Truth Telling
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Thursday, September 12th, 2024
Abe Lincoln is credited with saying, “It is better to keep your mouth shut and thought a fool than to open it and remove all doubt.” That is actually an echo and restatement of Proverbs 17:28-“Even fools are thought wise when they keep silent; with their mouths shut they seem intelligent.”
My reading in Proverbs today was chapter 13. As I read it struck me how much of it talked about the mouth/tongue/speech. I thought it would be fun to list them for you:
- Verse 6- “The words of the wicked are like a murderous ambush, but the words of the godly save lives.”
- Verse 13- “The wicked are trapped by their own words, but the godly escape such trouble.”
- Verse 14- “Wise words bring many benefits, and hard work brings rewards.”
- Verse 15- “Fools think their own way is right, but the wise listen to others.”
- Verse 17- “An honest witness tells the truth; a false witness tells lies.”
- Verse 18- “Some people make cutting remarks, but the words of the wise bring healing.”
- Verse 19- “Truthful words stand the test of time, but lies are soon exposed.”
- Verse 22- “The Lord detests lying lips, but he delights in those who tell the truth.”
- Verse 26- “The godly give good advice to their friends; the wicked lead them astray.”
There are references to listening, being quick-tempered (which often includes the mouth shooting off), jealousy, and others. Maybe it is time for us to seriously stop and consider what we say and how we say it before Abe’s advice is found to be true in us.
{Note: All Scripture is from the New Living Translation}
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Tags: Choices, Christian Living, Lifestyle, Opinion, Reflection, Scripture look, Speech, Truth Telling
Tuesday, September 10th, 2024
“Faith Over Fear.”
If there was one saying that was prominently used during the COVID desert it was this one. The most prominent-at least among Christ-followers-was “God’s got this.” But I’m thinking this ran a close second. Sometimes it might be seen in a symbol: big letters FAITH on top of a line over the letters FEAR.
Simple enough: I believe it. I John 4:18 says, “Perfect love casts out fear.” (ESV)
Last week I spent time with an old friend. He was a bike-riding friend of mine of about 4-5 years when suddenly he ghosted me. A conspiracy theorist, he didn’t like it when I told him to be careful of making an accusation against someone and putting it in writing because he was setting himself up for a charge of slander. That was 2014. Ghost time. About a year or so ago I felt a burden to check up on an old friend. He was basically living a life of a hermit, paralyzed by his fears. I went away burdened but decisive that I was not going to put myself through that again. Last week he called me out of the blue asking a favor of me. Even though my day was full, I said yes to his request. When he asked why later, I told him, “Because I want to be Jesus to you.” He didn’t say much to that but what I learned is a leopard doesn’t change his spots. I won’t go into details, but long story short, he asked me if I was afraid. I told him no. “Not afraid? Of COVID? No. Evil? No. Sick people? No. Why? “Because the Bible says, ‘Greater is He who is in me than he who is in the world.'” “That’s a lie,” he said. I disagreed and respectfully tried to explain it to him. “I tried it your way Bill. It didn’t work.”
There was more-much more-but I left saddened…again. I also left resolved to keep toxic-thinking people at arm’s length. And I left even more convinced that I have nothing to fear. I refuse to live my life afraid of my own shadow. Because, you see, I believe that no matter how much evil there is in the world (and I don’t deny there is), faith conquers fear.
I do know who wins in the end. And it ain’t the enemy, Satan.
J.E.S.U.S. W.I.N.S.
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Tags: Christian Living, Faith/Trust, Fear, God, God's Presence, God's promise, Jesus, Opinion, Reflection, Story, Truth Telling
Thursday, June 27th, 2024
All people matter to God, therefore they should matter to us.
Lately I’ve been reading a book on dementia entitled Finding Grace in the Face of Dementia by John Dunlop, MD. Because it seems to be becoming a bigger issue these days, I thought I’d read up on it and learn more. It has been an eye-opening book (in a good way). Over and over Dr Dunlop has emphasized the importance of dignity for the dementia sufferer, as well as it’s kissing cousin, Alzheimer’s.
Dr. Dunlop is a committed Christ-follower so his perspective is different than many in the medical field. Instead of writing them off as a “nuisance” and a “bother” for others, especially their caregivers, he pushes the belief that showing them dignity is first and foremost. One very helpful section is found on pages 123-125 where he gives a number of practical way we can express dignity. He does it from the perspective of entering their “world.”
But this devotion is not a book review. While he has obviously focused his attention on the dementia patient, I couldn’t help but make the correlation to others in our sphere on influence. Each person we come in contact with should be deemed a person who matters. Whether it is the same sex, ethnicity, color, position in life, or social status, we need to, no, we must see them as people who hold special importance in God’s eye. As a Christ-follower that means they must hold importance in my eyes as well. We may not always agree, we may not always get along, we may butt heads from time to time, but that should not change how much each of us should matter.
In James 2 James warns the church about choosing sides and showing preference to one group over another. He says it is a shame and a black mark to do so (my loose translation). Jesus Himself told the parable of the Good Samaritan and showed how a man who was hated because of his ethnicity was actually more of a brother than the so-called “religious people.”
We have all seen people snubbed because of political affiliation. We have all seen people snubbed because of color. We have all seen people snubbed because of sexual orientation. We have all seen people snubbed because of status. We have all seen people snubbed because of a medical condition. It is ugly. Like I said, I may not agree with someone’s opinion or lifestyle, and can’t compromise the truth, but at the same time that gives me NO RIGHT to denigrate or write someone off as being persona non grata because we are different.
Dementia patients deserve loving treatment. We all do. Let’s begin to give dignity to others. Let’s begin to treat others as we would like to be treated.
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Tags: Alzheimer's, Choices, Christian Living, Church, Dementia, Dignity, Friendship, Jesus, Kindness, Lifestyle, Love, Ministry, Opinion, Reflection, Truth Telling
Thursday, June 6th, 2024
I thought I would be doing a post on Jacob wrestling with God. But something else has come to the forefront and takes importance. Some of it is not my words. They come from a blogging friend whom I have come to love at a (very long) distance and respect. Her husband, Dick, is a pastor and she has had (and still does have) her own blog. I’m going to put two links I would ask that you read. You may comment here or you may follow her and email her personally. That being said, I would still like to hear your thoughts.
There is a lot of ruminating and discussion going on in the church world concerning what our culture is demanding we accept. Probably the one affecting us the most is the whole Alphabet soup of letters and the acceptance of that lifestyle. While I am willing to accept anyone who walks through the doors of the church, and can be friendly to anyone, I cannot and will not affirm their lifestyle. There is a difference between acceptance and affirmation. That is not hatred. That is not judgment. It is standing on the Bible as the infallible, inerrant, Spirit-inspired Word of God. To compromise that is (in my mind and heart) to deny the faith. We are urged to “defend the faith that God has entrusted once for all time to his holy people.“ (Jude 3). To read the next verse tells you why: “I say this because some ungodly people have wormed their way into your churches, saying that God’s marvelous grace allows us to live immoral lives.The condemnation of such people was recorded long ago, for they have denied our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.” (emphasis mine) Can anyone say 2024? (And they have the nerve to say the Bible is so out-dated).
Pam writes from the heart. I will let her two blogs tell you her story.
Read this one first: https://2encourage.blogspot.com/2024/06/changes-in-umc.html
Read this one next: https://2encourage.blogspot.com/2024/05/try-little-kindness.html
Here was my email to Pam: Well…you sure did it in! 🙂 And I totally agree with you on both. Although not a member or any way affiliated with the UMC, I ache for those, like you and Dick, who want to stay true to God’s Word and find yourself on the outside not even being able to look in. I suspect there are many grieving with you over what is lost and probably will never be recovered. I have to think that what they deem a “world reaching decision” will, in actuality, destroy the UMC. One cannot compromise with the world and expect good results. I John 2:15-17 shows us that. In our effort to be “kind” we have fallen on the slippery slope and done a free fall.
Prayers for you and Dick to find your niche and place of service.
In all honesty, I stand firm with Dick and Pam and what I wrote. I see the downfall of the UMC and others of that ilk in the years to come. All one has to do is look at the more liberal denominations and see their decline in all ways in order to see the devastating affect of compromise. We are not “kind” if we withhold the truth of God’s Word and the results of rejection of it, and even more, Jesus.
I would like to know what you think. Feel free to comment here, but may I also encourage you to encourage Pam (and Dick).
{All Scripture from the New Living Translation}
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Tags: Choices, Church, Compromise, God's Word, Leadership, Ministry, Opinion, Reflection, Scripture look, Sin, Truth Telling
Monday, May 20th, 2024
WISE WORDS TO BE REMEMBERED:
I chose the heading for this devotion based on Proverbs 20:15- “Wise words are more valuable than much gold and many rubies.”
I’m suspecting there are many in our world who would vehemently disagree with those words. That shows how truly unwise they are. To think pursuing physical comfort and material wealth (represented by gold and rubies) is the end all is setting that person up for failure and disappointment. But rather than write about the shallowness of pursuing earthly satisfaction, I thought I would highlight a few more of the verses of Proverbs 20 to show why verse 15 is so spot on. Here are some wise words to remember:
Verse 1: “Wine produces mockers; alcohol leads to brawls. Those led astray by drink cannot be wise.” All of us have seen the devastating results of too much alcohol. An alcohol addiction is serious and must be dealt with. Check out Sober Cycle by Sherry Hoppen for more on this.
Verse 7- “The godly walk with integrity; blessed are their children who follow them.” Integrity has been defined as “who you are when no one is looking.” Who better to see us in all our “raw life” away from the adoring crowds than our children? I’m not sure there can be a greater blessing than to see my children follow me as I follow Jesus.
Verse 19- “A gossip goes around telling secrets, so don’t hang around with chatterers.” I heard someone say just last night: “You are who you hang with.” Whether by reputation or guilt by association, being known for being a chatterer is not a badge of honor.
Verse 22- “Don’t say, ‘I will get even for this wrong.’ Wait for the Lord to handle the matter.” Not much to add to that one is there? Elsewhere in the Bible it says, “Vengeance is mine. I will repay says the Lord.”
Verse 29- “The glory of the young is their strength; the gray hair of experience is the splendor of the old.” (What about no hair? 🙂 ). Seriously, there is something to be said about age and wisdom.
I would encourage you to read Proverbs 20. In fact, a good practice is to read a chapter of Proverbs a day. There are 31 chapters so in one month you can read through the book. I like to highlight a different verse each time I read using a different colored highlighter. Take a moment to read Proverbs 20. Any wise words stick out to you?
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Tags: Choices, Christian Living, God's Word, Lifestyle, Opinion, Reflection, Scripture look, Speech, Truth Telling, Wisdom
Thursday, April 11th, 2024
“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” Flat out: I firmly believe that. What was ironic-my daughter pointed out-is that I preached on the Creator God and His monstrously creative genius the day before the total Eclipse. Straight up: I did not plan it that way. When I began planning my sermons, the eclipse was the farthest thing from my mind.
But I don’t want to write about the eclipse. Enough has been said already. It was spectacular. I did not watch it…I rode my bike inside. But I had my blinds open and it was creepy to look outside and see it pitch black at 3:00 in the afternoon. {Note: it gives credibility to the 12-3 scenario when Jesus was on the cross and it was dark}. What I want to write about this morning are the hucksters, the doomsayers, the conspiracy theorists, and the like who came out of the woodwork to use this for personal and professional gain. I am particularly piqued at the “religious” hucksters who crawled out of their hole in the wall to promote a false-read that very false- narrative that the eclipse was going to be the end of the world; God’s judgment on America; blah blah blah, ad infinitum, ad nauseum. There were the so-called prophets predicting all kinds of garbage that was going to happen…AND DIDN’T! Label them: F.A.L.S.E. P.R.O.P.H.E.T.S. There are those who predicted it would usher in the Rapture (if you believe in that). It didn’t (either that or I was left behind and if I believed that it would be a real bummer). There were those who predicted the doom of America. It didn’t. (if American is doomed its because of the truth of Proverbs 28:2: When there is moral rot within a nation, its government topples easily. But wise and knowledgeable leaders bring stability”.
All that to say: whenever someone “prophesies” anything, run as far away from that person or organization as possible. The NAR (New Apostolic Reformation) with people like Bill Johnson and Bethel, Benny Hinn, Hillsong, Kenneth Copeland, and other yahoos, are nothing more than false teachers. R-U-N A-W-A-Y!! as fast and as far as you can.
I’ll stand with Jesus who said not even He knew when He would return, only His Father. That’s solid ground to stand on.
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Tags: Eclipse, End of the Word, God, God's Plan, Jesus, NAR, Opinion, Prophecy, Prophets, Reflection, Scripture look, Second Coming, Truth Telling
Wednesday, April 3rd, 2024
I have said on a number of occasions that “you cannot take people where you yourself have not been.”
Part of the vision of the church I pastor is Pursuing Jesus Passionately. We cannot lead or teach people to pursue Jesus if we ourselves are not doing so.
We recently visited the Grand Canyon. It is an amazing display of God’s creative genius. As we stood safely behind walls of stone taking pictures, we could see paths where people could hike to see more. I know there was more to see than I was able to see. So much more. And the best way to see that was with a guide who knew his/her way around. One who knew the trails. One who knew what to look for. A newbie is not what I would have wanted.
When Ezra came in the second wave of people returning to Jerusalem after having been in exile in Babylon, he was dismayed to see that the people had not fostered a love for God and His Temple. They had neglected the Scriptures and their influence in their lives. Enter Ezra, the priest. He saw it as his mission to lead (guide) them to the Scriptures, to call them back to the source. He knew that it was the Word of God that changed lives. What will turn this country around will not be a political party or candidate, legislation to change this or that; outlawing certain practices’; or legislating morality. If hearts are not changed, then we will just find another way to disobey God.
No. Ezra knew: change the heart with the Word of God and you change society. That’s good advice for the country. But it is especially good advice for the church. Study the Word, put it into practice, teach it to others, then the church changes. You can’t demand or legislate change. Only God’s Word can have a permanent impact.
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Tags: Change, Choices, Christian Living, Church, God's Word, Humility, Jesus, Leadership, Lifestyle, Ministry, Opinion, Reflection, Truth Telling
Thursday, January 11th, 2024
“Honesty is the best policy.”
I’m not sure how old I was when I first heard that, nor how often I heard it. I suspect it was when my mother lined us up to ask, “Okay, who did it?” and reminded us that telling the truth was best. (I’m glad it was always my brothers’ fault when things went wrong). 🙂
My blogging friend, Pam Williams, wrote a great post yesterday on honesty. You can access that post here. She stated it correctly that honesty is in every part of our life. (Please take a moment to read what she said).
If I think of someone in the Bible who stands head and shoulders above others in the honesty and integrity department, it would be Joseph. Perhaps never is that put more to the test than his lack of an affair with Mrs. Potiphar. The fact that the Lord was with him is stated twice at the beginning (Gen. 39:2-3) and three times at the end (39:21-23).
Consider the scenario. A teenager with raging hormones. A stranger in a strange land (no one knows him…no family to check up on him). A seductive woman. No one around so who would know? The possibility of advancement as Mrs. P puts in a good word. I repeat: who would know?
Joseph would (a godly conscience is good at reminding us of stuff like that). More importantly: God would. And THAT was the kicker! Joseph said to Mrs. P, “Look, my master trusts me with everything in his entire household. No one here has more authority than I do. He has held back nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How could I do such a wicked thing? It would be a great sin against God.” (39:8-9) (NLT)
That didn’t stop her. She kept putting pressure on him day after day, but he rebuffed her advances. Eventually, the saying came true: “Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.”
Here is the tale of the story though: Joseph was aware of God’s presence and that He sees and knows all. There is no sin He does not know about-behind back doors or out in the open. So…besides my mom’s words mentioned at the beginning, another favorite of hers comes into play: “Remember, I may not see what you do or say, but God does.”
Sheesh mom! Why don’t you just throw down that Ace of hearts? Why not throw down the BIG ONE? But…she is right. I’d like to say just like when she found out my brothers committed all the mayhem. But I would not be telling the truth. 🙂
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Tags: Christian Living, Intregrity/Honesty, Lifestyle, Opinion, Reflection, Scripture look, Sin, Truth Telling
Thursday, January 4th, 2024
Just a reminder: Please check out my review of my friend, Martha Orlando’s excellent trilogy called The Glade Series at my other blog, Cycleguy’s Spin. You can access that review here.
I have mentioned a number of times about my practice of reading Proverbs every other month. One chapter= that calendar date. Today, for example: January 4= Proverbs 4. Maybe it is because I’m reading this year from the New Living Translation (NLT) or that I paid particularly close attention, but some seriously good stuff stuck out to me this morning. The whole chapter goes on about the importance of wisdom: Pay attention. Get it. Don’t turn your back on it. Prize it. Etc.
Beginning in verse 23 are some simple “rules of life” or “advice to live by” given. Here they are:
Verse 23- Guard your heart
Verse 24- Avoid perverse talk; stay away from corrupt speech.
Verse 25- Look straight ahead, fix your eyes straight ahead.
Verse 26- Choose the right path.
Verse 27- Don’t get sidetracked.
I thought I would give each a new heading, a new “wording” that might be easier to learn:
- Be careful what you expose yourself to.
- Watch your speech.
- Don’t let your eyes wander.
- Stay true.
- Stay focused.
Wise advice to follow today and every day. Choose wisdom. Then you will hear the ancient words: “You have chosen wisely.” (Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade) 🙂
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Tags: Choices, Christian Living, Leadership, Lifestyle, Ministry, Opinion, Reflection, Scripture look, Truth Telling, Wisdom
Tuesday, November 21st, 2023
I’d like to follow up on my devotion from yesterday.
There is another rule of interpretation/Bible study besides the one from yesterday (“Let Scripture explain Scripture”). The one for today is “A text without a context is only a pretext.” Interpreted: the failure to see surrounding verses, historical narrative and setting can lead to a whole lot of problems.
Yesterday’s passage was from Matthew 7:1-5. With that I presented the very common comment, “You have no right to judge me, to tell me that I’m wrong, or that my behavior is unacceptable in God’s eyes.” That is used in defense of sin: adultery, homosexual activity, “white” lies, and just about any other sin we want to justify doing.
But remember the context quote? Check out Matthew 7:15-16- “Beware of false prophets who come disguised as harmless sheep, but are really vicious wolves. You can identify them by their fruit, that is, by the way they act.” (NLT) That section ends with verse 20 saying, “Yes, just as you can identify a tree by its fruit, so you can identify people by their actions.”
Question: how can we identify a wolf in sheep’s clothing if we don’t (ahem) judge them? It is called discernment. But here’s the thing: it is not discernment based on our bias or personal opinion. It is based on…wait for it…what the Bible says. Every thought, every opinion, every decision, every judgment we form or express MUST BE and MUST FIND its source in the Word of God! If what we say or do does not find its root in God’s Word; if it does not find its anchor in God’s Word, then its a pretty fair assessment that it is false.
We need to be “fruit inspectors.” (Matt. 7:16-20). Last I looked a fruit inspector has to form a judgment and decide whether the fruit is good or not. The Apostle Paul wrote, “We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ.” (ESV)
So, judging/discerning is an absolute must. Always compare what you are being told and taught to the Word of God.
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Tags: Bible/Scripture, Christian Living, Discernmenet, Fruit Inspector, God's Word, Judging, Leadership, Lifestyle, Opinion, Reflection, Scripture look, Truth Telling
