Monday... These words quickened my mind this morning.

I love reading the Bible every day. I really do. Now I usually read a Psalm, a chapter in the Proverbs and a chapter in the New Testament. But I decided this month to read instead of Proverbs the other book that King Solomon wrote, the book of Ecclesiastes and these words in chapter 11 quickened my mind this morning. I wonder if they will speak to you.

Verse 2 (NLT) says, "But divide your investments among many places, for you do not know what risks might lie ahead." In our getting ready for retirement this is very good advice. And verse 4 kind of goes with it. It says, "Farmers who wait for perfect weather never plant. If they watch every cloud, they never harvest." That make sense in so many ways. Perfectionism keeps us from venturing out and keeps us from taking so many potential steps, investments and risks in our life.

By the way, what is perfect weather to you, or a perfect job, or perfect friends, or perfect church? What is it you are waiting for?

Here is another one. Verse 6 says, "Plant your seed and keep busy all afternoon, for you don't know if profit will come from one activity or another - or maybe both." But that seed I planted this morning was the perfect seed so I don't need to do anything else. But are you sure, really sure? The Message says, "Go to work in the morning and stick to it until evening without watching the clock. You never know from moment to moment how your work will turn out in the end."

And then verse 8 (NLT) says, "When people live to be very old, let them rejoice in every day of life. But let them also remember there will be many dark days. Everything still to come is meaningless." And then verses 9 & 10 says, "Young people, it's wonderful to be young! Enjoy every minute of it. Do everything you want to do; take it all in. But remember that you must give an account to God for everything you do. So refuse to worry, and keep your body healthy. But remember that youth, with a whole life before you, is meaningless." The Message says, "You won't be young forever. Youth lasts as long as smoke." So true.

But the Message also says, "But also know that not anything goes; You have to answer to God." And that puts it all into perspective. Yes, yes! #todaysbeginning

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

Psalm 8:3-4 (NLT), "When I look at the night sky and see the work of your fingers - the moon and the stars you set in place - what are mere mortals that you should think about them, human beings that you should care for them?" Friday... Yes, we need them. We really do. No, not the fact that I can go out my front door and look out at night at the marvels of the sky. I can do that and it is amazing and it takes my breath away each time I see it. Yes, that is a fact but the reality of who did that and the wisdom and the faith that I have to believe that and to marvel that the one who did that cares about me makes such a difference in how I live my life. Yes, God really does. That is so wonderful for us to believe. And that is why faith and wisdom are so important. Now whatever belief you have at how that marvel happened must also be believed through faith. And the sad thing to me is that more and more people have been taught that there is no God and therefore he did not have a h...

Tuesday... Each one of us see and describe what we are going through differently but...

Tuesday... Each one of us see and describe what we are going through differently but... We each one have our own way of explaining what we are going through, don't we? Some of us are maximisers, other are minimizers and neither one is better. We each one are different and we see what we are facing differently but no matter what it is and how you see it and describe it, God can handle it! Now the writer of Psalm 46 shows the extremes. In verse 1 he states the basic reality and then he moves on into our fears and he maximizes them to make sure we really understand. Here is what Psalm 46:1-3 (NLT) says, "God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble. So we will not fear when earthquakes come and the mountains crumble into the sea. Let the oceans roar and foam. Let the mountains tremble as the waters surge!" So what do you fear? The Amplified Bible says verse 1 this way, "God is our refuge and strength [mighty and impenetrable], a very presen...

Wednesday... It didn't just happen.

Psalm 16;10 (NLT), "For you will not leave my soul among the dead or allow your holy one to rot in the grave." Wednesday... It didn't just happen. We are headed into a weekend of deep emotion. One that we really really love was killed and it didn't just happen. David in Psalm 16:10 (NLT) writes of this happening. He says about God, "For you will not leave my soul among the dead or allow your holy one to rot in the grave." We read over in the Gospels at the beginning of the New Testament in the Bible of the life of God's Son who came to earth to be our sacrifice so that our soul would not be left among the dead. Jesus came so that we wouldn't have to be buried at death and just left there. But he also shares that Jesus who was going to be killed as a sacrifice for our sins would not have to rot in a grave. David many generations before foretold this and that is what happened. Now that had to be a God thing. We can guess a lot about our future and we d...

Todays Beginning

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