I have watched the life of one of a mentor and friend for over 35 years. I have watched him in numerous circumstances in life, but there was a time that I actually worked for him for seven years. He was the President of a major para-church organization. There were many things that he taught me with his life, but there is one thing that stands out — He was very careful with his words.

I sat in on several meetings where he had to say some very difficult things to staff that were not performing. From a human perspective, he could have been very upset and angry. But in these situations, he was very calm and careful with his words. Later on I asked him how he was able to do that. He shared with me that in his younger years he was not as careful with his words. In fact, he was quite a hot-head. After having to go to people time and time again to apologize for his unkind words, he began to allow the Holy Spirit to control his tongue, and began to watch what he said. He said that by doing this, it saved him much grief.

Proverbs 21:23 says, “Watch your words and hold your tongue; you’ll save yourself a lot of grief.” Jesus emphasized the importance of our words in Matthew 12:34-35 . . . . “It’s your heart, not the dictionary that gives meaning to your words. A good person produces good deed and words season after season. An evil person is a blight on the orchard. Let me tell you something: every one of your careless words is going to come back to haunt you. There will be a time of Reckoning. Words are powerful; take them seriously. Words can be your salvation. Words can be your damnation.” (The Message)

Wow — isn’t that a power reminder! Think about your words today. Think about what you will say to your spouse, your kids, your boss, your employees. Purpose in your heart to “watch way you say.” It might save you a lot of grief!

Good words to ponder on this March 21, 2005. Have a great day.

“Youth may be admired for vigor, but gray hair gives prestige to the old.” — Proverbs 20:29

Turning 50 is traumatic. Well at least it is for some of us. I hate being gray, but at this point in my life I am grateful for two things … 1.) Half of my relatives had little hair at this age, and 2) the other half were pure white in their 20’s.

One of the things that concerns me in our society is that we have such a huge emphasis of separating the ages. The seniors don’t want to be around the younger people, and vice versa. We live in the fifth largest senior area of the country, and our you can’t even buy a home in a village unless you are 55. If we wanted to buy a home in five years, we wouldn’t be able to do that because we would have a 13 year old living with us!

There is great value for younger people in rubbing shoulders with seniors. I know that there are some that are crabby and opinionated. But over the course of my life, some of my greatest mentors and friends have been senior saints who have walked with the Lord. They have become my greatest prayer partners, and I grieve every time one of them goes home to be with the Lord.

Unfortunately this separation of the ages even impacts the church. We have services for the young and services for the old. I think the body of Christ is missing out by not having all ages worshipping the Lord together. I have not been able to find any illustrations in the Scriptures where the Israelites or the New Testament church had a separation of the ages. There is much written in the epistles of older men and younger men working together, as well as how older women and younger women can benefit from a mentoring relationship.

If you are a “younger” person, take some time today at church to meet a senior saint. Ask them to pray for you and your family. And then do the same for them. If you are a senior saint with gray hair . . . step out of your comfort zone and meet a younger family. Let them know that you
will be praying for them. Who knows what might happen with vigor is combined with prestige! Enjoy your day of worship.

“Heaven and earth will pass away, but MY words will by no means pass away. You know it all your hearts and in all your souls that not one thing has failed of all the good things which the Lord your God spoke concerning you. All have come to pass for you; not one word of them has
failed.”

“Fear not! Peace be to you; be strong, yes, be strong!” So when he spoke to me I was strengthened, and said, “Let me lord speak, for you have strengthened me.” ‘”Be strong … and work; for I am with you,” says the Lord of hosts. “Not by might nor by power, but by MY spirit,” says the Lord of hosts.

Be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. (Luke 21:33; Joshua 23:14; Daniel 10:19; Haggia 2:4; Zechariah 4:6; Ephesians 6:10)

I needed those verses this morning, and my guess is that one of you did too. May God’s Word encourage you on this Saturday, March 19, 2005. If these verses touched your heart, I would love to hear from you!

Like many of you, I receive many forwards from friends with things they want me to read. I am not one to pass them on, but this one was worth your consideration. I cannot give the proper credit for it since it was forwarded without information.

Today, when I awoke, I suddenly realized that this is the best day of my life, ever! There were times when I wondered if I would make it to today; but I did! And because I did I’m going to celebrate! Today, I’m going to celebrate what an unbelievable life I have had so far: the accomplishments, the many blessings, and, yes, even the hardships because they have served to make me stronger.

I will go through this day with my head held high and a happy heart. I will marvel at God’s seemingly simple gifts: the morning dew, the sun, the clouds, the trees, the flowers, the birds.

Today, none of these miraculous creations will escape my notice. Today, I will share my excitement for life with other people. I’ll make someone smile. I’ll go out of my way to perform an unexpected act of kindness for someone I don’t even know. Today, I’ll give a sincere compliment to someone who seems down. I’ll tell a child how special he is, and I’ll tell
someone I love just how deeply I care for them and how much they mean to me.

Today is the day I quit worrying about what I don’t have and start being grateful for all the wonderful things God has already given me. I’ll remember that to worry is just a waste of time because my faith in God and his Divine Plan ensures everything will be just fine.

And tonight, before I go to bed, I’ll go outside and raise my eyes to the heavens. I will stand in awe at the beauty of the stars and the moon, and I will praise God for these magnificent treasures.

As the day ends and I lay my head down on my pillow, I will thank the Almighty for the best day of my life. And I will sleep the sleep of a contented child, excited with expectation because I know tomorrow is going to be the best day of my life, ever!

Good words for you to ponder on this Friday, March 18, 2005.

This morning I was trying to find the hymn that is based on St. Patrick’s Prayer. I commend you to think through it today and even sing it! The tune is MORNING HAS BROKEN.

Christ beside me, Christ before me,
Christ behind — king of my heart.
Christ within me, Christ below me,
Christ above — never to part.

Christ on my right hand, Christ on my left hand,
Christ all around me — shield in my strife;
Christ in my sleeping, Christ in my sitting,
Christ in my rising — light of my life.

Christ be in all hearts thinking about me,
Christ be on all tongues telling of me;
Christ be the vision in eyes that see me,
In ears that hear me Christ ever be.

Christ beside me, Christ before me,
Christ behind me — king of my heart;
Christ within me, Christ below me,
Christ above me — never to part.

from THE WORSHIPPING CHURCH — A HYMNAL

Have a great day!

My wife tells me that when men are sick we are really a bunch of wimps.
I think she is right! Talk to just about any wife and they will confirm that they would much rather be sick than have us sick. All of a sudden we become whiny. complain, and think that the simplest cold is terminal.

Our minds are powerful tools. Doctors have proven that we can make ourselves sick by thinking wrong thoughts. Proverbs 14:29 confirms their research — “A sound mind makes for a robust body, but runaway emotions corrode the bones.” (The Message) Solomon confirms this in Proverbs 23:7 “For as he thinks within himself, so he is.”

Today I go to the dentist to have a cavity filled. I have known about this cavity for at least six months. But knowing that today it was going to be fixed, my mind was focusing in on that little crater that is going to come under the scrutiny of the dentist drill. By the time I went to bed last night, it was hurting like crazy. My mind was out of control.

What are you thinking about today? How do we handle those inappropriate thoughts? Paul gives us a prescription for right thinking in Philippians 4:8 (The Message) “Summing it all up friends, I’d say you’ll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things that are TRUE, NOBLE, REPUTABLE, AUTHENTIC, COMPELLING, GRACIOUS — the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse.”

Hey, that is a great prescription for us today. Rather than focus on the negative things, or as Zig Ziglar says, “stinkin’ thinking” think on the BEST things. Thinking on the right things has a profound impact on us physically. Take some time today to think on the right stuff. What are you thinking about today? Turn those thoughts over to Him!
Good words to ponder today!

We receive such encouraging notes from many of our Freedom Fighter family. You can help another brother by sharing how God is working in your life. Why not visit the Freedom Fighter site and leave your comments. Let your friends know what God is teaching you in your life — www.americaskeswick.org.

Proverbs 13:9 “The lives of good people are brightly lit streets; the lives of the wicked are dark alleys.” (The Message) I remember hearing a story about the famous Robert Louis Stevenson’s childhood. When he went to bed each night he was afraid of the dark. One night his nanny had a difficult time getting him to got to bed and young Robert was looking out the bedroom window. He was fascinated by the lamp-lighter who was walking the streets of his town. All of a sudden he shouted to his nanny, “Look, the lamp-lighter is punching holes in the darkness.”

Men and women who are living victoriously in this ever-changing, crazy world do just that — they punch holes in the darkness with the light of their lives. People see that there is something different about you. You shine in the darkness and make an impact for the kingdom. Eugene Peterson in The Message, paraphrases Matthew 5:14-16 this way . . .

“You’re here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We’re going public with this, as public as a city on a hill. If I make you light-bearers, you don’t think I’m going to hide you under a bucket, do you? I’m putting you on a light stand — SHINE! Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you’ll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven.”

How about you this morning? Are you “punching holes in the darkness?”
Have a great Lord’s day.

Some of you missed a great Men’s Day at America’s KESWICK yesterday. The tapes and CD’s are available from the sessions. Three powerful messages by Dr. Fred Hartley. Call to order the messages — 800-453-7942. You can join us this Thursday evening for our monthly Men’s Night. Pastor Greg Comfort, Senior Pastor of Lincroft Bible Church, will be our speaker.
Dinner is at 6:15 PM followed by the program. Call for reservations — 800-453-7942.

“Lord, keep me from making the mistakes I’m most prone to when temptation comes. I confess that what I think is necessary, smart, or personally beneficial is so often the beautiful wrapping on sin. So please, keep evil far from me.” — Bruce Wilkinson THE PRAYER OF JABEZ

Bruce took quite a hit when he wrote this powerful book based on the prayer found in the middle of the genealogies in 1 Chronicles 4. Despite the criticism, Bruce’s book his the New York Best-seller’s list for months and the book impacted hundreds of thousands of people.

In a society where the average person spends less than 5 minutes in daily prayer, I appreciated Bruce’s passion to get people praying daily and journaling what the Lord would teach them. I frequently pray the prayer of Jabez and continue to see God work in my life as I apply the
principles of this prayer.

One of the principles of the prayer in 1 Chronicles 4:10 is praying that “God would keep me from evil (temptation) so that I will not cause pain.” Temptation comes in many forms. I’m not telling you anything new. You could write your own story to validate this principle. We need to be
aware that there are seasons of our lives when temptation is stronger than others.

Bruce Wilkinson reminds us in his new book, BEYOND JABEZ that “praying from protection is most critical when we are serving God! Keep in mind that God never promised to keep all temptation away from you. In particular, watch carefully for temptation at two specific times: (1) just before a significant effort in God’s service and (2) just after such an effort, when you’re physically and spiritually exhausted. During these times, keep your heart especially close to God and frequently ask for protection from temptation.

A wise course of action is to preempt temptation before it has a chance to strike, by implementing practical safeguards against the sins you have the hardest times resisting. Set up an accountability phone call. Travel a route that avoids moral snares. Remove from your life any temptations that you know are likely to lead you into stronger temptation.”

.

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Year’s ago listening to one of Chuck Swindoll’s broadcasts, I wrote this prayer in the back of my Bible. The prayer is one of the prayers of St. Patrick. It echoes the words from Psalm 139 — there is no place that we can escape the presence of God. I encourage you to read Psalm 139 and then make this your prayer.

As I arise today, may the strength of God pilot me, the power of God uphold me, the wisdom of God guide me. May the eye of God look before me, the ear of God hear me, the word of God speak for me. May the hand of God protect me, the way of God lie before me, the shield of God
defend me, the host of God save me. May Christ shield me today…Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me, Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me, Christ on my right, Christ on my left, Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit, Christ when I stand, Christ in the heart of everyone who thinks of me, Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me, Christ in every eye that sees me, Christ in every ear that hears me. Amen. — The Prayer of St. Patrick

Our words can really get us in trouble. Well maybe you haven’t figuredthat out as quickly as us loud-mouthed sanguines. Sanguines are people who speak first then think about what they say. We tend to react, blurt out the first thing that comes to mind, and then have to do major cleanup because of the “mouth bombs” we have detonated.If we are not careful, we injure our spouses, our kids, our co-workers,and friends.

Solomon cuts right to the chase and cautions that “fools have short fuses and explode all too quickly.” (Proverbs 12:16) Ouch! Do you have ashort fuse? Do you think before you speak or do you speak out tooquickly?

Our good friend and conference speaker. Bob Turnbull shares a storyabout getting ready to leave for a conference and giving his teenage son strict directions of what chores he needed to do while they were away.His son was diligent in following Dad’s orders, but was unable to accomplish the major assignment on his Dad’s list. He was determined to please his Dad, so he did above and beyond what his Dad expected –cleaning up the garage, trimming the bushes, and mowing the lawn.

Bob and Yvonne returned from the weekend and noticed right away that the lawn and bushes were meticulously cared for, was amazed that the garage was so clean, but was quickly angered when he walked in the house and noticed that the one assignment that he gave to his son wasunaccomplished. Before asking questions, he exploded with, “Can’t you do anything right? I gave you one thing to do and you didn’t do it. Don’tyou ever listen?” Immediately Bob saw the look of hurt on his son’sface. With tears in his eyes, his boy quietly responded, “Dad, I wanted to do the job you gave me — but the tools for the job were in the trunkof YOUR car!”

Bob shared that at that moment he was humbled and broken. His short fuseand anger had spilled out, and in the process, destroyed and damaged his son’s spirit.

James says, “Post this at all the intersections, dear friends. Lead with your ears, follow-up with your tongue, and let anger straggle along inthe rear. God’s righteousness doesn’t grow from human anger.” The King James says it this way — “So then, my beloved brothers (and sisters),let every man (woman) be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath.”(James 1:19) Do you have a short fuse? Explode too quickly? Purpose in your heart today to be wise — Stop . . . listen . . . think . . . and then speak! Choose to be a wise man, not a fool.

Good words to ponder today!