A Hard Row To Hoe

I don't know if you all know this term around here since the soil is different. Okay, in many ways its better, but for a West Texas country boy or girl, this term means a lot! If you wanted to keep weeds out of a garden, you daily hoed a row; sometimes more than one. If the ground was hard and dry, or the weeds were stubborn, or there were just a whole lot of them; then it was a hard row to hoe. If your garden hoe was dull or it was very hot that day, then it was a hard row to hoe. You'd pick up that garden tool and look down that row. It seemed to go for miles! It was part of your chores: tend to the orphan livestock, feed the chickens, collect the eggs (avoid the Rooster), burn trash, and hoe a row. So, you hoed a row.

When someone would come and give you a break or a drink of cold water, how refreshing! Maybe they would help by sharpening your garden hoe or start working alongside you to get the job done faster. What a relief! The work still needed doin’ but the toil got a little easier.

Right now, there are families we know with a hard row to hoe. As a Christian family, we WILL be ready to help them. “What do I say?” “What can we do?” “I feel so helpless, but I want to do something.”  

Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight. Proverbs 3:5-6

We may not know what to do right at this moment but, with the good Lord’s help, we will when the time comes. Jesus said to channel everything we do through one emotion. I believe it.

My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. You are My friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from My Father I have made known to you. You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit—fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in my name. This is my command: Love each other. John 15:12-17

Grace and Peace,

Blan

Knowing The Bible From Cover To Cover

Once upon a time, there was a church without a preacher. The search committee had interviewed several prospective ministers, but so far none were to their liking. Some were too bold, some were too quiet, some were too harsh, some were too flashy. And some, they thought, were not flashy enough!

The last prospect met with the committee. His name was Sam. One of the committee members asked Sam if he knew his Bible. Sam replied, "I sure do – I know my Bible from cover to cover, from Generations to Revolutions." When someone asked him which part of the Bible he liked best, Sam answered, "The Book of Parables." The committee members exchanged glances, then one of them asked Sam which parable he liked best. Sam replied, "I like the parable of the Good Samaritan best." The committee asked Sam if he would tell the story of the Good Samaritan, and here is the way Sam told it.

A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho when he fell among thieves, and thorns grew up and choked the man. He didn't have any money and the Queen of Sheba came along and gave him a thousand talents and a hundred changes of raiment. He got in a chariot and rode furiously along, and as he rode his hair got caught on the limb of a tree and he hung there many days, and the ravens brought him food to eat and water to drink. Finally, Delilah came along and cut off his hair and he fell on stony ground, and it rained forty days and forty nights. So he went and hid in a cave and the dogs came and licked his sores.

As he returned to Jerusalem, he saw an old hen trying to get her chickens under her wings, but some of them would not. He went a little farther and met a man who asked him to have supper with him, but he said, "I can't because I have married a wife," but he compelled him, so he ate supper with him and they had locusts and wild honey.

As he was going down the street, he looked up and saw Jezebel in a window, and when she saw him she laughed at him. When she laughed, he said, "Fling down Jezebel." And they flung her down. And he said, "Fling her down again – seventy times seven." So they flung her down seventy times seven, and of the fragments, they picked up twelve baskets. Now in the judgment whose wife is she going to be?

The committee members smiled at one another and dismissed Sam. The time had come to cast their votes for the best candidate for the preacher of the church. They reflected on each individual they had interviewed. When the votes were tallied it was unanimous. Sam was the new preacher. All agreed that he would be an outstanding minister for their church. He met all their qualifications, and, most important, he "knew his Bible from cover to cover"!

 Why This Story? The sad part is that the committee knew so little of their Bibles And now they rejoice because they have a preacher that knows the Bible from cover to cover.

Now if you think this story is outrageous, think again. This has actually happened in some places. Many people reject the Bible but feel that their preacher should know their Bible. Many members are happier when they know their preacher knows his Bible.

“He is the one to lead the flock after all, and he needs to know the instructions so he can teach them.”  I think I can speak for all minister when I say please don’t hold us up that high.

What about You? Do you know your Bible?  Do you know what each book is about? Do you know where the OT ends and the NT begins?  What is your favorite story? What is your favorite verse?

 Do you study your Bible?  Do you know it well enough to tell someone what it is about?  Or do you go see the movie rather than read the book? Just a warning, that can get you into trouble.

 Hosea 4:6 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being My priest. Since you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children.

This may be humorous to a point.  It is really a sad commentary on people.

The knowledge of God is the greatest treasure known to man,  And so few seek such knowledge.

2 Peter 3:18 But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ…

Grace & Peace

Blan

In The Middle

“Clowns to the left of me, jokers to the right, Here I am, stuck in the middle with you.”

Some may call it wishy-washy. Some can call it indecisive. Some call it straddling a fence. I find it fascinating that the more and more divided this nation gets accused of being, the more I want to stand in the middle and wait. Yes, I said wait. “For what?” You may ask. That's easy…. I'll wait for those who are on the right and the left to get tired of all the yelling, the screaming, the kneeling, the standing, the flag waving and the flag burning. I’ll wait for those who have blue stripes on their bumper sticker and for the BLM’s, the conservative or liberal, Democrat or Republican. I'll wait.  I'll wait for the yankees as well as the southern. Yes, I'll even wait for Red Raiders and the Longhorns.

I, and many like me, will sit on the fence and wait. We will try not to overreact when someone wants to take something down or out, or add to or replace it.  We will try not to get our feelings hurt when we or friends of ours on either side gets labeled a  _____lover or ____hater. 

Sometimes it takes a lot of trying to figure out that what's been done in the past or present isn't going to work or never worked in the first place. Daddy would say about wild livestock, “When they get thirsty enough from all that runnin and carryin on...They'll come to the water.”

And when those on the left and on the right, or in the north or south, or wherever the divide is, get tired of “runnin around and carryin on” and are ready, they will look around the smoke, banners, flags, picket signs, tweets, and online post. When they look past their group of the likeminded to gauge and see how far out they've gone, what do you think they'll see? Hopefully, they'll see us. They’ll see those who chose to stay in the middle; the ones who were quiet when everything was getting blown out of proportion. They’ll see the ones who were told that we were either “part of the solution or part of the problem”, or that were told “you have to stand for something or you fall for anything.” When they look this way, I hope and pray that they'll see us waving them to come back and pointing to the one who can show us how to bind the divided, Love the unloved, and Heal the wounds that are centuries old. I hope they see us pointing to the ONE AND ONLY WAY to completely stop hate, racism, sin. I hope and pray they see us pointing to the cross. Pointing to the empty tomb. Pointing to Jesus!

“But whatever was to my profit, I now consider loss for the sake of Christ.

What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ--the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith. I want to know Christ and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in His sufferings, becoming like Him in His death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.

Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 3:7-14

Grace & Peace

Blan

It’s NOT the end of the world!

So I try not to do this a lot but it has comes to my attention that there are too many posts about the end times again.  I feel like it is my responsibility to enlighten the situation.  If I may be so bold, allow me to correct some of the things that are being said. Yes there are wildfires, yes we had an eclipse, yes we're having floods and hurricanes most likely we will probably have a very cold winter this year too. But none of that… I repeat none! Is a true sign that the Lord is coming. Please do yourself some good and instead of reading two verses about destruction and deciding that it the end of the world. Go back and read the verses before them and the after them. It will help you get a better understanding of what’s being said. 

Jesus said himself "No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man.  For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark;  and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man.  Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left.  Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left.  "Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come.  But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into.  So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him. Matthew 24:36-44 (NIV)

 So for all of you out there who are reading 3 Bible verses and putting 2 and 2 together to get 6.

STOP IT!

 You are only confusing people and that's not helping! Please remember it’s called the Good News FOR A REASON!

 If the Angels don't know when the Lord's going to come again where do you think you're going to find it?  Here is the truth of the matter a lot of Christians will try to look at these "signs” and use them as an excuse to throw up their hands and quit.  Just sit back and wait for the Lord to come and not do anything!  "Oh well we've got fires, we’ve got hurricanes, we've got floods.  That means the Lord's coming.  That means I don't have to do anything because everything is going to be destroyed soon, so I'm just going to sit back and wait for the Lord to come to take me with him, Oh and tell all the non-believers ‘I told you so’".

That is a sorry, horrible, attitude to have!

In the letter to Thessalonians, there were a group of people were doing THIS VERY THING!

 Paul tells of Thessalonians Christians you are not supposed to be sitting around waiting for the Lord to come you're supposed to be out doing good! This is what he says 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11 (NIV)

 Now, brothers, about times and dates we do not need to write to you,  for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, "Peace and safety," destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. But you, brothers, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief. You are all sons of the light and sons of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness.  So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be alert and self-controlled. For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, get drunk at night. But since we belong to the day, let us be self-controlled, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet. For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.  He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him. Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.

I don't know when Jesus is coming and neither does anyone else! So don't drink the end of the world kool-aid.  I can tell you this.  I sure do look forward to it.  I look forward to being in heaven with my Lord and Savior.  I look forward to being in heaven with all my Christian family and friends.

But the one thing we should not do is sit around and wait for it to happen. Instead, we need to: 1. Be working, helping those who lost everything, supporting those who are in need. Showing whose disciples we are. "A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.  By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."  John 13:34-35 (NIV)

2. Sharing the gospel at all times so that when Jesus does come. It will have been worth the wait. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare.  2 Peter 3:9-10 (NIV)

The point of the matter is this. The Lord wants all to be saved.... When he does come he shouldn’t find us sitting but he should find us working!

We Need Lemonade Makers!

I realize by making this the title of my blog that I could be subject to bottles of lemonade, or lemonade drink mix, or for that matter lemons, but read on and I'll explain.

 Sometimes men in my position are asked this question, “Preacher, what does the church need?” While there are many answers to this question, it dawned on me that one of the many things churches need is those who have been given lemons and turned them into lemonade. You should know the analogy. Sure we have examples in the Bible like Joseph (Genesis 50:20) or the apostle Paul (Acts 9:15-16). However, today we need to see examples of those in our area who have been able to take unfortunate things in their lives and, with God’s help, turned them into something that will give hope to others. Another question that we Ministers get asked a lot is, “Why is this happening to me?” Here's what I believe. It’s happening so that you’ll turn to God and, with His help, overcome it. But, that’s only half of it.

After you have taken those sour old lemons and squeezed every bit of juice out of them and added sugar/honey (Psalm 19:7-11) and water, you are obligated to share your recipe with someone who is dealing with the same trial!   There are people dealing with all kinds of things. Addiction, Loss of loved one, Loss of a child, Infertility, Cancer, Marriages ending in divorce, Unemployment, Financial problems, Depression. Do I need to keep going? 

1 Peter 1:6-7   In this you greatly rejoice, even though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been distressed by various trials, so that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which is perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ;

God is an expert at bringing good out of bad.  He could have kept Paul out of prison in Philippi but instead, He let Paul go to prison and the jailer became a believer as a result.(Acts 16:25-30) God could have kept Jesus from the cross but He let Him go -- His own Son -- He let Him suffer and die.  Did He bring any good out of that?  I'd say He did!

So we need lemonade makers. We need those who can show us that the light at the end of the tunnel isn’t a train. We need those who can show us what faith, hope, and perseverance can produce.

We need those who will share their lemonade and how they made it.

Grace & Peace

Blan

Acceptance

For a long time, my Dad raised Angora goats for their hair. Back in the 80’s, mohair was a big business. We would have hundreds of goats on the ranch. Twice a year the shearers would come and shear our Angora goats and what sheep we had.  From time to time we would sell some to other mohair growers. We would round up a herd and pen them so that the buyer could look them over and pick the ones he wanted. Keeping track of them took some time. Dad kept a book in his front shirt pocket to keep track of how many he had in one place or the other. So, every day when we fed the goats, we also had to count them to see if any of them had died or were killed by predators.

One summer, we rounded up an entire herd for a sale. All of them were going to be sold. After we penned them, we started counting…97, 98, 99. There was supposed to be 100, so Dad made us count again…97, 98, 99. Still not satisfied he counted... 97, 98, 99.  “Well, I guess we lost one.” We offered to go back and look to see if we could find the missing one, but the buyer was coming and it would take all of us to get the herd loaded.

 A couple of days after that, Dad turned out some cattle into the place where we had the goats. Just like with the goats, we had to check on the cattle, but not as often. It was more like twice a week. We went out to check the cows one day and low and behold, guess what came up with the cows when we called them? The missing goat! The one we thought was dead took to traveling with the cattle. Normally different kinds of livestock won’t associate with each other. They can coexist in the same place, but only sheep and goats will intermingle with each other. However, this one goat joined up with the cattle and the cattle let him be a part of the herd. Soon after that, we noticed that he was emulating the characteristics of the cattle around him. When the cows bellowed the goat would bleat. When they moved with the weather it moved, He would eat the feed we fed the cattle. When we called the cattle up (we call cattle differently than we do goats) he would be the first to show.

Romans 15:5-7 says, “Now may the God who gives perseverance and encouragement grant you to be of the same mind with one another according to Christ Jesus, so that with one accord you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, accept one another, just as Christ also accepted us to the glory of God.”

For whatever reason, this goat wasn’t with the others when they were rounded up. Then he was alone. Soon after, he attempted to join a different herd and he was accepted. Afterward, the goat thought he was a cow. There are many people in the world today who want acceptance. May the Lord bless us with a unified and accepting spirit, so that others will want to join and develop the same desire to follow and praise God.

Grace and Peace

Blan