Is There an Excuse for Making Impetuous Decisions?

Impulsive decisions and behaviors are often declared mistakes after they have produced suffering and pain. Saul, King of Israel, impulsively ordered his army to go without food on the day of an important battle. He vowed that if anyone ate food they would die.

Saul’s son Jonathan, unaware of his father’s orders, observed honey oozing from the trunk of a tree and couldn’t resist such a sweet treat. When Saul learned of Jonathan’s disobedience, he prepared to kill him. The commanders of the army intervened and stopped him. 

Listen to their rebuke: “Should Jonathan die after leading us to a great victory today? Not a hair on his head will be harmed.” 

God will utilize our strengths and our weaknesses to make sure his plans and purposes succeed. Psalm 18:2 makes this declaration: “The Lord is my strength, my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer.” This can be your testimony.                               

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And in the same way -- by our faith -- the Holy Spirit--helps us with our daily problems and in our praying. For we don’t even know what we should pray for, nor how to pray as we should, but the Holy Spirit prays for us with such feeling that it cannot be expressed in words.

~Romans 8:26 The Living Bible

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Must I Really Love THAT Person? - Part 3

When my granddaughter was four, she asked if we could take a walk around the neighborhood. About halfway around the block she asked, "Why is the sidewalk different? It's crumbling and I can see little shells in it." Her question caused me to question the values of the company who sold an inferior product.

The Roman Empire was among the first to use concrete for their structures, and some of those structures are still standing twenty centuries later. What gives personal values the sustaining power to withstand the trials and storms of life? Values must be firmly grounded in a clear sense of what is right and wrong.

God has given us Christ Jesus, the Holy Spirit and his word to guide our walk through this world. The presence of God in our lives strengthens our values by telling us to strive for righteousness, godliness, faith, love and the strength to endure. Whenever anything that is not pure, honest and true gets mixed into our lives, it must be identified and cleaned out. With God’s help, you can do it.  

Focus on Your Values - Part 2

When I consider the small farming community where I lived as a child and compare it to my life now, it's pretty awesome to live in one of the largest cities in the U.S. Most of the people from that little community were good Christian people. Although it was a safe place to grow up, accidents happened. A close neighbor was killed when his tractor ran over him.

Things were not perfect. There were bullies in the school like in today's big city schools. Alcoholism was a problem in my parents' families. Three important entities that promoted spiritual and moral values were my home, a good school, and a little Baptist church. These have provided safeguards and guidelines for my entire life.

Values may become muddled when weaknesses are allowed to overpower our character strengths. It's tempting to become discouraged by weaknesses that tend to rise up and dominate. Romans 8:26 offers these words of reassurance. "The Holy Spirit helps us in our weaknesses." Right now ask Christ Jesus to help you realize how he’s at work to accomplish this goal within you.