Month: May 2023

Our Text for today is Psalms 2:1-4: It reads:

“Why do the nations rage, And the people plot a vain thing? The kings of the earth set themselves, And the rulers take counsel together, Against the Lord and against His Anointed, saying, ‘Let us break Their bonds in pieces And cast away Their cords from us.’

He who sits in the heavens shall laugh; The Lord shall hold them in derision.”

In this passage, David asks a question that has been on the minds of people throughout history: “Why do the nations rage against God?”

The answer, of course, is that they do not know God. They do not understand his power or his love. They see him as a threat to their own power and control.

But David reminds us that God is in control. He is the one who sits in the heavens and laughs at the nations’ attempts to overthrow him. He is the one who will have the last laugh.

This is a good reminder for us in a time when our nation is facing so much turmoil. It is easy to get caught up in the anger and frustration of the moment. But we must remember that God is in control. 

What does this passage mean for us today?

• It reminds us that God is in control, even when the world seems to be falling apart.
• It encourages us to trust in God, even when we are afraid.
• It gives us hope for the future, knowing that God will ultimately triumph over evil.

How can we apply this passage to our lives?

In this way – Don’t be afraid. God is in control.

Do you about Joseph in the Bible? Not not the one who served in Egypt and saved his family from famine. The one who is most overlooked. The Joseph who was the earthly father of Jesus.

We know about Mary and even his brothers, but Joseph rarely gets mentioned in the story of Jesus. He must have been a great man because when God decided to pick someone to be an earthly father to his only begotten son, he picked Joseph.

I want to share with you a little of his story and then point out one special way that he was great.

Matthew 1:18-19

18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit. 19 Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly.

It is not a long reading, but it shows the special character of Joseph. Think about it. Joseph loved this special girl, Mary, but discovered that she was already with Child. What was he going to do? He could have exposed her behavior, but that is not what he did. He decided to quietly end the relationship. 

Why is that noble? To “secretly” end the relationship certainly exposed him to gossip. To secretly put her away meant that he was not going to tell everyone his side of the story. He would just leave.

We know how the story ended. Joseph stayed with Mary and obeyed God.

I wish I knew a whole book worth of information about this amazing man, but what I do know is that he is truly a great man.

If Joseph can follow God’s lead under very challenging circumstances, surely we can too.

Lonnie Davis

Our Text for today is

Genesis 3:1-6

1 Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?” 

2 And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; 

³ “but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.’” 

4 Then the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. 

⁵ “For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” 

6 So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate.

From this great text, I would call your attention to the three great challenges of the serpent. He basically had three great questions for Eve. 

1.    First, he asked, “Do you know what God said?”

2.   Then he asked, “Do you believe what God said?”

3.   Finally, he challenged, “Wouldn’t you rather be your own God?”

Unless you read between the lines, you will not see these questions. Look closer.

In verses 1-2, he asked, “Has God indeed said?” His first question was about whether she knew God’s word. 

In verse 4, the serpent says that God is lying. “You shall not surely die.” 

In verse 5, the serpents tells Eve, “You will be like God.” He is really saying, “Eve, you don’t have to obey God. Ignore God’s teaching and decide for yourself.”

Satan’s strategy hasn’t really changed. He still challenges people. Do you know what God said? Do you believe what God said? Wouldn’t you rather just do whatever you want to do?

Unless you can answer these questions correctly, then you are in the same place as Eve. The devil tricked her. Don’t let him trick you.

Lonnie Davis

A writer once proclaimed, “Songs shape minds, laws matter less.” Might this claim seem exaggerated? Not in my view. Repeated songs mold thoughts and beliefs. This truth resonates in our own society. 

The same is true of our worship songs. In college, I knew a boy who knew his church songbook so well, that I could say a number and he would tell me the song on that page. His songbook was called, “Songs of the Church.”

I think Jesus knew his worship songbook that well also. Today we know the name of his songbook. It is called, “The Book of Psalms.” 

Psalms is not merely a book in our Bible but was the songbook of worship among the Jews in the time of Christ. Over the next few days, we will briefly examine that songbook. We will begin with the first song in the songbook of Jesus, Psalms 1. It is only 6 verses long and reads as follows:

Blessed is the man
Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly,
Nor stands in the path of sinners,
Nor sits in the seat of the scornful;
²But his delight is in the law of the LORD, And in His law he meditates day and night.

³He shall be like a tree
Planted by the rivers of water,
That brings forth its fruit in its season,

Whose leaf also shall not wither;
And whatever he does shall prosper.

⁴The ungodly are not so,
But are like the chaff which the wind drives away.
⁵Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment,
Nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.

⁶For the LORD knows the way of the righteous,
But the way of the ungodly shall perish.

Let me call to your attention three great teachings in that first song of worship.

The first thought in the first song tells the importance of choosing godly companions: The psalm begins by highlighting the blessedness of those who do not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners. It emphasizes the significance of surrounding oneself with those who follow godly principles and avoiding the influence of those who are ungodly. This is one of the great teachings of Godly parents for their children. It is a teaching for the parents as well. Be careful who you pick as your friends.

Secondly, the song teaches the value of delighting in God’s Word: It says, “But his delight is in the law of the LORD, And in His law he meditates day and night.”

Finally, we note that the idea of the entire song is to show the contrast between the righteous and the wicked: It describes the righteous as flourishing and prospering, while the wicked are described as chaff blown away by the wind. 

Psalms 1 can be summed up in a sentence this way, Blessed is the one who delights in the law of the Lord and prospers in righteousness.

Lonnie Davis

Suppose someone were to ask you to pick two verses to anchor your life around. What would you choose?

In the Bible, there are two verses that change everything. Without them there would be no Christians, no faith, and no hope.

These two verses are Genesis 1:1 and Matthew 28:6. 

Genesis 1:1 says, “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” It tells about the beginning of everything, the sun, the moon, and the stars.  It introduces us to “God.” It also tells us about time itself, “In the beginning.” 

As much as people attack the stories of the Bible, this verse is the one they would most like to exclude. Since this verse is true then nothing else is impossible. If God created the heavens and the earth, why would you doubt that he can heal a blind man or even cause a dead man to get up from the grave? Genesis 1:1 is only 10 words, but it is the foundation for every other miracle in the Bible.

The second verse, Matthew 28:6, tells us about the fundamental belief in Christianity. When the disciples came hunting for the dead body of Jesus, the angel told them, “He is not here, for he has risen, just like he said. Come, see the place where the Lord was lying.”

The angel could not show them the dead body. All they could do was show them the place where the body had laid. The enemies of Christ would have loved nothing better than to stop this new faith before it began. It would have been easy. All they needed to do was to show the followers, not the place where the body was, but rather the body itself. The fact that Christianity grew from here, tells us they could not show the body. They could not because Jesus was no longer dead.

On these two verses hangs all the reason for God and Christianity. This little note is too short to cover everything in these verses, but they would be a great starting point for your own study.

Lonnie Davis.

Here is something a little different. It is a list of sorts. I call these the “Five Rules for Time.” Each of us begins our day with a decision to make on how to use our time. So that you might be better able to make this decision, here are the five rules for time.

#1: “There is a cumulative value to investing small amounts of time in certain activities over a long period.” One cannot pray for ten hours in one day and have the same effect as if one were to pray for thirty minutes a day for twenty days. Important activities must be done in small pieces over a long period of time.

#2: “There is a cumulative effect to neglecting important things over a long period of time.” An important activity neglected will always impact negatively your life. It may take time to show, but it will always damage your life. 

#3: “There are rarely any immediate consequences for neglecting single installments of time in any arena of life.” When you skip something important, the impact will not be felt immediately. That is the reason we skip it! Of course, the effect shows up later.

#4: “There is no cumulative value to the things we allow to interfere with what is most important.” For example, when you decide not to study the Bible daily and look back on the time you gained by neglecting to study, there will be nothing significant gained.

#5: “In the critical areas of life, you cannot make up for lost time.” Farmers know that you cannot go into the field and put in long days of planting the week before the harvest. If you did not plant in the due season, then it is gone. Plant in due season and reap in due season. You cannot make up for lost time and neglected opportunities.

Paul urges, “Be very careful, then, how you live — not as  unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is” (Ephesians 5:15-17).

~Lonnie Davis

All people have struggles. All people have fears. All people have regrets. There are no exceptions. Your attitude is not about how smooth the seas are, but about who is piloting your ship.

One of my favorite advertisements was by Nationwide Insurance. One of their commercials had a theme “Life comes at your fast.” In one of those commercials, a guy parks his beautiful new car. Within seconds someone backs into it, paint is spilled on it, lightning strikes a tree near it and part of the tree falls on the car. “Life comes at your fast,” they said.  Things go wrong – for someone. Life is not about circumstances it is about what you do with those circumstances.

 One poet put it this way:

 I was regretting the past and fearing the future
Suddenly my Lord was speaking.
“My name is I Am” He paused.
I waited. He continued.
“When you live in the past, with its mistakes and regrets,
It is hard – I am not there.
My name is not “I Was.”

“When you live in the future, with its problems and fears.,
It is hard – I am not there.
“My name is not ‘I Will Be.’”

When you live in this moment, it is not hard,
I am here – My name is ‘I Am.’”

‘The circumstances of life come and go, but we must learn to live above the circumstances. Learning this skill may take a long time, but in the end, it is the only way we can have peace and joy.

One more thing. The difference between David the giant killer and the cowering soldier around him, was that David saw the giant through the eyes of God. The soldier could only see the giant.

David lived above his circumstances.

 Lonnie Davis

Our text for today is:

Proverbs 22:6

“Train up a child in the way he should go;
    even when he is old he will not depart from it.”

Over the years many Christians have debated this truth. However, It is a proverb and not a law. We ARE given free choice by God and so a person can choose to turn their life around, but there is a strong pull towards one’s upbringing. This is explained in an amazing poem by Dorothy Nolte called, 

CHILDREN LEARN WHAT THEY LIVE

If a child lives with criticism, he learns to condemn. 

If a child lives with hostility, he learns to fight. 

If a child lives with ridicule, he learns to be shy. 

If a child lives with shame, he learns to feel guilty. 

If a child lives with tolerance, he learns to be patient. 

If a child lives with encouragement, he learns confidence. 

If a child lives with praise, he learns to appreciate. 

If a child lives with fairness, he learns justice. 

If a child lives with security, he learns to have faith. 

If a child lives with approval, he learns to like himself. 

If a child lives with acceptance and friendship, 

he learns to find love in the world.

This is a truth all experienced parents should know.

Lonnie Davis

Life is filled with necessary but hard decisions. 

Should I change jobs? 
Should I get married? 
Should I get a divorce?
 Should I drop my friend? 

 There seems to be more questions than there are answers.

As you ponder your own questions that need answers, I would call your attention to Exodus chapters 3 and 4.

These chapters tell the story of Moses and the burning bush. Israel was suffering as slaves in Egypt. God decided to deliver them. He spoke to Moses from a burning bush and told him exactly what to do. Moses listened. doubted, and made excuses. He had excuses but from the burning bush, but God had answers, assurances, and direction.

Wouldn’t you love to find your own burning bush? A wonderful source for answers to all your questions. If only we could talk to a burning bush then we would know what we should do.

Really?

Moses tried not to listen to God from the burning bush. I think that most folks would respond just as Moses did. They too would make excuses rather than obey. I know this because I see it all around. Sometimes it is me who does not listen but hunts for an excuse.

For example:

· From His Word, God says we should live thankful lives. “Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” (1 Thess. 5:18)

· He commands us to live faithful lives. “Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life.”

Obviously, this list could be greatly expanded. The point of all of this is to encourage all who wish for a burning bush so you could hear what God wants you to do, ask yourself “Are you even listening?” 

We do have a burning bush. It is called the Word of God.

~Lonnie Davis

a

The Source of Help

Sometimes we don’t learn or even see the lesson for many years. Today’s thought is one of those lessons.

When I was in high school, I was presented with a puzzle. It was one of those where people were trying to cross a river with only one boat. It was a really good puzzle and I could not solve it. I, therefore, judged it unsolvable. 

All through college I challenged others with the puzzle. No one ever solved it. Later I was teaching 8th-grade school. To keep my class busy, I gave them the puzzle. Of course, I knew it was unsolvable, but wanted to challenge them to struggle with it. 

About 5 minutes into the puzzle, one little girl, said, “I’ve done it.” Of course, I knew she had not, but I let her come show me. She had no chance. She came to my desk to show me. Wow! She had solved it. 

I had prejudged her and decided that an 8^th-grade girl could never do this. 

The lesson I should have learned was that I should not prejudge. Sometimes answers come from unexpected sources. 

In 1 Samuel 17, the Bible demonstrated that principle. For 40 days, King Saul and all the Israelite warriors were tormented by a giant named Goliath. For 40 days, the Hebrews had lived fearfully. No one could get the victory for Israel. Finally, a teenage boy came forward and offered to fight the giant.

The mighty King Saul, told the teenager, “You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him; you are only a young man, and he has been a warrior from his youth.” (v33).

Well, you know how that story ended. King Saul prejudged the youth but in the end, the youth delivered the solution by meeting and killing the giant.

King Saul almost lost the battle, because he prejudged the boy and was ready to reject the only one who could solve his problem.

I sometimes do that too, but we must not make Saul’s mistake. It is important to remember that help sometimes comes from unexpected places.

Lonnie Davis