Ungrateful Child

Posted on March 5, 2014 by jesustrek
Rachel Canning

Rachel Canning

Rachel Canning, a high school honor student in New Jersey, has sued to get her parents to support her after she moved out of their home. She asked for $650 a week in child support, plus tuition to her private school and attorney’s fees. A judge has denied the girl’s initial request, cautioning that the case could lead to other outrageous lawsuits from ungrateful children who could leave their parents’ home and then ask for financial support.

It seems ridiculous that a child would refuse to live with her parents and still think that she deserves the financial benefits that come with being a member of the family.

Is it any less ridiculous for a person to try to live outside the family of God and still seek the blessings of the Parent that he or she is rejecting?

“Don’t be deceived, my dear brothers. Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father…”—James 1:16-17.

Posted in Christian Living, Culture, Current Events | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Family Tree

Posted on March 3, 2014 by jesustrek

tree-clipart-4There once was a fellow who was curious about his family history, so he paid someone $200 to research his genealogy. After looking at the results, he paid the man another $1,000 to keep quiet about it!

We shouldn’t be too concerned about questionable characters in our family tree. A look at the genealogy of Jesus shows some imperfect people. Abraham lied about his wife. Jacob cheated his brother. David committed adultery. Solomon was a womanizer. Rahab was a prostitute.

You have to get to Jesus before you find anybody who was perfect.

I guess that’s the point.

Posted in Christian Living, Communion Meditations, Humor | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Give the Bible a Shot

Posted on February 27, 2014 by jesustrek
Rickey Wagoner

Rickey Wagoner

Rickey Wagoner, a Dayton bus driver, told Dayton police that he was standing outside his bus early Monday morning when he was shot 3 times. Fortunately, his injuries are not life-threatening. This may be due in part to the fact that two of the bullets struck a biblical booklet that Wagoner had in his shirt pocket.

The Bible can do more than protect us from bullets. Jesus once told a group of people, “You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life.”—John 5:39-40.

It may be a good thing to carry a Bible in your pocket. It’s an essential thing to read it, and to come to Jesus for the eternal life that only he can give!

Posted in Christian Living, Communion Meditations, Current Events | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Hidden Treasure

Posted on February 26, 2014 by jesustrek
California treasure found

California treasure found

A couple in Northern California made a remarkable discovery recently while walking their dog on their property. They found a stash of gold coins that had been buried under an old tree. The coins are dated from 1847 to 1894, and are in excellent condition. While their face value is a mere $27,000, experts say that the collection could be worth as much as $10 million!

This reminds us of a story Jesus told: “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.”—Matthew 13:44.

The treasure found by the California couple should last them a lifetime.

The treasure of the kingdom of heaven will last for eternity!

Posted in Christian Living, Communion Meditations, Current Events | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Danger of Following Jesus

Posted on February 25, 2014 by jesustrek

danger aheadIt was Jesus’ idea for his disciples to take a trip with him to the other side of the lake. They got into the boat with him and set out for the opposite shore. Jesus promptly fell asleep. However, a terrible storm suddenly came down on the lake, and the disciples were in great danger (Luke 8:22-25).

Most of you know what happened next. The disciples woke Jesus up and voiced their fear of drowning. Jesus promptly calmed the storm and then questioned the faith of his followers.

We all know the moral of the story—Never fear when Jesus is with you, because he has the ultimate power to protect us. However, we might fail to notice that Jesus led the disciples into danger. Sometimes we get the idea that Jesus will keep us away from dangerous situations. Nothing could be further from the truth!

Peter, James, John, Paul and others would scoff at the thought that following Jesus keeps a person safe from danger. Hebrews 11 lists many men and women who suffered—and sometimes died—for their faith.

Following Jesus is not to be taken lightly. It can be a very dangerous undertaking.

“Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.”—Matthew 10:34.

Posted in Christian Living, Leadership | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Proud Father

Posted on February 24, 2014 by jesustrek

lion kingI attend a lot of high school basketball games, and I know some of the parents of the players on the local team. It’s fun to watch how those parents beam with pride when their son or daughter does well.

At least three times in the past couple of years, our boys have made last second shots that have tied or won the game. Each time this happened, I waited for the initial electricity of the moment to fade a bit, then I turned in the direction of the father of the player who hit the big shot and yelled, “Whose boy was that!?” A couple of fathers just looked at me and grinned. The third shouted back, “That was my boy!”

Just as we are proud of our children when they do well, God is pleased with his Son Jesus. When Jesus was transfigured on the mountain, God said, “…This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!” (Matthew 17:5).

If we accept the fact that Jesus is God’s Son, we too must love him. We also must be pleased with him. And we must listen to him and obey what he says.

Posted in Christian Living, Communion Meditations, Sports | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Reluctant Leaders

Posted on February 21, 2014 by jesustrek

basketball playerWhen I played junior varsity basketball in high school, my teammates and I often clowned around way too much. This was reflected in our won/loss record. If we had put as much energy into practice as we did our pranks, we might have won a few more games.

For instance, we typically would designate one player to lead us out of the locker room before the game. We would get all fired up, and our leader would take the ball and charge onto the floor, with his enthusiastic teammates right behind him.

Once, we schemed to stay back and laugh as an unsuspecting “leader” stormed onto the court all by himself. Of course, this was hilarious. However, after pulling this prank a couple of times, it was difficult to find anyone willing to lead us out of the locker room. No one trusted the others to follow his lead.

Unfortunately, this sometimes happens in the church. The leaders move out ahead of the flock, excited about the new and exciting experiences that the Lord has in store for the church, only to look back and see that no one is following. After a couple of such episodes, the leaders become reluctant to take any bold new initiatives, and the church becomes stagnant.

It’s no wonder the Bible tells us: “Obey your leaders and submit to their authority. They keep watch over you as men who must give an account. Obey them so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no advantage to you.”—Hebrews 13:17.

Posted in Christian Living, Church, Humor, Leadership, Sports | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Buried Treasure

Posted on February 20, 2014 by jesustrek
That will probably buff right out.

That will probably buff right out.

On Wednesday, February 12, a sinkhole swallowed up eight cars that were on display at the National Corvette Museum in Bowling Green, Kentucky. Among those vehicles was a Corvette that was donated by Kevin and Linda Helmintoller of Tampa, Florida. The couple visited the museum a few days after the sinkhole occurred. Kevin said that their car appeared to be underneath the others at the bottom of the hole. He stated, “It definitely hurts, and I’ve cried. There’s no question I’m definitely upset, but there’s no way to conceive of anything like this.”

It was indeed an unlikely way to lose a valuable possession.

Jesus points out that we shouldn’t get too attached to earthly possessions because they are only temporary. Instead, he teaches, “But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.”—Matthew 6:20.

Not to mention sinkholes.

Posted in Christian Living, Current Events | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Singing Together

Posted on February 18, 2014 by jesustrek

Snoopy singingLast Sunday I suddenly found myself singing the wrong words of a song in the worship service. I started singing the chorus, while everyone else went to the second verse. If I had been paying attention to the worship leaders, I would have avoided that mistake. Instead, I was in my own little world, and it took me a couple of seconds to realize that I wasn’t with everybody else. My wife noticed that I had gotten off track, and she smiled at me as I found my place in the song again.

Sometimes we get off track spiritually because we aren’t following the lead of those who have the responsibility of guiding us along through life. Scripture often encourages us to model our actions after those who have gone ahead of us in the faith. In order to do that, we have to pay attention to our leaders so that we don’t start saying the wrong words or doing the wrong things. Church members should be on the same page, singing the same song—or, in my case, the same verse. Any time we diverge from this, it just doesn’t sound right.

“Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.”—1 Corinthians 11:1.

Posted in Christian Living, Church, Leadership | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Don’t Test the Lord

Posted on February 17, 2014 by jesustrek
Jamie Coots

Jamie Coots

Jamie Coots was a snake-handling preacher in Middlesboro, Kentucky. Coots had appeared on an episode of Snake Salvation, a television series that aired on National Geographic last fall. Snake-handlers are a small group of churches who think that those who believe in Jesus are commanded to pick up snakes. This belief is based on Mark 16:18. However, that sentence is a statement of fact, not a commandment to obey. The Bible does not tell us to pick up snakes on purpose. In Acts 28, Paul, the apostle, accidentally picked up a poisonous snake while collecting firewood. People were sure that he would die when the snake bit him, but were surprised to see that he had no ill effects from the snakebite.

Coots, on the other hand, intentionally picked up snakes on a regular basis. This practice led to his undoing Saturday night when a rattlesnake he was handling bit him on the right hand. He died two hours later.

Some people will continue to believe that God wants us to intentionally pick up poisonous snakes.

I disagree.

“We should not test the Lord, as some of them did—and were killed by snakes.”—1 Corinthians 10:9.

Posted in Christian Living, Church, Current Events | Tagged , , , , , , | 3 Comments