Get your theology in order before the phone rings

It will be 40 years ago in November when our phone rang at 5 in the morning.  It was my mom, nervously telling me that she could not get dad awake (she later told me that she knew that he was gone).  She thought she was calling my sister who lived a few miles away.  We were living more than 150 miles away. There is nothing like the phone ringing in the middle of the night to shock you.  It is inevitable that your phone will sometime ring in the middle of the night.  That is not the time to start getting your theology in order.

You may say I have a relationship with Jesus, I don't need a theology.  That is double talk.  Everyone has a theology whether they know it or not.  Theology is the views or opinions that you have of God.  Everyone has views of God based on their knowledge of their Father.

How well do you know your heavenly Father?  Jesus said "this is life eternal, that they may know thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ."  The word "know" used in this passage is the same word when it says that Joseph did not "know" Mary.  It means a very intimate knowledge.  Do you have an intimate knowledge of your Father.  How do you get to know Him?  Spend time with Him!  But, let him do the talking.  God tells us: "Be still and know that I am God".  To paraphrase this in today's terms, that means: "Sit down! Shut up! and Listen!"  We will never get to know Him if we do all the talking.

You say: "God never talks to me".  Yes, He does!  He wrote a whole book for you; but, you need to do the reading.  Start with the gospels.  Jesus told Phillip,  "he that hath seen me hath seen the Father".  If you want to know your Father's character and will, look at Jesus.  They are the same in character and Jesus always did His Father's will.  If you come up to a situation that you can't figure out, and don't know an appropriate verse,  think back to how Jesus handled the situation when He was on earth.  Since we are His body, we should do the same.


Start getting to know your Father BEFORE the phone rings, before your doctor uses the C-word, cancer.  Don't develope your theology based on your experiences or that of your friends' and family's experiences, or your feeling for that matter.  Too many people, including pastors base their theology based on experiences and tradition.  They interpret the Bible based on experience.  If no one ever got saved, would it change the fact that God would that none be lost, but that all come to a saving knowledge of Him?  I know pastors who have based their theology on "political correctness", making their message more palatable, not wanting to offend anyone.  Jesus and the disciples offended a lot of people, mostly the religious ones.  


GET TO KNOW YOUR HEAVENLY FATHER, INTIMATELY.  GET IN THE WORD.  BE TRUE TO THE WORD,  God will take care of the rest.

I love it when a plan comes together

Anybody recognize this quote?  It was "Hannibal" Smith from the old tv series A-team, who at the end of each episode he would say: "I love it when a plan comes together.

My Father has a plan that is in no way comparable to anything that the A-team ever had.  Through the prophet Jeremiah he tells the Israel exiles in Babylon "For I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."  He has those same plans for us.  They started back in the Garden of Eden, with the promise of a Savior. Follow the genealogies in Matthew and Luke to see all the intricacies, individuals and complexities of His plan. This plan took thousands of years, passed through the cross and will culminate when we join Him in Glory as His bride.  Every day, in every way, He is working His plan in us, for us and through us.  Read The Revelation of John to see God's plan come together.  It is way better than any A-team plan

When trials and troubles come; and, they will come, remember you are in the center of His plan!  It may not feel like it.  Don't trust your feelings.  They will betray you.  When fear comes over you, realize that it is a tool of the devil.  Fear is not from your heavenly Father.  Satan will play mind games with you and me, trying to get us to doubt the Word.  He did it to Jesus.  He used the Word, quoted it to Jesus and twisted the meaning.  With all of the tools at Jesus' disposal, He used the Word against Satan. The Word is the Sword of the Spirit.  It is the only offensive weapon in the armor of God.  Satan tries to take the Word out of our life because he has no defense against it, so TRUST THE WORD:


"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life ? "And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin.  Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these.  If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?  So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?'   For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.  But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.  Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

I'd rather be in a deep, dark grave

Recognize the lyrics?  Probably not  unless you are a classic country gospel music fan or are over 60 years old.  It is from the Hank Williams Sr. ( died in 1953) song House of Gold.  The lyrics of the whole song are:

People steal, they cheat and lie
For wealth and what it will buy
Don't they know on the judgement day
Gold and silver will melt away

I'd rather be in a deep, dark grave
And know that my poor soul was saved
Than to live in this world in a house of gold
And deny my God and lose my soul

What good is gold and silver, too
If your heart's not good and true
Sinner hear me when I say
Fall down upon your knees and pray

Right now you're thinking, where is this going?  Well, this morning in the church service at Silver Dollar City, the pastor and his family from Ridgecrest Baptist Church in Springfield, MO.,sang the House of Gold song; but, before singing, he asked: Is singing a hymn or praise song, worship?  Maybe, maybe not.  He put forth the concept that worship means recognizing and acknowledging the words being sung and then responding in accord with the lyrics.  He then sang the above song.  I had heard this song many times before but never considered it a song of worship.

To help explain worship, I ask you to consider being a University of Michigan fan, who has been in The Big House when 100,000+ fans sing The Victors fight song. To a Michigan State fan, they look stupid.  They could sing the same song; but, it would be without recognizing, and acknowledging the words being sung; and, then responding in accord with the lyrics.  A shiver goes down your back. They are in essence worshiping.  How about when the National Anthem is being played, Taps or Amazing Grace on bagpipes at a funeral of a slain soldier, fireman or police officer.   How many Christians  worship with the same adoration and praise when they sing.  Oh, that we would worship with the same emotion with no thought of how we look to those around us.  God covets our praise.  Jesus rebuked the  Pharisees when they wanted Him, to rebuke his disciples, when they praised him on what we celebrate as Palm Sunday.  He said:  “If they kept quiet, the stones would do it for them, shouting praise.”

Let us never have the stones around us cry out in praise because it makes us uncomfortable!

Pretend it's football!

I had not planned on writing anything today, but I woke during the night, as nature was calling; and I had some thoughts that I felt that I should share.  What if we treated going to church and worshipping as if it were a football game.  Would we sit in 90 degree heat, 20 degree cold, rain, snow, sleet, stand up half the game just to see, put up with obnxious fans in the pews around us and sit through games when your team is getting clobbered.  A lot of us will use any excuse to avoid church.

Many years ago, I was convicted over the fact that I got more excited about football than I did about my relationship with my heavenly Father.  I had no problem acting stupid and being a not so nice person when Michigan lost.  Well, in tune with yesterday's blog, I made a decision to change that.  I quit going to football games for several years, then went back; but the desire was not the same.  Today, it's been years since I have gone to a football game.  Now, don't get me wrong, I don't think that football is a sin or evil; but when it consumes you, then maybe you should reflect on priorities.  This goes for any hobby, be it fishing, hunting, golf, blogging, facebooking, sudoku-ing, you name it.  It may be work.  Anything that has a tendency to consume your time and/or emotions.

This blog is not about football; but your relationship with your heavenly Father, the most important person in your life.  Spend time with Him!!!

Love those M & M's

How much do Americans spend on M & M's  every year?  A $million, 10 million, 100 million?

How about over 1 BILLION.  Yup!

I love M & M's; but since last November, I have had less than 10.  Guess what!  I don't crave them anymore.  Why is this significant?  It is an example of how we can control our desires.  We use the word "LOVE" so loosely. We "love" everything!  We say two people fell in love; sounds like they tripped accidently and could not help themselves.  Then they tripped again and fell in love with someone else.  Could not help it!  Just happened and I am a victim of my emotions.  A spouse tells their partner that they don't love them anymore.  What a bunch of CRAP!!  Forgive my French.  If I use the word DUNG, would it sound Biblical

Love is a decision.  Love is a commitment.  How do I know?  Because Jesus commands us to:
"love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind."  God would not command us to do something that we can not control.  We decide to make a commitment to love God first and our neighbor second.


Today lust, selfishness and desires to be stroked, trump commitment.  I have heard Christians say God told me it was OK to leave my spouse.  He wants me to be happy.  Show me the verse.  God can not violate his will and his character and will never give his blessing on something that is contrary to his Word and character. We are the BODY of Christ.  When we defile our body, we defile Christ's body. 


 Paul says to the Corinthians:

If you give no thought (or worse, don’t care) about the broken body of the Master when you eat and drink, you’re running the risk of serious consequences.  That’s why so many of you even now are listless and sick, and others have gone to an early grave.

Do we really want to run the risk being sickly and going to an early grave, just so we can satisfy our carnal desires.  Well, DO YOU?

Where am I going?

In reference to this "blog thing", I really don't know.  I am taking each day as it comes to me,  Most of my thoughts, come to me while in bed.  That's here I do a lot of my thinking.  Over the years, most of my lectures were developed while laying in bed.  I have a few topics in mind as to what I want to discuss; but today is not one of them.  As I was laying in bed this morning, I thought about my first three blogs and sort of analyzed them as to what I actually mentioned or related to.  I talked about God, country, taking one day at a time, faith, patience, perseverance, trust, lust, greed, selfishness, stealing, sharing, contentment, peace, and happiness.  That's quite a lot for three blogs.  I also talked about our marriage.  When you combine the first list with how they relate to marriage and relationships, you can explain many of our problems.  As to relationships in general and marriage, specifically, any single one of these issues can destroy a relationship.

Why do marriages fail? Over the last 50 years the percentage of marriages failing has increased.  People used to get married younger, yet waiting has not proved to the key to success. Linda and I got married young.  That is not the key to success; but for us it meant that we never developed individual life styles and friends.  We moved away from our home base, leaving old friends; forcing us to form new common friends and forcing us to depend on each other. 

We are told that couples need to co-habitate before marrying to determine whether they are compatible.  Co-habitating with no commitments is a joke.  It is nothing more that an attempt to place legitimacy on an illegitimate relationship.  It is based on lust, and greed.  Co-habitating has not led to better marriages.

Being a Christian does not seem to be the key; because the failure rate of Christian marriages is no better than non-christian.  Why? a carnal Christian acts no different than a non-christian except that they have accepted Jesus as savior. Unless a Christian commits to becoming something more than a CINO, nothing will change in their relationships.  What is a CINO?  "Christian In Name Only".  Have I mastered being something more than a CINO?  NO, but I am working at it. 

Show me a Christian who spends little time in the WORD of GOD; and I will show you a CINO.  I will show you a carnal christian.

"For where there are envy, strife, and divisions among you, are you not carnal and behaving like mere men"

Those darn socks

OOPS, My mistake!!

It should have read those "darned" socks.  How many people remember "darned" socks, not the kind that your grandma hand knitted but the ones your mom or wife repaired, after holes were worn into them.  How many of you wore them to grade school, middle school, high school, college, grad school, post grad school. Well, I did.  Never thought much of it.  I just thought everyone did.  To this day, I don't know if I was normal or unique.  How many slept in an unheated upstairs that you could see your breath in the winter.  I did. Again, maybe this was normal,  I don't know.  Were we poor, growing up? I really don't know.  I never considered the thought.  However, I do remember that at least once a week we had "bread and milk" for dinner.  No, not a sandwich.  We took bread, buttered it, placed it on our dinner plate and poured hot milk over it.  (The bread was usually dry from being old.)  We then proceeded to eat it with a fork.  That was dinner.

BUT, today these sort of things would be considered unfit living conditions, child endangerment or at very least damaging the child's psyche.  This upcoming year in certain school districts in Michigan, all students will be given free breakfasts and lunches; even though only 40% qualify.  Why?  Because we don't want to stigmatize children.  How many people receiving food stamps or welfare are wearing "darned " socks?  How many of these same people have cell phones, let alone smart phones with multiple apps?  How many have flat screen TV"S with cable with premium channels?

Why is that my concern?

Because our country is going broke and we wonder why. DAH!!!  We act like we all deserve this stuff.  Hollywood tells us we do.

James tells us:
Where do you think all these appalling wars and quarrels come from? Do you think they just happen? Think again. They come about because you want your own way, and fight for it deep inside yourselves.  You lust for what you don’t have and are willing to kill to get it. You want what isn’t yours and will risk violence to get your hands on it.  You wouldn’t think of just asking God for it, would you?

Does this sound like the "flash mobs" occurring in our cities this summer where they are looting stores?

Most of us think of lust as being only in regard to sex, but it covers many things

Oh that we could say as Paul said:  I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content

How to eat an elephant!!

It's simple!  One bite at a time!  In our fast paced society, we are always looking and planning months ahead. Many times we do not start projects because they seem too big.  We want to see the whole picture before we start.  Linda and I started an effort to loose weight and exercise, last November.  To date, we have lost 135 pounds between the two of us and we bike 10 miles a day, 3-6 times per week.  Retiring was a step of faith,  I wish I could know what will happen in the stock market with my retirement. 

Starting this blog is something that even surprised myself.  I am taking it one bite at a time.

In business, we are told to have 5-year plans.  However the Lord tells us: "do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things".  James tells us: "you say, today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, and spend a year there and carry on a successful business,” when, all the while, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. For what is the nature of your life? Why, it is but a mist, which appears for a short time and then is seen no more. Instead of that you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we shall live and do this or that.”

We often say that we are asking for God to guide us with some special revelation.  Why would He waste a special revelation on us, when we won't even follow the advice and commands he already has given us.  Are we so unique that we need "special" treatment.

If you do not wish to receive updates to this blog, please let me know and I will remove you name.  If I do not hear from you, I will assume you wish to continue on my list.  If you have someone that you think would like to be added; also, please let me know and I will add them.

Have a great day, taking it one bite at a time!!!!!

why start a blog

Being retired I now have time to do things that I have not had time for previously.  People have often asked me if I ever had to start over, is there a another career path that I would take.  If I had to make that decision with the knowledge and wisdom that I now have, I would probably choose to do some sort of ministry.  Over my lifetime, I have been blessed to have heard many excellent preachers/teachers from a very varied background.  I have also been blessed with the most fantastic wife who is also my best friend.  Many people have commented that they wish that they had a marriage like ours.  Trust me it does not happen by accident

Today I talked to a craftsman in Branson, Missouri and he shared with me that he had a website where he daily wrote down his thoughts.  He was in his 70's and had multiple life experiences in multiple fields.  As I was talking to him I realized that I, too, had multiple careers and varied life experiences. I also have a desire to share some of what I have learned and experienced with my friends. 

It is with this in mind, I am starting blog.  I will be sending out an e-mail to my friends and family making them aware of this blog.  They can check it out if they desire, but I will not be offended if they do not.  I don't know exactly how often I will post to this blog or how long it will last but every journey is started with one step; so, here goes