Come Out of Hiding

"O God, thou knowest my foolishness; and my sins are not hid from thee." ~ Psalm 69:5 So confessed King David. Whenever I have something to repent of, this passage leaps to my mind. I am often appalled at my own behavior, though usually too late, after it's been exposed or I'm afraid that it will be.  Why do I continue in my foolish ways, and to sin, knowing that the Lord is well aware of what I'm doing even if no one else is? We may hide or fail to confess our sins in order to escape the shame and potential punishment naturally attending...

MY THOUGHTS: GOD AND HIS WORD

Thinking about God and His word, I discover that He never says what He would not do, He never let go of His word. He does not just speak (His character does not just accept or flow with that…) He is God almighty. Many times we say things because we find it appropriate or convenient, but our God is not like us… His word are measured and calculated. Yes, He is the most high, and the all-powerful but He is careful about His word. Regardless of our feeling and our circumstance, He won’t sweet-talk or flatter us just...

"Take a Step Back to Take a Step Forward!"

     Am I the "happiest" I can be?  As a "child of God" what am I entitled to?  What inheritance?  Has my life been turning around for the "best?"  What do I need to "Take a Step Back" out of?  Where do I need to "Take a Step Forward" to?  Do I know that there is a life available to me where I will not have a need to look over my shoulder?  Do I realize that God wants me to prosper (flourish) in a life that is beyond my wildest dreams and imaginations?  A life that He sent His Only Begotten...

Jesus, Budweiser, & Freedom

www.mikewhittymore.com Do you ever wonder if Jesus were here today that He, being the King of Jews, would drink the King of Beers? These are the types of questions that plague my day. But deep within the sarcasm, there's a good question. Would Jesus drink beer? What do you think?  We know Jesus drank wine. We know He made wine. We know He illustrated with wine.  Yet, we live in this bazaar reality where legalism has forced our humble protestant reformation to use a breathalyzer. For the orthodox among us,...

Behind Schedule

Saturday is the day on which I run the bulk of my errands. I thought I had last Saturday all planned out. It did not turn out as I planned. I had many things on my agenda that I wanted to accomplish. From the outset, every item on my list took far longer than I expected. Most delays were due to circumstances outside my control. Early in the afternoon, I decided to eat lunch before returning to my itinerary, As I was in a hurry to return to my tasks, I decided to grab a quick hamburger and some fries. I went into a restaurant and placed my order. As I proceeded to the dining area with my food,...

Hey, YOU!

               There was a man in the Bible that I definitely admire very much. He stood by his faith when he spied the promised land, along with Caleb, he had faith in that God had promised, claiming that truly Canaan was a good land, and that they would prevail against the people who dwelt. But the CALLED of this man was just beginning, God had something much larger for JOSHUA.                The past many years, Moses, the leader of the Israeli people, dies and...

The right Rebuke

“And have you completely forgotten this word of encouragement that addresses you as a father addresses his son? It says,“My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and he chastens everyone he accepts as his son. Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. For what children are not disciplined by their father?” Heb 12:5-7  A rebuke like so many other things is also a biblical principle, as well as love, forgiveness,...

Church & Sex

Ever sat through the "purity" talk?  I have. -I wanted to punch myself in the face. I don't know what's more awkward: having to listen to the talk, or watching the person squirm as they give it? Who gave you your talk? For me, it was my high school health teacher. He spent about 20 min showing us pictures of STDs, then moved on to the benefits of abstinence, all while trying desperately to not make eye contact. Needless to say, my experience was lame. Maybe your's was better. But here's what...

Prisoners of the Lord

Among the most remarkable and revealing aspects of Holy Scripture is that followers of the Lord are often referred to, or refer to themselves, as "prisoners."  Today this word usually reminds us of someone who is burdened with guilt and shame, confined, despairing, without freedom or hope--a most undesirable way to be.  But speaking through the prophet Zechariah, God tells his people to "[t]urn you to the strong hold, ye prisoners of hope," and that they will then be given victory over their enemies (Zechariah 9:12).  In the New...

WHO ARE YOU GOING WITH?

There is a saying among my people (the Yorubas of South West Nigeria) that “show me your friend, and I will know who you are”.Friend in this regard refers to the people you walk, talk, spend time with, put your life in their hands, and who share your hope and aspiration. In short, your friends are the people who go with you in the long haul. The emphasis on your friend by my people stem from their understanding that the person(s) you spend time with determines so many things in your life. It determines how you are perceived, what you would do, how far you would...

The last Chance

Genesis 21:14-19 Early the next morning Abraham took some food and a skin of water and gave them to Hagar. He set them on her shoulders and then sent her off with the boy. She went on her way and wandered in the Desert of Beersheba. When the water in the skin was gone, she put the boy under one of the bushes. Then she went off and sat down about a bowshot away, for she thought, “I cannot watch the boy die.” And as she sat there, she[a] began to sob. God heard the boy crying, and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, “What...

Focus on Being Ready

The year 2012 is upon us. I plan  to celebrate several milestones this year. One of those milestones is this very devotional which happens to be my 100th weekly message since January 2010. There is another event which will take place this year that has captivated the imaginations of a great many people. 2012 also happens to be the year that the Mayan calendar comes to an end. Some take this to be a sign of the end of the world. Some of the television networks I normally count on for "historical" documentaries have begun the new year with a lineup of programming forecasting nothing but...

Garbage bin

II Corinthians 5:17-"So that if anyone is in Christ, new creature is; the old things have passed away; Behold, everything it's new.            A new year has arrived, and along with it desires peace, happiness, prosperity, love, good employment, protection, new conquests ...Christian or not, all asking for improvements in this period. The famous new year's Party by itself is exciting, the countdown, the Fireworks, the family reunited makes us want to further a better year ... but the fact that we speak HAPPY...

You're the only person in the world can improve their lives

You're the only person in the world can improve their lives" JM Often we get stuck in our lives, because we can not take out of us strength, courage, determination, perseverance to grow. This happens because the act requires us to grow discipline, endurance, courage, investment and these factors certainly get us out of our comfort zone (our habits, desires, concepts already formed will now have to be redone).And that's not something nice, because we will "step into the unknown" that will bring a certain insegurança.Entretanto, we have the Holy Spirit dwelling within us, we can walk with confidence,...