What Love Always Does

Posted on November 7, 2011 by jesustrek

A woman asked her husband to go to the market and buy some organic vegetables. He knew that she was picky about the kind of food she ate, and he was unsure about making this purchase. So he asked a tired-looking market employee for some help. The husband said, “These vegetables are for my wife. Have they been sprayed with any poisonous chemicals?” The produce worker looked at him and replied, “No, sir. You’ll have to do that yourself.”

Why do we so often assume the worst about people instead of hoping for the best? If a person has given us no reason to doubt their motives, we should think that his or her intentions are good.

“Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.”—1 Corinthians 13:6-7.

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Heavenly Perspective

Posted on November 4, 2011 by jesustrek

Marilyn McAuley writes about a little girl who was visiting her grandmother. One evening the two of them were outside enjoying the brilliance of the stars in the sky. The young girl lived in the city, where the lights made it more difficult to appreciate the beauty of the night sky. The granddaughter marveled at the spectacular sight she was seeing for the first time. She was in awe when she said to her grandmother, “If heaven is so beautiful on the wrong side, what must it be like on the right side?”

Someday we will be able to answer that question. In the meantime, we will just keep on pondering.

“Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.”—Colossians 3:2.

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Opportunity

Posted on November 3, 2011 by jesustrek

When one door closes, another opens, but we often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed door that we do not see the one which has opened for us.—Alexander Graham Bell.

In Acts 16, Paul and his travelling companions wanted to preach the gospel in a certain area, but the Holy Spirit somehow prevented them from going there. God had something different in mind. Acts 16:9-10 says, “During the night Paul had a vision of a man of Macedonia standing and begging him, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.”

We make plans to do certain things to honor God and obey him, and then God often changes those plans. Rather than gaze sadly at the opportunity that never actually presented itself, it is far more productive to look, and listen, for the task that God has in mind for us. Let us not be so pre-occupied with our original plan that we do not hear our own “call from Macedonia”.

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Big Follower

Posted on November 1, 2011 by jesustrek

I’m a big follower of the Lewis County Lions high school football team. They are having a surprisingly good season, and I have rooted for them at all their games.

Well, make that most of their games. The road trips are a bit inconvenient. It takes more of an effort to find the location of other schools and drive there. But I make it to the home games.

Well, I have missed some home games too, now that I think about it. One evening it was a bit cool and the sky clouded up like it might rain. Another time I had something else that I needed to do. The night of one game, I stayed home because we had company.

I did actually make it to two games. So, I’m a big follower of the local football team.

Just like some people are big followers of Jesus.

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OK to Mock Christianity

Posted on October 31, 2011 by jesustrek
Tim Tebow

People tend to either love or hate Tim Tebow, the quarterback for the Denver Broncos, primarily because he is so outspoken about his faith in Jesus Christ. The latest craze is “Tebowing”, going down on one knee in a prayerful pose, something that Tebow occasionally does during a game. Some fans do this in support of Tebow. Others do it as a form of mockery.

During yesterday’s game, Detroit Lions’ defender Stephen Tulloch sacked Tebow, and then mimicked Tebow’s prayerful pose. It was an obvious taunt of an opponent.

Tulloch supposedly told Tebow that it was just in fun, not meant to be mean-spirited. (This is a common response to one’s own misbehavior—to say that you didn’t really do what you really just did.) Tebow replied that it was fine. In other words, Tebow forgave him, something that Christians are supposed to do in response to an insult.

Sports columnist Greg Couch gave Tulloch a free pass for his unsportsmanlike conduct, and tried to squelch any real discussion about the issue when he wrote, “So you can invent bad blood if you want. You can pretend.”

I think it’s Couch who is doing the pretending. If a player of any other religion was mocked publicly the way Tebow was, the offending opponent would be torn apart in the press and the social media.

You can invent “good blood”. You can pretend if you want. The truth is, it is open season on Christians, and it promises to get worse before it gets better.

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Remembering Important Things

Posted on October 29, 2011 by jesustrek

Tennessee women’s basketball coach Pat Summitt was recently diagnosed with dementia. Since she is still in the early stages of this disease, it has been decided that she will continue to coach the Tennessee team.

Summitt has a game plan to battle against dementia. Every morning, she drinks coffee and works puzzles. By stimulating her brain, she hopes to delay the progression of her illness and retain enough of her memory to be able to function as a coach.

We all tend to be forgetful. We even have trouble remembering that Jesus died to pay for our sins. In order to help us remember, Jesus gave us a wonderful way to jog our memory. He instituted the Lord’s Supper so that we might never forget the gospel message—that Jesus died to save us and that he rose from the dead on the third day.

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Pointing in the Right Direction

Posted on October 28, 2011 by jesustrek

James Bryan Smith wrote a book about the life of Christian singer/songwriter Rich Mullins. He named this devotional biography An Arrow Pointing to Heaven.

Rich Mullins would be the first to say that he shouldn’t be put on a pedestal. He would say, “Look to God, not me.”

That’s a good piece of advice. None of us is perfect. We have the potential to lead people astray.

However, Paul the apostle says, “Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.” (1 Corinthians 11:1). It seems that we can point people in the right direction, and this should be our goal in life.

Let’s all try to be an arrow pointing to heaven today.

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Voting Pro-Life

Posted on October 27, 2011 by jesustrek
Steve Beshear

In order for a person to be elected governor in Kentucky, the state where I live, it seems that you must meet certain criteria. With few exceptions, our governors are rich, white males who condone the slaughter of unborn babies.

In less than two weeks, if pollsters are correct, Kentuckians will go to the ballot box and, once again, select for their governor a rich, white male who condones the slaughter of unborn babies. Actually, we are poised to re-elect this man.

Kentucky governor Steve Beshear is on record as having said, “When a woman considers the difficult decision of whether or not to have an abortion, this decision should be between her, her physician and her God.”

Gov. Beshear is wrong. God has already made that decision, and he didn’t consult any physician or any other human being. Our Creator set the standard for respecting human life, and we must abide by His decision. Scripture plainly states that we are created in the womb (Psalm 139:13) and that we must not murder another human being (Exodus 20:13).

You can’t hardly go anywhere in Kentucky without seeing a church steeple. Why, with so many professing Christians in our state, can we not elect politicians who fear God and respect human life?

Are the preachers more afraid of their church members than they are of God? Do they not preach the truth? Or do many Christians keep their faith separate from their politics?

I don’t know how we got into this mess, but I know what I’m going to do. I’m going to vote pro-life every chance I get.

What about you?   

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Making Your Mark

Posted on October 26, 2011 by jesustrek

While looking for ginseng in the hills of Kentucky back in the 1970s, a friend of mine took the time to carve his name on a tree. Decades later, my friend’s nephew was part of a crew that was harvesting timber in that area. They found the tree with my friend’s name, still legible after all those years.

They cut out the block of wood containing his name and brought it to my friend. He has applied solutions to the wood in order to preserve his work for many years to come.

We all have the deep desire to make our mark in this world. We want to live meaningful lives. We want to make a lasting difference.

What do you plan to do today that will matter a million years from now?

“May the favor of the Lord our God rest upon us; establish the work of our hands for us—yes, establish the work of our hands.”—Psalm 90:17.

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The Time Is Right

Posted on October 25, 2011 by jesustrek

Earlier this month, Eli Capilouto was formally installed as the 12th president of the University of Kentucky. He marked the occasion by boldly promising to build new dormitories and classroom buildings. To those who might question such an endeavor in these trying economic times, Capilouto said, “There is no easy time. There is only our time.”

In the Bible, we read about how Esther was thrust into a difficult position. Her cousin Mordecai urged her to speak to the king and intervene on behalf of the Jewish people. Recognizing the danger of such an undertaking, Esther hesitated. Mordecai responded by saying, “For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this?” (Esther 4:14).

We only have one life to live here on earth. We might wish for more convenient circumstances, but the truth is, we only have our time to do what God has set before us to do. If we make excuses and shirk our responsibility, God will find some other way to accomplish his purpose. But life will be much more rewarding if we accept responsibility and fulfill our mission in life, even if it means doing something difficult.

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