Today's Scripture Reading

[Psalm23]

Today’s Scripture Reading [November 3, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]

Wherefore comfort yourself together, and edify one another, even as also ye do. [1 Thessalonians 5:11]

When was the last time you attended meeting? How did you and your colleagues feel after the meeting concluded? Did you and your colleagues feel elated? Or did you all feel disgusted or flabbergasted, and you wish you were not there!

My own personal experience can testify that most meetings I attended had failed to encourage or motivate people to improve their job performance. I could hardly remember of any meeting that I had attended elated my self-worth; we frequently encounter negative exchanges such as:

• Your ideas and suggestions were thrown out even before you could even finish what you wanted to say;
• Belittling of one another just to bring down a person’s self-worth;
• Finger-pointing to exonerate oneself from errors or customer complaints;
• Look of anger among the meeting participants;
• Use of threatening or intimidating words by our superior like “You will be fired if you make the same mistake again” or “Why are you so stupid; you should not have done it.”
• Don't tell me what to do! I have been with the company for 15 years.

All these sound too familiar! We don’t quite feel encourage after the meeting and quite to the contrary, we often feel quite discouraged and this may drive us to quit our job. There are countless trainings just to teach people “How to conduct effective meeting” and many companies are still facing problems associated with ineffective meetings even though they may have sent their employees to these trainings.

Besides business meetings, we may also inadvertently draw into foolish conversations when we socialized with our friends. Some of these careless and foolish conversations were not intentionally made to hurt others. We tend to be careless with the choice of our words especially with our friends. We made jokes at their expense and say to ourselves, "They should have no problem with these jokes.” We may well be wrong because words do hurt and they can hurt very deeply to the point that relationship can be severely affected. The Bible has therefore cautioned us to be careful and not to participate in foolish and filthy talks (Ephesians 5:4; Colossians 3:8) because God knows the destructive power of these conversations.

What exactly is ‘encouragement’, and how then do we encourage rather than discourage others? Webster dictionary defines encouragement as "to give courage or confidence to; to raise the hopes of; to help on by sympathetic advice and interests; to advise and make it easy for (someone to do something) to promote or stimulate; to strengthen." In contrast, discourage is defined as "to say or take away the courage of, to deter, to lessen enthusiasm for and so restrict or hinder."

Amazingly, our words have the power to build or tear others. Like a knife, the tongue has a sharp powerful edge that can be used to either heal or destroy. The knife in the hands of a skilled surgeon brings healing and life, but a knife in the hands of a felon brings death and destruction. Like the surgeon, we can study how to use our mouths to bring life to those around us. But it's not easy. The tongue is difficult to control and being in a wet place, is apt to slip and we may end up saying something that we ought not to have said in the first place. Hence, we must try consciously to control our tongue especially telling someone like ‘why are you so stupid’ or ‘you fool.’ Jesus has warned us that whosoever call someone a fool he will be in danger of casting into hell (Matthew 5:22).

God recognizes weakness in our speech and He has therefore given us many words of wisdom to remind us of the danger of misusing our tongue. The following are ten wisdom Bible verses (and there are many more in the Bible) that remind us to use our words in a more discerning manner and our words should be seasoned with salt, sweetened with honey, and nourishing to exalt others.

• Proverbs 10:11 - The mouth of a righteous man is a well of life: but violence covereth the mouth of the wicked.

• Proverbs 10:21 - The lips of the righteous feed many: but fools die for want of wisdom.

• Proverbs 12:6 - The words of the wicked are to lie in wait for blood: but the mouth of the upright shall deliver them.

• Proverbs 12:8 - There is that speaketh like the piercings of a sword: but the tongue of the wise is health.

• Proverbs 14:3 - In the mouth of the foolish is a rod of pride: but the lips of the wise shall preserve them.

• Proverbs 15:2 - The tongue of the wise useth knowledge aright: but the mouth of fools poureth out foolishness.

• Proverbs 15:26 - The thoughts of the wicked are an abomination to the LORD: but the words of the pure are pleasant words.

• Proverbs 16:23 - The heart of the wise teacheth his mouth, and addeth learning to his lips.

• Ecclesiastes 10:12 - The words of a wise man’s mouth are gracious; but the lips of a fool will swallow up himself.

• 1 Peter 3:10 - For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile.

 

[mathewho]

hallelujah! praise the lord! amen!

 

[Psalm23]

hallelujah! praise the lord! amen!

Thanks for reading my thread. If you are encouraged by these writings, appreciate you can also tell your friends in Christ (although non-Christian friends are welcome to read if they find them not offensive).

 

[Psalm23]

Today’s Scripture Reading [November 4, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]

Every way of a man is right in his own eyes: but the LORD pondereth the hearts. [Proverbs 21:2]

When God asked Adam why he disobeyed Him by eating the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, his response was quick and swift “The fruit was given to me by the woman whom You have given” (Genesis 3:12), and when God confronted Eve with the same question, Eve response was equally quick and swift, “The serpent deceived me” (Genesis 3:13). It’s not our fault! It’s all yours!

Since Adam’s time, blaming others is the universal rule used in all the games for all of us who are engaged in disputes. When a situation is not right and we are a party to that situation, our immediate response is to blame others, or try ways and means to exonerate ourselves, often at the expense of others. It seems that the very survival of each individual in the world of commerce depends on how well one has mastered this finger-pointing art and like any games, they are always some who are better than others.

We don’t personally take responsibility for the wrong things we have done, even though some of these can be so obvious we ourselves are at fault. For working adults, we can testify that office politics speaks volume on this syndrome of “blaming it on everyone except me”. We see a lot of finger pointing when something goes wrong – the sales personnel blames the production department; production department blames the purchasing; purchasing blames the engineering design, and so on – “It’s not our fault; it’s theirs!”

In many car insurance policies, we are warned by the car insurance companies that when we got into an accident, we must not admit liabilities (even the accident is obviously our fault). We are warned that once we have accepted and admitted the liabilities, our insurance companies reserve the right not to compensate us. To put it plainly, we are told to blame others even though we are in the wrong; just simply cook up some lies if you want the insurance companies to honour the policy!

When Jesus was hung on the cross, He did not point His finger at anyone, not even Satan who is the sin-originator. He has willingly accepted and bore all our sins and with His stretched hands wide open, He gave His spirit for us so that we can be reconciled to God, the Father.

I like to share an article on this topic. This article “Alarming Irresponsibility” is taken from Today’s Daily Encounter website I personally find it very useful for my Christian growth.

ALARMING IRRESPONSIBILITY​

“Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap.” (Galatians 6:7)

A Spanish proverb says: “God says, ‘Choose what you will and pay for it.’”

Not so here in the U.S., maybe, according to at least some so-called justices. Chuck Colson in BreakPoint pointed out a few years ago just one of many similar examples when he wrote, “A young woman I’ll call Susie Smith has a weight problem: She’s five feet, six inches and weighs 270 pounds. Why does she weigh twice her healthy weight? Genetics? Poor nutrition? Lack of exercise?

“No! McDonald’s. Smith claims that she is obese because ‘her regular diet included an Egg McMuffin for breakfast and a Big Mac meal for dinner.’ And that is why she and other overweight people were suing McDonald’s.”

Back in college days for two summers I drove a CTA passenger bus in Chicago, and in our training we learned how some people would purposely fall in the bus so they could sue the bus company for damages. And these people never seem to want for a lawyer who will accept their case.

In recent days we have read how smokers have successfully sued tobacco companies for millions of dollars blaming the manufacturers for their (the
smokers’) addiction! I certainly don’t approve of tobacco companies but not one of them ever made anyone buy or smoke their cigarettes. Every single smoker did so because of his/her own choice and action. And never has a McDonald’s ever made any customer buy an Egg McMuffin or a Big Mac let alone make them eat them.

What so-called justices are granting is not only absurd, it’s downright alarming. Once upon a time law, order, and justice, were based on the Judeo-Christian ethic. No longer. We’ve thrown out prayer, God, and the Bible from our schools. And there’s ever increasing pressure to have God and the Bible removed from all public places. Consequently we are now living in what has been called post-Christian America and it seems as if some lawyers and judges are making their own laws instead of adhering to the law as spelled out in the Constitution.

Consequently, personal and moral responsibility is rapidly being decimated.

If we keep heading this way, law and order based on a higher power (be it God or the Constitution – essential for the successful functioning of any society and nation) will become so eroded, we will end up like ancient Rome and every other civilization who discarded God, morality, and personal responsibility.

The Spanish proverb is correct: “God says, "Choose what you will and pay for it." Susie Smith and company did exactly what they wanted to do and are paying for it. Denial will never take off their weight nor cure their lung cancer, the result of smoking.

One thing is certain, we cannot break God’s laws and survive any more than we can break the universal law of gravity. When we attempt to, it breaks us. What we sow is what we reap! Period – even if it is eventually.

END OF ARTICLE​

Notes:
Through the reading of the articles in the Today’s Daily Encounter website, I have improved in my bible knowledge, and more importantly, I have deeper relationship with Jesus Christ. If you want more of such articles you may want to go to: http://www.actsweb.org

 

[mathewho]

nice verse in the bible this verses is important for christan beliving and living. praise in his holy name! amen!

 

[Psalm23]

Today’s Scripture Reading [November 5, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]

All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works. [2 Timothy 3:16-17]

Someone has once commented that a woman cannot live without a mirror. Although I do quite agree to this comment but to be fair to our sisters-in-Christ, for many men, they too cannot live without a mirror. Mirrors reflect our true physical images and they can show to us unsightly pimples, wrinkles, or sores that appear on our faces. And without the mirrors we find it inconvenient to do basic grooming like combing hairs, applying lipsticks, facial powders or creams. Because we all want to look beautiful and pretty, once we have discovered unsightly pimples or wrinkles, we will try to remove them out. Some of us may spend a lot of monies just to purchase facial creams and lotions to improve our look. This is no wonder cosmetic is a multi-billion dollar industry and in addition, hundred of million of dollars are spent by cosmetic manufacturers on promoting their products. In every department store, small or big, we will definitely find cosmetic counters selling all kinds of cosmetic products to people for both gender and for all ages to look good – from the outside, of course! Every beauty pageant is sponsored by at least one major cosmetic producer. Plastic surgery is now so popular in China that people (men and women) even prepared to risk their lives to go for the surgery to correct their eye-lids, noses, lips, cheeks, eye-brows. There were cases that these surgeries went horribly wrong and people even contempted suicide. These things are corruptible things, and what's in vogue today is out of fashion when next year's supermodels hit the runway. The true beauty of a person is not in our external appearance which is passing away but the fear of the LORD (Proverbs 31:30).

We are all prepared to be corrected to our outside look, but how many of us are willing to be corrected when we are in error inside – to be reproved for the wrong things we do? We simply do not like to be corrected because we all love praise, we like flattery but reproof, and correction we hate! We can now see why it is so difficult for people to go to the word of God, the Bible, and to agree on just what it says. The Bible is God's great spiritual mirror. It shows up our errors, every flaw in our thinking, reveals every spot on our characters, even the tiniest spiritual wrinkle or pimple. It pictures us as we really are - as God sees us and not as man sees us, not as we like to think we are, or as we like to have other people look upon us. We all have spent too much time looking at distorted reflection in the distorted mirrors of our mind. Distorted mirrors can only give distorted reflections, and to expect anything else from them would be foolish. We are all looking into the wrong mirrors and hope that these mirrors will give us the image that can satisfy our own ego and pride. It can never be. What we really need to do is to look into the mirror of God’s love, a mirror that gives living hope, a mirror that gives us our real image.

In Hebrews 4:12, it says that, “God's word is living and active. It is sharper than any two-edged sword and cuts as deep as the place where soul and spirit meet, the place where joints and marrow meet. God's word judges a person's thoughts and intentions.” Yes, it opens up and exposes our innermost thoughts! Yes, the Bible scripture is our spiritual mirror we need to be looking into every day and then we will see ourselves in this new life in Christ Jesus. Once we look at the Bible scripture mirror, it will reflect a whole new realm, the kingdom of God, we are living in or should live in and out of as Christians. The word of God, our spiritual mirror gives two reflections from God. The first reflection lets us see ourselves as who we really are, and we are nothing but wicked, self-centered, selfish, sinful. The second reflection lets us see what we can become when the power of Jesus’ love and mercy rolls through our hearts and mind, and makes us into a new person. It is so important that Jesus has told us that man shall not live by bread alone but to live in accordance with what God has said and commanded (Luke 4:4). Stand in front of the mirror today, every day. Imagine Jesus by your side, and ask Him to create in you a gentle and quiet spirit of love. His precious blood is the best spiritual soul-cleansing cosmetic lotion. You don’t need to pay for this precious lotion – His soul-cleansing blood! Jesus has given His life promoting it to the world by hanging on the cross with a big FOC price tag prominently displayed - His wide-stretched hands.

 

[kakowi]

keep up the good work Psalm23, looks like it is benefiting a number of people

 

[Psalm23]

keep up the good work Psalm23, looks like it is benefiting a number of people

Thank you for the encouragement. All glory to God. If all my efforts can just convince one person to be converted and truly give his/her heart to Jesus and also can bring Christians closer to God, my mission is accomplished. God bless and have a great blessed weekend.

 

[Psalm23]

Today’s Scripture Reading [November 6, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]

And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn. [Luke 2:7]

We are all too familiar that when heads of states such as prime ministers, presidents, kings, queens and crown princes and princesses visit other countries, they are accompanied by a huge entourage of personal attendants, advisers, and security guards. Their arrivals are usually marked with grand ceremonies and so too are their departures. They would later exchange expensive gifts and host expensive state parties. Thousands and if not million of dollars of taxed payers’ monies are spent each time they traveled to another country and all in the name of establishing and fostering closer diplomatic relations. We also noted that most of these visits are for couple of days. Frankly, how much can they really do to foster relationship in just few short days? Are these visits essential? Are they just rest and recreation for them and their families? We all may wonder.

However, the arrival of our King of kings and Lord of lords from heaven to this sinful world was a complete contrast, and so too was His departure. He did not just come for few days but He dwelt among men for more than 30 years! After over 30 years as Guest of this world, His departure is but the most tragic farewell that the world has accorded to a royalty.

Virgin Mary was traveling with Joseph and she was carrying baby Jesus in her womb. Mary needed a place to stay so that she could give birth to our Saviour. She just couldn’t find any room because all the rooms in the inns were fully occupied. Together with Joseph, they did however manage to find a manger for Virgin Mary to stay and deliver our Saviour. As we all know, mangers are places where horses, goats, sheep and other domestic animals kept. Imagine God came down all the way from heaven and spent the very first day of His life on earth with animals. This humble birth of our Saviour is even worse when we compared to the birth of a child from the poor of the poorest even to this day! No matter how poor people are, expectant mothers are usually given a descent place to deliver their babies. They may not deliver their babies in a modern hospital but certainly not in a stable or a manger where horses and other animals are kept.

That’s not all of Him! Upon His departure from this earth, He had to spend His very last day hanging onto a tree to die so that we can be reconciled to God!

These two events (and His resurrection) are extremely essential for Jesus, the Son of God, to build and foster conciliatory relations between man and God; without these historical events man and God will never be reconciled. His willingness to suffer such humiliation is nothing short of stretching out His hands at the very last moment of His life and desperately cried out “THIS I DO BECAUSE I LOVE YOU TOO MUCH”.

There were no entourage nor any ceremony to mark His arrival, and upon His departure from this sinful world, there were but cruel shouts of ‘Crucify Him! Crucify Him!’ and these shouts were from the very people that He has come to save (John 23: 21)!

The painting of Jesus standing at the door and knocking is familiar to most Christians. Our first step of faith as Christians is to open the door and to ask Jesus to enter into our hearts and be our Lord and Saviour. It is a great joyful day when Christ enters into our heart and that our heart is His dwelling place. But we must not just end here.

Our lives are crowded with so many worldly things and distractions – career, ambitions, finances, relationships and many others that are taking us away from God. To many of us, we find ourselves so far away from Him that often we seem to have forsaken Him. We are numbed, indifference, and His absence from our heart makes no difference because in the first place we seldom felt His presence. If we are not careful, our preoccupations of worldly things can become our idols which can act like spiritual cancers pushing that which is life-giving, the Spirit of Christ, out of the way. Let’s leave rooms for Jesus in our hearts. Let us not let the worldly attractions distract us from the love of God. He is our most important Guest. Although the world did not have any room for Jesus, He has plenty of rooms for each of us. Jesus has told us that in His Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, He would have told us, and He is going there to prepare a place for us (John 14:2).

So, let us all exalt our God with the song, “No Room for Baby Jesus” (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DGwnzz6hR0s&feature=related) and sincerely pray that we will leave plenty of rooms for Him in our heart.

 

[Psalm23]

Today’s Scripture Reading [November 7, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]

But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof. [Romans 13:14]

About a month ago, one of the local newspapers featured a lengthy article on ‘Addiction'. It was reported that although addictions can take in various forms – drugs, pornography, prostitutions, gambling or wine – the final fate of all hardcore addicts is the same regardless of the kind of addictions they had fallen into. Many will end up either in jail, committing or attempting suicide, having broken marriage or in mental institution. Their addictions will not only hurt themselves but also others especially family members. There is another commonality of the addicts. They all started with something small just to experiment for fun and slowly they progress to a point of no return. Another sad news is that even after they ‘recovered’, the relapse rate is very high. They seem to be powerless to combat their addicted habits and they keep going back, again and again to the habits. They just couldn’t make themselves new although many of them have sincerely tried to stay clean from those destructive habits. They sought advises from doctors, psychologists, psychiatrists and professional counselors but sadly the success rate is very low.

Whether we are suffering from any addiction or other personal problems like poor anger management, unforgiving spirit or pride, we need a higher power, a power outside ourselves to transform us, to make us new. We need the power of the Creator of the Universe. We need the power of Jesus Christ to deliver us. In Christ, nothing is impossible (Luke 1:37); and in Him we can be new every morning (Lamentations 3:23).

And where can we find Him? Ultimately we can only find God in His revealed word, the Bible. We will not escape our obsessions or compulsions until we place our faith in Him. We must guard ourselves against philosophies that run counter to the word of God, philosophies that sound attractive but that in fact can turn us away from spiritual reality. Many people today tell us "we are all God." These teachings are dangerous for two reasons. One, it robs us of the knowledge of who God really is. And two, it puts us back in the very spot that got us into trouble in the first place: trying to be God. Have we not already tried to run the world, and found how pathetically inadequate we are to the task? God is patient. He is giving the world the chance to prove it can do it without His help. But can we? The world is in constant battle since its creation, and World War Two was supposed to be the world’s ‘final war’ between the good and the bad. When the German and Japanese had surrendered, it was thought that the world will be finally at peace, for ever. We are all wrong and the real bad news is that World War II is but a rehearsal for a much bigger war to come! The Bible has prophesized that there will be final apocalyptic events of sufferings and tribulation that the world had never seen. These events are going to be so horrible that unless God intercedes and cut short the time, no man will survive (Matthew 24:22). The Book of Revelation gives an extremely gloomy account of those apocalyptic events and many Bible scholars estimated that based on the account as many as two-third of the population will be destroyed. Given the current population of about 6 billion, the total death could be as many as 4 billion! By comparison, it was estimated that World War II killed about 50 – 70 million people.

There is only One Person who can run the world, and who can be trusted to watch over our lives as well. This is the God of the Bible who created all that is, who created us, who loves us and longs to be Lord of our lives. He has revealed Himself in the pages of the Bible. Our recovery depends on opening our mind, our heart, and our will to His loving care. Call upon the name of Jesus and He will draw us near to Him. He has promised to us that He will never leave us nor forsake us (Hebrews 13:5). Our problems are His problems, our addictions are His addictions, and our sufferings are His sufferings. It grieves Him when He sees us in distraught state. He wants us to make us whole. So let us be bold and say, “The Lord is my helper. I will not fear” (Hebrews 13:6).

 

[Psalm23]

Today’s Scripture Reading [November 8, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]

And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. [Ephesians 4:30]

No parent can love their children too much. We may or may not already be parents, but there is something we all know about parental grief. Each time when the children did something not right, it grieves their parents. And why? All because of love. Grief and love are inseparable twins. We need to really love someone to grieve for him or her. For a friend or a relative who has done something against the law and has to serve his time in prison, we may feel sad for him and his family members, especially his children and wife. But do we grieve for him? I don't think so because grieving for someone requires us to have a very personal relationship of love with that person.

God has sent his Holy Spirit to be our Comforter and our Helper (John 16:7). He knows everything about us, not just our actions but our thoughts. As children of God, each time we drink a glass of beer, the Holy Spirit grieves; each time we walk into a big sweep booth and bought a big sweep or a toto ticket, He grieves; each time we harbour a sinful thought, He grieves. Each time we lose our temper unreasonably, He grieves. And why? All because of HIS LOVE for us. This is the only God whom we know that can grieve. He is just like our earthly parents, a Living Person Who has every good and perfect intention for us. He doesn’t want us to get into trouble. We are marked with His seal for the day of redemption (Ephesians 4:30b). Hence, we must be very careful in our daily walk and take every effort not to grieve Him with our sin, no matter how insignificant the sin may appear so that the mark of His seal that He put on us will not be in vain.

Another aspect of parenting is that parents are always very pleased to see that their children show sincere love to them. Sadly, we all can’t remember when the last time our mum or dad came and said to us, “My dear child, thank you so much. I appreciate your concern. You are my beloved child.” Without a doubt, all parents are eager to say these words to their children but they just couldn’t find any good reasons to do so. I must admit I can’t remember when the last time my parents had said those words to me neither can I remember when the last time I had sincerely shown some concerns to them.

Just like our earthly parents, our Heavenly Father is eager to see us do praiseworthy deeds so that He can to say to us, “Child well done. I am well pleased with the deeds you do; the thoughts you have; the words that you said; the things that you see.” Sadly, although our Heavenly Father is eagerly waiting to say these words to us, He just couldn’t find any good reasons to say them. I, too, just can’t remember when the last time God has spoken these words of praise to me.

Because Jesus has willingly obeyed to be our sin-bearer on the cross, the Heavenly Father has acknowledged with the voice from heaven, “You are my Son, the Beloved; with You I am well please (Mark 1:11)”. Jesus has every good reason to receive this praise from God, the Father. From His very humble birth right up to His very tragic death on the cross, He has only one mission to accomplish – to reconcile all sinful men to God. His resurrection after three days has marked His total and absolute completion of this mission whom God, the Father has commanded Him to do.

Are we ready for God to say those words of praise to us? But before He could say it to us, first we must not grieve Him. How then can we avoid grieving the Holy Spirit? For this, God has given us specific instructions: We are to put away all bitterness, wrath, anger, wrangling and slander, together with all malice, and be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, and be imitators of God as beloved children, and live in love. (Ephesians 4:30-31; 5:1). God is waiting eagerly to say to us “Child well done. I am well pleased with you.” Let us give God the opportunities to say those words by obeying His holy instructions.

 

[mathewho]

nice verse!amen!

 

[johnboy_sg]

God, I have a confession. I had sodomised my mother many times before.

 

[Psalm23]

Today’s Scripture Reading [November 9, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]

Then he which had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew thee that thou art an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where thou hast not strawed: And I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the earth: lo, there thou hast that is thine. [Matthew 24:24-25]

One of the common excuses for us to decline or reject requests to do work for God is that we feel we are not good enough. We give excuses after excuses for lack of talent. This is just simply lame excuse because no one is completely useless in His sight. We are created in the image of God and God never makes mistakes. Through Him all things are created and in Him, He holds all things together, including our so-called inadequacies or lack of talent (Colossians 1:17). The big question for us is not whether we have any talent or not; the question is: are we willing to obey His calling and are we willing to use our talents that God has given to us to serve Him.

Our feeling of inadequacy is even more apparently when we read about stories of talented people who have ‘shaken the world’ perhaps with their musical talent, artistic skill. But we just need to remind ourselves that no matter how talented a person can be, he too can go so far. Likewise, no matter how ‘untalented’ we are, there is always something that we can offer to God. Let’s not fall into the trap of self-limiting and self-eliminating. While some people may have ten talents and others only one (and no one has none!), we are all responsible for what we do with what we have. The important thing is to fully develop our talent or talents and to use them wisely for His glory, to invest them in things of eternal value, for we will reap what we sow (Galatians 6: 7-8). Throughout the Bible, God has used ordinary people to do extraordinary work because in God’s eyes, there is no imperfection of talent. In fact, many of these ordinary men and women whom God has used them had deficiencies of some kind. Let’s look at some of these people:

- Noah was a drunk
- Abraham was too old
- Isaac was a daydreamer
- Jacob was a liar
- Leah was ugly
- Joseph was abused
- Moses had a stuttering problem
- Gideon was afraid
- Samson was a womanizer
- Rahab was a prostitute
- Jeremiah and Timothy were too young
- David had an affair and was a murderer
- Solomon kept hundreds of women
- Elijah was suicidal
- Jonah ran from God
- Naomi was a widow
- Job went bankrupt
- Peter denied Christ, not once but 3 times
- The Disciples fell asleep while praying
- Martha worried about everything
- Zacchaeus was too small, a tax collector, hated by many
- Paul was too religious
- AND Lazarus was dead!

We have no excuses. Jesus is not looking for giants. He is looking for faithful and humble servants. All that is required of us is to do our best for the things that He has told us to do, and our motives for the service must not be self-seeking and hoping for worldly recognition. All service must be for Him and His glory alone. You may have the talent to preach to ten thousands or you may have the talent to evangelise to only one person at a time, to God, it makes no difference.

 

[Psalm23]

Today’s Scripture Reading [November 10 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]

Bread of deceit is sweet to a man; but afterwards his mouth shall be filled with gravel. [Proverbs 20:17]

The first forbidden fruit was eaten by Adam and Eve from the tree of knowledge of good and evil in the Garden of Eden. It is now used to refer to anything that is tempting but dangerous especially those illegal and immoral sexual activities. In Proverbs 9:17, we are also told that stolen water is sweet. In both instances, when we eat of a forbidden fruit or drink of the stolen water, we do it in secret; we hide away from people. To turn this a bit more, most of us have skeletons in our past, skeletons in our closet, as we are know to say, and we would prefer that they stay there hidden in that closet for ever and people will never know of them.

But the world is now so corrupt that immoral activities are so rampant and horrible that people don’t even find doing these things that were done in secret in the past are now needed to be done in secret anymore! They even boast it openly because “everybody does it now, so what’s the big deal!” In my school days in the 60s when school boys and girls would just hold their hands in the public, many would raise their eye-brows when they saw these school boys and girls holding hands. But today young boys and girls boast of their sexual activities by opening recording them onto the mobile phone and displaying them on the internet! They also displayed photographic images of their nude bodies trying to outdo their friends in these obnoxious activities. If children are behaving in such obnoxious manner, what can you expect from the adults? The era of adults as role-models has gone – for good. What kind of the world are we at now? Many people are asking.

I would like to share a sermon by Lehman B. Lyons, Jr giving a short sermon on Proverbs 9:17 “Stolen waters are sweet, and bread eaten in secret is pleasant”. I prayfully hope that the Lord Jesus will give the spirit of understanding and wisdom to all of us, young and old, to discern what is right and what is wrong, and to call evil evil and good good because griefs and distresses will be upon us if we do the opposite when we call evil good and good evil (Isaiah 5:20).

Stolen water is sweet​

The commercial was ending as I returned with my snack into the living room. The website address and the catch phrase remained on the screen like a stain on the carpet. “Life is short. Have an affair,” read the website’s catch phrase. My shock was entangled with confusion and disbelief. Was this a crude joke? Did I just see an advertisement promoting an extra-marital affair? Has the concept of “Whatever happens here stays here” overtaken every aspect of life?

A little research into the above-mentioned commercial sponsor spotlighted a revelation of sorts. It was not a joke. The latest, lowest denominator of human nature, the “self only” attitude of the “Me generation,” has exploded into the minds of mankind.

Almost all electronic media avenues have taken turns expanding on what is labeled a new, provocative lifestyle. A lifestyle defined by a descent beyond selfishness into the mire of satisfying one’s desires with no accounting for any consequences. With this increased media coverage, people are persuaded that this variation represents what an expanding population is engaged in, and that this is, somehow, now acceptable.

While striking at the core fundamentals of truth, honor, respect and character, this life-misdirection places self-gratification before every other aspect of existence. Using the present economical hard times as an excuse for avoiding divorce, this provocative lifestyle dictates a disastrous change in thinking about marriage commitments and cheating. It shuns and scoffs at the mention of any level of morality in a family environment while it gorges on debauchery, lewdness and wastefulness.

The statistics on the rate of male or female infidelity calculated by numerous reports seem to range across the spectrum of percentages. The obvious reason for these varied results is based on the understanding that if individuals will cheat on their mates, they will also lie about the committing of the act. These actions are contemplated and executed out of the view of others and in shadowy hideaways at odd times of the day.

The Word of God stands in direct opposition to this greed-driven lust of man. God clearly establishes His position in this matter throughout the Bible. In the words of Jesus Christ recorded in Matthew 19:4-6, “Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning made them male and female, and said, ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.’ So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate.” There is no provision for multiple partners on either side of this “oneness.” Additionally, the phrase “let not man separate” is extremely poignant when you understand that approximately 95 % of marriages that end in divorce identify the cause as the infidelity of a mate.

The Satanic mindset to unravel the fabric of the family structure is transparent. Using the powerful ingredients of lust, greed and selfishness, Satan’s plan continues to draw man away from God and fog the inspired covenant of marriage. Destroying the marriage commitment, this new provocative lifestyle helps to fracture the foundation of our already weakened society.

The marriage relationship ordained by God between a man and woman is based on an out-flowing concern, not an inward obsession. The apostle Paul explains the marriage relationship in his first letter to the Corinthians that each mate’s body belongs in turn to his or her mate (1 Corinthians 7:4). This focus promotes a mutual bond of trust and stability. In turn, this bond between a man and woman solidifies one of the integral ingredients of a stable, growing society.

End of Sermon​

 

[Psalm23]

Dear All Brothers and Sisters-in-Christ,

Thank you for reading my thread. Unforunately, because of my other commitments, I am unable to post this on a daily basis. In the new season starting from week, I will resume my posting but I can only do it on weekly basis and Monday is the choice of day for my posting. I hope we all can begin our week by reading and mediating upon His scripture and prayfully this will give us the spiritual nourishment for the rest of the week. However, to get most blessing from God, we must read His scripture everyday. It should not be once a week activity. Thank you for all your encouragement. God Bless.

 

[Psalm23]

Today’s Scripture Reading [November 16, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]

Thus saith the LORD, The heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool: where is the house that ye build unto me? and where is the place of my rest? [Isaiah 66:1]

Each time when I posted an article in this thread, I felt quite a sense of unease because I knew there are people who may be skeptical of these postings because most of them were written about the dark side of the world in general and of mankind in specific. They have every reason to be skeptical and I will not take offence even I am being labeled as ‘prophet of doom’ or a pessimist. However, I am no prophet and will never be one, and we don’t need any prophet because the Bible has prophesized all that we need to know about the future, of course. And the future foretold by the Bible is not pretty. In fact, it looks extremely, extremely bleak and gloomy! I too am not a pessimist. On the contrary, our future is as bright as morning stars if and only if we can put all our trust in the God of the Bible, Lord Jesus Christ.

If you will to examine the ‘Top Stories’ reported in our local newspaper last Friday, you would have noticed the following headlines:

• Record $653,000 for 4-room flat
• Pregnant? Stand up for your rights at work
• Obama: I’ll raise need for balanced growth
• Warhol work fetches $60m
• Scientists find way to regrow breast tissue
• Divorce risk high for cancer women
• Britain to tighten entry criteria
• Taxi ridership at its lowest in six years
• Men in White in a lighter, graphic format
• Pregnant women advised on type of H1N2 shot to get
• Say thank you with a daisy
• Common chemical could cause impotence
• Ministers vow to stand together
• Suntec’s loss in Mustafa’s gain
• Exit strategies need extra care
• Inflation fears take a back seat
• Easing path for business
• Strong yuan, weak dollar
• Greening the economy
• They’re young, eager and ready to rock
• Consumers in Asia are key
• Apec’s challenges and challengers
• Apec Speak
• Japan seeks joint action against climate change
• Too early to decide on E. Asian grouping: Tokyo
• IMF ‘underestimated power of coordination’
• Small Is beautiful for 21st century: Jack Ma
• Summit Scene
• China offers help on strait security
• ‘Cambridge of the Orient’ exploring new frontier
• S’pore, Russia offer vast benefits to each other

Can we really find joy, comfort and assurance in these headlines even though the ‘Top Stories’ seem to be the ‘best’ news at least over last few recent weeks? Unlike those we had read in the previous weeks, the daily news of cheating, killing, terrorism and human perversions are so commonly reported. Sadly, the news we read each day gives us no comforts, no matter how 'good and rosy' they appeared to be.

The world is out of control and they will continue to be out control for a long time to come. Many problems of humanity that should have been solved are still not addressed. In fact, we encounter new problems, new challenges before we even begin to have effective solutions to the old ones, for example: the stability (or instability) of world currency system; how does the raise of Chinese Yuan and the fall of US dollar affect world economy; how strong (or how weak) is the world banking system; when is the next financial crisis; where are we heading in the economy recovery; the issue of climate change, greenhouse effect, marine pollution due to industrial waste; when and where is the next mega-earthquake, mega-flood, mega-volcano; can the world health organization contain the spread of dread diseases like cancer, bird flu, swine flu; will the new vaccines create new strains of viruses; will cloning of animals and the use of animal organs for human transplant result in new viruses that man has no answer how to deal with; how effective and sincere are national leaders to bring about world peace; can they proved to be trustworthy; when and where is the next terrorist attack. And the list can go on.

Can we rely on mankind to solve mankind’s problems? The answer is crystal clear – NO! History has proved it over and over again that we can’t depend on man. Only our Living God, Lord Jesus, can do this job and only in Him we can put our trust to end all our miseries. Let’s not lean on the wrong wall which is written with this clear message: “We are fast running out of time and we may have already passed the dreaded point of no return! Obey the instructions from our Saviour, Lord Jesus: We must build our house on the rock and not upon the sand (Matthew 7:24-27). Only God can rescue humankind by sending Jesus Christ back to earth to save us from the chaos we have created.”

The article below, “Mankind’s never-ending hope” by Marc Arseneault, while it painted bleak picture of the humanity, gives hope to those who put their trust in Jesus.

Mankind’s never-ending hope​

On the 10th of October, Guy Laliberté, the founder of “Le cirque du soleil,” produced from space a show titled: “From the earth to space for water.” The spectacle was to promote the awareness of water as a precious and disappearing commodity. More and more people are finding themselves in a desperate race to find water.

Recent reports tell us that more than one billion people are suffering from hunger and lack of water. One of the biggest lakes in Africa – Lake Chad – is drying up; mountain glaciers in South America that provide water to entire populations are melting and disappearing. The future for many is bleak!
What was fascinating about this amazing achievement of technology and coordination between space and 14 countries was the fact that humanity wants to achieve peace and wants to protect the water resources for coming generations. They want to promote conservation of marshes, rivers and lakes and unfortunately they look for hope in the human race. It’s the never-ending hope in humanity.

Within the different acts of the show, there was a song in French that said: “…Ne tuons pas la beauté du monde, Faisons de la terre un grand jardin, Pour ceux qui viendront après nous …” which can be translated: “let us not kill the beauty of the world; let’s make of the earth a big garden, for those who are coming after us.” What a beautiful hope, but, again, humanity will not be able to bring it about.

The Bible reveals to us that “For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark” (Matthew 24 :38); and we see in Noah’s day that, “every intent of the thoughts of his [man’s] heart was only evil continually” (Genesis 6:5). And in our day, if God does not intervene, humanity would destroy itself (Matthew 24:22). By not acknowledging the way humanity is going right now, and by refusing to accept God and His way of life, humanity is destined to fail in bringing about the beauty of that world expressed in the song.

But the good news is that this dream will become reality through a source recognized by only a few. The Creator of the universe, Jesus Christ, will bring it about! This is the hope that is expressed by the biblical Feast of Tabernacles. This is the hope that we have in which the desert will bloom, the animals will be tame and this earth will become a big wonderful garden. And not only that, but there will be food for all, peace for all, joy, happiness for all, and the end of all sickness. The blind will see, the deaf will hear. This is the hope that is provided by the plan of God. Mankind’s never-ending hope will become reality in the return of Christ as King of kings and Lord of Lords.

End of Article​

 

[Psalm23]

Today’s Scripture Reading [November 22, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]

For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies. [Matthew 15:19]

I had just stumbled across a report on “Violent Video Games Can Increase Aggression” by chance. This report was written by the American Psychological Association. What surprises me is that this report was written almost 10 years ago in early 2000 when the technology of video game was not as advanced as today’s and in spite of its relatively “archaic” invention compared to the current one, the report had already warned people about the harmful effect of playing violent video games. Nobody seems to care about the warnings. For your benefits, I have summarized the key findings of report as follows:

1. Violent video games may be more harmful than violent television and movies because they are interactive, very engrossing and require the player to identify with the aggressor
2. Young men who are habitually aggressive may be especially vulnerable to the aggression-enhancing effects of the repeated exposure to violent games.
3. Even a brief exposure on the violent video games can temporarily increase aggressive behaviour in all types of participants.
4. One major concern is the active nature of the learning environment of the video games. This medium is potentially more dangerous than exposure to violent television and motives, which are known to have substantial effects on aggression.
5. In the short run, playing a violent video game appears to affect aggression by priming aggressive thoughts.

Since 2000, the technology of video games has improved by leaps and bounds. Newer technologies of virtual reality, role-playing game, action-adventured game with 3-Dimension-High-Definition (HD) video display resolution enhancement capabilities are taking shape to fully capture the heart, mind and soul of the players. A video gamer player can now literally enter into another world of his imagination. He is not conscious of what’s around him. He is confused between the virtual world and the real world. The primary danger is that what he has acted or done in the virtual world of video game could be dangerously sensationalized into the real life. U.S. in particular and to some great extent in some western European countries are paying the heavy price for this virtual entertainment. The tragic results have been told in the news over and over again - kids killing kids, kids killing parents, kids killing teachers, kids are bringing guns to school, and no one is safe because you could be killed at anytime and without warning.

Sadly, although there are strict technical regulations for manufacturers to comply certain industrial specifications to ensure that the hardware is safe to use but there are no laws governing the content of the games! There is at least little comfort because many parents are discerning enough to understand the harmful effect of violent video games and have taken some steps to control their children from playing the games. Hence, we find children are playing the games usually at public internet outlets or when their parents are at work. It is a parental nightmare especially those parents whose children are video game addicts. But the scenario is changing and is changing fast because very soon children and young adults who are now addicted to video games are going to be parents themselves. This new generation of parents who are themselves virtual-game savvy are likely to condon the playing of violent video games by their children (after all they themselves are addicts). You can’t ask an video game addict to help kick the habit of another video game addict in as much as you can’t ask a smoking addict to help kick the smoking habit of another smoker!

In all violent video game, hurting, maiming and killing others is the central fun activity. Can you imagine the whole family – dad, mum and kids – together playing the same violent game to identify enemies and everyone in the family screaming out “Let’s kill him! Let’s kill him!” The harmful effect of violent video game is just the tip of the iceberg of the misguided application of this modern technology. Hardware and software companies are making billions of dollars. They have every incentive to keep investing in the technology and to produce more attractive and more addictive games to capture their audience. So where are we heading in the technology of virtual reality? Will it just end here? Definitely not! These companies will invent more obnoxious gaming applications to mesmerize the customers. Sex and violent are like inseparable twin when it comes to movie, and it is not going to be any different from video games. The manufacturers have already planted the seeds for the next bigger wave of virtual reality technology of video game. It will be in the sex video game. Player don’t just watch them like movies. Like the violent video games, they can participate in the games as well. When this is fully exploited, we will enter into the time worse than Sodom and Gomorrah because the sin of sex during that time was committed in the city (and presumably outside their homes) but with the video game technology, anyone can commit this sin of immorality anywhere, anytime. And can you just imagine the whole family playing such games together! Furthermore, through the virtual video game, many have a chance to ‘enjoy’ all the killing, virtual sex, raising the dead, casting spell and all kinds of occult practices from the comfort of the keyboard and joystick. One could easily notice that this is a perfect training ground for all sorts of new Wiccan’s, Neo-Pagans and so on.

Video game is extremely addictive and we have read in the news about children spent many hours just playing computer games. They are fed with materials that are completely contrary to God’s precepts and these materials will stay in their brain for as long as they live. Even without the video game invention, we are already told in Genesis 6:5, God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually! For video game addicts, their mind will further be sensationalized by those interactive video images which will be replayed continuously and they will be exposed to wicked thoughts of how to kill, how to lust after women, how to scheme evil plan to take revenge, how to plan a bank robbery, how to build and blast a nuclear bomb, 24/7 and 365 days! We don’t need to actually or physically commit the act to deserve God’s wrath. By looking or thinking of it, we have already committed the sin. Remember the very words from Jesus, “Whoever looks at a married woman and lusts after her has already committed adultery in his heart.” (Matthew 5:28).

We are fast running out of time. The day of God’s wrath is here and Jesus is coming and is coming very soon! Though Jesus is patient and merciful, He must judge the sinners and He cannot let our sins germinate to the point that His holiness is undermined or compromised. God cannot and will not comprise His holiness for He has said, “Be holy, for I am holy (1 Peter 1:16).” Repent and be saved! As His sheep, He knows each and everyone of us personally, and we know His voice, and we must follow Him (John 10:27).

 

[IR123]

Dear All Brothers and Sisters-in-Christ,

Thank you for reading my thread. Unforunately, because of my other commitments, I am unable to post this on a daily basis. In the new season starting from week, I will resume my posting but I can only do it on weekly basis and Monday is the choice of day for my posting. I hope we all can begin our week by reading and mediating upon His scripture and prayfully this will give us the spiritual nourishment for the rest of the week. However, to get most blessing from God, we must read His scripture everyday. It should not be once a week activity. Thank you for all your encouragement. God Bless.

Those were quite interesting posts you gave.

Probably the only ray of light shining in this folder of darkness and fantasies.

I think you have brought some of Christ's love to some here, me included.

 

[Psalm23]

Those were quite interesting posts you gave.

Probably the only ray of light shining in this folder of darkness and fantasies.

I think you have brought some of Christ's love to some here, me included.

Thanks for the encouragement. Like all information we read or hear, including the internet, we must be careful of what we read and hear because we are living in a deceitfuly world. Pleaes check the accuracy of the information you read or hear, including my postings. I don't want to claim that my postings are perfect because perfection in this world is but an disillusion. So, I would also encourage readers of my postings to check it out themselves. If I have misquoted, please feedback to me (but no abusive language please). My objective is to give encouragement to fellow Christian brothers and sisters (and non-Christians are welcome to read as well). Furthermore, I don't want to claim credit (if there is any to begin with) because quite a few of those postings were taken from other writers which I always tried to acknowledge. I will try to share with you all whenever I have come across articles which I think can help us in our spiritual life, especially our relationship with Jesus. It's really wonderful that we have a God that we can establish close relationship and He is always asking us to seek out to Him. When we draw near to Him, He will draw near to us (James 4:8).

Again, thanks for your encouragment and I will continue to do my posting every Monday and the reason why I choose Monday is that we should begin our week by acknowledging God's gladness, greatness, faithfulness, love, mercy and grace. Nothing is more important than begin our day, our week, our month, our year with Jesus as our heart's priority. All the best to all the faithful readers. May God bless you all with the reading of His Word and the postings here.