassion for all. Increase my love for your creation and for your word.
Move us forward in our own walk with you and in service to our fellow man.
In all, O Lord, may you be glorified in us.
Save them, Lord, from sin and shame,
Save them for your glorious name,
Save them from the devil’s snare,
Save them in Christ from hell’s despair.
Sanctify the brethren’s hands,
Sanctify their godly plans,
Sanctify and on them press
Your merciful love and holiness.
Many marriage partners become frustrated with the way their spouse has turned out. One husband approached Dr. Howard Hendricks with a list of gripes about his wife. Hendricks “consoled” the guy with his Columbo-type tactics. He told the man he was surprised that a man of his intelligence would marry a woman with so many blatant faults. The man quickly defended his prenuptial decision by declaring, “She wasn’t that way when I married her!”
Hendricks retorted, “Then I guess it means you made her that way.”
The fault we often pin on our spouse can frequently be—at least partially—ours.
Heal me, make me whole at once,
Raise my eyes to righteousness,
And show me my full share of grace.
Upon the power in Jesus’ path,
Launch forward my small faith and hope,
To touch the needy with times of peace.
The wicked flee when no one pursues,
but the righteous are bold as a lion, Prov 28.1, ESV.
As God’s righteous saints, let us be bold and courageous:
If you are a baseball fan the name Ricky Henderson is synonymous with “base stealing.” Henderson was so good at stealing bases that he reportedly would tell catchers, “If you don’t give me a pitch to hit, I’m going to end up on third base.” Translation: “If you walk me, I’ll steal second and third base.” In Henderson’s 25-year baseball career, he set major league records in unintentional walks, stolen bases, and runs scored.
Henderson was fast—real fast. But what is interesting is how he got so fast. Henderson tells how he lived in Arkansas as a little boy with his grandmother on a farm. He says that in those days “we had to catch a chicken to be able to eat a chicken.” Obviously, Henderson’s speed was partially God-given, but it also was improved through difficulty and hard work. The moral is, when life seems common-place, complex or confusing, God’s providence might just be training you for an opportunity to do something great later.
—Jason Moon, Waterview congregatrion, Richardson TX