ASLEEP AT THE WHEEL

IT IS HIGH TIME TO AWAKE!
As newly married couples join hearts and hands in marriage, there are far too often those who feel they have the privilege of offering their two cents to the couple, even before the wedding reception is over. The traditional quotes and riddles with hidden meanings are passed on by those who have fallen asleep at the helm of their love boat, so to speak.

Most of those couples who have been together for years will tell them that the honeymoon will soon pass and reality will begin to sink in, so get ready! Isn't that a wonderful thought to leave a couple with right after they have married? The reason that this goes on generation after generation is because these couples have fallen asleep at the helm of their love boat.

They no longer feel like they once did because their love boat fuel tanks are empty or running on their last gallon of fuel. When the waves come and rock their boat around, that last little bit of fuel is still there but isn't quite enough to keep the motor from sputtering. The tank is very large and could hold hundreds of gallons of fuel, but that last gallon is swished back and forth past the fuel pump, allowing only enough fuel to barely keep their love boat running in the storm. So they share their experience with the newly weds as a forecast of days ahead in their relationship, almost as though it is normal and to be expected.

The facts are that this type of relationship between a husband and wife is not what God intended and there is a clear and decisive way for couples to avoid falling asleep at the helm and allowing their tanks to run dry. There are clearly defined principles to apply to our lives that will prevent a couple from finding themselves stranded and at the mercy of the storms in their lives. Instead of just hoping for the storms to pass, they will have the fuel and the navigational equipment necessary to move through the storm. When they come out of the storm, they will be on the same course that they were on before the storm and will have also made some progress along the way.

You might be thinking to yourself, "How can I tell if I have fallen asleep at the helm?". Most people, awake or asleep, think that they are doing alright in all of their relationships, but take heed! Paul is talking to believers in the book of Romans when he gives us this warning to "Awake" and this series of messages will show us just how our lives will change when we wake up; at home, at church and in the community around us. I have learned first hand, the things that I will share with you in this series and how applying the principles that Paul teaches us in the thirteenth chapter of Romans will bring a change in your relationships at home, in the community and even in your worship with God.

Romans 13:11
11 And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed.
12 The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light.


Now it is HIGH TIME! That means that the HOUR is here and the time is NOW. People just roll over and go back to sleep in relationships all to often. I must agree with the apostle Paul when he says, "IT IS HIGH TIME TO AWAKE FROM OUR SLEEP!" Verse twelve says,"The night is far spent", that means it is later than you may think! I want to tell you that it is later in this age than you may think! I believe that Jesus Christ is at the threshold and I believe that the trumpet is about to sound and Jesus Christ is going to come soon and it is only the restraining hand of Almighty God that has kept the floodgates of evil closed as much as they have been. It may be later in your life than you think! You only have so many more days or hours left to serve the Lord Jesus. James 4:14 says,"What is your life but a vapor that appeared for a little with and then vanished away"!

It's later in the day of opportunity than you may think. We have opportunities now that are unparalleled to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ. Jesus said when he was here on earth in John 9:4, "I must work the works of Him that sent me while it is day, the night cometh when no man can work!" There are allot of things you can do here on this earth, but there's one thing we won't be able to do in heaven and that is to win souls to Christ.

There are several things that I pray that everyone who hears this message will do, that the apostle Paul urges us to do in this passage and the first one is to "WAKE UP"!

God's alarm clock is going off all around us!
A young man asked his pastor one Sunday if there was a good prayer that he could pray whenever he came to the service and his pastor said,"Yes, Now I lay me down to sleep".

It's time that we wake up. So many times we are like Sampson, asleep in the lap of Delilah. When we wake up and go out to shake ourselves, it's without the spirit's power. How do we wake up? Not by hitting the snooze button; we have to wake up and get up! Get busy doing the things that you are purposed to do in your life!

Wake Up! Get Up! Husbands and wives, grab the wheel of your boats and get ready to fuel up and apply the principles we will find in the series of messages I have titled "AWAKE!".

IT'S HIGH TIME TO AWAKE! LET'S GO!

HOLY IS THE LORD GOD ALMIGHTY!

"FASCINATING"

I spotted this captivating insect while touring a lake and visitor center at the top of Raccoon Mountain in Tennessee. It appeared to be about ten times the size of an ant and it was clothed in a bright red coating. It crawled like an ant but it looked like a bee. After my brother did some research, we found that it was actually a wingless bee that has been known to gang up and kill cattle with it's sting.

 As beautiful and fascinating as it was, it could have been a life threatening situation if we had gotten too close, as we were at least 30 minutes from the nearest doctor. I can tell you though that we were all fascinated with it's color and design.

Isn't that how it is sometimes with people who are famous or popular? People follow them in droves from city to city, station to station, trend to trend?

The thing that we need to keep in mind as brothers and sisters in Christ is that we each have something about us that is just as awesome and just as useful as those people who are considered popular. As a matter of fact, just like this beautiful bug that we were all so fascinated with, some of those "popular" people might not be so awesome and friendly if you had to spend every waking minute with them. If you got close enough, you could even get stung! We all have our faults and we all have our strengths! We read about this every day in the news. There are popular news papers published just to share the latest celebrity heartache! Right?

Please be careful! Remember this! One day all that we choose to do will be manifest and only what really counted will be rewarded.

We all know that God is good! I came across a passage one day that talked about receiving some of His goodness. It might take a little while for us to accept this passage into our hearts in our present day of "idols" , "survivors", "celebrities" and "heroes" , but please take it to heart and know that it is good to take heed when true wisdom is shared.


"Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you seems to be wise in this world, let him become a fool, that he may be wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, He takes the wise in their own craftiness. And again, The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are empty. For this reason let no man glory in men. For all things are yours; Whether Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or the world, or life, or death, or things present, or things to come; all are yours; And you are Christ's; and Christ is God's." ~1Corinthians3:18-23


Isn't that fascinating?  All who believe (popular or not) are on the same plain! This passage comes after a lesson about the ministry of our Lord where Paul was teaching believers that we all are one in our service and in our bodies because the Spirit of God lives in us and we all ought to be working together in life to accomplish the sacred will of God. 


Peter also wrote about the importance of our daily deeds.  Deeds are referred to as work in verse fourteen of the KJV and is described as an act, toil or deed in the Strong's Greek and Hebrew Dictionary . For those who enjoy the facts, the Greek word is ἔργον and the English spelling is ergon.

Don't feel discouraged at this point because, just as many others, you may have become captivated by the wisdom of people instead of  our Lord. Maybe you found those popular men or women of our day to be quite "fascinating".  I suggest to just take a moment and pray. God understands you more than you think. Otherwise, this passage wouldn't have been recorded so many years ago in the book of Corinthians and preserved for us to read, learn and declare today. Let the Lord know that you are fascinated with Him and that all other fascinations fade into the shadows of your life next to Him.

Claim for yourself these three things declared in 1Corinthians 3:22,23 as you put Christ first!


Everything is Mine!


I am Christ's!


Christ is God's!

"A WISE BUILDER"

 In the process of checking my father's roof following a wind storm, I had to set up an aluminum ladder to access the roof. His ladder wasn't very long so I chose the lowest point on the roof. This happened to be at the back deck. I have never liked putting any type of ladder on a deck in the first place, but I thought that if I was real careful it would be fine just this once. As I climbed to the top of the ladder I became more and more confident in myself and the ladder since there wasn't any signs of slipping or movement. So I went to step off of the ladder onto the roof just as I always did when everything was secure, but what happened next was a quick reminder of why I had a problem with putting ladders on decks. The surface of that deck had just enough algae or moisture to cause the bottom of the ladder to kick out and slide. Thank God I had one foot on the roof, but my weight was still on the ladder and my other leg went through the rung and I ended up scraping up my shin.

I knew better when I started up the ladder, but it seemed ok, so I continued up one step at a time. I even remember thinking how well it had gone and saying thank you God in the recesses of my mind, right before the ladder fell. Well, I knew better than to ask God why it happened because He had given me the ability to understand the danger before I climbed that ladder. What I did think about though was this passage.


"According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise masterbuilder, I have laid the foundation, and another buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon. For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ. " 1Corinthians 3:10-11


Paul was warning the believers to be careful what they spent their lives doing. But I thought about the grace of God that had made Paul a "wise" master builder. He had laid the right foundation which was greater than any other foundation laid by men. Jesus Christ! Just as I put that ladder on an unsure foundation, we too can place our trust and faith in the wrong place. Let's be careful that we aren't building our lives upon the foundation laid by the famous men in this world, but rather on the greatest of all men who ever lived, Jesus.


You may hear someone talking about other men all the time, but forgetting to ever give our Lord thanks for his honor, glory and power. If so, beware! Famous men will fall when they build their life on their own man made foundations. Often so many others who idolize them also get hurt when their foundation gives way and they fall. I can promise any man alive this one thing for sure, "Jesus Christ will never let you down".


 Be a Wise Builder! Make Jesus Christ your foundation and be careful what you build upon it. Selah

DAY PLANNER

"What are you planning to do today?"

I once worked for a man who would ask us this question at about 6:30 every morning. This meant getting my ducks in a row and organizing my day before walking into the morning meetings. On those really long days, I sometimes waited until the early morning to make out my plan for that following day. That meant I was drinking coffee and scratching my head at 5:30am. Over the years I learned that it was a much better idea to plan ahead the night before and my day was much more productive as a result.



How do you start your day? I often find myself thinking about the different appointments I have set even before I have finished making my coffee in the morning. I think that this is typical of anyone who has a family or business to care for these days. You may even be thinking to yourself right now,"Do I really have time to read this?". Well, try your best to focus on what I'm getting ready to say because it could literally change your entire life. How could I do that, you might ask? Let's reflect for just a few minutes on a passage that David wrote in Psalm 71.

But I will hope continually, and will yet praise you more and more. My mouth will proclaim your righteousness and your salvation all day long; because I don't know how many days I have to live.  ~Psalm 71:14,15


David wasn't sure about the outcome of some of his relationships, especially those of his enemies; those that took counsel together against him. David was pleading for God's help earlier in verse 12 of this chapter and asking for the enemy to be confused and removed, and to be found a reproach and dishonored in verse 13. But the very next thing that he writes totally changes the outcome of his life!

Not only does he say that he will have hope but that he will also praise God more and more.

 When I read this passage, I asked myself if I could relate to what David was saying here. As I thought about this and how we often come up with strategies and plans when we find that someone is taking counsel against us, especially if we know we are doing what's right! Boy, does the blood pressure rise and the tempers flare as our self defence mode is triggered? We want to stand up for our dignity! Of course we do, but look at the reaction of David and learn something from David's Day Planning that Carnegie's and other popular courses would never teach you.

 First we see that David was a little older now, as we look down in verse 18 where he says, "now also when I am old and grayheaded, O God forsake me not". In his aging David had come to realize that God was the one and true hope for all situations that he may face in Life. David was a fighter at heart, yet he had turned to God in verse 15 and I'll quote him in saying,"My mouth will proclaim your righteousness and your salvation all day long!" Then he says, "Because I don't know how many days I have to live."


David was praising God, Yes, because he had become wiser and understood something about time management.

Who knows how many days we have left on this earth? I certainly have no clue about the length of my life, do you? Having said that, how have you planned your day? Should we consider the actions of a much wiser and older David, a man after God's own heart? If you're already flying through your day full speed ahead, take just a moment at break or maybe the next stoip light; think about the choice that David makes back in verse 15 and consider his example for your life.

"My mouth will proclaim your righteousness and your salvation all day long;...." ~Ps.17:15

 Who knows, you may not have that many days left on this earth. Will people remember, as David says in verse 18, that you carried the strength and power of God with you?

"O God, don't leave me; until I have showed your strength to this generation, and your power to every one that is to come." ~ Ps.71:18

Take a long hard look in the mirror, just as David does here. I believe this is what the wise old David would have wanted us to write in our Day Planners today and every day for as long as we are alive. I want to see a man in the mirror whose mouth is proclaiming righteousness and God's salvation (liberation from bondage) any time of the day to the younger generations, because I don't really know how many days I have to live. Selah.

WHAT SEASON IS IT ANYWAYS?

The seasons have totally confused me lately. I don't know whether to take an allergy pill or wear my winter coat. The flowers are blooming in the middle of March and the mid-west is experiencing hurricane season already. I can't help but wonder if we are going to get the April showers this year. It can all be a bit confusing to the animal life as well. What I have notinced though, is that everything seems to be rolling with the changes and moving ahead regardless of what month it happens. Even the mosquitos hatched from their eggs early! Ouch.

Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. ~ 2Timothy 4:2

As I thought about this passage in 2Timothy, it made me think about the resilence of the living creatures, even in unusual circumstances. I feel that this was exactly what Paul was trying to convey in his message to Timothy. Pauls life was nearing the end and he had seen many followers come and go, as you will find in the rest of this chapter. I'm sure it was really hard on Paul to see this happen after spending hours teaching these men who had made the choice to follow and commit themselves to the Lord's calling. It brings to mind the verse in Psalms where David tells us to put our confidence in God, not man. (Ps. 118:8,9)
I thought about Paul's words, 'in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. For a time is coming when they will not endure sound doctrine..'
I can't really tell you for sure if we are in season or out of season right now, but I know that it is one or the other! Another words, Paul left us no question about when or where to be doing the work of God. I believe that he used some life application here that words it in such away that nobody could exclude themselves for a period of time to take away from the calling of God on their life. There is a constant, relentless plea made here to continue while there is time and people will listen to the TRUTH. Is the truth being taught? Would the people who come in contact with us know what we believe or know how to believe in God? Read verse five of 2Timothy to see what Paul had to say about this situation as well.
I'll admit brothers and sisters, without knowing it, I have worked beside men all day long only to find out later that they filled the role of ministers or youth leaders in a church. Let verse seventeen be a challenge to all men to preach the truth so that, as Paul says, all the Gentiles might hear. We live in a nation full of Gentiles and there's only one way I know for them to hear; it has to be spoken. Let's exhort one another in the church to open our mouths and speak the truth. Let's rebuke the temptation of satan to remain silent. Last but not least, let's reprove ourselves that we may also say at the end of our lives, as Paul claimed in verse seven, that we fought the good fight, we finished the course and we kept the faith.

WHAT'S SO AMAZING ABOUT THE BIBLE?

If you have about a minute, I'd be glad to share what I find so amazing...

The Bible contains

the mind of God,

the state of man,

the way of salvation,

the doom of sinners

and the happiness of believers.

It's doctrines are holy,

it's precepts are binding,

it's histories are true,

and it's decisions are immutable.

Read it to be wise,

believe it to be safe,

and practice it to be holy.

It contains light to direct you,

food to support you,

and comfort to cheer you.

It is the traveler's map,

the pilgrim's staff'

the pilot's compass,

the soldier's sword,

and the Christian's charter.

Here Paradise is restored,

Heaven opened,

and the gates of hell disclosed.

CHRIST is its grand subject,

our good the design,

and the glory of God its end.

It should fill the memory,

rule the heart,

and guide the feet.

Read it slowly,

frequently and prayerfully.

It is a mine of wealth,

a paradise of glory,

and a river of pleasure.

It is given you in life,

will be opened at the judgement,

and be remembered forever.

It involves the highest responsibility,

will reward the greatest labor

and will condemn all who trifle with it's sacred contents.

Visit this link for 10 interesting Bible Facts: http://www.factsofworld.com/bible-facts