BE KIND AND GOOD He who withholds kindness from a friend forsakes the fear of the Almighty. —Job 6:14 Praise the LORD, for the LORD is good; sing to his name, for it is pleasant! —Psalm 135:3             Do we model our lives after our Lord?  He is always good and we should seek to be like Him.  He has called us friends and has been sooooo kind to us, sooooo good to us! (John 15:15).  How kind and good are we toward our friends?             It is interesting that not being kind to a friend is to impact our fellowship with our Lord God Almighty.  That is pretty serious!…

TRUST GOD WITH YOUR WHY QUESTIONS! And the LORD said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, who fears God and turns away from evil?” —Job 1:8 And he said, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD.” In all this Job did not sin or charge God with wrong. —Job 1:21-22 Then his wife said to him, “Do you still hold fast your integrity? Curse God and die.” But he said to her, “You speak as…

BE AWARE! …but the unjust knows no shame… —Zephaniah 3:5 I said, ‘Surely you will fear me; you will accept correction. Then your dwelling would not be cut off according to all that I have appointed against you.’ But all the more they were eager to make all their deeds corrupt. —Zephaniah 3:7             Man isolating himself from God is unjust and the unjust know no shame.  Look around our nation and this can be easily seen.  There is no shame in the perverse sexual promiscuity all around us.  There is no shame in the execution of the most helpless among us— babies in the womb.  There is no shame…

WE LIVE BY FAITH! The oracle that Habakkuk the prophet saw. O LORD, how long shall I cry for help, and you will not hear? Or cry to you “Violence!” and you will not save?  Why do you make me see iniquity, and why do you idly look at wrong? Destruction and violence are before me; strife and contention arise. So the law is paralyzed, and justice never goes forth. For the wicked surround the righteous; so justice goes forth perverted.  “Look among the nations, and see; wonder and be astounded. For I am doing a work in your days that you would not believe if told. —Habakkuk 1:1-5 You who are…

YOU BETTER BE ON THE LORD’S SIDE! The LORD is slow to anger and great in power, and the LORD will by no means clear the guilty. —Nahum 1:3 The LORD is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; he knows those who take refuge in him. —Nahum 1:7             Praise God that He is good and that He is “a stronghold in the day of trouble.”  Safe and secure are all those who take refuge in Him and He knows the ones who do.  There may be those who outwardly say they take refuge in Him, but He knows “the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Nothing in all creation…

FORGIVEN You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea. —Micah 7:19 If you, O LORD, should mark iniquities, O Lord, who could stand? But with you there is forgiveness, that you may be feared. I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, and in his word I hope; my soul waits for the Lord more than watchmen for the morning, more than watchmen for the morning. —Psalm 130:3-6             If our Lord would keep record of our sin, who would be able to stand before Him?  The answer is obvious, nobody,  because— “There is no one righteous, not even one.  There is no one who understands, no one who…

FORGIVEN You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea. —Micah 7:19 If you, O LORD, should mark iniquities, O Lord, who could stand? But with you there is forgiveness, that you may be feared. I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, and in his word I hope; my soul waits for the Lord more than watchmen for the morning, more than watchmen for the morning. —Psalm 130:3-6             If our Lord would keep record of our sin, who would be able to stand before Him?  The answer is obvious, nobody, because— “There is no one righteous, not even one.  There is no one who understands, no one who…

THE HIGH VALUE GOD HAS ON MOTHERHOOD! The women of my people you drive out from their delightful houses; from their young children you take away my splendor forever. —Micah 2:9             There is no doubt we have seen radical change in the culture of America when it comes to the family.  This is no great surprise when we think of the family as God’s basic building block of society.  Why would not Satan seek to destroy the family?  The impact that mothers have on their children is enormous.  I see the impact my own wife has had on our children when they were young… and that she still does…

GOD USES IMPERFECT MESSENGERS TO BRING HIS MESSAGE! “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it, for their evil has come up before me.” 3 But Jonah rose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the LORD. —Jonah 2-3 Then the word of the LORD came to Jonah the second time, saying, “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it the message that I tell you.” So Jonah arose and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the LORD. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly great city, three days’ journey in breadth. 4 Jonah began to go into the city, going a day’s journey. And he called…

THE MASTER BUILDER Unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain. —Psalm 127:1             Is the Lord your builder?  Look at your house/life.  How is He building?  In what ways is He building?  Why is He building as He is?  Can others see that He is your Builder?  Have they heard that He is your Builder?  Does your building/life further His building reputation?  Are others taking notice of what is being built and who the Builder is?  Do you share and recommend your Builder to others?             So, take a look at your house/life, if He is not the builder then what you are building is in vain.  Are…