Bailout-Biblically

Instead of Congress bailing out the loan and banking institutions with insurance for the stability of their lending power, what would happen if Congress practiced Old Testament banking. 

Deuteronomy 15: 1  “At the end of every seventh year you must cancel the debts of everyone who owes you money. 2 This is how it must be done. Everyone must cancel the loans they have made to their fellow Israelites. They must not demand payment from their neighbors or relatives, for the Lord’s time of release has arrived. 3 This release from debt, however, applies only to your fellow Israelites—not to the foreigners living among you.

 4 “There should be no poor among you, for the Lord your God will greatly bless you in the land he is giving you as a special possession. 5 You will receive this blessing if you are careful to obey all the commands of the Lord your God that I am giving you today. 6 The Lord your God will bless you as he has promised. You will lend money to many nations but will never need to borrow. You will rule many nations, but they will not rule over you.

 7 “But if there are any poor Israelites in your towns when you arrive in the land the Lord your God is giving you, do not be hard-hearted or tightfisted toward them. 8 Instead, be generous and lend them whatever they need. 9 Do not be mean-spirited and refuse someone a loan because the year for canceling debts is close at hand. If you refuse to make the loan and the needy person cries out to the Lord, you will be considered guilty of sin. 10 Give generously to the poor, not grudgingly, for the Lord your God will bless you in everything you do. 11 There will always be some in the land who are poor. That is why I am commanding you to share freely with the poor and with other Israelites in need.

Prayer Talk

Ever edit yourself for God? Ever spend your entire day talking one way and then talk with a completely different vocabulary when you pray? Why do we do that? Is it reverence? Are we afraid to say something idiotic? I am. And in that fear I often end up babbling and ruining one of the most beautiful parts of prayer, listening.

Soar

Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall;

but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength.

 

 

 

 

They will soar on wings like eagles;
       they will run and not grow weary,
       they will walk and not be faint.

Isaiah 40:30-31

Yes, we all grow weary at times. Life is hard, it is not easy for any of us. Our daily experiences drag us down whether we are young or old. Though we grow weary we need not be discouraged. The promise found here in Isaiah is a thrilling one. We can soar on wings like eagles, but there is a key. Only those who hope in the LORD have been given that key, they can renew their strength. When something is renewed it is given new vitality, it has been rejuvenated. The Hebrew word actually means to exchange. We can trade our strength for His strength. What a promise that is!

In our own strength we can do nothing, but what great things can be done with the strength of Christ. Let us keep in mind that this is not a one time exchange, but a continual process. Each day, each hour, each moment we need to consciously make the effort to exchange our strength for that of our LORD, but when we do, we will soar. Our trials which seemed to large to us just a short time ago, will look much smaller when we are lifted up to the heights  of Christ¹s love. When our strength is renewed and we are able to view our experiences from a heavenly perspective, it is then that we will run and not grow weary, walk and not faint.

Let us today ask the LORD to exchange our strength for His, that we might soar!

Father, give us Your strength. Ours is worthless; it is getting us nowhere. As we submit to You and gain strength from You life becomes easier to handle. We thank You for that. Help us to soar, Father, as we begin to look at life from Your perspective, not from ours. Keep our focus heavenward and help us to run the race. Amen 

 

Treasures in Heaven

Pray for our country’s economical condition. Why would God be concerned about that?

1.God wants the very best for you. He wants you to not be focused on treasures on earth, but on heavenly treasures. What does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and lose his soul?

2.God wants his message proclaimed. If we are able to tithe (in our minds, some put God last when we are writing checks) funds are available to sustain those people and programs that are supported by our giving.

3.God wants to prosper us. He is the giver of all good gifts. By receipt of those gifts, we acknowledge our dependance on Him.

Stay focused Upward!

Betting on the Lord’s Prayer

John Cassis is one of our nation’s finest motivational speakers. He told a story recently about a time when he was serving as one of the chaplin’s for the Chicago Bears during their glory years of the 80’s.

As John tells it, Mike Ditka was about to deliver a locker room pep talk one day. He looked up and saw defensive tackle William “Refrigerator” Perry. How could he not see him? At 338 pounds the Fridge stood out even in a crowd of pro football players. Ditka gestured to the Fridge. “When I get finished,” he said, “I’d like you to close with the Lord’s Prayer.” Then the coach began his talk.

Meanwhile, Jim McMahon, the brash and outspoken quarterback, punched John Cassis. “Look at Perry,” McMahon whispered, “he doesn’t know the Lord’s Prayer.”

Sure enough, Perry sat with a look of panic on his face, his head in his hands. He was sweating profusely. “Everybody knows the Lord’s Prayer,” said Cassis to McMahon in disbelief. After a few minutes of watching the Refrigerator leaking several gallons of sweat, McMahon nudged Cassis again. “I’ll bet you 50 bucks Fridge doesn’t know the Lord’s Prayer.”

As Cassis tells the story, he stops to reflect on the absurdity of it all: “Here we were sitting in chapel and betting 50 bucks on the Lord’s Prayer.”

When Coach Ditka finished his pep talk, he asked all the men to remove their caps. Then he nodded at Perry and bowed his head. It was quiet for a few moments before the Fridge spoke in a shaky voice, “Now I lay me down to sleep. I pray the Lord, my soul to keep…”

Cassis felt the tap on his shoulder. It was Jim McMahon. “Here’s the 50 dollars,” he whispered. “I had no idea Perry knew the Lord’s Prayer.”

 

Oh, and just in case you don’t know the Lord’s prayer, you can find it Matthew 6:9-13.

Light

.  “You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.

You are like light for the world. · Light shines on dark things and exposes what is there. This is a call to the church to challenge evil within our society, however uncomfortable this may be. The light that we bring, is not our own light – it is not who we are in ourselves, but rather the light of God shining through our lives as the Holy Spirit works through them. This doesn’t mean that we have to refer to God in every other sentence, but when the opportunity arises, we can share with another person the light that God has given us. 

Don’t hide your light. · We hide our light when we stay silent in the face of discussion which is contrary to that which we believe. We hide our light when we fail to accept and conform with behaviours that are not in line with Jesus’ teaching. We hide our light when we don’t care for the needs of others, and walk by on the other side : since we have missed an opportunity to let the light of Jesus’ compassion shine out in acts of kindness.  If we let the light of the Holy Spirit at work in us shine through, then we bring glory to God, and there can be no greater joy than being able to give glory to the Father as we go through our daily lives.

Salt

You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men. 

You are the salt of the earth. ·By beginning with You, Jesus emphasises to the disciples that they have both the calling and the responsibility to be influencers in the world.   Salt is a number of effects :
1. as a seasoning agent, it improves the taste of the food that it comes into contact with, and so as we come into contact with society our Christian values should improve the nature of that society.
2. salt makes people thirsty – and as Christians we seek to create a thirst in people’s lives that can only be satisfied by Jesus, who said : “if anyone is thirsty, let him come to me  me and drink” (Jn 7:37)
3. Salt is used to thaw ice on roads : so it can have the effect of warming hearts that have hardened against the gospel – over time the saltiness of Christians can bring people to know Jesus Christ.
4. as a preservative, salt gives food an improved length of life. Ultimately, with enough salt, those who do know Jesus, and acknowledge Him as Lord and Saviour will have eternal life.

Salt which loses its saltiness is useless. · Jesus’ teaching is challenging.  There is little room for those who are Christians, but who have lost their saltiness. Without the testimony of lives lived out with integrity and consistency with the principles that Christians claim to follow, the testimony of our lips is useless.  But be clear, this does not require us to be perfect,knowing our sinfulness, and knowing our need to confess it and be cleansed of it is a vital part of the Christian gospel.

Scars

My scars are from making mistakes. Once I wasn’t being careful cutting up some chicken and made a real clean cut across my left index finger. Another was from grabbing something sharp. I even have one caused by spraying myself with high pressure refrigerant !

The scars Paul refers to in Galatians 6:17were scars of honor. He closed his letter writing, “Finally, let no one cause me trouble, for I bear on my body the marks of Jesus.” (NIV) In other words Paul’s injury memorabilia stemmed from beatings, stonings, ship wrecks, and treatment as a prisoner while in the service of Jesus Christ!
 

If you had opportunity and your attitude could still be godly, are there scars for Christ you could point to? They may not be physical or visible. When you are really making an impact for God it costs something! Remember that scars are left over from healing. The wound hurts but the Lord heals and scars earned in His service are beautiful badges of honor!

Free Will

 

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 6:23

Pray

This morning, when we rose from hopefully a good night’s rest, did we start our conversation with the Lord? Have we told Him how much we love Him? Did we thank Him for so great a salvation? Have we honored Him in prayer?

Pray for our family members
Pray for the body of Christ’s members
Pray for the lost that we know
Pray for God’s perfect will to be done in our lives
Pray for the filling of the Holy Spirit
Pray that God will use us today
Pray that we will rest in the finished work of our Lord and Saviour Christ Jesus
Please let the Lord feed you with Bread of Life this very moment