A SQUARE PEG WON'T FIT IN A ROUND WHOLE!

Genesis 1:26-31
Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth. So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. And God blessed them. And God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth. And God said, "Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food. And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the heavens and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food." And it was so. And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.

GOD knew from the BEGINNING that I would be born and the exact day that would occur. HE also knew that the USA would become a nation on July 04, 1776! That Penicillin would be discovered. That men would venture into space to land on the moon!

OMNISCIENT means knowing ALL things! GOD knew that the population of earth would grow to 6.5 Billion people. HE knew that the carbon dioxide emitted by those people and their treasures/pleasures would exist.

"Global Warming" does not concern me near as much as a human race who rejects the CREATOR! Proverbs 4:7 (ESV) says "The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom, and whatever you get, get insight. ". No matter how smart we THINK we are, GOD will still be GOD! Omniscient, Omnipotent and Omnipresent! Until one comes to the realization that we fall short the standard GOD has set, we will continue trying to force the square peg in the round hole.

Romans 3:23-24 (ESV) "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus."

Hey, did you hear that? It's opportunity knocking!!

I like the subtle message of that message..."opportunity knocking at the door". It denotes the fact that grasping things we want in life requires work on our part....opening said door.

 I read this post today on FACEBOOK and it got me to thinking.  Do I open ENOUGH doors?  Or am I waiting for doors to magically come open for me?  So I started looking for answers, and the FIRST place I look for answers is the Book of ANSWERS.........the HOLY BIBLE!!!  According to my version of the King James BIBLE the word "KNOCK" is in scripture THREE times.  Matthew 7:7, Luke 11:9 and Luke 13:25.  

Matthew 7:7 says "knock, and it shall be opened unto you."  Luke 11:9 says "knock, and it shall be opened unto you."  Luke 13:25  is a parable where the MASTER of the house is shutting the door for HIS feast and the ones who have CHOSEN to wait until the last minute "begin to stand without, and to KNOCK at the door, saying Lord, Lord, open unto us, and he shall answer and say unto you, I know you not whence ye are!"  

In the first two entries into scripture (Matthew 7:7 and Luke 11:9) JESUS is opening the door for you and HE is saying the DOOR IS OPEN!  Come on in!  But, YOU HAVE TO CHOOSE to come in!  In the third entry to scripture (Luke 13:25) JESUS is telling of those who have tried to WAIT just a little too long, tried to fix their own problems just a little much, tried to clean up their life before they come to THE LORD too many times and time ran out on them.  THE DOOR WAS SHUT!!!  Some were right outside the door and had good intentions of coming to HIS FEAST, but they were too late!  

Folks, this was a parable.....but it will happen one day.  JESUS will decide to gather HIS children and when HE does, IT IS TOO LATE! 

GUARD YOUR HEART!

For someone who is not the sharpest knife in the drawer, I have to be careful NOT to get ahead, or behind, the LORD!  HE is the reason I am here to begin with!  The stroke I experienced in 2007 was only a gentle reminder that HE can take us from here, or leave us, whenever HE wants!!!

For the past four days I have been pondering and meditating Proverbs 23:7 and Proverbs 4:23.  I have read and listened to many sermons posted relating to these verses and am still listening and reading.  I am not sure what or why GOD wants me to share about these verses.......

But a few minutes ago a FACEBOOK friend posted this post and it sent chills over my body.  How can one ignore what GOD so blatantly puts in front of him? 

I just wanted to share with everyone that GOD does LOVE you and me and HE desires a relationship where we TRUST in HIM for the very air we breathe!  ABOVE ALL......

"I CAN'T HEAR YOU!"

    “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber. But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the gatekeeper opens. THE SHEEP HEAR HIS VOICE, AND HE CALLS HIS OWN SHEEP BY HIS NAME AND LEADS THEM OUT.  When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. A stranger they will not follow, but they will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.” This figure of speech Jesus used with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them.
(John 10:1-6 ESV)

So many time we want to have a eloquent explanation for those who seem to have no SPIRITUAL COMPASS.  Maybe it is just they cannot HEAR!!!

PEACE?!?

There was a time in my life when I thought I had everything - millions of dollars, mansions, cars, nice clothes, beautiful women, and every other materialistic thing you can imagine. Now I struggle for peace.

Richard Pryor 

There is a website called www.brainyquotes.com where I love to view what Thomas Jefferson, C.S. Lewis, Abraham Lincoln and various other well-known people have their famous sayings recorded.  A few days ago I was perusing the names of famous people and I came across the name of Richard Pryor.  I had seen Richard Pryor giving an interview on Entertainment Television about 20 years ago.  It was the interview where he made this comment!

Richard Pryor was talking about "The peace that passes all understanding".  He was not talking about no noise.  He was not talking about everything in life going well.  He was talking about PEACE!  

The book of Romans in the BIBLE leaves little doubt from where PEACE originates.  Romans 2:10, 3:17, 5:1, 14:17 and on and on.  My favorite is Roman 8:6 where scripture says "For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and PEACE!"  

The first thing I usually do is go to dictionary.com and look up a definition of the word I am trying to describe.  But after looking up the word PEACE I was left with nothing to write.  There are SO many explanations or definitions that I could not write ALL of them.  It is amazing that PEACE can only be described by saying JESUS!  HE is PEACE! 

Perhaps Richard Pryor was looking for the PEACE that only JESUS can bring. Maybe he found that peace before he died.  I can tell you this.......I would not trade the PEACE that GOD (through JESUS CHRIST) gives and allows me to have!  The wealth and fame that celebrities seek and have CANNOT fill the void in our lives that ONLY the JESUS fills!  A square peg won't fit in a round whole! 

I've got to get stronger!

It seems that EVERYDAY I need to rely on CHRIST and HIS strength or guidance in my life!  When am I going to be strong like the Apostle Paul in 2 Timothy Chapter 4 and be able to "fight the fight"?  When will I be spiritually strong enough to stand against the devil and his demons in the spiritual warfare that goes continues everyday?

JESUS told Pilate in John 19:11 AFTER HE had been beaten and scourged "You would have NO authority over me at all unless it had been given you from above."

I have always heard that "GOD does not call the qualified, HE qualifies the CALLED!"  Isaiah 12:2 "Behold, GOD is my salvation; I will trust and be not afraid; for the LORD GOD is my strength and my song, and HE has become my salvation.".  Where ever GOD leads me, HE will qualify and equip me!  I will always have to trust HIM! 


When will I learn..............This is NOT about me!!!  IT IS ABOUT HIM!!!

Is what you see what you get?!?!

I hardly EVER read the editorial page of our local paper.  At the top of the page it reads OPINIONS which lets me know it is only one person's thoughts and why they think they are correct.  Another view can have some points that are correct, if painted in the right light. 

GOD's word is infallible!  There are SOME that think THEY have a better view of how to live our lives.  They think they know the best way for not only them, but everyone else to live.  But, Proverbs 16:5 (ESV) says "There is a way that SEEMS right to a man, but its end is the way to death!" 

We can not even trust our feeble minds, eyes, ears, and hearts!  The disciples of Christ WATCHED as Christ was crucified on a cross.  Yet, in Luke 24:38-39 JESUS tells his disciples not be be alarmed.  HE was risen from the DEAD!! 

GOD can, and does, do things way beyond our imagination.  Everyday HE is working to accomplish HIS glory and draw praise and honor to HIS name!  And there is NO answer or explanation to it!  We would not serve a very big GOD if there was!!!

INTEGRITY!!

in·teg·ri·ty

   [in-teg-ri-tee] 

noun

1. adherence to moral and ethical principles; soundness of moral character; honesty.

2. the state of being whole, entire, or undiminished: to preserve the integrity of the empire.

3. a sound, unimpaired, or perfect condition: the integrity of a ship's hull

This is what dictionary.com says about Integrity.  A word cannot describe what is felt when someone let's others down or fails to meet expectations.  Standards are set by society that most of us live by to define whether or not we have INTEGRITY.  

GOD set standards for us in HIS word (BIBLE).  HE set those standards, I believe, because HE knew man would weaken our own standards as our culture "progressed" over the years.  When I was born the standards were A LOT more conservative than they are now.  I am sure they were weaker when I was born than 50 years prior.
  

In the book of LUKE, scripture speaks of SALT losing it's savour.  We need to evaluate where our standards align with GOD's standards.  Perhaps a pastor friend of mine was correct when he said "If you feel all alone, guess who moved?"  GOD did not set HIS standards to punish us for being bad.....HE set these standards because HE IS HOLY and HE can not tolerate sin.  We tend to tolerate more sin to be more accepting.  GOD can not be more accepting.  HE IS HOLY!!

The CONCLUSION of the matter is...........

FACEBOOK, TWITTER, and other Social Media outlets have their place in society.  Everyone has the opportunity to speak their minds and get things off of their chest.  Sometimes people are happy, sometimes they are sad, sometimes perplexed, sometimes angry, sometimes busy, and on and on.  Everyone has their OWN little world they live in.

But King Solomon, the wisest man who ever lived and author of the book of Ecclesiastes, finished the book in the BIBLE with this passage; "Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.  For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil."  A conclusion means the END DECISION.  When all is said and done, we have ONE and only ONE duty as a human.....to FEAR GOD AND KEEP HIS COMMANDMENTS!  That is our "whole duty"!  FEAR GOD and keep HIS COMMANDMENTS!

But, the next and final verse is one that WILL be reckoned with.  GOD is going to judge every work we perform, whether done in secret or public, whether it be good or evil!  I don't want to be explaining my evil thoughts or deeds to a HOLY GOD!  I want to live pure before HIM! 

May I share with and TRUST MY GOD with all of my troubles and not trust my friends on FACEBOOK to give me advice!  HE is able if I will trust HIM!!

Lesson LEARNED!!

Last night I awoke and a feeling of depression pounced on me like a mountain lion attacking a lamb!  I made a CHOICE not to be depressed and let my troubles or worries WIN the battle!  We CHOOSE to worry and as in everything we do in life, those choices have consequences.  When we decide to NOT WORRY it is not that we are not concerned about our problems, it is we are CHOOSING to let the LORD handle the problem!  It is easy to say we are going to trust the LORD, but it is not so easy to LET GO and LET GOD!  My goal is to not be burdened down with worry and fear and to exhibit the JOY and PEACE that people NEED!

NEHEMIAH 8:9-10 ESV

    And Nehemiah, who was the governor, and Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people said to all the people, “This day is holy to the LORD your God; do not mourn or weep.” For all the people wept as they heard the words of the Law. Then he said to them, “Go your way. Eat the fat and drink sweet wine and send portions to anyone who has nothing ready, for this day is holy to our Lord. And do not be grieved, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.”

PALM SUNDAY!

Yesterday, while sitting in church, I was trying to think just how many years ago it was since JESUS rode into Jerusalem on a donkey!  Can you imagine.....the SON OF GOD being lowered to riding on a donkey!  But, it should have not surprised me, or anyone else.  JESUS started out by coming to to earth in a poor, humble virgin.  He was raised doing labor in a carpenter shop.  He never had "THE BEST" as I wanted to give my kids. 

And only a few days later HE was being CRUCIFIED for crimes HE did not commit?  HE took my sins and my shame on HIS shoulders and did so willingly!  There was, and is ,no other way for me to escape the judgement I deserve.  And HE did this out of LOVE for all of us!  There is no other reason or excuse for HIS sacrifice! 

2 Corinthians 5:21 (ESV) states "For our sake HE made HIM  to be sin who had no sin, so that in HIM we might become the righteousness of GOD."  GOD the CREATOR loved me so much that HE paid a price to make me fit to come to HIM!!!