A reprint of a former post; the message is more relevant than ever!

GETTING GROUNDED

This past Sunday, our pastor preached a stirring sermon revolving around John 5:39 …he said, “Search the Scriptures.” Now, those three simple words led me to believe that we might be in for an early dismissal, but I was completely wrong. It was during the next 35 minutes or so (I truly lost track of the time) that he went on to explain that we should not go to the Bible just to find solutions, but rather to find the Savior…and there to daily, moment by moment, grow in our walk with the Lord. He asked for a show of hands of those who might be somewhat overwhelmed with the daunting task of reading, interpreting and understanding the Scriptures. I must admit, I did NOT raise my hand…not that I am any kind of spiritual giant, but rather, I relish the time that I spend searching, discovering, exploring and uncovering some “gem” or “nugget” of truth that God has left sprinkled within the pages of His Holy Word. Left there with one singular intent; one eternal purpose …. For me to find and thus, be changed!

My wife, however, was one of the many that raised their hands and when we got home, she asked me to agree to take at least one evening each week to sit down and study the Bible with her. Now, we have studied our Bibles together in the past; had many stirring conversations regarding scripture and its interpretation and often conferred regarding the Sunday school lesson that I teach each week. This, however, was different…and last night, we began in the book of Philippians, one of my favorite books of the New Testament, chocked full of those ‘nuggets” that God has left in our way. So, let me say that for the unforeseeable future, I know that God will be working in me as I take a closer look at His infallible truth and share those insights with you, my brothers and sisters in Christ.

And there is something else that I am sure will occur…my wife and I will be drawn even closer together as we make this journey through God’s Word. Let me encourage you to do likewise. Affirm with your mate that a time of concentrated, consecrated Bible study is necessary in this world’s atmosphere of unrest and disbelief that engulfs us at every turn. God wants His people to stand out and to stand firm….and we can only accomplish this if we are GROUNDED IN HIS WORD!!!

So, join us …commit to take one night a week, turn off the TV and get off the couch, then…. open God’s word, together. The rewards will be immeasurable... you’ll get to know each other better; and more importantly, you’ll be drawn closer to the Creator of the Universe…Your Heavenly Father.

Searching the Scriptures…Serving the Savior,

WPQ

Poem for the day....

In the morning as you arise

To see the sun beaming in the skies...

Take the time to start your brand new day

By reading His Word and taking time to pray.

Search the Scriptures, seek to find,

A source of light for the soul and mind;

Let His Spirit speak His truth to you,

So you'll be led in all you do!

Be receptive to what you read,

Never knowing where His words might lead;

To lend a hand to one who is down and out

Or rescue one who is filled with doubt....

For each of us are to answer His call;

To be prepared to surrender our all...

But to be like Jesus, we must search to find

Each nugget of truth He has left behind....

For in each nugget, we will come to know

More about our Savior who loves us so;

Then like Him, we can go forth and share

A love everlasting that can reach anywhere!

WPQ © August 2019

Let the Maestro Direct...

Have you ever been to a classical musical presentation and arrived early enough to take your seat and hear the orchestra warm up? If so, you have heard what can only be described as NOISE.... loud, chaotic, undisciplined noise. It seems that each section of this gathering of musical mayhem is trying to outdo the others as to who can make the most noise.

This seems to go on for a quite some time until the first chair stands or taps rather loudly on her music stand and the orchestra members seem to fall into an almost catatonic state. A quiet, calming silence falls across the stage and then, there's  movement on stage left; the curtain is pulled back ever so slightly,  so that a tall, elegantly dressed gentleman may emerge with a small "stick" in his hand. He strides gracefully to a raised podium and takes his place, all the while surveying this clan of seemingly misfit musicians. The audience is silent; there is the tap of his baton, three times; he raises both arms and as his arms began to sway, the music that he elicits....it truly is MAGNIFICENT!

You see, the Maestro, is the director of the orchestra, a musical master in his own right...and when he reads the music set upon his music stand, he, by the simple way of his baton tells each section, yes, even each individual what, when and how to play their instrument in conjunction with the other members. And if each orchestra members does and plays the part to perfection, THE MUSIC WILL BE GLORIOUS.

Our lives and all the moving parts of it are a lot like the members of an orchestra...each one doing its own thing, trying to outdo, outperform, over indulge, outshine and take control of our life...doing what we want rather than what our maestro wants.

Our maestro is our Heavenly Father, the one that directed the Creation; who hung the stars and planets in their perfect place and set them spinning at just the right angle in just the right orbit so that all the planetary system would perform perfectly and be music to His ear. He made you and made with just the right amount of minerals, DNA and so many other things that our puny human minds cannot begin to understand....the perfect climax to His beautiful masterpiece we call LIFE...Yes, God Almighty knew how to bring perfection out of darkness and chaos.

And He is still in the business of directing today. In fact, my favorite scripture says it best....

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding.  In all your ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct your paths."  Proverbs 3:4-5(my emphasis)

God is the MAESTRO ....YOU AND I ARE NOT! Maybe you are like me when you stop and take a look at your life...you have been the one, waving the baton, trying to make sweet music out of a life filled with selfish desires, bad choices, discarded friendships, wasted opportunities and most of all...A LIFE SPENT TRYING TO BE THE ONE IN CHARGE!!!

But God never intended for you to be the one directing your life...HE GAVE YOU THAT LIFE as well as the freedom to make choices; however, HIS HEART'S DESIRE... that you would choose HIM over everything else. WHY? Because He loves you; He died for YOU through His son, Jesus Christ; and He is preparing to receive you into your eternal HOME...But to do that,

YOU MUST CHOOSE HIM OVER EVERYTHING ELSE AND LET HIM DIRECT THE LIFE THAT HE HAS GIVEN YOU. It is only then that your life will be sweet music to all those who come close to you and it will allow you to be all that He wants you to be....both here and now and in the eternal world to come.

So do as I have done (and continue to do), lay down the baton and let the Maestro direct you life so that all may hear the sweet music of your life as you praise Him forever and ever.....

Surrendering the baton... Letting the Maestro direct,

WPQ

Poem for the day...

Today can be just another day

If  you are living  just for you;

But God has prepared something better;

But many don't have a clue.

They think that they should be in charge;

That for them, they know what's best.

Each making decisions about how to live,

Hoping it will pass God's test?

Am I doing enough good things

That will get me past Heaven's door?

Is God counting the bad things, too

And is He really keeping score?

God has the perfect plan for you

Should your thinking He correct...

Jesus Christ has paid your debt;

Now it's time to let Him direct.

Let Him be the one in complete control

In all you do, let it show....

Your  life will produce sweet music

When you surrender to the MAESTRO!!!!

WPQ © August 2019

And the last is.....Blessed Are the Persecuted

There is not a person alive, or deceased for that matter, that has not known ridicule or persecution for their looks, their thoughts or their beliefs...it just comes with the territory of being human. But some of us deal with persecution better than others and some of us totally melt into oblivion when persecution comes knocking at our door.

You see, there is always a payout for persecution..either to our benefit or our demise. Often, we react to persecution based on our value system and what the end game might be. But as Christians, Christ forewarned us that as His followers, we would be PRIME TARGETS for persecution of all kinds. He implored us to "put up treasures in Heaven" and by so doing, ease the pain of persecution.

But what does that mean? Well, you can always tell the difference between a believer who has his feet planted in the world and the one that has firmly planted his feet in the Kingdom to come. Though we all may live in both worlds, we must choose daily where to plant our feet and where to build our treasure. Those who build for the here and now are noticeably shaken when their world is shaken; but the believer who is firmly grounded in Kingdom endeavors, he is able to persevere through any of life's pitfalls or persecutions.

And when does persecutions come? When we are most committed to following the leadership of the Holy Spirit; when we are truly pursuing the ways of righteousness as demonstrated by our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ...well, you can bank on persecution to come knocking! But God has promised us not only deliverance, but a place of deliverance...our eternal home! When we are persecuted, we need only lift our eyes toward Heaven and see that glorious promise...

Blessed are those who are persecuted, for righteousness sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Persecution, probably more than anything else a believer may face, reveals how eternally focused he may be. It lets him know, in no uncertain terms, the true depth and width and breadth of his faith... and in the midst of that persecution, his faith is purified and built up...stronger and more resilient than he may have ever imagined. It is in the midst of this fiery oven that all the dross is burned away and we can see more clearly what our heart's treasure truly is...a treasure of unspeakable worth!!!

So, do as Paul urged the Corinthians to do in II Cor. 4:8-9, " We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed." 

Look to the author and finisher of your faith to accomplish His will and His way in the midst of any persecution, knowing that He is with you always...and He is ALWAYS victorious...and in that promise of the last beatitude is that one day, for we will all be persecuted for the Lord's sake, we will all be home...eternally present in the Kingdom of Heaven.

AMEN and Amen,

WPQ

Poem for the day:

Life is hard; the storm clouds come...

And no one seems to care;

But lift your eyes toward heaven,

See the Savior waiting there.

For He knows the pain and suffering;

The persecution that is near;

And He will draw you close to Him

To relieve your pain and fear.

For He has walked this path before

That lead to His great loss;

So if we are to follow Him,

We, too, must bear our cross.

For persecution will surely come,

It may seem too much to bear;

But this burden is not ours alone

For Jesus will be there.....

He'll walk with us hand in hand

Where He has gone before;

He'll lead us to our home prepared

As we pass through Heaven's door....

Evermore to be with Him

In our heavenly resting place;

To spend our days in eternity

Gazing upon His face....

So take great comfort in this my friend;

When dark clouds of persecution come....

Jesus is with you every step of the way;

Ready to lead you HOME!

WPQ @August 2019

This is the last post in this series...remember to

    Be Blessed, Not Stressed

                and

    Give God the Glory!!!!

Blessed are the Peacemakers....It's a Family Trait!

We have all, at one time or another, seen one of those silly sitcoms that has two siblings, two best friends or whatever, clammed up, refusing to talk to the other party because of what he or she did. But, when the hero or heroine of the sitcom gets them in the same room so that they can begin the complicated process of reconciliation...NO ONE CAN REMEMBER WHAT STARTED THE CONFLICT IN THE FIRST PLACE.

I think I can speak to the root cause of almost every conflict that mankind has ever known...THE PRIDE OF MAN! It seems that when anyone calls us on the carpet, smudges or soils our reputation or does anything that makes us look less than "perfect"; well, conflict is inevitable!

But it doesn't have to be...not if we seek to be peacemakers, as the sons of God should be. We need to know and understand that deep down, we were created for fellowship...both with our Creator and with each other. And it is conflict that makes that fellowship IMPOSSIBLE!

We cannot avoid conflict; even if we are not the instigator, conflict will come looking for us. Some people are by nature, confrontational; while others, steer clear of any such situation and try to avoid confrontation at all cost. Neither of these approaches make for peaceful living or expanding fellowship.

Jesus called out to those gathered on that hill to be peacemakers...to seek to diffuse any type of volatile entanglement and pursue a relationship of integrity and abundant grace...for grace shown is grace received. If we can show others grace when they say or do despicable things to us; give them the benefit of the doubt when we are wronged or as Christ urged us to do later in Scripture, "to bless those that persecute us and say all manner of evil against us"; well, we are holding our pride down and allowing the Holy Spirit to well up inside of us as a true and bona fide peacemaker. It is true that someone who can "turn the other cheek" is one that is learning to master PRIDE and in so doing, he is a peacemaker that is more concerned with his King's reputation than he is with his own.

And speaking of reputation, there is the promise of God for the peacemaker...Blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called the SONS OF GOD. Think about that for just a minute...if you are a true son (or daughter) of the Most High, you share the same last name and the same DNA. You are an ambassador for your Father and for all He represents to this lost and dying world...so if you share His name, you can ill afford to blemish that good name by creating or being involved in conflict, whether deemed righteous or not! You must be a PEACEMAKER and live up to the family name...a name above all names that will one day be uttered on the lips of all who have EVER lived...the sweet name of Jesus.

So, be the son of God that you have been called to be and eliminate conflict from your life, as well as your vocabulary. Speak only words that offer encouragement, filled with love, grace and good intentions; for that is your honorable and peaceful response when conflict is brewing. Whenever you do this,

YOU MAKE YOUR FATHER PROUD...AND HE'S THE ONE THAT KNOWS HOW TO HANDLE PRIDE...FOR HE IS THE ONE THAT DESERVES ALL THE GLORY!

Seeking His peace...loving the troublemakers as a son of God,

WPQ

Poem for the day....

The pride of self has always been

A stumbling stone to man;

A weapon for the devil's use

To disrupt the Master's plan.

So he'll bring pain and turmoil

When human spirits collide with pride;

Each one believing that they are right;

No thought for the other's "side".

But those who are called by the Savior

Follow a different way....

They seek to be a peacemaker;

To let another have their way.

To live with a selfless spirit

That brings peace and love to all;

Ready to live a life of service

In answer to the Master's call.

So hold back that poison tongue,

Push down that selfish pride;

For when you are a peacemaker for Him,

You'll get a warm feeling deep inside!!!!

WPQ © August 2019

BLESSED ARE THE PURE IN HEART...

Purity is one of those words that falls easily from our lips; however, if you were to ask "the person on the street" to describe something that is pure and undefiled in this world, they would probably be permanently stumped and just stand there stammering.

First of all, purity is not an innate quality of mankind...FAR FROM IT! We are sinners and there is no one righteous or pure...NO ONE! In fact, King David's cry of the heart was bold, but quite simple; "Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a right (steadfast) spirit within me." Psalm 51:10  He knew, as we all do, that we are tainted with misplaced motives and petty agendas...the simple truth; OUR CORRUPTION RUNS DEEP! Jesus knew the impossibility for us to have a pure heart; so He offered His purity to fill us by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit....just as He took on our sins and became sin for us, we can take on His purity and be pure of heart...but it will always be a struggle!

Even with the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, we are constantly bombarded by the Prince of the air to forsake our pure heart and give in to the "dark side" of our humanity.  It is this constant battle to remain pure that often creates the sadness that is seen in the lives of many believers when they fail...but there is a fail-safe plan if we will but trust in Him and remain "steadfast" in our single-minded pursuit of the likeness of Christ.

Paul calls it the "renewing of our minds",  but it is really the surrender of every thought, action and reaction that helps us grow in purity. It is that "steadfast" surrender of our will to a holy and pure God that will help us deflect and deter the arrows of the Deceiver as we solidly and irrevocably invest our lives in the pursuit of God. When we do this: any doubts, misplaced motives or stumbling blocks that rise up, begging us to choose self over sacrifice, will be defeated and the resounding choice, more and more, will be to choose purity over personal pride and preeminence.

Clearly, God knows the frailty of our character and that our human heart is a very fickle thing... for it far too often gives into the voices, screaming in our psyche or the compulsions of our flesh. But, because He loves us, He redeems us and completely saves those who come to Him as a "sinner saved by grace." We are, at our very BEST, a work in progress; yet to be conformed to our Savior and therefore, incomplete. Oh, but God is at work as He calls us out to be holy and pure in heart...to be a steadfast, passionate, faithful seeker and lover of the Savior...but it is a hard and relentless work that only God can accomplish through a surrendered heart, soul and will.

So, are you craving to be more like Jesus...PURE IN HEART...then, God is with you and at work within you... and He has promised that you will see Him in all His Glory; both in this world and in the eternal new world to come.

Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God...and ALL WILL BE WELL!!!

Pure and steadfast in honoring Him...A WORK IN PROGRESS!

WPQ

Poem for the day....

Every day when the sun comes up

Our Father calls us from the start;

To begin each day in search of

A righteous and pure heart.

He calls us to a life that's pure

And as we seek to do His will;

He begins a holy work in us,

A new heart He will instill...

He calls for our surrender

Of our will to His divine;

To give ourselves unselfishly

Our hearts, our souls, our minds.

As we turn from thoughts and actions

That might lead us to go astray;

The Holy Spirit indwells in us,

As we walk with Him each day.

So do not struggle with life, my friend;

Just give in and do your part...

And you will see the mighty hand of God

Bless those who are pure of heart!

WPQ © August 2019

BLESSED ARE THE MERCIFUL .......

I am sure that you have all heard the saying, "that what goes around, comes around"...and we're not talking about a children's top here. We are speaking of JUSTICE...that in life, both here and in the one to come, you will receive what is your just due. But fortunately in His Sermon on the Mount, when Christ shared the fifth Beatitude, He let us in on God's true nature and a vital foundation for those of us who profess to know Jesus...OUR GOD IS A GOD OF MERCY!!!

Now to many of us, this comes as no surprise...in fact, we are banking on it! After all, God is a God of Love and Mercy, so how could a loving God do anything else but show His love and mercy to His Creation?  But time and time again during the ministry of Jesus, he spoke of the promise that God is merciful to us when we are likewise merciful to others.

He says it best in this Beatitude, "Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy." But how do we "obtain" mercy? Asking for mercy is a good first step, but showing and demonstrating mercy is what Jesus requires.

When anyone of us stops and looks at the rebellious nature that we have demonstrated to God, it is any wonder at all that He would demonstrate His love to us through His unmerited grace and unending forgiveness...that He would truly bestow mercy on us! And the fact that we, then, would stand in judgment of another and not offer mercy is truly ludicrous...and that must truly raise the ire of our Heavenly Father.

In fact, I wonder how often God may hold back His mercy on us because we have not shown mercy to another?  For if we fail to show mercy, then we really don't understand God and our relationship with Him at all! He has set us apart as His children to be holy and righteous; but not to hold others to some attainable righteousness that we have set and thus compel them to obtain...He sets the bar and when others fail, He requires us to show the mercy that we have been shown.

For us as Christians, mercy is a spirit-led ability to show practical, compassionate and cheerful love to those who may be suffering...and in so doing, find the joy and happiness of a heart that has been shown mercy from our loving God and a forgiveness that is always ready to be displayed to those who may have done us wrong.

So, do as God has done for you...don't meter out justice when mercy is required...required not by you, but by Him who has shown His mercy to you and has gifted you in love through His abundant grace.

Do this and as Jesus promised from that gathering on the hill, 

YOU will be BLESSED!!!!

Mercifully showing the Love of my Lord,

WPQ

Poem for the day....

Our Heavenly Father loves us;

On that you can depend

His loving arms enfold us

And His mercy knows no end.

So with the blessing of each new day

As His Spirit moves you to do...

May others share in His mercy

Because of the difference it's made in you.

For the Father bestows His love on you;

In His mercy, He meets each need;

So if you want more of His blessings

Then you must plant the seeds....

The seeds of Love and Kindness,

Of Grace and Mercy too;

When you show others mercy,

The Lord's blessings will shower YOU!

WPQ © August 2019