Thursday... There is so much more.

This is a tremendous time of the year. Margaret and I ask for lists from the eight members of our family. I love it. We are half way from getting all their presents bought. It is such a fun time of the year.

Now I'm sure for some, gold would be on their list. At least what it can buy. But the Bible has something to say about gold.

My dad had a message he preached which was titled, Better than Gold, and his text was Proverbs 8:19 (KJV) and it says, "My fruit is better than gold, yea, than fine gold." The NLT says, "My gifts are better than gold, even the purest gold." The MESSAGE says, "My benefits are worth more than a big salary, even a very big salary, the returns on me exceed my imaginable bonus." We need to be reminded of this, don't we?

1 Peter 1:4 (NLT) says, "And we have a priceless inheritance - an inheritance that is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay." I try not to look at my 401K. I don't think it is beyond the reach of decay and change. I've heard that it has changed a whole lot for the worse this past year.

Peter goes on. Verse 5 says, "And through your faith, God is protecting you by his power until you receive this salvation, which is ready to be revealed on the last day for all to see." Now that sounds like a great present that we can one day open.

He says in verses 6-7, "So be truly glad. There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you may endure many trials for a little while. These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold - though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world."

Verses 18-19 says, "For you know that God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life you inherited from your ancestors. And it was not paid with mere gold or silver, which lose their value. It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God."

And then verse 21, "Through Christ you have come to trust in God. And you have placed your faith and hope in God because he raised Christ from the dead and gave him great glory."

Now that is way better than gold, isn't it? Yes, yes! #todaysbeginning

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Friday... Yes, we need them. We really do

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Todays Beginning

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