Wise Words

One of my biggest battles in life is controlling the words that come out of my mouth when I speak to others.  After being reminded about the importance of controlling my speech from scripture and starting out to pay attention to what I say, it seems like within seconds I have already blown it.  I mostly have this problem, because I don’t stop to think before I speak.  I speak based on some emotion pushing me to speak.  Whether it be anger, fear, silliness, know-it-allness, or activism. My words can show others my wisdom or my foolishness.  Read Proverbs 12:18.

There is one who speaks rashly, like a piercing sword; but the tongue of the wise [brings] healing.

If I am taking time to stop and think before I speak, I will put others first.  I will think about whether my words are really necessary or helpful.  I will think about whether they put others first in their feelings and needs.  I will think about whether they will bring spiritual, physical or emotional healing to their lives.  This will be the wise way to speak.  My emotions and needs should not dominate my speech.  My care for others should dominate my speech.  Above all my need to glorify God should dominate my speech.  When I pray, think and engage my brain before speaking, my speech will show wisdom.  Rashness of speech will usually only end up cutting someone else in the process.  In Proverbs 16: 27 -28 we see that the unwise person’s speech burns up the good things in life and brings out evil in life. 

 ²⁷ A worthless man digs up evil, and his speech is like a scorching fire. ²⁸ A contrary man spreads conflict, and a gossip separates friends.

More friendships have been lost by careless words of unwise friends.  Businesses and churches have been destroyed by foolish words.  Even what might seem like insignificant or casual speech can do harm if it is unwise.  Gossip is fire out of control once it begins.  I pray for God to take over my brain and tongue.  May my words glorify Him and help others.  May I be deemed wise by my words and glorify God.

Limitless Energy

According to the X-journals, “Next year, 192 giant laser beams at the National Ignition Facility in California will target this pea-sized capsule, which contains hydrogen, in an effort to trigger the world’s first controlled nuclear fusion reaction. (Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory)” Scientists goals with these experiments is to hopefully one day to lead to the taming of the sun’s energy and other sources like the sun to produce limitless energy.  I am always amazed at the new developments and experiments taking place in science.  It’s a wonderful thought to think that there could be limitless energy to use.  It would bring down our expenses, and probably have a whole ripple effect on the economy.  People who were previously without energy could now have energy.  Our cars could be fueled and the environment helped as a result.  It is going to take time though.  This is just the next step in the experiments.  For now we are going to have to make due with energy systems we have now.

There is good news now on the energy front though.  God has limitless energy.  Read Isaiah 40: 28 – 29.

“28 Do you not know? Have you not heard? Yahweh is the everlasting God, the Creator of the whole earth. He never grows faint or weary; there is no limit to His understanding. 29 He gives strength to the weary and strengthens the powerless.”

There is only one way God could constantly be strengthening the powerless or helping the weary to not grow faint.  That is because He has limitless power.  Nothing will ever make His power grow dim.  No matter how many times humans may have to call on Him to regain their spiritual and physical strength, God will not run out of energy to provide them so they can revive.  What an encouragement to know our God is limitless in energy and so many other ways we could name.  So don’t be afraid to ask for help from God.  Why keep struggling along on your own God is there to help. Don’t think you will be a burden to Him.  He is limitless!

Encouragement For Those Times When You Deal With Mockers

So many Christians are going through their daily lives just trying to live good and upright lives and yet many will be attacked by those who don’t believe.  They are treated badly, ridiculed, teased, mocked and scoffed at for no real reason sometimes.  Other times the actions of a few mis-guided Christians cause the Christians who are on the right track to be bombarded because of their actions, such as in the case of those who were mistaken about the May 21st and soon to be the Oct 21st dates that they promote.  We have to learn to accept as followers of God that we will be mis-treated and mis-understood during our lives this life on Earth.  If Jesus was mis-understood and mis-treated, we will be too.  However, we can put our hope in God during those times.  We can learn from His Word that He does take care of those who mis-treat His children.  Their time of judgment is coming.  Read II Peter 3:3-7.

“3 First, be aware of this: scoffers will come in the last days to scoff, following their own lusts, 4 saying, “Where is the promise of His coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they have been since the beginning of creation.” 5 They willfully ignore this: long ago the heavens and the earth existed out of water and through water by the word of God. 6 Through these the world of that time perished when it was flooded by water. 7 But by the same word the present heavens and earth are held in store for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.”

In Noah’s day there were scoffers that would not listen to Noah’s message that he preached to them warning them of the judgment that was to come to those who would not obey God.  He suffered through 120 years of hard physical work building the ark while he emotionally suffered through the mocking and scoffing of those who watched him.  In the end he saw God’s judgment come to pass and the mocking ended.  He saw his faith rewarded for his persistence and endurance during the mocking times.  Joshua and Caleb were others who also had great faith and endured others lack of faith.  In Numbers chapters 13 and 14 we read about the people of Israel reaching the edge of the promised land.  Moses sends out 12 men to spy out the land and come back give a report.  Only Joshua and Caleb give a good report and show faith that God will take them in to the land.  As a result the people get to the point where they are even going to stone Joshua and Caleb.  They scoffed at them.  God suddenly intervenes and the people stop while Moses goes and hears what God says.  The end result was that the people would not enter the land.  They were judged as despising God and would have to wonder in the wilderness until they died and then their children could go in.  Only Joshua and Caleb would be allowed to cross over.  They received the promise after enduring the mocking.  The others received judgment.

As we see in II Peter, all people will receive their judgment for their mocking and scoffing.  God will keep His word to us and see us safely to eternity, despite the mocking we may have to endure.  God will punish those who despise Him.  So cling to that hope and promise.  God’s promises found in His Word will serve as encouragement for those times when you deal with mockers.

 

In the Habit of Trusting

Sometimes we can feel like everything is going wrong, or nothing is working out, or our plans and hopes will not come to pass, or our service to the Lord is not being blessed.  We may be being chased down by physical enemies or spiritual enemies in this life, but we always have God covering our back.  Unfortunately the circumstances can wear on our emotions.  Our heart becomes saddened and we might even become angry at God.  We just cannot understand what is going on.  We may even say, “Why isn’t God helping us?”

David had many bad things happen to him during his life.  When he wrote Psalm 63 he was on the run from King Saul and was hiding in the desert/wilderness.  What a difficult place to be.  He was in an ugly and uncomfortable environment.  He, his men and their families were at risk of death from Saul or lack of supplies.  They were tired and probably could have begun feeling that being faithful to God had not been worth it.  After all they could have eliminated King Saul and taken over the throne back when they were holding Saul’s own spear and were standing over him while he slept or when Saul had come in to the cave and they were hiding in the back of it.  Yet David did not raise up his hand against the King and honored God.  Read what David wrote in Psalm 63: 9-11,

“9 But those who seek my life, to destroy it, Shall go into the lower parts of the earth. 10 They shall fall by the sword; They shall be a portion for jackals. 11 But the king shall rejoice in God; Everyone who swears by Him shall glory; But the mouth of those who speak lies shall be stopped.”

All throughout David’s life we see an underlying theme.  David trusted in the Lord to take care of situations like he was in over and over again.  He was in the habit of trusting the Lord.  He trusted God so much that he didn’t even worry about if God took care of the person in this life or after the person had died.  Yes, as you can see by his writing, he hoped God would take care of his enemy now, but he also wrote about the person going down to the lower parts of the earth.  He knew God would be the person’s judge and would take care of it.  He knew one way or another that God will stop the mouths of the ones who lie.  He also stated, “Everyone who swears by Him shall glory.” What an interesting perspective.  Here David is in a bad situation and he knows that if he trusts in God that he shall still receive glory.  In other words, God will honor us for our faithfulness, whether it is now or in our life to come.  Our problem is that we just naturally want to receive physical blessings now or see our enemies taken care of now.  We have to accept that the physical blessings might not happen right now.  Just like when a parent knows when to reward their child for their behavior, we have to trust that God will reward us when the time is right.

It just makes common sense to be in the habit of trusting the Lord.  Remember trust the Lord no matter what is going on in your life.

It Just Takes A Breath

For us a breath is a very important function of our body.  With a breath we continue the maintenance of our life.  Without the breathing process we would die.  A breath seems so simple and yet it is so complicated and it happens without us even thinking about it.  The Kidshealth.org website states, “Breathing is so vital to life that it happens automatically. Each day, you breathe about 20,000 times, and by the time you’re 70 years old, you’ll have taken at least 600 million breaths.”  Sometimes looking at how spectacularly God designed us can really open up our eyes to how wonderful He is.  The process of breathing that just happens automatically allows oxygen to come in to our body and carbon dioxide to leave.  Breathing causes a whole chain reaction in our body of other processes that just happen automatically.  Not only do we take things like our breathing for granted, but we take God’s breathing for granted.  Take a look at Psalm 104 verses 24 through 30 –

“24 How countless are Your works, LORD! In wisdom You have made them all; the earth is full of Your creatures. 25 Here is the sea, vast and wide, teeming with creatures beyond number— living things both large and small. 26 There the ships move about, and Leviathan, which You formed to play there. 27 All of them wait for You to give them their food at the right time. 28 When You give it to them they gather it; when You open Your hand, they are satisfied with good things. 29 When You hide Your face, they are terrified; when You take away their breath, they die and return to the dust. 30 When You send Your breath, they are created, and You renew the face of the earth”

What an encouragement to know that with God’s breath He creates and renews.  With a breath He created all the creatures on Earth.  Even great sea creatures that we may not have seen in the depths of the sea, He gave life to with His breath.  With a breath He gave us physical life.  With a breath He gives us spiritual life.  What an encouragement to know that with a breath He can renew us.  We need to take time to appreciate the creativity, ingenuity, and power of our God.  What encouragement we will find, if we take time to cherish the intricate details in His creation.  We need to breath in the beauty of His designs.  Lastly, we need to remember that it just takes a breath from Him to renew us.  Ask God for a breath of renewal in your life.  How encouraged we will be when we are renewed by the breath of God.