“…put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.” Ephesians 4:24

This week officially started Christmas vacation for Katie and I. Realizing that we LIVE in paradise and have access to what millions of people come here for, we decided to become Florida Tourists for the day. Katie remembered visiting a quaint little town with a friend a few years ago, and remembered the enjoyment of the experience. That memory bubbled up into her brain and she blurted out… “Let’s go see Matlacha!” Responding that I didn’t know there was a boy band and town, she explained it was a little town near Cape Coral. So off we went!

When I met Katie, I had no love or interest in art, plays, museums or ANYTHING that wreaked culture. But because I loved her, and SHE loved that stuff, I went along to see that stuff WITH her. Along the way, I picked up a love for much of it myself! Matlacha was simply like overdosing on Art with Hippies! We had a ball!

At the first store we went to, she zipped ahead and was done before I got around the first corner, “I’m done… let’s go!” she said. “WHOA, WHOA, WHOA MISSY!” I exclaimed. “I haven’t even STARTED!” And I wasn’t kidding! I think she was rushing to make ME feel better. But having acquired an appreciation for that stuff, she didn’t need to worry. So we slowed down and enjoyed everything…together!

I got to thinking that my life with Jesus Christ has a similarity. Having been born a piggy sinner, I really didn’t appreciate perfect love and joy. Being a master at being miserable, things began to change when I met Jesus! As I walked along with Him, HIS loves began to become MY loves. As my love for HIM grew, so did my love for Life. And it all came about rather naturally.

There are Biblical demands, rules and commands that can lead one to believe that ‘LOVE’ can be demanded, ruled or commanded! Look at the 1st of the 10 commandments! But those rules aren’t written down to actually MAKE us do ANYTHING. I believe they were written to show what life will look like when we fall in love with God! It just kind of comes natural!

I am not perfect and don’t LOVE EVERYTHING Katie loves. I will cringe at the thought of going to the Opera or the Ballet like she cringes at my road rage! But love changes things. When I accept God’s invitation to love Him, I actually begin to enjoy and take on HIS character as we roll on through life together. I have found His love is more like a journey than a destination!

What have you discovered that YOU love about Jesus?  

“Be angry, and do not sin” Ephesians 4:26 NKJV

No… I wasn’t in a hurry, had no urgent place to be and really didn’t NEED to take the short cut. But I did. So did the guy in front of me…driving a truck…pulling a trailer. I came up behind him as we approached a 4-way stop. He sat there! And sat there……and sat there! He only moved when I tried to go around him. That’s when I saw him in his own mirror… texting!

Naturally I was furious! Anger is in my nature because it’s in ALL of us! “Be considerate of others” was hammered into me all my life. It’s even a BIBLE verse (Phil 2:4)! Growing up it was taught to EVERYONE! But as we all know by now, that is NOT the lesson for the 21^st century! For the selfishly entitled… being considerate is not even in the sub notes! And that angers me!

I ran into a friend who enthusiastically recommended a book on what is wrong in this country. Saying he couldn’t put it down, something inside of me screamed, “don’t pick it up!” And I knew why! In the words of Clint Eastwood as ‘Dirty Harry,’ “A man’s GOT to know his limitations!” I KNEW the book would just make me MORE angry. So I’ll avoid it like the news!

The Bible NEVER says to NOT be angry! In fact, there are several versions of the Bible that get their translation wrong by trying to MAKE the verse SAY what it doesn’t. There is EVIL in the world. God tells us to ‘HATE EVIL’ over 35 times in the Bible. When evil jumps…anger SHOULD be natural. BUT… anger comes with conditions! Sin is not one of them!

I KNOW my limitations and I hate them in me. I get angry at myself when I don’t have patience, forgiveness or compassion. But I also HATE STUPID! When stupid raises it’s head, I lose mine. And I know why! It’s because, like a hard shelled independent clam… ‘I’ am SHELLFISH!

I‘ve been to AA and Al-anon meetings to check them out for ministry purposes. No…I am NOT an alcoholic! But I AM an ICK! And because I HATE being an ICK… Jesus is encouraging me to work on today’s Bible verse. And it’s HARD! I literally have to find ways to train myself to NOT lose my head when I see selfishness in others, or when I see stupid in action! Katie is helping me!

As a Believer and front line soldier in God’s Army, I am called to a higher standard. Training and RE-certification by my Lord is ALWAYS ongoing, and as much as I’d like it to just come naturally as a gift from Him, He doesn’t work that way! So I set here at my computer texting God for answers…all the while the world is bleeping me from behind! I think I’ll be here a while!

What makes YOU angry and what are YOU doing about it?  

“Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 3:13-14

Yesterday was a little bit sad. After all the work of setting up and enjoying the Christmas decorations, and without warning, Katie started taking them down. All those 23 boxes that were unpacked had to be RE-packed and placed into storage until next year. And the celebration of Christmas, at least according to the school calendar, isn’t even over!

If you’ve been to my house you know how beautiful Katie decorates it. With 8 Christmas trees and lights and decorations everywhere, it’s like a wonderland to me. But now, the bright corners have started to become dark. I am remembering that DE-lighting Christmas is NOT delightful! It feels kind of like the last day of a great vacation where the inevitable has arrived! It’s times like this that I envy the Old Testament celebrations God gave to Israel!

Today, Americans go Ga-Ga over Christmas for all the wrong reasons! It is SUPPOSED to be a time that we celebrate the birth of our Savior! Sadly Easter, our next Christian celebration, barely registers as a celebration in the non-Christians world. But back in the days of the Old Testament, God established SERIOUS celebrations with SERIOUS purposes in mind! SEVEN of them to be exact!

A study of the Festivals is an in depth look into the heart of God. I’m not going to go through them here, but you can see them at the link below. The point of all of God’s instructions is to show that God WANTS us to join Him and celebrate His love, grace, forgiveness and presence. And actually He wants us doing it ALL THE TIME!

How can ANYONE honestly not believe that God isn’t like a party animal! Even the Bible verse today encourages us to FORGET what was yesterday, and PRESS ON toward a PRIZE! An ETERNAL Christmas where Christ WILL be EVERYTHING…ALL THE TIME. And WE will be WITH HIM FOREVER! Light celebrating Light!

Admittedly, I don’t care for the de-lighting after Christmas because it reminds me that a special time is over. But I LOVE God’s idea and motivation to LOOK FORWARD toward an even BIGGER celebration that will never end. THAT kind of anticipation gives me cause to serve Him even more in the here and now!

So… what are YOU looking forward to?

https://bibleproject.com/podcast/seven-festivals

“Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. For what children are not disciplined by their father?” Hebrews 12:7

Since Katie is off work, we decided to do what we don’t normally have, or take, the opportunity to do. We went for a bike ride along the beach. It sounded SOOOO relaxing, romantic and fun. But the sounds and feelings soon gave way to something COMPLETELY opposite…the sound of whining!

Packing the bikes into the truck and driving to the beach started off well, but it didn’t take long to figure out that SOMETHING was WRONG. My bike had a problem in that it wouldn’t coast! Clearly something was causing friction in the wheel and it was clear that this trek was going to be a WORKOUT! Every time I stopped peddling, the bike would slow to a stop!

The weather was cooler and breezy, but I was sweating and hot. Katie started making comments, “you look like you’re pedaling 100 miles and hour but going nowhere!” Huffing and puffing I just wanted to stop. But we were SUPPOSED to be ENJOYING this! So I forced myself to try to keep up with her and finished. All that was left… was a nap!

The Bible verse today is in the New Testament book of Hebrews. But the idea isn’t new! In fact, King Solomon, the wisest person ever to live, had written about it in Proverbs 3! In essence it says, ‘life is hard…and with God as your father, it’ll be even harder!’ If God is trying to gather a crowd, He just lost a pile of recruits!

In 1969 Peggy Lee had a hit with “Is That All There Is.” The chorus goes, “Is that all there is, is that all there is? If that’s all there is my friends, then let’s keep dancing. Let’s break out the booze and have a ball…If that’s all there is.” Tonight being New Years Eve, DROVES of people will search for just that kind of scenario to satisfy an end of year itch! And I’m peddling!

God loves ME! When I voluntarily joined His family, I thought it’d be fun and make life easier. Like riding a bike with something wrong…I quickly found out that “I” am the thing that is wrong! Father God is trying to FORM me into His Son’s image. That takes discipline and work to become better.

But discipline is NOT PUNISHMENT.. It is character building! And I have found that the results of His hand on me makes me more joyful, loving and tougher to discourage. So I press on and grow in His Grace…realizing that becoming a son is a journey… not a destination! Effort, cooperation and obedience are the pedals.

Where are YOU going?

“Gather to me this consecrated people, who made a covenant with me by sacrifice.”  Psalm 50:5

Our Church has taken on the mission of standing on the corner of a major intersection holding Gospel signs. We don’t hand out tracks because we don’t get to talk to drivers. But once in a while someone, walking or biking, comes along. Last week, one came by, said he’d come by… but didn’t!

I well remember conversations like this one because they provide hope. Hope that others will see and respond to God’s call to life in His Son. Before he spoke, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a mini Bible. Handing it to me he said he does what we do by passing these things out. We were on equal ground! That is… until I started asking questions. “Where do you live? How long have you lived here? Where do you go to church?” That last question met with a different facial expression as he responded, “well, I haven’t found one down here yet!

His last statement gave me kind of a shock because, as it turns out, he has lived here for 3 years! In fact… right around the corner from our church! And he has never attended! I told him where we were and gave him the 2 most distinct features of our Church Fellowship, that we simply LOVE Jesus Christ (and each other), and that we know and believe the Bible! Christmas Eve service was that night and he said he’d LOVE to come. But he didn’t!

I remember what it is like to be a Church Snob! Long before I became a pastor Katie and I tried MANY churches that didn’t conform to our way of liking, routine or teaching. My dad used to say, “always go to a church at least 3 times before you make up your mind. They could just have a bad day.” So we would! And that is what confuses me.

I can’t tell you the number of times the question comes up after discovering someone claims to be a Christian, “So where do you go to church?” More often than not the answer is, “no where!” And THAT is where they stay! No Where! And that’s confusing!

In reading and researching, I discovered over 100 Bible verses where God and His Son calls Believers to come together and meet. The benefits and duties include praying, encouraging, supporting, teaching, honoring, correcting, training and glorifying God in the process. Like belonging to ANY club… ‘Membership has it’s benefits and privileges!’

In 2022 God is calling you to join Him in His Church. AND to encourage and invite others to join you in joining Him. After all, God’s Clubhouse will last into eternity! If you don’t like hanging out with His people here, there’s a HUGE chance you won’t be hanging out there!

So may I ask? Where do YOU go to church?

SOOOO many people live miserable unhappy and unfulfilled lives.  I SPITE of the fact that God, theri creator, has BOLDLY issued a BLESSING CHALLENGE!  Life not going the way you like???  “TRY ME,” God says!  I can think of NO more arrogant a challenge.  LET ME SHOW YOU WHO I AM!!!!   WHY wouldn’t EVERYBODY take advantage of an offer like THAT???  But most simply ridicule the statement and walk away!  How about YOU?  Are YOU testing and trying out God’s faithfulness and blessings?

You Can’t Outgive God

“See if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it.” Malachi 3:10

My dad, an evangelist, was the original soft touch. I remember him once going off to speak in a tiny church and coming home ten days later. Eventually my mother asked about the offering. I can still see my father’s face as he smiled and looked at the floor. “You gave the money away again, didn’t you?” she asked. “Myrt,” he said, “the pastor there is going through a hard time. His kids are so needy. I felt I should give the entire fifty dollars to them.” My good mother looked at my father for a few moments and then smiled. “You know, if God told you to do it, it’s okay with me.” A few days later, we ran completely out of money, so my father gathered us for a time of prayer. He said, “Lord, you told us that if we would honor you in our good times, that you would take care of us when things are difficult. We need a little help at this time.” The next day we received an unexpected check for $1,200. That’s the way it happened— not once, but many times. No matter what you give, you’ll find you can never outgive God.

Just between us . . .

Are we trusting God with our giving? What blessings, material and nonmaterial, have we seen from our gifts? Do we know someone now who needs a helping hand? Should we share what we have with them? Do we really believe “God owns it all”?  

Heavenly Father, You promised to pour out blessings on those who tithe in Your name. Help us to take You at Your word and to trust in Your provision as we give back to You and share our abundance with others. Amen.

This devotional is taken from Night Light for Couples. Copyright © 2000 by James Dobson, Inc. All rights reserved. Used with permission.

God Morning Words of the Day 

Throughout the Christmas break I will be sending devotionals from the archives, or from others.  Please enjoy your Families.  I love this devotional for a 2022 hard look perspective as to what “I” am living for.

Empty Castles

“This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?” 
Luke 12:20

The utter folly of materialism hit home dramatically for me (JCD) during a trip to Britain years ago. As I toured the museums and historical buildings, I was struck by what I called “empty castles.” Standing there in the lonely fog were edifices constructed by proud men who thought they owned them. But where are those men today? All are gone; most are forgotten. The hollow castles they left behind stand as monuments to the vulnerability and impermanence of the men who built them.

I hope to leave more than empty castles behind when I die—something more meaningful than land, machines, stocks, or fame. I will consider my earthly existence to have been wasted unless my legacy is a loving family, a consistent investment in the lives of people, and an earnest attempt to have served the God who made me. Nothing else really matters.

Just between us . . .

• If we died tonight, would our obituaries describe empty pursuits or meaningful lives?
• How would the Lord judge our stewardship of money, time, and belongings?
• What has been our most foolish investment or expenditure in the past few years?
• Do we seek satisfaction in things or in the Lord? Is there a change in order?
• How can we encourage each other to pursue what really matters?

Lord, we know that all that is of this earth will eventually turn to dust. How much we long to live like Your children every day—with eternity’s values always in mind. Grant us Your grace and wisdom as we seek to make changes that will glorify You. Amen.

This devotional is taken from Night Light for Couples. Copyright © 2000 by James Dobson, Inc. All rights reserved.

When I read this devotional this morning I had a grin.  Having SOOOO much to do, and with little time to do it, I had this exact same thought yesterday morning.  But getting caught up in “I gotta,”  I didn’t take the time to write.   I LOVE when God uses multiple imprints on my senses to drive a point home. “Be still and know that I am God,” is the message for ‘Christmas Eve day.’  Tomorrow morning will be crazy for me, so TODAY is the most important Christmas time for me to refelct on What God has done for me.  I pray for you as well.  

Please take time to reflect on the Story of Christmas and WHY He came.  You’ll NEVER comprehend it, but love requires we try.

Happy Christmas Eve, everyone! Thank you for joining us on the podcast. Pastor John, in the last episode I shared a clip from you preaching on Christmas 1981 — forty years ago, at the youthful age of just 35. The clip is older than you were when you preached it! It’s amazing to hear your voice as a rookie pastor.

But we’re now zoomed into real time in the studio. You are 75 now, and Christmas 2021 is tomorrow. For a lot of Christmases, you’ve been thinking about the implications of Christ’s coming. Over these past several weeks, I know you’ve been giving a lot of thought to the holiday this year in particular. Tell us why. And what’s on your mind this Christmas Eve?

I learned back in October that I’d be preaching at my own church — at Bethlehem — the Sunday before Christmas. From that time in October until now, the wonder of Christmas that has taken hold of me in a fresh and powerful way is the amazing reality that the personal, infinite, eternal, holy Creator of the universe sent his Son into this tiny speck of human habitation called Earth in order to be condemned to death in my place.

Sometimes we just have to do what Psalm 46:10 says: “Be still, and know that I am God.” In other words, we have to just pause and let staggering reality sink in. Christmas Eve is a really good time, I think, to do this.

“The Creator of the universe sent his Son to this tiny speck called Earth to be condemned to death in my place.”

So what reality do we need to let sink in today? Reality like this: reality before, above, and outside of all created reality, reality outside of the entire scope of the universe, with its countless light-years of expanse. Outside of all that, there is and always has been a personal, infinite, eternal, holy God. He is absolute reality. He is the most real. The most ultimate thing he ever said was, “I am who I am” (Exodus 3:14). He is simply there. He’s there, like Francis Schaeffer said. He’s the God who is there — above, before, outside all reality.

Think of it. Eternal reality could have been a gas. Nothing could have existed before the original reality to make it what it was. It just was. Only we discover it’s not an “it.” Ultimate reality is a Person. This is just mind-boggling.

“I am who I am,” he says (Exodus 3:14). In other words, we don’t create him; we don’t define him; we don’t counsel, help, enrich, or initiate anything with him. He reveals himself. As Hebrews 1:1–2 says, “Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son.” We must be still today, it seems to me, and let this sink in.

When God Sent God

From all eternity, the infinite, eternal, personal, holy Creator has existed as Father and Son and Holy Spirit. What could that possibly mean? It means that God has always had a Son. This is the kind of mystery that makes Christmas breathtaking. God has a Son. He has had a Son forever. The Son never came into being. He is not created. There never was a time in the infinite eternity past when he did not exist.

“This is the kind of mystery that makes Christmas breathtaking. God has a Son. He has had a Son forever.”

The apostle John helps us as our mouths are agape with astonishment. He says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (John 1:1). The Word was with God, and the Word was God. So God was with God. And the God who was with God — the Word — was the Son of God.

“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14). We mark this moment when God sent God into the world with a celebration called Christmas.

We have one day a year to be still and know that, from all eternity, God had a perfect image of himself — a perfect radiance of his glory, a perfect essence of his nature. This God who was with God was the Word and was the Son. And as Paul says in Galatians 4:4, when the time was full and perfect to accomplish all God’s eternal purposes for humanity, God sent God the Word, God the Son, to this tiny speck of human habitation called Earth, and the foundations of Christmas were laid.

Why God Sent God

Now the question is, Why? The answer God himself gives — the one that I have been so sweetly captivated by since October — is Romans 8:3: “God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son . . .” — that’s Christmas. Romans 8:3 is Christmas.

Here’s the rest of the verse: “By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin” — and here it comes — “he condemned sin in the flesh” (Romans 8:3). God sent God as the God-man, the flesh-God, to be condemned in his mortal flesh, and the one who condemned God was God. God condemned sin in the death of the God-man, Jesus Christ. And Jesus didn’t have any sin. Jesus was the one person in the world who didn’t deserve to be condemned. The rest of us did.

John Piper has accumulated almost 76 years of sins — thousands upon thousands of sins, any one of which is offensive enough against a holy God to plunge me into eternal ruin. I don’t stand a chance on my own to be acquitted before a God of justice. I am under condemnation, and justly so. The righteous law of God that I have broken hangs over my head like a curse.

What hope is there then for me? In a very short time, John Piper, aged 75 now, will stand before God to give an account of his life. So what hope do I have? My hope is this: “Be still, and know the meaning of Christmas.”

God has done what the law, hanging over me like a curse, could not do. The law can’t pay for my breaking the law. So from all eternity, God planned to send God the Son, the God-man, so that in his mortal flesh — without any sins of his own at all — he might bear the condemnation I deserve. “By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh” (Romans 8:3). Or to paraphrase Paul in Galatians 3:13: “Christ became a curse for John Piper.”

How Christmas Feels

What does Christmas feel like for me? It feels like a man standing on the gallows with the rope around his neck, and the king’s son steps forward, takes the rope off my neck, puts it on his own, looks me in the eye, and — just before he drops to his own death in my place — says, “I love you. I love you. Go show what I’m like now to the world.”

What does Christmas feel like for me? It feels like a man drowning in the icy Atlantic after the sinking of the Titanic, desperate to be taken into a lifeboat, but being refused. Why? There’s no room in the lifeboat. It’s full. And a man — the wealthiest, healthiest, most influential man on that ship — pulls me in as he jumps overboard to make room for me. He looks up as I float away in safety and says, “I love you.”

What does Christmas feel like for me? It feels like I’m in a courtroom where my life hangs in the balance. The prosecuting attorney is the unassailable law of God, and the defense attorney does not exist. There is no defense. It is manifest to everyone in the courtroom that all evidence is against me, and the judge, the son of the king of the realm, brings down the gavel: “Guilty.” I’m sentenced to execution and everlasting ruin. And as they leave the courtroom with me in bonds, the son-judge follows me out, pulls me aside, and says, “I’m going to take your condemnation. You go now, and show the wonder of this moment to the world. I love you.”

So that’s where I’ve been during these months leading to this moment on Christmas Eve. I have been in Romans 8:3: “God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son [that’s Christmas] in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned [my] sin in the flesh.”

What Christmas stands for is infinitely precious. It is. I would simply plead with all our listeners: Come to Jesus Christ this Christmas. If you will embrace Jesus Christ, the Son of God, as your precious Savior, all that God is for you in Christ will be yours in him. You will have no condemnation ever. And it will be a very merry Christmas.

John Piper (@JohnPiper) is founder and teacher of desiringGod.org and chancellor of Bethlehem College & Seminary. For 33 years, he served as pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church, Minneapolis, Minnesota. He is author of more than 50 books, including Desiring God: Meditations of a Christian Hedonist and most recently Providence.

There are times when I read something that impacts me and I just have to share. This is one of those times. Enjoy!

The Peanut Vendor

“Once upon a time there lived a peanut vendor in South India. Every day he walked up and down the beach calling out, “Peanuts! Peanuts for sale! Peanuts!” The man was miserably poor. He barely earned half a living, hardly enough to feed his family. But at night he bragged to his wife and children, “I am the president and the vice president and the secretary and the treasurer of my own company!”

Eventually, the grinding poverty wore his nerves paper thin. One day he snapped. He sold all his peanuts and most of his meager belongings. He decided to go on a big fling.

“For one day, I am going to live like a rich man!” he vowed.

So he stopped by the barbershop for a clean shave and a hairstyle trim. He visited a fine clothing store and purchased an expensive suit, white shirt and tie, and all the accessories needed to look rich. Then he checked himself into the finest luxury hotel for the night. He had just enough money left to pay for the gourmet breakfast buffet the next morning.

He enjoyed the night’s accommodations in his luxury suite. When morning came he located the private, beachfront patio for the breakfast buffet. Although it was crowded with tourists, he found a table by himself. He had just filled his plate when in walked an elegantly dressed man. By this time no more tables were available, so the man approached and asked, “May I join you?”

The peanut vendor replied, “Why, yes! Please sit down.” He thought,

This is my lucky day! Not only am I living like a rich man, but I am going to eat with a rich man, too.

As the two began to talk, the stranger asked, “Sir, what do you do?” “I am the president and the vice president and the secretary and the treasurer of my own company,” he replied. “And what do you do?” The richly dressed man looked a bit sheepish. “I’m sorry. I should have introduced myself. I just supposed that with the coverage in the newspapers you might have recognized me. My name is John D. Rockefeller.” Although he had not recognized the face, the peanut vendor did know the name. He thought, this is wonderful! I am eating with one of the richest men in the whole world.

After talking for a while, Mr. Rockefeller said, “I like your style. We are starting a new company here in South India. Why don’t you come to work for me? I will make you vice president of sales in my new firm.”

The peanut vendor replied, “Why, thank you. What a generous offer! I would like a few minutes to think it over.”

“Of course,” said Mr. Rockefeller, “but I would like some indication of your interest before we part company.”

The two leisurely enjoyed the rest of their meals. When they were finished, the peanut vendor stood up. He wanted to announce his decision with style. He took a step away from the table and then turned and spoke in a voice loud enough so many could overhear.

“Thank you, Mr. Rockefeller, for offering me the position of vice president in your new company. But I must decline. I prefer to be the president and the vice president and the secretary and the treasurer of my own company.” He turned on his heel and walked out.

Years later, an old peanut vendor walked up and down the same resort beaches croaking in a broken voice, “Peanuts! Peanuts for sale! Peanuts!” But at night he boasted to his grandchildren that long ago one of the richest men in the world had offered to make him vice president of a huge firm.

“I turned it down,” he bragged, “so I could be the president and the vice president and the secretary and the treasurer of my own company.”

LOOKING AHEAD…

The peanut vendor had a chance for financial security but was too proud and self‐sufficient to accept it. Yet don’t we, as Christians, often make the same mistake? Our “rich” friend—our heavenly Father—owns the possessions and resources of the entire world. He has offered us love, meaning, purpose, and, ultimately, eternal life. These are His gifts to us (“And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Jesus Christ”—Philippians 4:19). All we must do is repent of our sins and accept His lordship in our lives. But many people are too proud—too self‐sufficient—to surrender their lives and belongings to Him. They would rather stand out in the crowd than sit under God. The unfortunate result is that they continue life in misery and poverty.

Do you struggle with wanting “more”—be it money, possessions, status, bragging rights or something else?  Maybe it’s time for a sit down with the Lord of the universe!