Daily Inspirations

  Good morning. I hope you are as spry as a chicken. Go get that worm you early bird. Yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom are all things, and we exist for Him; and one Lord, Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we exist through Him. There is no other One for us; and there is only one way to Him – Jesus Christ. Paul then talks about eating food sacrificed to idols, but we can relate this to anything that we believe is OK for us to do. For if someone sees you, who have knowledge, dining in an idol's temple, will not his conscience, if he is weak, be strengthened to eat things sacrificed to idols? So if someone who is weak sees us doing something that we believe is OK for us or any other Christian to do, they will believe it's OK for them. But they just might stumble, if they do it. We don't want our freedom to cause someone else to sin. Again Paul is talking about eating food sacrificed to idols: therefore, if food causes my brother to stumble, I wil...

  Good morning. I hope you're feeling better. We are skipping a number of verses in Corinthians. Paul says: I wrote you not to associate with immoral people. I did not at all mean with the immoral people of this world… for then you would have to go out of the world. I wrote to you not to associate with any so-called brother if he should be an immoral person… not even to eat with such a one. For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Do you not judge those who are within the church? But those who are outside, God judges. With a church as large as ours, I am sure there are those who fit this bill. And why should we judge those in the church… because one rotten apple spoils the barrel. People will think that we are condoning sin, and therefore it's OK for them to do the same thing. We hope that through the message preached that the Holy Spirit will bring conviction upon them. Do you not know that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Paul then mentions a bunch...

  Good morning. And now one of, if not the last verse about wisdom: for the wisdom of the world is foolishness before God. For it is written, "He is the One who catches the wise in their craftiness". And "the Lord knows the reasonings of the wise, that they are useless". Man thinks he knows it all and can figure everything out. He tries to "finagle" things. But God will get them in the end – I'm not saying which end. A certain person in the news lately thought she was being crafty when she set up her private email server. For several years she thought she'd gotten away with it. But in the end, that might be what helped seal her doom. If she hadn't done that, she might be president elect now. Then Paul says: that no one boast in men. He also says: I am conscious of nothing against myself, yet I am not by this acquitted; but the One who examines me is the Lord. We grow in our knowledge of what is right and wrong. Right now there may be somethin...

  Good morning. We're back in the book of Corinthians. Lest one think that there is nothing for us in this Christian life: "things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard, and which have not entered the heart of man, all that God has prepared for those who love Him". Wow! We can't even imagine what God has prepared for us. And yet: for to us God revealed them through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God. God lets us know what is in store for us, if we will only listen to Him who is within. For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the man, which is within him? Even so the thoughts of God no one knows except the Spirit of God. The Holy Spirit is our connection to the thoughts of God. What He knows, we can know. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things freely given to us by God. The spirit of the world will lead to its destruction. It...

  Good morning. Back to the book of Corinthians. I did not come with superiority of speech or of wisdom, proclaiming to you the testimony of God. He was not some great orator who tried to persuade them with his words. He determined to know nothing among them except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified. That is the crux of the gospel, the message we preach. It is not a "feel good message about me". There is a harsh reality – someone died for me. Back to wisdom: my message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and power, that your faith should not rest on the wisdom of man, but on the power of God. The world tries to use an argument to convince us that we are wrong. They think that this is something that is in one's head. They don't understand that He is real to us. They are like the people in the book of Acts who scoffed at Paul when he talked about Jesus being raised from the dead. It is after all mind-boggling. Paul ...

  Good morning. Well today is the day we been waiting for/dreading (Election Day, Nov 8, 2016). My guess is that we won't know who won by the time I go to bed. A lot of people have been predicting this or that; candidates have tried this and that; but God says "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the cleverness of the clever I will set aside". Actually that is where we pick up in the book of Corinthians. Where is the wise man? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? As we talked about before, man's wisdom won't cut it. Since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not come to know God, God was well please through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe. You see it so much in the academic world; all of those professors thinking that through their wisdom they know all about God. They have put God in a box, and they know all about Him. We preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block, and to Gentiles foo...

  Good morning. We are back in Corinthians. Paul exhorts them to all agree and that there be no divisions among them. Some were saying I am of Paul, others said I am of this one or that one. We have that even today. A few years back, it was I am of Kenneth Copeland, or some other faith preacher. I don't even know the names of those today, but I know they are out there. In Paul's day some were so spiritual that they were even saying I am of Christ, not of these mere mortals. That does sound spiritual, doesn't it - "Just me and Jesus". Paul says that there be no divisions among you, but that you be made complete in the same mind and in the same judgment. He says that Christ sent him to preach the gospel, not in cleverness of speech, that the cross of Christ should not be made void. This is a big part of the first chapter or two of first Corinthians. It's not man's knowledge or wisdom, but Christ Himself. God knew what He was doing, even though it did not f...

  Good morning. Finishing up Romans: Paul warns them to: keep your eye on those who cause dissensions and hindrances contrary to the teachings which you have learned, and turn away from them. They deceive the hearts of the unsuspecting. There are churches in which this does go on. Of course everything is on the down low. They don't want a light shining on their darkness. That happened to a former pastor of mine. He took over for a pastor who was caught in sin. The worship leader was working against him behind his back. He wanted the old Pastor back. After a couple of years, he was asked to leave. I don't remember if they took back the old pastor or not. I think they did. Back to Paul: now to Him who is able to establish you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ. To the only wise God, through Jesus Christ, be the glory forever. You are established. Amen. Now we start first Corinthians. He is talking to them, but this applies to us also. To those who have bee...

  Good morning. We are back in Isaiah. Trust in the Lord forever. For in God the Lord, we have an everlasting Rock. In this dizzying world we need something steady to hold onto. He will not be moved, and neither will we. The way of the righteous is smooth (sometimes it doesn't seem like it though); O Upright One make the path of the righteous level. He will flatten anything that stands in our way. Your name, even Your memory, is the desire of our souls. At night my soul longs for You. My spirit within me seeks You diligently. Even when we are asleep, we seek the Lord. And now something that sounds like it comes from the 15th chapter of first Corinthians: your dead will live; their corpses will rise. You who lie in the dust, awake and shout for joy; and the earth will give birth to the departed spirits. They hear the trumpet sound! It will come about also in that day that a great trumpet will be blown; and those who are perishing and those who are scattered will come and worship t...

  Good morning. We are back in Romans. In context Paul is talking about certain things, but we are going to apply some of these verses to everybody's life. For not one of us lives for himself, and not one dies for himself; for if we live, we live for the Lord, or if we die, we die for the Lord; therefore whether we live or die, we are the Lord's. We are so "us" minded. Too often we don't think about the Lord when we make our decisions. Sometimes what we do affects our testimony about the Lord. Our end goal should not be us, but Him. For to this end Christ died and lived again, that He might be Lord both of the dead and of the living. He was not thinking of Himself when He lived His life and when He died His death; and neither should we. Why do you judge your brother and regard him with contempt? Again in context this is talking about a specific issue; but it applies to us today. We are not the judge of our brothers – God is. Each of us shall give an account of h...

  Good morning. We are back in Romans. A verse that is hard to obey: never pay back evil for evil to anyone. Ouch! We oh so want to get payback. We have to follow this advice: never take your own revenge, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written, "Vengeance is Mine, I will repay," says the Lord. He can do a much better job than we can. It just seems that He is too slow sometimes. Respect what is right in the sight of all men. If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men. It should not be our fault if we are not at peace with someone. However that does not mean that we compromise just to keep the peace. We have to be firm in our beliefs. Just because we are peaceful does not mean that they will be peaceful. Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. The light always overcomes the dark. Paul then talks about subjection to governing authorities; obeying; paying taxes; etc. Render to all what is due them. And then a verse we all...

  Good morning. I trust everything went well yesterday. I hope you're feeling much better. We are back in Proverbs. Here comes that mouth again. From the fruit of a man's mouth he enjoys good. Be careful of speaking negative things. Remember: you get what you say. The one who guards his mouth preserves his life. We have to remember to engage our brain before our mouth. The light of the righteous rejoices, but the lamp of the wicked goes out. Wealth obtained by fraud dwindles. They feel confident in their wealth. They don't even notice that little by little it fades away. Eventually the thing in which they had their confidence is gone. But the One in whom we have confidence reigns forever! Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but desire fulfilled is a tree of life. When we don't get what we hoped for right away, then it makes our heart very sad. But when we get what we hoped for, it is like a tree of life. Remember that a tree bears fruit that becomes another tree like ...

  Good morning. I hope you're feeling well. I will be praying for you. We are back in Proverbs. This is definitely not talking about you. The way of a fool is right in his own eyes. That is so true today. People are doing all sorts of things today that they were not doing a few years ago. But in their eyes, it is right. And nothing will dissuade them from that opinion. A wise man is he who listens to council. The tongue of the wise brings healing. Not that I'm wise, but my tongue says be healed! The word of God says you're healed – receive it. Truthful lips will be established forever. Deceit is in the heart of those who devise evil. Sadly they do deceive people when they devise evil; they even deceive themselves. They say it so many times that they begin to believe it. That is so true in today's politics. They tell a lie so often they themselves start to believe it. They could even pass a polygraph test. Counselors of peace have joy. Have the peace of God which surpa...

  Good morning. We are back in Romans. Paul talks about we are many members though we do not have the same function. We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us. And whatever the gift, exercise it to the best of your ability. Let love be without hypocrisy. The word hypocrisy is intriguing in the context. When you are a hypocrite, it usually means that what's OK for me is not OK for someone else – like in the political world. Possibly it means that I can do what I want, but you still have to love me; but you can't do just anything you want and expect me to still love you. Abhor what is evil. I guess that's the same feeling like you have when you see something really gross, and you simply will not touch it. You even shudder to think about touching it. We should feel the same way about "touching" evil. Cling to what is good – like shirts in the dryer. If we cling to the good, we won't be tempted by the evil. Be devoted to one another in brother...

  Good morning. We are back in Proverbs. Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge. We should be learning from our mistakes. If God did not correct us, we would keep making the same mistakes and probably even worse ones. But he who hates reproof is stupid. (I don't think that's a politically correct word; but it is oh so true). A good man will obtain favor from the Lord. But He will condemn a man who devises evil. The root of the righteous will not be moved. After storms you see pictures of huge trees that have been uprooted. I just recently saw a report about that. As you get farther away from the center of the tree, the roots do not go very deep. When the ground gets wet and the wind keeps blowing hard, those roots give way. After a certain point, the center roots can no longer withstand the wind and the tree falls over. However all of our roots go very deep and withstand any storm. And now it's talking about those of you who are wives; an excellent wife is the crown of ...

  Good morning. We are in Romans in the super chapter 12. I urge you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. I'm sure you've heard many great messages on that passage. The priests would present dead bodies as a sacrifice to God; ours are to be living bodies as a holy sacrifice. We just have to make sure we don't get up off the altar. And do not be conformed to this world. That is what too many Christians are doing today. They try to be like those around them. It looks like the world is having fun. It is; but there are dire consequences. Instead: be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect. The word translated transformed is also translated metamorphosis - just like a caterpillar into a butterfly. That's the key – your mind. Your mind has to quit thinking like a ...

  Good morning. We are back in Isaiah. Behold, God is my salvation, I will trust and not be afraid; for the Lord God is my strength and song, and He has become my salvation. That's hard to do sometimes; especially when things seem so bleak. Paul said when I am weak, then I am strong. That's because we are relying on His strength and not ours. Therefore you will joyously draw water from the springs of salvation. Give thanks to the Lord, call on His name. Make known His deeds among the people; make them remember that His name is exalted. When things are going bad for our friends or relatives who are Christians, we need to remind them about the deeds of the Lord that He has done for them and for us in the past. Isaiah then goes on and talks about things that sound like they are right out of the book of Revelation. He talks about God calling His mighty warriors to execute His anger. Many people; nations gathered; coming from a far country; to destroy the whole land. Every man...

  Good morning. Continuing in Romans chapter 8. Last time we talked about God causes all things to work together for our good. Talking about us: for whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son. We are destined to become conformed to the image of Jesus Christ; and of course He is the image of God the Father. That is what we are guaranteed to become. It is our destiny. And why did God do this? That He might be the firstborn among many brethren. He didn't just pick us and leave us alone. He also called us; justified us: and glorified us. It's a done deal. What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us? Like the song says: God is on our side – we shall overcome. He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things? Everything else pales in comparison. Anything He does for us now is nothing by comparison. Who will bring a charge against God's...

  Good morning. We are back in Isaiah. This is something that is so prevalent in our world today. Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; who substitute darkness for light and light for darkness; who substitute bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes, and clever in their own sight! They say that all those things going on today that are against the word of God are good; and all the things that we Christian stand for – they call bad. We Christians cannot bow to the pressure of those around us. We cannot let them sway our beliefs just to keep from being attacked. They are wise in their own eyes - and proud of it. They look down on us. They need to have Isaiah's experience in chapter 6. I saw the Lord sitting on the throne, high and lifted up, with the train of His robe filling the temple. When you see the Lord, you cannot keep on going the way you were. It will change your life forever. Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord of hosts. The w...

  Good morning. We are back in Romans. We had been talking a few verses before about hope. For in hope we have been saved, but hope that is seen is not hope; for why does one also hope for what he sees? This reminds us of Hebrews 11: now faith is the assurance of things hoped for. We don't see it; but it is as real as if we could touch it. We are so certain that we have what we hoped for that we act like we actually already possess it. And from second Corinthians: we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal. And then back to Romans: but if we hope for what we do not see; with perseverance we eagerly wait for it. Hope is like a check written on a bank account. We cannot physically see the money; but the check represents the actual money that is in the bank. Our faith is what cashes the check. It then goes on to talk about the Holy Spirit helping our weaknes...

  Good morning. I hope you slept well. We are back in Romans. We are under obligation, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh – for if you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you're putting to death the deeds of the body you will live. Sadly too many Christians are living like they're not Christians. They do whatever feels good. But that was the old man. The new man should not be doing those things. ( of course sometimes the old man tries to get up out of the grave.) We are to put to death the deeds of the body with the help of the Holy Spirit. Of course we can't do that on our own. But that's what they tried to do under the old covenant. They could not because you need the Holy Spirit to help you - you cannot do it on your own. Who are the sons of God? All who are being led by the Spirit of God. We have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, "Abba! Father!" The Spirit Himself bears witness with...

  Good morning. We're going to look at some things in Isaiah. This is for those people who are fulfilling all the trappings of Christianity by being "religious". When you spread out your hands in prayer, I will hide My eyes from you, yes, even though you multiply prayers, I will not listen. "But God, I've gone to church, I've given money, I've been a good person. Why don't you hear my prayers?" First clean up your act: wash yourselves, make yourselves clean; remove the evil of your deeds from my sight. Cease to do evil. Of course we can't – only He can make us clean. Only He can help us to cease from doing evil. However we need to put forth the effort to help Him accomplish it. Then one of the most powerful verses of all: though your sins are as scarlet, they will be white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they will be white like wool. It took His red blood to make our red sins to become white. There is nothing religious that we ca...

  Good morning. We are back in Proverbs. We will skip the verse about a beautiful woman who lacks discretion being like a ring of gold in a swine's snout. The desire of the righteous is only good. Too many times it's only what is good for us or our families. There is one who scatters, yet increases all the more, and there is one who withholds what is justly due, but it results only in want. As in the play Hello Dolly when she was quoting her late husband: "Money is like manure – it's no good unless you spread it around". (I saw the play in Mobile with my parents, staring Carol Channing). If you are generous to those who are in need, God will bless you immensely. If you are stingy, your purse will have holes in it. Verse 25 says: The generous man will be prosperous, and he who waters will himself be watered. And then the infamous verse: he who troubles his own house will inherit the wind (starring Spencer Tracy). The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, and ...

  Good morning. We are back in Romans, repeating the last verse we covered. The mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace. Too many Christians have their minds set on the wrong thing - the things of the world. But sometimes it's hard not to. There are too many things in the world happening to us every day. They demand our attention. It's hard to think about spiritual things when bad things are surrounding you. Why is the mind set on the flesh death? Because it is hostile toward God; it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so; and those who are in the flesh cannot please God. That type of mindset wants its own way; it does not want to listen to God for fear that God will tell it to do something it doesn't want to do. Thank God: we are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. And He does dwell in us so we are not in the flesh. But if anyone does not have the Spir...

  Good morning. Back to Proverbs: The righteous is delivered from trouble. How? Through knowledge the righteous will be delivered. When it goes well with the righteous, the city rejoices. It doesn't seem that way sometimes. By the blessing of the upright a city is exalted. When it goes well with us, it goes well with our city. Sometimes we have to: a man of understanding keeps silent. There are times when we feel like we just have to put our two cents worth in, and that's when we get into trouble. He who goes about as a talebearer reveals secrets, but he who is trustworthy conceals a matter. "Well you know you need to pray for brother and sister so and so because…". Where there is no guidance the people fall. When the leaders of a city operate in their own wisdom, disaster comes eventually. A gracious woman attains honor. That's you! The merciful man does himself good. That seems counter-intuitive. Being merciful does good for someone else. And yet this says you...

  Good morning. We are back in Romans. This does not apply to everyone because there may have been a short time before someone became a Christian: Paul talks about that just as we presented ourselves as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness resulting in further lawlessness, so we should now present ourselves as slaves to righteousness resulting in sanctification. We are positionally sanctified in our spirits when we become Christians; but there is a lifetime of working out that sanctification in our souls. We don't act like we are sanctified right away. We should be approaching it though, as we grow spiritually. He then asks what benefit did we get from doing those things before, the outcome of which is death. Now having been freed from sin and enslaved to God, you derive your benefit, resulting in sanctification, and the outcome, eternal life. For the wages of sin is death (they are literally working themselves to death), but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus ...

  Good morning. We are back in Psalms. He satisfies you with the finest of the wheat. He wants you to have the best of the best, even greater than you can ask or think. From Psalm 148: praise Him in the heights; all His angels; all His hosts; sun and moon; all stars of light; highest heavens. In other words all of creation praise Him. His glory is above earth and heaven. Sing to the Lord a new song. It says to praise Him with all musical instruments and dancing. That does not sound like some churches. For the Lord takes pleasure in His people; He will beautify the afflicted ones with salvation. Let His godly ones sing for joy on their beds. That would be before you go to sleep and when you wake up in the morning. And from a song you may remember: let the high praises of God be in their mouth and a two edged sword in their hand. When you praise God, you are ready to fight the battle. To execute vengeance on the nations, and punishment on the peoples; to bind their kings with chain...

  Good morning. I hope you had a restful night. Proverbs: the hope of the righteous is gladness. The way of the Lord is a stronghold to the upright. Walking in the way of the Lord is a protection against the attacks of the enemy. It is our stronghold. The righteous will never be shaken. You, Rani, will never be shaken. That's because you walk in the way of the Lord. The devil wants us to believe that we can be shaken. Then we will walk in fear all of our lives, and he can control us. The mouth of the righteous flows with wisdom. He's talking about your mouth. The lips of the righteous brings forth what is acceptable. What we say should be acceptable. Too many times people who say they are Christians – what comes out of their mouths is not acceptable. A false balance is an abomination to the Lord. Just because you got the better of someone by cheating, that does not mean that what you did is approved by God. You may think you got away with something, but God is watching. When ...

  Good morning. We are back in psalms. The Lord raises up those who are bowed down. That is not the way He wants us to be. If we are bowed down, then we cannot look up towards heaven. The Lord loves the righteous – that means you. He supports the fatherless and the widow. That reminds us of James chapter 1: this is pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father, to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world. But God thwarts the way of the wicked. They may get away with it for a while; but in the end God will get them. He will not let them succeed. It is good to sing praises to our God; for it is pleasant and praise is becoming. You will look becoming when you're wearing the outfit of praise. And a very special verse: He heals the brokenhearted, and binds up their wounds. No matter how badly you have been wounded, He heals you. But just like some physical wounds, it may take many many years to heal completely. He counts t...

  Good morning. We are going to look at some things in Romans today. Are we to continue in sin that grace might increase? Are you crazy dude? I'm sure that's the true translation of what Paul said. How shall we who died to sin still live in it? All who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death. And we know that dead people don't sin. Then after dying you are buried. Why? That as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life. Christ did not die and then stay dead – He arose. We too don't stay dead. We are to walk in newness of life. If we have become united with Him in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall be also in the likeness of His resurrection ... we should no longer be slaves to sin. It does not mean that we will never sin; but that we won't be slaves to sin. We can choose to sin or not. We won't be made to sin. If we have died with Christ, we believe that we ...

  Good morning. I trust everything is going well with you. In Proverbs: when there are many words, transgression is unavoidable. In other words, know when to shut up! Sometimes we just can't let it drop. This is especially true with our loved ones. We have to get in the last word. He who restrains his lips is wise. The tongue of the righteous is as choice silver. Sadly that is not what comes out of our mouths sometimes, especially with family. We are definitely not silver tongued. It is the blessing of the Lord that makes rich, and He adds no sorrow to it. When the "blessing" comes from the world, many times there is sorrow that comes with it. God's blessings are those without regret. What the wicked fears will come upon him. Even though he was not wicked, even Job said "what I have feared has come upon me". We should not be fearing what might come upon us. We should trust in God that everything will be OK. Of course that is easier said than done. Been the...