Daily Archives: September 20, 2010

Some of us are already paying the price for our decisions.

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Because our society continues its ways of being prejudice against each other, sooner or later It was bound to happen, that its off spring would adopt the same mentality. We are supposed to lead by example, so what does that say about the behavior of the rest of the world? “There’s nothing new to say on the subject. Don’t you still have the message of the earlier prophets from the time when Jerusalem was still a thriving, bustling city and the outlying countryside, the Negev and Shephelah, was populated? [This is the message that God gave Zechariah.] Well, the message hasn’t changed. God-of-the-Angel-Armies said then and says now: “‘Treat one another justly. Love your neighbors. Be compassionate with each other. Don’t take advantage of widows, orphans, visitors, and the poor. Don’t plot and scheme against one another, that’s evil.’ (ZECHARIAH)

Many of us are already paying the price for one bad decision, some have found that it is Too much to bear, while others are attempting to correct their misfortunes and turn in the direction that will most benefit them. “When a woman gives birth, she has a hard time, there’s no getting around it. But when the baby is born, there is joy in the birth. This new life in the world wipes out memory of the pain. The sadness you have right now is similar to that pain, but the coming joy is also similar. When I see you again, you’ll be full of joy, and it will be a joy no one can rob from you. You’ll no longer be so full of questions.” (JOHN)

Because  we insist on allowing our children to run freely, it should be a surprise to nobody when they hear that their child is a Running Manthat is trying to get away from the law. We set ourselves and our children for this predicament and have nobody but ourselves to blame. “My counsel is this: Live freely, animated and motivated by God’s Spirit. Then you won’t feed the compulsions of selfishness. For there is a root of sinful self-interest in us that is at odds with a free spirit, just as the free spirit is incompatible with selfishness. These two ways of life are antithetical, so that you cannot live at times one way and at times another way according to how you feel on any given day. Why don’t you choose to be led by the Spirit and so escape the erratic compulsions of a law-dominated existence?” (GALATIANS)

Isn’t there something better we can be doing with our time?

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Considering the fact that there is as much underhandedness as we see in our government, is there any wonder that A businessman’s responseto our leaders is, please lower my taxes? It is not that the average person is against paying taxes, it is the waste that concerns them “Do you want to be on good terms with the government? Be a responsible citizen and you’ll get on just fine, the government working to your advantage. But if you’re breaking the rules right and left, watch out. The police aren’t there just to be admired in their uniforms. God also has an interest in keeping order, and he uses them to do it. That’s why you must live responsibly, not just to avoid punishment but also because it’s the right way to live. That’s also why you pay taxes, so that an orderly way of life can be maintained. Fulfill your obligations as a citizen. Pay your taxes, pay your bills, respect your leaders.” (ROMANS)

We as a society have looked for every opportunity to get drunk and party, I don’t see the point.  Isn’t there something better we can be doing with our time? Should we not be looking for opportunities to better ourselves, rather than poison it? “Don’t party away your life with the heathen. You walk away from your God at the drop of a hat and like a whore sell yourself promiscuously at every sex-and-religion party on the street. All that party food won’t fill you up. You’ll end up hungrier than ever. At this rate you’ll not last long in God’s land: Some of you are going to end up bankrupt in Egypt. Some of you will be disillusioned in Assyria. As refugees in Egypt and Assyria, you won’t have much chance to worship God,  Sentenced to rations of bread and water, and your souls polluted by the spirit-dirty air. You’ll be starved for God, exiled from God’s own country. Will you be homesick for the old Holy Days? Will you miss festival worship of God? Be warned! When you escape from the frying pan of disaster, you’ll fall into the fire of Egypt. Egypt will give you a fine funeral! What use will all your god-inspired silver be then as you eke out a living in a field of weeds?” (HOSEA)

One of our biggest downfalls is trying to get revenge against another human being. When we find ourselves on the receiving end of someone who is determined to destroy our lives, it is almost as though we adopt an attitude like, Time to wash the laundry,  and hope we can get them back where it hurts the most. “Keep vigilant watch over your heart; that’s where life starts. Don’t talk out of both sides of your mouth; avoid careless banter, white lies, and gossip. Keep your eyes straight ahead; ignore all sideshow distractions. Watch your step, and the road will stretch out smooth before you. Look neither right nor left; leave evil in the dust.” (PROVERBS)

Just another in our list of Making bad choices.

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Because of the guidance, (or lack thereof) that we provide to our children today, we are on the brink of certain destruction. What’s all the fuss? you ask.  Just take a look around you, the percentages of incarcerated individuals is increasing faster than the government can build prisons with little room for improvement when they leave to return to society. “Don’t be afraid to correct your young ones; a spanking won’t kill them. A good spanking, in fact, might save them from something worse than death.” (PROVERBS)  How blessed the man you train, God, the woman you instruct in your Word, Providing a circle of quiet within the clamor of evil, while a jail is being built for the wicked. God will never walk away from his people, never desert his precious people. Rest assured that justice is on its way and every good heart put right.” (PSALMS)

Avoiding the responsibility of correcting and training our children, is just another in our list of Making bad choices, and the only thing that we have to look forward to is total anarchy, which I guess to some may not be such a bad idea anyway. “In this all-out match against sin, others have suffered far worse than you, to say nothing of what Jesus went through, all that bloodshed! So don’t feel sorry for yourselves. Or have you forgotten how good parents treat children, and that God regards you as his children? My dear child, don’t shrug off God’s discipline, but don’t be crushed by it either. It’s the child he loves that he disciplines;  the child he embraces, he also corrects. God is educating you; that’s why you must never drop out. He’s treating you as dear children. This trouble you’re in isn’t punishment; it’s training, the normal experience of children. Only irresponsible parents leave children to fend for themselves. Would you prefer an irresponsible God? We respect our own parents for training and not spoiling us, so why not embrace God’s training so we can truly live? While we were children, our parents did what seemed best to them. But God is doing what is best for us, training us to live God’s holy best. At the time, discipline isn’t much fun. It always feels like it’s going against the grain. Later, of course, it pays off handsomely, for it’s the well-trained who find themselves mature in their relationship with God.” (HEBREWS)