Poverty Nor Riches

Proverbs 30:8-9 "Keep deception and lies far from me, give me neither poverty nor riches; Feed me with the food that is my portion, that I not be full and deny You and say, "Who is the Lord?"

I love it where the Apostle Paul said, "I have learned to be content in all things...."  The key to that passage of scripture is the word learned.  Contentment does not come easy for us.  That is why Solomon wrote, "give me neither poverty or riches." 

We must learn to become content and I believe one way to learn contentment is to be grateful for what I do have and quit thinking about what I don't have.  It is an decision of will to change my focus.  I choose what I will dwell upon and I move in the direction of my most current dominant thought.  On this Saturday morning what are you choosing to dwell on.  Where is your focus?  What can you choose to dwell on that will make you grateful.  Think on that today.

Pastor Rick

The Illusion of Riches!

Proverbs 23:4-5: "Do not wear yourself out to get rich; have the wisdom to show restraint.  Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone." 

I was at the Stallion Springs General Store yesterday and saw the Mega Millions Jackpot amount and was taken back a bit.  I had to take a second look to see if I read it right.  A half a billion dollars, that is 500 million for those that have a hard time with the billion word.  Now, that's a lot of money, I don't care who you are. 

Of course my mind began to swirl about all that I could do with that amount of money.  The conversation in my head turned into a full blown discussion with the church office staff.  We all begin to talk about all the people we would help, all the ministries we would support, how much we would give to the church, etc.  You know the drill, I am sure you have had similiar conversations about wealth. 

But then the conversation got a little quite when I asked what we were doing with our current amount of money we make.  Am I generous with what I have now? How many people have I helped with what I have? Do I pay tithes on my current dollar amount, etc?  The scripture makes it clear that if I am faithful with little, I will be given responsibility over much. 

No, I am not saying if I pay my tithes and help the poor I will win the Mega Jackpot.  I am saying that God calls me to be faithful with what I have not some illusionary amount.  It is interesting that in my devotions today I read this scripture I quoted at the beginning of this blog..."don't wear yourself out to get rich." 

And, just so you know, I did not buy a lotto ticket either...at least not yet.  :-)

Dirty Socks

Galatians 3:6: "Even so Abraham believed God and it was reckoned to him as righteousness." 

If we are truthful with each other, most of the time we try to be good or have a right standing with God by our own personal endeavors.  The term righteousness means to be in right standing.  We work hard at trying to be good, at trying to live a life that pleases God and we are hopeful that God notices how hard we try.  But it seems that we always fall short.  As I write that Romans 3:23 comes ringing in my ear, "For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God."  All…everyone…you…me!

It reminds me of a child who works so hard at cleaning his room only to have Mom come in and find a pair of dirty socks in the corner.  Everything is in perfect order, but the only thing noticeable is the pair of dirty socks.  And the child, wanting so much to please Mom, is disappointed because he missed the socks.

Hey, there are countless times I have missed the socks. I have a room full of dirty, smelly socks!  I am consistently disappointed that I missed the socks, but here is the beauty in righteousness.  When Christ comes into our room that we have tried so hard to clean, when He sees the socks, He reaches down, picks them up, and puts them in the dirty clothes basket without letting us know he picked them up.  Because of Him, the room is perfectly clean.

It brings a whole new meaning to the scripture in, Psalm 103:12 that says, “As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.”

Pastor Rick

Daddy!

Galatians 4:6 - "Because you are sons, God has sent forth the the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, "Abba Father."

A few weeks ago I had the opportunity of spending a week with my son Adam.  I shared that a few weeks ago.  But as I read this scriputre this morning in my devotional, I remembered something that happened on that trip.  Adam is 36 now and since becoming a man he calls me Dad.  Yet, on this trip, there was a moment in one of our conversations where he called me "Daddy." 

It is hard to describe the feeling that came over me hearing him call me Daddy again.  The word Daddy conjurs up feelings of intimacy, connection at the core of our being and describes a relationship of endearment.  In this scripture the same word is used.  Paul said that we are sons of God and as such we can call Him, "Daddy." 

Sure, we know that He is God and that He reigns supreme so there is this sence of not really being able to reach Him, but Paul tells us that is not true.  He is now our Daddy, we are intimately connected to Him the same way my son is connected to me.  That's awesome!
Pastor Rick

A Thorn Bush!

2 Corinthians 12:7-9

New American Standard Bible (NASB)

A Thorn in the Flesh

 ⁷ Because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, for this reason, to keep me from exalting myself, there was given me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to ^[a]torment me—to keep me from exalting myself! ⁸ Concerning this I implored the Lord three times that it might leave me. ⁹ And He has said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast ^[b]about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.

 

I have had a few thorns in my life.  Truth is, I have had so many I could be considered a thorn bush.  Can you relate?  When I was growing up, my grandmother had rose bushes all the way around her house.  They were beautiful to look at and she had every color imaginable.  She had red ones, orange ones, yellow ones, pink ones and even black ones.  Pretty to look at, but not so nice to touch.

 

It is amazing how much pain a small thorn can bring.  Just a small prick can bring blood to the surface of the skin and leave a sore spot that may last for days, especially if a small piece of the thorn embedes itself in the body.  You may not be able to see it with the naked eye, but you definitely know it's there.

 

Life's problems are the same way.  To the casual observer our life may look beautiful, but underneath, unseen by the naked eye is a thorn.  No one else knows its there, but we sure do.  We have a constant daily reminder of it. 

 

Paul had a thorn and he asked the great physician, three times to remove it.  It is as if Paul is pleading with God to take this unbearable thorn out of his life.  God doesn't and the answer as to why He doesn't was totally unexpected by Paul.  God tells Paul to (let me use modern language here) deal with it, I am using this thorn in your life to perfect my power in you.  WHAT!!  This thorn is meant for my good, how can that be?

 

For Paul it was being used to keep him from becoming arrogant and conceited (go back to the end of verse seven) and your thorn and mine also has a hgher good. Maybe we can't see it at the moment, maybe the pain has us looking inward instead of upward, but we can rest assured that as it was for Paul, so it is for us, "God's grace is sufficient in our weakness." 

 

The Bible does not tell us how long it was between his asking, either.  Let's not interpret the Bible to read that he asked three times in a row.  Maybe he asked every other week or every other month or maybe even every other year.  Who knows, but I do know that God finally gave him an answer as to why the thorn was there and I choose to believe that sooner or later, God will give us an answer, too.

 

Pastor Rick

Feeling Disconnected!

Hebrews 10:25
"Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching."

Endulge me as I continue on with my thoughts from yesterday.  I cannot tell you how many people are disconnected from each other.  With our advancement in technology, i.e, texting, instant messaging, chat rooms, e-mail, and other sorts of non-personal communication devices, people are becoming more and more isolated from one another.

Don't get me wrong, I love the ability to communicate quickly, to pass on an idea, or send information to someone, but when our sole source of communication is via technology, we sorely miss human bonding and intimacy. 

That is why the writer of Hebrews told us to keep meeting together.  I love how the Easy to Read Version puts it, ⁵ We must not quit meeting together, as some are doing. No, we need to keep on encouraging each other. This becomes more and more important as you see the Day getting closer.

Are you feeling separated from others, then turn off the computer, stop texting, and meet someone for lunch, face-to-face and let the human bonding begin.

Pastor Rick

When a Plan Comes Together

I am going to date myself here but when the "A" Team was on T.V., the leader of the team use to always say, "I love it when a plan comes together." I do too.

 

I love it when God blesses our plans and is seems that everything goes right. It helps off set the times when things go wrong, terribly wrong. :-) I love Jeremiah's words where he said, "I know the plans I have for you declares the Lord, plans to give you a future and a hope..." Those are comforting words.

 

In a world that seem hopeless and at times when my best laid plans seem to fail, I can fall back on those words. "I know the plans I have for you declares the Lord..."

 

Pastor Rick

Being Connected!

I am learning that I cannot be fulfilled apart from other people. We were not made to be an island unto ourselves. We need each other. I love the scripture that says, "as iron sharpens iron, so one brother sharpens another."

I love my friends and I love being connected to them. I love my church and love being connected to the people who attend. In our Life Group we are connected to each other in a special bond. If you are not in Life Group, why not. It is there you will find like minded people who you can "Do life together" with.

Pastor Rick               

Having a Good Name!

What we do in life matters!  How we talk matters! Where we go matters! Who we hang out with matters!  Why?  Because how we talk shows what is in our heart.  Where we go shows our priorities. And, who we hang out with determines our character.

Solomon wrote in Proverbs 22:1 "A good name is more desirable than great riches; to be esteemed is better than silver or gold."  Paul said, "we are living epistles read by all men." 

When someone is around you, what are they reading? Are the pages of your life inspiring others and causing them to want to be a better person, or is it having a negative effect on them and leading them down the wrong path? 

We are more than just Sunday morning church goers.  We are the salt of the earth and the light of the world.  So to quote Jesus, "Let your light shine before men that they may glorify your Father in heaven."

Pastor Rick 

Seasons of Life

Today winter has raised it's ugly head here in Stallion Springs.  We have already cancelled our 1st service and are seriously considering cancelling all services today.  We are watching the weather closely.

Life is also like the seasons, things happen and can cancel the best laid plans.  A marriage that we thought would last forever ends in divorce; a spouse dies; we lose our job; the car breaks down and we don't have the money to get it repaired, yadda, yadda, yaddda!  But here is the beauty of the seasons. When the winter of life shows up we all know that spring is right around the corner. 

Winter doesn't last forever!  I want to say that again...winter doesn't last forever and your winter won't last forever either.  Trust me, the sun (Son) will shine through again and melt away the cold dreary day.  Flowers will bloom, warmth will touch your skin, and the skies will turn blue once again.  You can count on it in the same way that we belive in just a few short days the snow will be gone again.

Pastor Rick

God Loves Ordinary People!

Did you know that God loves ordinary people.  I know because I am one of them.  John tells us in John 3:16 that God loved the entire world and gave His son for everyone.  That is how I know God loves ordinary people.  But here is the kicker, God wants to do extraordinary things through ordinary people. 
He wants to do extradionary things through you.  Get what I am saying here, God is not calling you and I to do these extraordinary things through our own power, he is wanting to do them through us.  All he needs is a willing attitude. 

Are you willing?  Are you willing to let Jesus work through and in you today.  Just try it!  Tell Jesus, "work through me today" and then watch what happens.  I won't promise that the earth will shake or a miracle will occur, but it is the small things, compounded over time that make the greatest difference anyway.

Pastor Rick

Total Commitment

Proverbs 16:3 "Commit to the Lord whatever you do and your plans will succeed."
For most people success seems elusive.  I have heard many people say, "the harder I try the further behind I get."  But the key phrase here is, "the harder I try."  We were never meant to create success by our own endeavors, that is why Solomon wrote. "Commit to the Lord whatever you do and your plans will succeed." 

The true catalyst for creating success is in the words "commit to the Lord."  Have you truly committed all your plans to the Lord?  Have you spent time asking God if your plans were His plans or have you created your plans and then asked God to bless them?  We have gotten the whole process backwards.  God has a plan and a will for your life.  You will truly succeed when you find out what it is and then commit to it wholeheartedly."

Pastor Rick