Ecclesiastes 12:10

    The worst thing you can give a man is an excuse.   In Acts 9, Ananias gets a call from the Lord. There is a man who needs to hear the gospel and Ananias is the man to do it. Now Ananias was a good man (Acts 22:12) so you expect him to do what he is commanded by God.   But when told who he is going to, Annanias has some reservations. “Have you heard about this guy and what he has done”! Of course, God has but for Ananias the rumors going around about Saul are enough reason to stay at home.   Yet notice that excuses do not matter to God even when it comes from the truth. He not only knows what Saul has done but he also knows what he will do. While his past might be a convenient excuse it was a good reason for Annanias not to follow the command.    Maybe we find ourselves in the same situation. We know God has commanded us to take the Gospel to the world. Yet we all make our excuses. Do you know about them? Have you heard what they did? Can you believ...

   In 2006 the Federal government did something rather unusual, they repealed a tax. This was a 3% federal charge on long-distance phone calls. It was about time. The original purpose of the tax was to help fund American efforts in the Spanish-American War, which ran from April to August of 1898!   The war lasted only four months; the tax lasted more than a century.   Taxes are like that. They last a lot longer than they were supposed to. This one was originally thought to affect only wealthy people since back then they were the only ones that had phones, but it hung around long after that fact changed as well.   Habits are like that as well. We might start a habit with a good reason, yet over time that reason fades away but the behavior stays. For instance, missing the assembly of the church. We might have an illness or a conflict that keeps us away for a time, yet when that hindrance disappears our attendance doesn’t pick back up. Or else, we might...

The woman's husband had been slipping in and out of a coma for several months, yet she had stayed by his bedside every single day. One day, when he came to, he motioned for her to come nearer. As she sat by him, he whispered, eyes full of tears, "My dearest, you have been with me all through the bad times. When I was laid off, you were there to support me. When my business failed, you were there. When I was robbed and got shot, you were by my side. When we lost the house, you stayed right here. When my health started failing, you were still by my side. You know what?" "What dear?," she gently asked, smiling as her heart began to fill with warmth. "I think you're bad luck."   Sometimes, like this fellow, we jump to the wrong conclusion. Rather than see things for what they really are we put our own spin on things. Like when we say: God wants me to be happy, so it is fine to stay in this sinful relationship. This is a sin but  we should go ...

   Something has gone wrong in your home congregation and you are thinking about packing up and heading someplace else. Should I stay? Should I go? The answers might not depend on what happened, but on the reason you are making that decision.  You have your reasons for wanting to leave, but are they good reasons. Here are five terrible reasons to leave a congregation. 1.        Someone Made Me Mad! It might have been the preacher, or the elders or the little old lady that took your seat, it doesn't matter you’re mad and you don’t have to take it. You can pack up and move to where you will be treated right!  You will “get back” at them by leaving!  But if you are moving because you are mad, chances are you will be moving again pretty quick regardless of where you go.  No place is perfect. No place will do everything right all the time. If you don’t learn how to deal with your anger it won’t matter what they do, yo...

  It was my parents fault.  The doctor told me it was OK.   That preacher is unfriendly.  I ’ m just big boned.  The ref blew the call.  It ’ s all those food additives.  Someone must have sent me computer virus.  My clubs are old.  The sun was in my eyes.  Those teachers must not be doing their jobs.  They must have sent the wrong thing.  The dog ate my homework.  It must have got lost in the mail.  The elders upset me.  If I only had better players.  If we only had a better coach.  It the Demolicans (or Rebblicrats) fault.  It’s not my fault.   Excuses.  Everyone has one.  Some excuses are good, some not so much.  Some excuses are valid.  Others not so much.  But let me tell you something: No matter how good your excuse is it won ’ t do you any good.   Your excuse won ’ t win you the game, get your assignment in on time, or correct yo...

As John Adams said, “Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclinations, or the dictates of our passion, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence .”  In our world today, we hear a lot of opinions and thought on many subjects without a lot of facts.  But what is the truth on those matters?  Jesus told us that God’s word is truth (John 17:17).  With that in mind here are a few facts to consider: We can't become more Godly by becoming more worldly. James 4:4 The amount of your faith will not save you if your faith is wrong person.  John 14:6 You will be persecuted if you do the right thing. 2 nd Timothy 3:12 What you say matters even if you don’t “mean it” Matthew 12:36 Those that are engaging in sin will not go to heaven. 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 Baptism is an essential part of salvation. Mark 16:16; 1 st Peter 3:21 We are not saved by faith alone James 2:24 Most people won’t go to heaven....

In 1989, Microsoft was set to release its new Windows 3.0 operating system.  They were worried that many wouldn’t adjust to the new graphical interface and wouldn’t understand how to use the mouse to “drag & drop” files and icons.  It was decided to create a game as a way of training people to these new methods.  It wasn’t a top notch assignment so it was given to an intern, Wes Cherry, to create.  He did even bother to work out a deal for royalties for his work.  No one at the time realized how popular the game would become. Solitaire is now considered the most played video game in the world. It has gone well beyond a training game to a national pastime.  Lost business productivity by employees playing Solitaire has become a common concern since it became standard on Microsoft Windows.  Hundreds of thousands of hours are wasted by office workers all over the world chained to their computers, trying to make those cards bounce. I find this...

It looks OK to me. –Eve                            One look won’t hurt. –Lot’s Wife          No one will ever find out. – Bathsheba                                            It’s just one little lie. –Ananias After all I’ve done God will make an exception for me- Moses                   She looks good to me. –Samson           I’m smart enough to handle them- Solomon                                                 Even if everybody el...

      During the summer my Mom would make the best tuna sandwiches for lunch. Every once in a while, I will get a craving for one of those sandwiches. I've learned I could make them pretty much the same for myself (but still not as good as Mom). I found out however that when I did I would have to fight off the cat because she also loved the tuna. It was such a problem that I just abandoned ever fixing them because it was such an inconvenience.     A few days ago, I had that craving for a tuna sandwich but I thought it is was just too much trouble. The sad part is that the cat is no longer with us, so the excuse is no longer valid. I had just gotten so use to giving the excuse; I had forgotten the reason for it.   We can do the same thing in our commitment to the Lord’s work. Life forces us at times not be able to help the church as we have before. It may be an illness, a family problem, or a hectic schedule. But after those things have set...

  Windsor , Ontario hair stylist Waddah Mustapha was awarded the equivalent of about $270,000 by a court after he testified that he became racked with depression upon seeing a fly inside a commercial bottle of water at his salon. Presumably, damages would have been more if Mustapha had actually drunk from the bottle (or even opened it). As it was, he required extensive psychotherapy for nightmares, loss of sense of humor, increased argumentativeness, lack of desire to shower regularly, and constipation. Poor fellow! I bet he knows exactly how Job felt! ms d be given   All kidding aside, it seems some people will stop at nothing to find something to blame for their problems. Unfortunately, I have seen this mentality in the Lord’s church. Folks will use any excuse for being unfaithful. They will blame their absence on the person that “took” their pew or a perceived insult from the preacher. It seems the excuse does not even need to make sense, as long as you have one. Even if t...

One of our deacons told me a humorous story of when he worked at the grain elevator. It seems that they hired a young girl to do some secretarial work. The girl didn’t really do a good job and after a bit of time she left, but her poor work followed her. In the next few months, any wrong invoice or misfiled paperwork was blamed on her. The only problem was even after she had been gone a year mistakes from 6 months ago were still blamed on her. Even when it couldn’t have been her mistake, she was still too easy to blame. I think a lot of church problems get “solved” the same way. Instead of looking for how we can work to improve, we have some time tested excuse that is just too easy to use. Excuses and blame never solve anything. Next time we are faced with challenges, let’s not seek to lay blame, but find solutions instead.

My Excuses Someone sat in my favorite spot in services. I don’t have any extra time to do anything at church. I don’t want people to make fun of me for my faith. The leadership at church doesn’t do things like I want them to. The conditions at services are uncomfortable. Jesus’ Excuses “ But the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head .” Matthew 8:20  " I shall be with you a little while ”        John 7:33  “ The Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed ,” Luke 9:22   “But the chief priests, the scribes, and the leaders of the people sought to destroy Him ,” Luke 19:47  “Then they struck Him on the head with a reed and spat on Him ;” Mark 15:19 When you compare them, Jesus had much better excuses for him not live the life he was called to than we do. Aren’t you glad he never used any of them? Maybe we shouldn’t either!