‘As it is written: “I have made you a father of many nations.” He (Abraham) is our father in the sight of God, in whom he believed—the God who gives life to the dead and calls into being things that were not.’ Romans 4:17

The silent monster was back! This newest invisible specter sudden arose from within to present me an offer I couldn’t refuse. It whispered, “Make me happy and I’ll go away!” I Have fought his kind MANY times, but THIS time I was too grumpy and didn’t feel like fighting. Honestly, it was quicker and easier to throw it a snack than go to battle. So I went and got the ice cream!

TRYING to watch sugar intake lately is NO fun. I never have had to before and figured it wouldn’t be a hard…IF I ever needed to. Now PLEASE don’t tell anyone this, but when I heard of people fighting to stick to a diet…I used to think, “wimps!” Now that I have stepped onto THEIR field, I see them as warriors!

Facing the facts I’ll admit it! I am HORRIBLE at STOPPING things that I have allowed to become habits. But getting older, I have a choice to at least TRY to keep this physical house in SOME semblance of order, or just “let ‘er burn to the ground!” So…there I slunked… cocky, arrogant and confident…figuring, “this’ll be a picnic!” So I was caught TOTALLY unprepared when this NEW monster showed up!

As I licked the spoon and bowl clean, I began to feel that old familiar OTHER monster that ISN’T new. HIS name is ‘Guilt!’ And I HATE him! Having set a goal, it was self evident that I was a loser… a failure! Guilt kept attacking (I HATE when he does that). But I remembered what I did the LAST time I faced him over a different matter. So I pulled THAT sword out, swung it and smiled! “Hmmmm…it works here too,” I thought.

I am a child of God by Faith in Christ Jesus! My God is a God “that calls things that are not, as though they WERE!” And right then and there, in FRONT of this new monster, He called me “SON! Victor! Perfect! Complete!” I believed Him! And IMMEDIATELY could feel the strong monster of desire loosing its grip!

Romans 8:37 says I am “MORE than a Conqueror through Christ who loves me.” In all my years of wearing this armor, I have NEVER been able to explain what that verse REALLY means! But I don’t have to. Because I’m wearing the armor! Take THAT Mr. Giant!

What giant are YOU fighting?

“But because of your stubbornness and your unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of God’s wrath, when his righteous judgment will be revealed.” Romans 2:5

I currently have a like/dislike for my Doctor right now. Because I have an appreciation for reality, I cannot label it a love/hate relationship. That would be FAR too extreme! Lately I have had to make several trips to his office because of the results of my annual physical. Because he is a GOOD Doctor, he has requested other tests and even called me in for a consult! I can’t call HIM harsh…because reality is harsh enough! Here’s what I mean.

Last week my doctor, who is also my friend, had the nerve to tell me that there are some things I have been doing that I can no longer do! After I stammered, hummed and hawed a few times, I could see he wasn’t kidding. I could FEEL the resentment kind of building up inside, but quickly diverted it from him… to myself. After all, he is only looking out for my best good.

I remember years ago I went to him and he told me something I didn’t want to hear. When I balked then, he simply said, “Hey listen, I don’t care WHAT you do! Your actions won’t affect me either way! In fact, if you DON’T listen to me, I’ll actually make MORE money off of you when you get sicker!” WHAT A GUY!!! I like his boldness. And that is why he is also my friend!

It is no secret that families, society AND the Church are in crisis mode. Romans 1-3 clearly tells us why. It’s a heart problem called rebellion! We humans just don’t LIKE to be told we need to do things (or NOT do things) that we are prone to doing. And this verse today tells us that our pending death and judgment are NOT God’s Fault. It is our own doing!

As a pastor I watch as families, marriages and society crumbles. Like my Doctor, I get calls seeking advice from God’s Word as to what to do. Having paid a LOT in blood, sweat trials and tears to be in this ‘called’ position, it amazes me at how ‘few’ people are willing to heed the advice and make the changes! Usually, people slip out to seek ’better’ advice from someone else. Or none at all!

The penalty for sin and rebellion is death. It’s NOT something God simply decided to lay on people who don’t like Him. Like a shock from a broken wire, it isn’t the wire’s fault. But out of His LOVE for me, Super God set out to supply the prescription for healing when He sent His own Son to actually PAY for MY failure! He didn’t have to do that. Whether I obey Him or not won’t change HIM. But it has, can and DOES…change me!

So… How stubborn are YOU?

“And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” Colossians 3:17

I’m simply naming it a ‘Double-Dipped Dumper Day!’ Yesterday that is. I awoke, not remembering what day it was or where I laid my glasses or Bible. Had I known what I know now, that it was just a sign of what the REST of the day was going to be like, I’d of stayed in bed. Not being prophetic, I had to trudge through the quagmire… all day. And I wasn’t alone!

I called, texted and emailed people through the morning… nobody responded. Took the car to an upholstery shop and they didn’t have what I needed. Wanted to cut the grass, but it started to rain. And when I went to visit my wife at her school, her first words to me were, “I’ll be lucky to get through this day!” Yup!!! A double-dipped dumper day! By the end of it, I was feeling pretty sorry for myself!

Ever have one of those? Sure you have. And do you, like me, feel blessed that you didn’t KNOW it was going to be that way from the start? I mean every minute before me was a minute of HOPE! And though ‘hope’ never transformed into anything, it kept me… well…HOPEFUL! Until the end of the day, before turning out the light, when I said to Katie, “this is a day for the dumper!” We agreed to simply forget about it and throw it away!!

I woke up this morning not remembering what day it was and thought, “OH NO!!!!! NOT AGAIN!” Peering over a full day ahead, the HOPE of yesterday began or morph into a sense of hopelessness before it had even begun. So I picked up where I had left of yesterday, and decided to dump the attitude as I remembered this Bible verse!

WHATEVER I do… The Bible says, do it in JESUS name… and give thanks! So as I am about to go out with some of my Jesus friends and hold Gospel signs of HOPE out on the main highway, I am going to mentally hang a Jesus Flag above my yet unknown day and give thanks! The feeling was mutual when Katie said as she left for work, “let’s not complain about today!” I’m on to something folks!!!!

“…in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have…” 1 Peter 3:15

I had crossed the line! Having just received “The Look” from my wife, all I could do was raise my hands and voice, in feigned surprise, and say, ”What?” But it didn’t work. I was guilty and knew it! But I also KNEW I’d be doing it again…and hopefully soon!

It was Sunday after Church, and we were heading to a restaurant for lunch to beat the Baptists! After spending time with other Believers, I found myself back in the Covid 19 world. Approaching the entrance of the restaurant, I came across 4 bicycle riders as they were about to enter as well. Being at least 10 years older than me, they were covered from head to toe (it was 95 degrees) and wore gloves and full face masks. When I got close, one biker literally jumped out of the way! THAT was when it happened!

One of the evils of this so called pandemic is that everyone is treated as if they have cooties! Personally, I don’t like it! With no one being within 20 feet of us, that someone was ME! In a flash what I THOUGHT erupted from my mouth! “Hmmmm…you protect yourself from a low chance of catching a virus, when you most certainly are going to die from SOMETHING! Why don’t you go to church?” Their only response was an angry huff!

After ‘The Look,’ my wife said, “That was mean.” As I prepared to enter self defense mode, I paused to give that statement some thought with, ‘was it?” And if it was, was I intentionally so? Since I had just interjected Jesus House (and therefore Jesus) into my ‘anti-cootie’ jab, I found it important to NOT paint Jesus with the cootie brush! MAYBE I had made the biker THINK!

In reading the Gospels, Jesus was treated as if He had cooties everywhere He went. And it wasn’t because of His looks or smell! It was because of His message. Which leads me to want to analyze how I can deliver that same message in the most effective way!

There’s a lot of information in the Bible verse today. I am called and commanded, by the Savior of the world, to be prepared in every situation, to have a response to people WANTING know WHY I am a hopeful guy! Just how bold can I be? Do I need to always wait until I’m asked? Do I go where I’m not wanted? What if where I am going is dangerous? Can I LEARN how to speak better ‘before’ I actually speak? Just how dangerous can I be? Hmmmmm…I think I need to have a Bible study on this one!!!

“This is a trustworthy saying. And I want you to stress these things, so that those who have trusted in God may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good. These things are excellent and profitable for everyone.” Titus 3:8

I was reminded yesterday of how terribly sad, and yet incredibly joyful, a day can be. Having the honor of attending the funeral service of a local icon, it was readily apparent that the gentleman in passing was well on his way to becoming a legend.

Eric Geistert was a tough guy! And you know I love tough guys. I met him 43 years ago and the meeting made an impression. Tough, rough, factual and boisterous, he was a man you KNEW was around when he was around. His wishes EASILY became commands to employees and made others, at least, pay attention!

Eric recently passed away, having lived longer than most. At the cemetery where he was interred, a veterans honor guard was present to pay respects…honorably. When called to speak, I already new this was going to be one for the books. So I started they way MY dad always told me to start. “Sooooo, family friends and associates, I’d like YOU to tell me about Eric! What impressed you about him and what did he teach you?” I was glad I brought a pen!

Being surrounded by a WHOLE bunch of tough guys could have been intimidating. But these guys were there to pay their respects. And they did it like Eric would have himself…loud and clear! EVERY loud shout out was a sentence that had come from Eric’s own lips. “Take pride in your work!” and “don’t embarrass the family name!” were 2 that stood out. They reminded me of this Bible verse.

Living a life that stands out for its honesty, generosity, encouragement, loyalty and personal responsibility is an art that is dying off. With BLM and the destructive riots across our country, I was beginning to think the good guys were about to fade away entirely. But yesterday gave me hope!

At this saddest, yet most joyful event in a man’s history, I saw a large group of tough people celebrate a man who loved God and County. Who lived like he preached it. And made impressions on everyone he met to do exactly the same thing. I cannot wait to see him again in heaven to thank him for his service! May we all make such an impression for God.

“Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.” 1 Corinthians 15:58

Our Church sets off a major road, which provides our sign ministry a great opportunity to reach a lot of people with the Word of God. Which is something we have been known for over many years…several times even making national news! But the road goes both ways and it is no longer shocking to find evidence of that conflicting truth.

Going to the Church recently, all I could do was bow and shake my head in wondering sorrow. There on the ground, DIRECTLY in front of our trash can, lay the remnants of a full meal from a local fast food restaurant. The crumpled bag, empty cup, wrappers, used napkins and empty condiment packages littered the ground. It was evident that someone had driven in, sat in the shade of the oak tree, ate their meal and then tossed their trash out the window as they sat there! But strangely, I was MOST shocked at my own reaction!

Being a passionate fellow, I have a tendency to get angry when I see injustice, evil and irresponsible behavior. My parent’s spent a LOT of time teaching me right from wrong, and I paid a LOT for my willfully rebellious and snail paced learning! But with God on the team, their combined effort finally paid off. Over the years I have had many opportunities in youth groups and scouting to pass on the lessons. Now, with trash lying at my feet, I simply felt like a failure!

Oh, I did what I usually do. I picked up the trash, threw it away, prayed for the perpetrators and went about setting up the church for our next meeting. My lack of anger was gone, but replacing it was a sick feeling of, “I don’t want to care anymore!” A SCARY thought I had to fight to push away!

At Bible Study, names of Old Testament prophets came up. Names like Elijah, Isaiah, Daniel and Jeremiah. These were men who loved, and were called by God to go to, or live among, irresponsible people and to ‘tell it like it is.’ And they DID! Discouragement became part of their job. But I have to remind myself of this…It never CANCELED their job!

There is a LOT of trash out there in the world today. And the way I see it, God has called all believers who USED to be trash throwers, to “go into the world!” The mission is to KEEP going until it is either ALL changed, or He comes back and picks US up instead! My heavenly Father doesn’t like ANYONE considering His kids failures.  Even me!  TRASHPERSONS… UNITE!

“For by one sacrifice He (Jesus) has made perfect forever those who are being made holy (perfect).” Hebrews 10:14

A hobby of mine is shooting. While I grew up with guns in the house and have always been around them, it hasn’t been until the last year that I could actually call ‘shooting’ a hobby! When I’d go, it was always questionable as to how I well I would do. Hitting the target was never consistent and keeping score never a thought! Until Dan, my friend and fellow Jesus guy said, “meet me here Tuesday morning!”

I started teaching Sunday School when I was in Jr. High School. When teachers couldn’t handle me, dad made ME a teacher. And what a wake up call THAT was! I didn’t really know what I DIDN’T know until I HAD to KNOW IT! I learned early that to be a good teacher, one needs FIRST to become a good STUDENT!

Dan began teaching me what I had never learned. I LISTENED because he was OBVIOUSLY smarter than me in the area of pistol shooting! From day one he said, “you’re doing well!” Even though I RARELY felt I was. I wanted to be perfect. He wanted me to, simply and consistently, improve. “You’ll get there,” he’d say. And yesterday I did!

Looking at the target, I see 5 misses. The middle circle is the ‘X’ ring’ or ‘bullseye.’ But anything in the BIG circle counts as ‘perfect.‘ While I was semi-happy, Dan was ecstatic! Jesus and Dan have a lot in common!

This is not bragging about what a good shot I am. The next time could easily be far worse! But I am MUCH better than I was a year ago because I have a GREAT instructor…AND I LISTEN to him. I mean BOTH of them! Jesus and Dan!

I LOVE the Bible verse today because it tells me my actual standing before God…PERFECT! To Him I am PERFECT ALWAYS! Not because of anything ‘I’ have done, but because what His SON has done on MY behalf! Now don’t get me wrong! He has a LOT to teach me and He EXPECTS me to listen to Him and do what He says! I simply commit to doing just that!

I am now PERFECT in Gods eyes…and ‘getting perfecter’ every day as I walk with Him. That’s even when I don’t FEEL like it. Misses and missteps that may look like failure to me and others are NOT reasons for God to abandon me. It actually draws us CLOSER in our relationship of teacher and student! And WHAT A RELIEF it is to know that the Master of the UNIVERSE looks at me and see a straight shooter! So…. ‘How YOU doin?’

“For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.” Romans 12:4-5

Studying this morning, my phone erupted with the notice I had just received a text. “I’m doing real good,” it said, as if answering a question. But I hadn’t asked one! It was 7am and I figured Galen was still asleep after getting out of his knee surgery last night around 9pm! He sent me this picture too! The gimp comedian had struck again!

I hadn’t expected him to be awake, but should have known better! He said he’d gone to sleep about 12 and awoke at 3! I wish I had his energy. When I looked at the picture, I noticed the magic marker and couldn’t believe the humor! I asked, “Is that the mark so the Doctor knows which knee to operate on?” “Yup,” he replied… and I had to laugh! You see…Galen doesn’t HAVE another knee…or LEG for that matter! But I guess ‘rules is rules!’

Galen likes to fancy himself a tough man of faith! But I know his wife, Paula! The Army Ranger can lie there and make philosophical God statements about duty and suffering, but Paula is the one who has to drag him around and cover his back. And she does it SOOO well. Personally, I’d probably just shoot him (joke) which would be a WHOLE lot easier! But she loves him and therefore SERVES him. Together they define the world FAITHFUL! They live the furthest away from our church (18 miles) and never miss!

Service is an art. Some people do it because they HAVE to. Some because they’re SUPPOSED to. And there are those who do it because they WANT to! Those people are my inspiration! The Bible tells me that’s the way it’s supposed to be! They BELONG to me for that very purpose. And I to them! Together, we make up the comically frustrated gimp (or BODY) of Christ! And what a sight we must be to the world!

When Marxist terrorists and fear-mongers join together in an attempt to divide our nation, it is to the Galen’s and Paula’s that I turn my attention. And JESUS! Even the Son of GOD went through horrific circumstances as He purposed to SERVE ME from His heart of Love! Yes, HE set the example. But He ALSO gave the COMMAND and ABILITY for YOU and I to serve as well.

So don’t try to pin a medal on Galen or Paula because they don’t even have a place to pin it TO! They belong to Jesus and US…and we to them. Having died to themselves, they live for their new owners as an example and inspiration. My parting shot to Galen was, “Well I guess I’ll see you at Bible Study tomorrow night, then!” And again I received…”Yup!” It’s time for ME to get running for Jesus! Maybe…just maybe… I can catch up to Galen and his Bride!

“…our gospel came to you not simply with words but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and deep conviction. You know how we lived among you for your sake. You became imitators of us and of the Lord,” 1 Thessalonians 1:5-6

Yesterday, an interesting thing happened on the way to a point! For the Church service, I had asked 2 of our young folks to read Scripture. It’s a good way to teach kids how to speak in public and gets them involved. When they finished, a slightly devilish joke popped into my head. “Now Church,” I said, “let’s have a vote as to which one did the better job!” The entire church cried out, “NOOOO!” And a devilish grin came to my face! “Gotcha!”

Teaching is a difficult and tricky business. ESPECIALLY today in this ‘pandemic’ culture. Some excuses for NOT learning are pretty wild. I know because I also live with the greatest Pre-School teacher of all time! It’s one thing to hear a student say, “the dog ate my homework!” It’s another when those kinds of excuses come from the PARENTS! So what does a teacher do?

It is readily stated AND accepted that Jesus said, “Do not Judge or YOU will be judged.” Except that He didn’t MEAN it the way they say it! Surprise! In fact, without judgment and grades as means for comparison, NO one truly learns! So a methodical and deliberate process develops for the betterment of EVERYBODY!

To get a person to grow from 1 place to another demands a tactfully acceptable form of judgment to convince a change in a different direction. It is often, and to the teacher’s sorrow, that the judgment part is all the other parties ever hear! But if a person is to GROW UP…it requires they realize and accept that doing it their way ISN’T really in their best interest!

In the verse today, deeply convicted ‘outsiders’ became ‘insiders’ and lived among them differently! And SURPRISE!!!! The ‘insiders’ ultimately changed to look more like the ‘outsiders!’ They call that ‘ministry!’ APPARENTLY our Lord expects ALL of His children to do the very same thing… AND to expect the exact same level of antagonism and persecution as HE did! Welcome to Ministry!   Call out when you start to sweat blood!