Don’t Get Picked Off!

Posted on May 17, 2018 by jesustrek

Terry Mulholland

Terry Mulholland, a left-handed pitcher for the Seattle Mariners in the 1990s, had one of the best pickoff moves in baseball. Over a period of 5 years, only 6 runners were successful in stealing a base off Mulholland. His pitching motion was so deceptive that he would often catch runners leaning in the wrong direction, at which point he would pick them off base.

Opposing player Bip Roberts once said, “Sometimes it seems as if he gives up a hit just so he can pick you off.”

This describes the devil’s strategy. The tempter will offer worldly pleasure to get you leaning in the wrong direction. He offers the pleasure of sin only to pick you off and inflict suffering later.

“Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.”—Ephesians 6:11.

 

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Face in a Crowd

Posted on May 16, 2018 by jesustrek

A man who was wanted by police in China thought that he could hide in a crowd of 60,000 people who had gathered for a concert. He was wrong.

Cameras at the entrances of the venue had modern facial recognition technology. Someone monitoring the cameras identified him, and officers arrested him before the concert was over!

People often think that they can hide from God; that their sin will not be discovered. However, you can’t escape recognition from the Lord. Any unforgiven sin will be revealed. Any unrepentant heart will be discovered. You can’t run from God.

“Who can hide in secret places so that I cannot see them?” declares the Lord. “Do not I fill heaven and earth?” declares the Lord.”—Jeremiah 23:24.

 

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Good at What You Do

Posted on May 15, 2018 by jesustrek

There are different levels of being good at something. For example, you might be good at math in that you can balance your checkbook. However, you probably aren’t good enough at math to be a rocket scientist who works for NASA.

This principle holds true in many ways. You may be a good enough teacher to convey some biblical truths to people in everyday conversations, but not good enough to teach a class in your church. You might be a good enough singer to blend your voice well with the congregation on Sunday morning, but not good enough to sing a solo. You might be good enough with babies to make a little one smile for a moment, but not good enough to be in charge of the church nursery for a full hour.

We need to be honest with ourselves as we assess what we do for the Lord.

“For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you.”—Romans 12:3.

 

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Not So Harmless

Posted on May 14, 2018 by jesustrek

In A View from the Zoo, Gary Richmond, a former zookeeper, has this to say:

“Raccoons go through a glandular change at about 24 months. After that they often attack their owners. Since a 30-pound raccoon can be equal to a 100-pound dog in a scrap, I felt compelled to mention the change coming to a pet raccoon owned by a young friend of mine, Julie. She listened politely as I explained the coming danger.

I’ll never forget her answer. “It will be different for me…” And she smiled as she added, “Bandit wouldn’t hurt me. He just wouldn’t.”

Three months later Julie underwent plastic surgery for facial lacerations sustained when her adult raccoon attacked her for no apparent reason. Bandit was released into the wild.”

Sin, too, often comes dressed in an adorable disguise, and as we play with it, how easy it is to say, “It will be different for me.”

The results are predictable.

“…Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light.”—2 Corinthians 11:14.

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Not Walking Right

Posted on May 11, 2018 by jesustrek

A had a friend who used to point out to me that I was obviously favoring one leg. He noticed my limp, and warned me that if I kept walking that way I could cause damage to another part of my body. Sometimes I didn’t even notice that I was limping, but he was right—I was not walking correctly.

I had knee surgery about a year ago. Between the surgery and some follow-up therapy, I got rid of that limp.

Then, about a week ago, another friend—one who works in the health care field—pointed out that I was limping. Once again, I was not aware that I was favoring one leg. It turned out that I was just sore from doing some yard work. After a day of rest, I was able to walk correctly once again.

I appreciate my friends who are watching out for me. They have my well-being in mind, and their comments have helped me make good decisions about my health care.

We also need to be helping each other with our spiritual walk. When we see a friend who is not walking right with God, we need to point this out so that they can make some much-needed corrections.

“Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted.”—Galatians 6:1.

 

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Very Tempting!

Posted on May 10, 2018 by jesustrek

A young boy was sitting on a park bench with his grandfather when a beautiful girl walked by. The boy asked, “Grandpa, is it a sin to look at a pretty girl?”

Grandpa thought for a few seconds before he gave his response. “I suppose you can’t help but notice someone when they walk by. Surely that isn’t a sin! However, it might be a sin if you take a second look.”

“Good!” the boy replied. “Because I’m still on my first look!”

We need to be very careful to resist the various temptations that come our way.

“Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them. For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.”—1 John 3:15-17.

 

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Appreciating Mom

Posted on May 9, 2018 by jesustrek

Stephen Piscotty

Major league baseball player Stephen Piscotty’s mother Gretchen was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Lou Gehrig’s disease) last spring. Stephen took a leave of absence from the St. Louis Cardinals on May 26, 2017, so that he could be with his mother. In December, the Cardinals, in a rare baseball move that was made out of compassion, traded Piscotty to the Oakland Athletics, largely so that he could be closer to his ailing mother. Gretchen died last Sunday night at the age of 55.

When Piscotty came to the plate for his first at bat since his mother’s death, the crowd gave him a nice ovation. It was an emotional moment for everyone who witnessed it.

All of this goes to show that we truly do appreciate Moms everywhere.

“Honor her for all that her hands have done…”—Proverbs 31:31.

 

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Basin Theology

Posted on May 8, 2018 by jesustrek

Someone once put forth the idea of something he called “basin theology”. He explained it like this: “Remember what Pilate did when he had the chance to acquit Jesus? He called for a basin and washed his hands of the whole thing. But Jesus, the night before his death, called for a basin and proceeded to wash the feet of the disciples. It all comes down to basin theology.”

Which basin will you use?

“And whoever wants to be first must be your slave—just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”—Matthew 20:27-28.

 

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Room for Improvement

Posted on May 7, 2018 by jesustrek

Dave Bristol

Here’s a quote from Dave Bristol, manager of the Milwaukee Braves baseball team in 1972—“There’ll be two buses leaving the hotel for the ball park tomorrow. The 2 o’clock bus will be for those of you who need a little extra work. The empty bus will leave at 5 o’clock.”

This was a clever way of pointing out to his players that they all had some room for improvement.

Those of us who live for Jesus must never think that we have ever reached the point where we can’t improve upon our lives. We must always be seeking to learn more and to grow in our service and love for God and for people.

“Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress.”—1 Timothy 4:15.

 

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Serving Your Purpose

Posted on May 5, 2018 by jesustrek

Ed Lorenz, 69, bowled a perfect game in Portage, Michigan in 2005. Shortly after he rolled the 300 game, Lorenz clutched his chest and fell over. Efforts to revive him failed.

One of Ed’s friends said, “If he could have written a way to go out, this would be it.”

I suppose that the perfect way for a bowler to close out his life would be to bowl a perfect game. You do the best that you can possibly do right up to the very end.

That is something that all of us should strive to achieve—to fulfill our purpose in life to the very best of the ability that God has given us, right up to the very end.

“Now when David had served God’s purpose in his own generation, he fell asleep; he was buried with his ancestors…”—Acts 13:36.

 

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