Ecclesiastes 12:10

There is an old joke about a man who was determined to take it all with him. So before his death, he converted his entire estate to gold and found a contraption that would transport it all with him to the afterlife. Somehow he arrived at the pearly gates trying to drag in his suitcase full of gold. The angel at the gates stopped him since he had never seen someone with luggage. After some thought and investigation, he let the man pass.  His entrance caused quite a stir, so his higher ups called the angel up to see why he had let the man in.  He responded; "Well, I didn’t think it would be such a big deal, if he wants to haul around a suitcase full of road pavement, who was I to stop him. "    You know, earthly wealth will be absolutely meaningless in the life to come .  Proverbs 11:4 tells us:   “ Riches do not profit in the day of wrath, But righteousness delivers from death. ”    No matter how much treasure we amass it's not going to be ...

   Investment can be tricky things. Do you put your money in stocks or bonds, real estate, or hide it under your mattress. Even the most seemingly stable places to put you money can turn south in a heartbeat. Lots of people have experience the phenomena of thinking they are invested well only to learn that all the money is gone. So where should you invest ?      Ben Franklin said, “If a man empties his purse into his head, no man can take it away from him. An investment in knowledge always pays the best interest. ” Proverbs 4:5-7 tells us “ Acquire wisdom! Acquire understanding! Do not forget nor turn away from the words of my mouth  "Do not forsake her, and she will guard you; Love her, and she will watch over you.  " The beginning of wisdom is: Acquire wisdom ; And with all your acquiring, get understanding .”     Investing in wisdom is always a great investment.  Trying to grow and learn in wisdom will not only increase yo...

   My biggest pet peeve is willful ignorance.   Willful ignorance is the conscience decision to not take the time to learn or gain knowledge about something that you should know.   Every person has areas of ignorance.  No matter how smart you may be, there are always holes in our knowledge, things we don’t know and have yet to learn. “Being ignorant is not so much a shame, as being unwilling to learn.” Benjamin Franklin    Willful ignorance however is different.  It is the unwillingness to learn because we find comfort in our lack of knowledge.  Gaining knowledge might require us to act ( If I learn how to cook, I will be expected to make dinner from time to time and I would rather someone else do it for me ).  Learning may make us have to change our thinking ( Don't confuse my well held strong opinions with the facts ). Being informed might require some effort and we are just too lazy for that.   Willful ignorance puts...

   Many folks worry about what could be killing them. We might be afraid to fly, worried about toxic waste, or getting killed in while in a bad neighborhood. In order to figure out what we should be afraid of reporter John Stossel with the help of a Harvard professor came up with a chart that tells you the number of day these type of things will take off the average life.    Murder about 93 days off, toxic waste 4 days, plane crashes a mere 1 day.  Smoking is a big threat, 1916 days. But what will take away the most days ? At 3,165 days or 9 years is poverty.     The biggest danger you most likely will face is not having a stable income .   Proverbs 10:4-5 warns us “ Poor is he who works with a negligent hand, But the hand of the diligent makes rich.  He who gathers in summer is a son who acts wisely, But he who sleeps in harvest is a son who acts shamefully ”. Being lazy is the quickest way to end up poor. Laziness put you in more d...

   It is amazing to me how many things we can't do anymore because of one big worry, we might get sued . In our over litigious world there are people who will sue over anything. People will sue for the most trivial perceived injuries and slights.      Take a San Francisco woman that sued her neighbor over physical and emotional distress because of the noise their son’s basketball made in the driveway. They fought the suit but after 8 years and $35,000 in legal bills they and their insurance gave up and settled out of court. This type of behavior destroys communities and business . When anyone abuses the people around them the whole neighborhood suffers.      Proverbs 3:29-30 tells us,  Do not devise harm against your neighbor, While he lives securely beside you.  Do not contend with a man without cause, If he has done you no harm .” We need to make sure we treat our neighbor with respect and live in a way that be...

   I recently describe to a friend an organization I had been involved in as having a “ culture of complaining ”.  What I meant was that over the years the leadership had allowed those that complained loud and long enough to get their way.  So others followed suite. And then it seemed squeaky wheels demanding grease were everywhere   Soon the status quo was to complain about everything.   Every decision, every event, every move was subject to the full spectrum of complaints .  Complaints abounded [1] .  People even complained about all the complaining [2] .  The saddest thing about the whole ordeal is that the people involved were Christians. And it is wrong for the Christian to complain!    Don’t believe me let’s look at what the book says: Philippians 2:14  " Do all things without grumbling or disputing ;" 1 Peter 4:9 " Be hospitable to one another without complaint ." James 5:9  " Do not complain , ...

    Back in the day of the old general store, a farmer would come in and trade his eggs or milk or butter for an equal measure of some other product. Once a owner of the store noticed however, a farmer's recent contributions had been more on the short side. Upset he vowed to confront the farmer the next time he came in. Sure enough his products were all just short of a pound. The upset store owner accused him “just how do you think that is a pound? The farmer replied well we are just simple ordinary folks, we don’t have a scale to measure, we simply take the pound of sugar or meal we get from you and place it on a balance and we add our goods until it matches up. You see the short measure wasn’t coming from the farmers end.       Proverbs 11:1  A false balance is an abomination to the LORD, But a just weight is His delight . Some in business don’t think anything of shortchanging the customer.  The public may not figure out the ruse, but be ce...

   We live in uncertain times. Threats of war, economic collapse, high energy prices, and worries about the future leadership of our country all cause us tension. It seems every news report contains stories of some threat, from cell phones causing cancer, to toxins in our water supply or terrorist in our midst. So what should the Christian do?     Well, Proverbs 3:24-26  When you lie down, you will not be afraid; When you lie down, your sleep will be sweet. Do not be afraid of sudden fear Nor of the onslaught of the wicked when it comes; For the LORD will be your confidence And will keep your foot from being caught .      No matter what calamities man may create, God is still here and in control. We may not see the solution but He does. All these problems that we all get bent out of shape over are in His hands.  Even if this world falls apart, We can be secure in the knowledge he was something better prepared f...

     Have you ever heard of synergy?  It is a term that comes from the Greek language that combines the words energy and partnership.  It is used several times in the New testament to describe people working together in the Gospel (Philippians 2:25, Philippians 4:3, Philemon 1:24, Romans 16:3, 9, 21, Colossians 4:11) or thing workings together (James 2:22, Romans 8:28)       The idea is that we can do more together than we can do alone. The work of two is multiplied rather than combined. Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 describes this effect, “ Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil. For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow. But woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up! Again, if two lie together, they keep warm, but how can one keep warm alone? And though a man might prevail against one who is alone, two will withstand him--a threefold cord is not quickly broken .” ...

  There is an old joke about a man driving down the road. As he reached the top of a hill, he saw two ministers standing by the road with a sign that read, “Turn Back Now! Death and danger lie ahead.” The man rolled down his window and yelled at the pair, “Why don’t you two give it up. No one listens to that fire and brimstone talk anymore.” The two ministers looked at each other puzzled as the sound of screeching tires and crashing could be heard. The younger minister turned to the older one and said, "Maybe he is right, let’s just change the sign to “Bridge Out”     Proverbs 9:8 informs us:   "Do not reprove a scoffer, or he will hate you, Reprove a wise man and he will love you."   Nobody likes to be told they are wrong but it is often times in our best interest. Instead of being the fool that attacks those that point out his mistakes, it is much better to be wise and allow others to show us areas of our life that may in wrong puting us in danger....

    In my first job as a youth minister I took the kids on a picnic . We filled an ice chest with drinks and sandwich fixings and spent the afternoon at a local park.  After I got home later that night I was too tired to clean out the ice chest so I set it on the back patio and proceeded to forget about it for the next couple of days. After four or five days in the hot Texas sun, I remember I need to clean out the ice chest. It was then and there I learn that there are something that should never be put off .     Proverbs 3:27-28 tells us:   Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, When it is in your power to do it.  Do not say to your neighbor, "Go, and come back, And tomorrow I will give it," When you have it with you .     Don't put off opportunities to do good. Don't wait till you get around to it. There are not any round to it’s. Someday isn't on any calendar. As George H. Lorimer puts ...

   Students of history will know that the revolution that started this country began because of the colonies response to what they felt was unfair taxes placed on them. But it wasn't just the taxes that lead the founding father to treason against Britain; it was more that they couldn't get anyone in the Parliament, to listen to their claims.    Since they had no representatives, the Colonies set agents to London, to try and present their claims. The corruption and graft that overtook this era of British government made it all but impossible for them to be heard. The powers that be didn't mind oppressing those that couldn't vote them out of office. So this environment lead to war and the US declaration of independence.    Ecclesiastes 7:7 tells us, “ For oppression makes a wise man mad, And a bribe corrupts the heart .”  Good honest wise people will be driven to become criminals when governments become corrupt.  That is why honesty and integr...