Awake At 30

Haunting Thoughts Have you ever committed sins - which you have long ago repented of - which creep back into your thoughts on occasion with little to no warning? Does the memory of those sins bring you low, cause you to over and over again feel remorse (and/or anger at yourself) and pull you off course? The fact is, we have memories and we often can't control when our minds may be triggered by some external occurrence and those memories come flooding back as if the matter just happened. Our choice is what we do with those things when they do re-enter our minds. Fight? Find a solution? Be overcome? Consider with me a character who had these struggles himself - Saul of Tarsus, who later became Paul the Apostle. * Read Philippians 3-4 and focus on his words and experience * Consider who Paul formerly was - read Acts 7:57-8:3; 9:1-3 * Consider Paul's practice - read 1 Corinthians 9:19-27 * Consider Paul's actions, and concern, for the gospel and his brethren - read 2 Cor...

Battle Is The Lord's "...And when the Philistine looked about and saw David, he disdained him; for he was only a youth, ruddy and good-looking. So the Philistine said to David, “Am I a dog, that you come to me with sticks?” And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. And the Philistine said to David, “Come to me, and I will give your flesh to the birds of the air and the beasts of the field!” Then David said to the Philistine, “You come to me with a sword, with a spear, and with a javelin. But I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you and take your head from you. And this day I will give the carcasses of the camp of the Philistines to the birds of the air and the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel. Then all this assembly shall know that the Lord does not save with sword and sp...

Thirties Any time the scripture mentions the age of someone I like to take note of it. God wasted no words when revealing His mind to us in the Bible, so when He mentions someone's age then it's there for a reason, if only to give us record and a time frame to consider. We, as finite beings, operate within the constraints of limited time on this earth but our God does not. That being the case, time and age matter to us and God reveals multiple things to help guide us through our limited time and how to live righteously before Him. I've often thought of the various undividuals mentioned in the Bible and considered my own life in comparison to theirs, if for no other reason than finding a spiritual or physical benchmark for my own life and how I'm living. Being that I turned 33 yesterday I have been thinking very soberly about my Savior and others in the Bible and what they did at my age. 33 is an age that carries with it some very vivid details from the Bible and it...

My Shepherd "The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want." (Ps.23:1) My voice is that of a bleating sheep calling out for its Shepherd to lead it through the pasture of life toward its eternal home. My steps are ordered only so far as the Shepherd leads and beyond the light of His presence is an all-consuming darkness. Wolves are lurking about seeking to lead me astray and devour me. Wolves dress themselves among the sheep and seek to take away my brethren, to spill their blood all over the countryside. At times I find myself drawn away, lured to the depths of sin and death, but thanks be to God that I may return and to His fold I can be restored alongside my Savior, my Shepherd.  I am filled with an overwhelming love for my Shepherd and His sheep and I am filled to the brim with anger and hatred for the way of the wicked, the trickery and lust which seeks to lead so many to the pit. So many sheep lie just outside the light of the Shepherd, their blood spilt as they lay dyin...

"Why?" Here's a question that we find ourselves often asking others. We often see this especially among children where some direction or explanation is given and the answer doesn't quite satisfy their minds so they will ask, "Yeah, but why?" We can also, as God's children, do the same thing with the Lord's commands. He gives a command in His word and sometimes our response is "Ok, but why?" Sometimes the Lord gives the answer to the "why" in other passages, but sometimes it's just simply do exactly what He said and trust that He wouldn't command anything that would not be for our best interests eternally. But there's one person who perhaps gets left out most often in our questioning of "Why?" and that is ourselves. We read passages like 1Pet.3:15 and nod our heads that we should live this way, but do we ever stop to question ourselves about the hope within us: "But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts,...

To Whom Do You Bow Your Knee? "For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height— to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen." (Eph.3:14-21) Have we truly bowed our knee to our Lord? Are we in humble submission and all reverence before Him? Is our inner man strengthened so that Christ dwells in our hearts throu...

Comfort Of Being Near Our God "...But as for you, stand here by Me, and I will speak to you all the commandments, the statutes, and the judgments which you shall teach them, that they may observe them in the land which I am giving them to possess.’ “Therefore you shall be careful to do as the Lord your God has commanded you; you shall not turn aside to the right hand or to the left. You shall walk in all the ways which the Lord your God has commanded you, that you may live and that it may be well with you, and that you may prolong your days in the land which you shall possess." (Deut.5:31-33) In human terms we, as small children, look up to our parents. As a young boy, being able to stand alongside my father and learn or observe while he was doing or teaching something important was such a treat. As we age perhaps we lose touch, for any number of reasons, with that wonder and sense of privilege to be with our parents. The fact still remains, however, that as a child lookin...

Connecting Passages - Anger & Our Conduct Psalm 119:165 Great peace have those who love Your law, and nothing causes them to stumble. Proverbs 16:7 When a man's ways please the Lord, He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him. Proverbs 15:1 A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger. Proverbs 22:24-25 Make no friendship with an angry man, and with a furious man do not go, lest you learn his ways and set a snare for your soul. Proverbs 26:4-5 Do not answer a fool according to his folly, lest you also be like him. Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own eyes. Matthew 5:43-48 "You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on ...

Connecting Passages - Contentment Luke 12:15 "...And He said to them, “Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses.” Hebrews 13: 5 -6 "Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” So we may boldly say: “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?” Philippians 4:11-13 "Not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content: I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." Proverbs 23:23-28 "Buy the truth, and do not sell it, Also wisdom and instruction and understanding. The father of the righteous will greatly rejoice, And he who be...

Connecting Passages - Contrasted Lives Psalm 1 "Blessed is the man Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, Nor stands in the path of sinners, Nor sits in the seat of the scornful; But his delight is in the law of the Lord, And in His law he meditates day and night. He shall be like a tree Planted by the rivers of water, That brings forth its fruit in its season, Whose leaf also shall not wither; And whatever he does shall prosper. The ungodly are not so, But are  like the chaff which the wind drives away. Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, Nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous. For the Lord knows the way of the righteous, But the way of the ungodly shall perish." Revelation 22:14-15 "Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city. But outside are dogs and sorcerers and sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and whoever loves and pract...

Connecting Passages - Trials "Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” (Matt.11:28-30) "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God." (2Cor.1:3-4) "My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing." (Jms.1:2-4) "But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both th...