Planning For Failure
From time to time I actually get a moment or two to do some reading (not as much time as I would like). In one of the recent reads I had, the author spoke a little about Billy Graham. As the author shared some details that I had not known, I was intrigued and took off on one of mental rabit trails.
According to the author, Mr. Graham had several guidelines that were considered non-negotiable to all of his evangelistic campaigns. Each of the guidelines the author reported initially struck me as a bit legalistic but the more I pondered it the more it made sense.
1. All deliveries and correspondances were to be delivered to a personal assistant.
2. The personal assistant had to be male
3. Mr. Graham could never meet with a woman alone.
4. Mr. Graham should be escorted to the rest room by a man.
5. Only men were to room next to Mr. Graham.
Now like me you think wow. But then as you think about this, and all the moral failure that has occured in Christian leadership, I applaud Mr. Graham. He never forgot what he was capable of, like any man or woman is. He drew a line of defense far from home, so that moral conflict never hit home.
Billy Graham has been credited for his evangelistic work in this day, much like the Apostle Paul in his. Moral purity is one of the things that allowed his message to hold validity.
Well Done!!!!
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Inadequate
Do you ever feel totally inadequate? Unable to meet the demands of life, family, job? Nothing in my life reminds me of that more than parenting. Here are a few verses that gave me encouragement today, I hope they do the same for you!
Psalm 37:23 If he stumbles, he’s not down for long; God has a grip on his hand. (The Message)
Psalm 34:19 Disciples so often get into trouble; still, God is there every time (The Message)
Phillipians 4:19 You can be sure that God will take care of everything you need, his generosity exceeding even yours in the glory that pours from Jesus (The Message)
Phillipians 4:13 I can do everything through him who gives me strength. (NIV)
Joshua 1:9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go. (NIV)
A Hankering For Something Different
Growing up in rural east Texs, you pick up alot of terms and words that I don’t hear much anymore. It may just be the times or I suspect it is more around my “raisen” in a simple country setting. One of the words I like, (and strill try to use now and again) is the word “hankering”. In simple country terms, it means wanting something really bad or just plain hungry for it. Often when you got a hankering for something you would do it or get it, no matter the cost. One thing about a hankering is that it implies a former knowledge of what you are desiring, i.e. so bad you can taste it.
Why the vocabulary lesson? I think that as believers we sometimes find ourselves with a hankering. Now one would hope that the hankering would be for more intimacy with Christ, a deeper prayer life, or even holiness in our lives, yet unfortunately it is often the opposite. All of us at one point in time in our lives were lost, adrift from the things of God and Christ. In that life we may have experienced a greater or lesser degree of the things of this world.
We acquired tastes that often feed our desires, emptyness and lonliness. When coming to Christ, we looked for a filling of all those things from a divine perspective. And He does meet us in incredible marvelous ways. However, I think that we sometimes get a hankering for the old ways the old flavors and sometimes will stop at nothing to get them.
When I find myself with a hankering for the old stuff, I am drawn back to a few Scriptures that help direct me and remind me of who I am, and where my commitment is.
“No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God” (Luke 9:62).
“If any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him” (Hebrews 10:38).
“Remember Lot’s wife. Whosoever shall seek to save his life shall lose it” (Luke 17:32-33).
“A double minded man is unstable in all his ways” (James 1:8).
“Strive to enter in at the strait gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able” (Luke 13:24).
“Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding” (Proverbs 3:5).
Jesus in John 6:27-35 said, “Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal on Him.” Therefore they said to Him, “What sign will you perform then, that we may see it and believe You? What work will you do? Our fathers ate the manna in the desert; as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’” Then Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, but My Father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” Then they said to Him, “Lord, give us this bread always.” And Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.”
To close the thoughts for today, I want to share a passage from one of the hymns we used to sing:
Come, every soul by sin oppressed, There’s mercy with the Lord,
And He will surely give you rest By trusting in His Word.
Only trust Him, only trust Him, Only trust Him now.
He will save you, He will save you, He will save you now.
For Jesus shed His precious Blood, Rich blessings to bestow;
Plunge now into the crimson flood That washes white as snow.
Only trust Him, only trust Him, Only trust Him now.
He will save you, He will save you, He will save you now.
(“Only Trust Him” by John H. Stockton, 1813-1877).
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Perseverance
In a life often filled with hardships, struggles and challenges, we often find ourselves on the edge of faith. Not only faith in God, but faith in government, faith in our employer, faith in humanity and sometimes faith in ourselves. To get through these times and find ourselves back on stable footing, I have had to learn persistence. One definition of persistence is “continuing in obstacles tennaciously”.
When I read that definition it reminded me of one of my pets as a young teenager. Brownie was a pit bull. Now this was back before pit-bulls had the reputation of vicously attacking kids. We got Brownie as a puppy and she grew up with my brothers, sister and I. She was a loyal protector, no one would even get out of their care when they came to our house because she stood gaurd and subtlely said – “Dont even try it”. As ferocious as she looked, she was gentle to our family as can be. We would often wrestle with Brownie and she loved to be chase and be chased. Part of the fun when we wrestled would be she would get on top of us and “bite our arm”. Her bite was never hard enough to break the skin but I could stand up and literally swing her around and she would not let go. It must have been a funny sight to see a boy swinging a bull dog around on his arm. I was always amazed at how she hung as we would see how fast we could swing her. That in my opinion is persistance – hanging on and not letting go, no matter how fast the world was swinging by.
That same concept is what I think James meant in James 1:2-4, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” When we look at perserance as something that is changing us, and if we allow, changes us in a positive way, I think we can find strength in that.
“Perseverance is not a long race; it is many short races one after the other”.
