. . . and if anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire (Revelation 20:15).
On the Saturday night after Thanksgiving, Helen and I were driving home from Kansas after having celebrated the holiday with Helen's side of the family. Making an effort to keep me awake and knowing I was scheduled to have the Communion meditation the next day, she asked me, "What are you planning for a Communion meditation?" I said, "I've been thinking about Revelation 20:15," and then I quoted the scripture to her. I can't remember the exact words Helen used, but she strongly implied that she thought I was being excessively negative. However, I went ahead and did do the meditation based on that text.
The truth is that the most important blessing that we have for which to give thanks is the pardon and forgiveness we have because of the incarnation, crucifixtion and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ; that is good news! God has warned us about the wrath to come: . . . Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come (I Thessalonians 1:10). Consider also Romans chapter 5 verse 9: Since, therefore, we are now justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God.
During the Thanksgiving season we often make an attempt to make a list of things for which we are thankful. Prominent on that list should be the salvation we have in Christ Jesus because we are able to look to our own coming death with peace and hope because of him!
The wrath of God has been the subject of many theological debates, but what is undebatable is the existence of hell and that people outside the protection of Christ will find that as their destination. Thankyou, Father, for Jesus Christ.
Our Father's Love,
Tom
Sunday, November 27, 2011
Monday, November 21, 2011
CHARACTER FORMATION, NOT BEHAVIOR MODIFICATION
Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it (Proverbs 22:6).
The following is an interesting quote from a column by Dr. John Rosemond: "The term 'behavior modification' has been a distraction because it implies that the discipline of a child is all about proper behavior. In fact, the discipline of a child is all about shaping his or her character. Proper behavior will follow of its own accord."*
I will add my own "AMEN" to this, and if I have time, follow up on it later.
Our Father's Blessings,
Tom
*I read this in the http://www.jewishworldreview.com
The following is an interesting quote from a column by Dr. John Rosemond: "The term 'behavior modification' has been a distraction because it implies that the discipline of a child is all about proper behavior. In fact, the discipline of a child is all about shaping his or her character. Proper behavior will follow of its own accord."*
I will add my own "AMEN" to this, and if I have time, follow up on it later.
Our Father's Blessings,
Tom
*I read this in the http://www.jewishworldreview.com
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
FOR THE HEAVEN OF IT
And the tongue is a fire. The tongue is an unrighteous world among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the cycle of nature, and set on fire by hell (James 3:6, emphasis mine).
Sometimes, listening to the tractor radio stimulates my thinking as I work. Listening to a sports broadcast or call-in show, it is not uncommon to hear it said, "That was a helluva play," or "he's a hell of a coach." But, if one stops to think about it, those descriptions meant to be complimentary are anything but complimentary. Hell is a place for those with no positive self-discipline; there is only excellence in evil. Hell is a place for the destructive. Hell is a place for the self-centered, there are no team players in hell. Hell is the capital city of evil, destruction and torment. I never want it to be said about me, "He's a hell of a guy," though there have been times when that statement would have been true. Thank you, Jesus, for making it not true!!!
Think about it. God's people should be the toughest competitors because they can persevere. They are tough because they are willing to do what it takes to become the best they can be. More than anybody, God people practice teamwork, working together to bring about success for each member, not just for one's self. God's team is not a team of individual stars, but a team made up of people who serve each other. Heaven's team practices teamwork, hell's team is individual stars out for their own glory.
Perhaps it is because there is no single syllable word for Heaven, that Heaven has not achieved the same popularity as hell, but I really believe that the lost really enjoy spitting at God and raising hell, not Heaven. What team are you part of: Heaven's or hell's? Your language indicates the team you are cheering for.
Our Father's Blessings,
Tom
Sometimes, listening to the tractor radio stimulates my thinking as I work. Listening to a sports broadcast or call-in show, it is not uncommon to hear it said, "That was a helluva play," or "he's a hell of a coach." But, if one stops to think about it, those descriptions meant to be complimentary are anything but complimentary. Hell is a place for those with no positive self-discipline; there is only excellence in evil. Hell is a place for the destructive. Hell is a place for the self-centered, there are no team players in hell. Hell is the capital city of evil, destruction and torment. I never want it to be said about me, "He's a hell of a guy," though there have been times when that statement would have been true. Thank you, Jesus, for making it not true!!!
Think about it. God's people should be the toughest competitors because they can persevere. They are tough because they are willing to do what it takes to become the best they can be. More than anybody, God people practice teamwork, working together to bring about success for each member, not just for one's self. God's team is not a team of individual stars, but a team made up of people who serve each other. Heaven's team practices teamwork, hell's team is individual stars out for their own glory.
Perhaps it is because there is no single syllable word for Heaven, that Heaven has not achieved the same popularity as hell, but I really believe that the lost really enjoy spitting at God and raising hell, not Heaven. What team are you part of: Heaven's or hell's? Your language indicates the team you are cheering for.
Our Father's Blessings,
Tom
Monday, November 14, 2011
THERE IS NO TEACHING, ONLY LEARNING
This is why I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand (Matthew 13:13).
My wife, the lovely and gracious Helen, is an educator. She has spoken to me often of the frustrations of teaching children who are unprepared to learn and who do not want to learn. This is not only true of children, but also of adults. In a news letter I receive, the author spoke of his frustration with adults who would not accept new concepts of investing. That frustration prompted him to say, "There is no teaching, only learning." He went on to say that one must be emotionally prepared to learn before learning can take place. An old school board member who wanted to keep teachers in their place used to say, 'No teaching has been done if the students haven't learned.' There is enough truth in it so his premise sounds logical, but the truth is, if one refuses to learn, no teaching can make him learn; "My mind is made up, do not confuse me with the facts."
Is our culture emotionally preparing our children to learn? If one studies the demographics of our country it will be found that parents are pursuing more self-satisfying lives rather than lives that are in the best interest of their children. With those kinds of parents, how can children be prepared to learn? Our problems in education are more of a crisis of culture than any lack of money.
Our Father's Blessings,
Tom
My wife, the lovely and gracious Helen, is an educator. She has spoken to me often of the frustrations of teaching children who are unprepared to learn and who do not want to learn. This is not only true of children, but also of adults. In a news letter I receive, the author spoke of his frustration with adults who would not accept new concepts of investing. That frustration prompted him to say, "There is no teaching, only learning." He went on to say that one must be emotionally prepared to learn before learning can take place. An old school board member who wanted to keep teachers in their place used to say, 'No teaching has been done if the students haven't learned.' There is enough truth in it so his premise sounds logical, but the truth is, if one refuses to learn, no teaching can make him learn; "My mind is made up, do not confuse me with the facts."
Is our culture emotionally preparing our children to learn? If one studies the demographics of our country it will be found that parents are pursuing more self-satisfying lives rather than lives that are in the best interest of their children. With those kinds of parents, how can children be prepared to learn? Our problems in education are more of a crisis of culture than any lack of money.
Our Father's Blessings,
Tom
Tuesday, November 08, 2011
CHANGE YOUR THINKING, CHANGE YOUR WORLD
Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth (Colossians 3:2).
Do not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do (John Wooden, greatest ever basketball coach).
If I remember correctly, the phrase that is used as the title to this blurb is by Norman Vincent Peale, author of The Power of Positive Thinking.
The Bible says much about thinking, the mind and the heart; Colossians 3:2 is only one of many references. Paul's instruction to us does not have to do with thinking about angels, or what heaven is going to be like, but it to do with thinking about God, what He is like--His nature and His values, and then begin to appropriate them into our lives. Certainly, God is righteous and His desire is for us to be righteous too. God is love and His desire is for us to love like He does. God is all powerful, we are weak but He is strong. Christians are God's adopted children, and, one of the blessings of being His children is that He gives us what we need when we need it much better than Bomgaars.*
I have said all that to say this, Christians should not be negative thinkers, focusing on matters of the flesh. A trite example: A week ago Iowa lost to Minnesota in football; I was bummed the whole week until we beat Michigan. What a silly waste of emotional energy! I am still an avid Hawkeye fan, but, when the game is over it is over, move on. The game didn't change the price of corn nor did it solve the economic crisis.
Positive thinking begins by trusting God and who He is. God has not created His children to be exactly alike, but He is Father to each of them. At no time should we think negatively and believe that we cannot have a significant impact in the world because we are not talented, or we do not have money--we have God as our Father who can do all things beyond what we can even dream (See Ephesians 3:14-21). Do not think negatively and allow lack of money or lack of talent to keep you from doing what you can do!
Our Father's Blessings,
Tom
*Bomgaars is a small chain of stores in the upper Midwestern United States with the slogan, "What you need, When you need it."
Do not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do (John Wooden, greatest ever basketball coach).
If I remember correctly, the phrase that is used as the title to this blurb is by Norman Vincent Peale, author of The Power of Positive Thinking.
The Bible says much about thinking, the mind and the heart; Colossians 3:2 is only one of many references. Paul's instruction to us does not have to do with thinking about angels, or what heaven is going to be like, but it to do with thinking about God, what He is like--His nature and His values, and then begin to appropriate them into our lives. Certainly, God is righteous and His desire is for us to be righteous too. God is love and His desire is for us to love like He does. God is all powerful, we are weak but He is strong. Christians are God's adopted children, and, one of the blessings of being His children is that He gives us what we need when we need it much better than Bomgaars.*
I have said all that to say this, Christians should not be negative thinkers, focusing on matters of the flesh. A trite example: A week ago Iowa lost to Minnesota in football; I was bummed the whole week until we beat Michigan. What a silly waste of emotional energy! I am still an avid Hawkeye fan, but, when the game is over it is over, move on. The game didn't change the price of corn nor did it solve the economic crisis.
Positive thinking begins by trusting God and who He is. God has not created His children to be exactly alike, but He is Father to each of them. At no time should we think negatively and believe that we cannot have a significant impact in the world because we are not talented, or we do not have money--we have God as our Father who can do all things beyond what we can even dream (See Ephesians 3:14-21). Do not think negatively and allow lack of money or lack of talent to keep you from doing what you can do!
Our Father's Blessings,
Tom
*Bomgaars is a small chain of stores in the upper Midwestern United States with the slogan, "What you need, When you need it."
Wednesday, November 02, 2011
HABITS OF THE HEART
You have heard that it was said to the men of old, 'You shall not kill, and whoever kills shall be liable to judgment.' But I say to you that every one who is angry with his brother shall be liable to judgement . . . (Matthew 5:21-22).
This guy was in a counseling session when he told his therapist about an incident that happened the previous week. He said he was out for his daily walk, as the therapist had instructed him to do, when he came to a thorny thistle patch. He took off all his clothes and rolled around in the thistle patch naked. The therapist asked the man why he would do such a thing. The man replied, "Well, it seemed like a good idea at the time."
Though the story is fiction, yet there are many who roll around in that proverbial "thistle patch" because they cultivated emotions and thoughts that, nurtured long enough over time, resulted in painful and destructive behaviors that "seemed like a good idea at the time." That is why Jesus went to the root of negative and destructive behaviors, our thought and emotional lives, and condemned the nurture of them. One cannot stop a thought from coming into his mind, but he can refuse to nurture negative thoughts and emotions by thinking and doing positive things.
Have you let your heart fall into the habit of negative thinking? Do you nurture negative emotions? Perhaps you could plant and nurture the positive by resolving to read and meditate on God's Word each day, choosing to be a happy person in spite of being surrounded by sin and negativity. There are a lot of depressing things happening in the world, and there will always be until the Lord returns, so, choose not to participate in the depression by developing positive habits of the heart.
Our Father's Blessings,
Tom
This guy was in a counseling session when he told his therapist about an incident that happened the previous week. He said he was out for his daily walk, as the therapist had instructed him to do, when he came to a thorny thistle patch. He took off all his clothes and rolled around in the thistle patch naked. The therapist asked the man why he would do such a thing. The man replied, "Well, it seemed like a good idea at the time."
Though the story is fiction, yet there are many who roll around in that proverbial "thistle patch" because they cultivated emotions and thoughts that, nurtured long enough over time, resulted in painful and destructive behaviors that "seemed like a good idea at the time." That is why Jesus went to the root of negative and destructive behaviors, our thought and emotional lives, and condemned the nurture of them. One cannot stop a thought from coming into his mind, but he can refuse to nurture negative thoughts and emotions by thinking and doing positive things.
Have you let your heart fall into the habit of negative thinking? Do you nurture negative emotions? Perhaps you could plant and nurture the positive by resolving to read and meditate on God's Word each day, choosing to be a happy person in spite of being surrounded by sin and negativity. There are a lot of depressing things happening in the world, and there will always be until the Lord returns, so, choose not to participate in the depression by developing positive habits of the heart.
Our Father's Blessings,
Tom
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