A Brag on My Husband and A Biblical Principle

Today I hope you’ll let me brag on my husband and share an important element of faith, not about authority but about life experience.

My husband spent 22 years in the Army, coming up through the ranks from PFC to LTC. Several times he was ordered to do something against his faith, and he respectfully refused, knowing it could end his career. It didn’t.

Before he retired, he was working in military research and development and could easily have transitioned into a well-paying industry job. Instead, he decided we could live carefully on our half-salary retirement and seek God’s purposes. In the 30 years since that decision, he's worked with various Christian ministries in the states and overseas as well as being my director of Bible Love Notes.

At age 74, my husband isn't perfect, but he’s lived his faith in sacrificial and productive ways and every year I see him grow stronger in his faith.

What’s my point?

There are times in the last decade when my husband has humbly shared concerns or advice with younger Christians in ministry. A few have listened. But most have simply treated him like a peer who doesn't know any more than they do.

God wants us to learn from Christians of every age and stage of faith. But God emphasizes a special respect for our elders, and that’s something I see lacking in today's Christian culture.

I encourage you to ponder the passages below and consider seeking counsel from an older Christian when you're making decisions or handling difficulties.

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Respect for older people has been a biblical principle from the beginning:

Leviticus 19:32: Stand up in the presence of the aged, show respect for the elderly and revere your God. I am the Lord. 

See Godly Counselors.

We are meant to learn it first in our family and live it throughout our lives:

Ephesians 6:2-3: “Honor your father and mother”—which is the first commandment with a promise—  “so that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth.”

See Why My Mother's Little Chair Reminds me of Psalm 23.

It’s and important element of humble faith:

1 Peter 5:5: You who are younger, submit yourselves to your elders. All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, “God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.”

See A Great Cloud of Witnesses.

It applies even when we have to counsel or warn an older person:

1 Timothy 5:1-2: Do not rebuke an older man harshly, but exhort him as if he were your father. Treat younger men as brothers,  older women as mothers, and younger women as sisters, with absolute purity.

See Respectfully Saying "No" to Authority.

I love this one, especially because I have a good mixture of gray in my hair!

Proverbs 20:29: The glory of young men is their [physical] strength, And the honor of aged men is their gray head [representing wisdom and experience]. Amplified Bible

See God Fearers Become Wise.

Our most reliable source of wisdom will come from Christians, but we can learn some principles from non-Christians as well.

Job 12:12: Is not wisdom found among the aged? Does not long life bring understanding?

See We Need It: A Submissive Heart.

 

 

Don't Bother Me with the Facts!

Years ago, I posted a quote by a solid Christian author on Bible Love Note's Facebook page, and a woman misunderstood it. 

She thought it was saying that Jesus doesn't give eternal life when it was saying just the opposite. 

So she wrote an angry comment in all caps, "defending" Christ.

She's a good illustration of a problem we all can have at times when we:

• Don't listen.
• Jump to conclusions.
• Don't give others the benefit of the doubt.
• Ignore the facts.
• Mistakenly think we're being righteous.

I love the concise wisdom found in James 1:19-20 that speaks directly to this attitude:

"Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires."

Isn't it a blessing that the Bible understands our human hearts and speaks directly to them!?
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These two one-minute devotions offer further insights on this subject:
Name-Calling Is for Losers
Wholesome Speech: Shining Like Stars in Our Fallen Culture

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I encourage you to check out the Wisdom for Life Devotional. It contains 100 one-minute devotions to challenge, encourage, instruct, and inspire your love for God's Word: Wisdom for Life. Read the story behind Wisdom for Life HERE. And find out about the two free Bible studies with purchase HERE. You can read the first four devotions in the book by clicking "look inside" on Lifeway or Amazon.

 

I also encourage you to sign up for a free subscription to Bible Love Notes and get a free e-booklet. Find out more HERE.

 

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"I will hold you accountable for their blood"

In Acts 20:26-27, when Paul is saying goodbye to the Ephesians, he says, “I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of any of you. For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God.” 

 

What did he mean about being innocent of their blood? 

We find that answer in God’s words to Ezekiel in Ezekiel 33:8-9: 

 

“When I say to the wicked, ‘You wicked person, you will surely die,’ and you do not speak out to dissuade them from their ways, that wicked person will die for their sin, and I will hold you accountable for their blood. But if you do warn the wicked person to turn from their ways and they do not do so, they will die for their sin, though you yourself will be saved.”

 

In our modern Christian culture, many voices are telling us to remain quiet about sinful lifestyles and focus on making people feel accepted and loved. 

 

We hear it in the statement, “It’s not our job to judge; it’s our job to love.” And we hear it when obvious Scripture texts such as Romans 1 are ignored or watered down.

But God tells us that it’s our job to warn people of sin. And if we don’t, He’s going to hold us responsible.

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For more on standing firm and sharing God's truths, check out these other one-minute devotions:

How Can Christians Stand Firm?

Several years ago, one of my loved ones declared herself gay. I explain one thing I'd have done differently if I'd known that would happen.

On the Alert 

During his military career, my husband commanded a tank company on the German border, then part of the Iron Curtain. A military "alert" is a good analogy for our preparedness as Christians. 

6 Ways to Stay Rooted Despite Culture's Changing Winds 

If we aren't careful, we can sway with the winds of culture. This devotion explains six ways to keep rooted in Christ.

Please check out Wisdom for Life. You might be surprised how many Psalms and Proverbs inspire us to stand firm.💙 Available from Lifeway, Amazon, and CBD.  

 

 

 

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Did Jesus "Hang Out" with Sinners? Not Really

How often have you heard someone say, “Jesus hung out with sinners”?

 

“Hanging out” typically means we’re enjoying someone's company with no particular agenda. And that reflects the kind of Jesus many people want, a buddy who accepts them as they are, never judging them. 

But Jesus always had a godly agenda, no matter who He met with.

 

For example:

When Jesus visited Zacchaeus and his sinful friends, His mission was to call sinners to repentance, and there were dramatic results (Luke 19:1-10).

When Jesus spent time with Matthew and a crowd of ungodly sinners, His purpose was “to call sinners” (Matthew 9:10-13).

When Jesus spoke with the woman at the well, He wasn't simply chatting. He confronted her with her sinful lifestyle and shared the gospel (John 4:4-42).  

In fact, a crowd once asked Jesus to hang out with them, and He said He couldn't because His mission was to preach the gospel (Luke 4:42-43). 

 

✓ Pharisees tried to discredit Jesus as sinful by claiming He hung out with sinners. 

✓ The modern world tries to define Jesus as popular and non-confrontational by saying He hung out with sinners. 

 

But the real Jesus said this to His unbelieving brothers: “The world cannot hate you, but it hates me because I testify that its works are evil” (John 7:7).

 

Jesus didn't come to hang out. He came to hang on a cross and save our souls from evil (John 15:13).

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For more insights:

Saving Grace versus Saving Face...a true story about my husband

Spiritually Weak People Don't Repent

Claiming that Sin Is No Big Deal

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What to Do When It Feels Like God Is Silent

Have you ever felt God was silent when you desperately needed answers, comfort, or direction?

The psalmists sometimes felt this way (e.g., Psalm 13).

If this happens, we should first search our hearts to make sure we're not excusing or justifying sin in our lives (Proverbs 28:13). Are we ignoring something God's Word tells us to do (James 1:22)?

But that's not always the case. Sometimes God tests us to see if we'll keep seeking Him with patience and perseverance (Galatians 6:9; Philippians 4:6).

But the most common reason we feel this way is because we are trusting our feelings and allowing ourselves to get stressed. That's when we need to remember that God never actually leaves us.

"For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." Romans 8:38-39

When we feel like God is distant, we should continue seeking His guidance through Scripture and godly counsel, remembering His promise: "If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me" (Jeremiah 29:13). 

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For more insights see Thankfulness - An Important Aspect of Prayer and 5 Ideas for More Effective Prayer.

I encourage you to check out the Wisdom for Life Devotional. It contains 100 one-minute devotions to challenge, encourage, instruct, and inspire your love for God's Word. Read the story behind Wisdom for Life HERE. Find out about the two free Bible studies with purchase HERE. You can read the first four devotions in the book by clicking "look inside" on Lifeway or Amazon. In addition, you can buy the book in Kindle format on Amazon and as an ebook on other sites.

 

 

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Error and Truth Travel the Same Highway

“Error and truth travel the same highways, work in the same fields and factories, attend the same churches, fly in the same planes and shop in the same stores. So skilled is error at imitating truth that the two are constantly being mistaken for each other. It takes a sharp eye these days to know which brother is Cain and which Abel. We must never take for granted anything that touches our soul's welfare.” A. W. Tozer (Source)

Even though this Tozer quote was written over 75 years ago, it's especially relevant today.

Most people are not careful about “Christian” resources. In fact, some of the most popular books, movies, and teachings enjoyed by Christians are filled with errors. 

It's so important that we not follow that trend. But we need to realize that if we're careful and deliberate, we're going to be called legalistic and “picky.” 

But let's consider Paul's attitude to such things. He was an anointed apostle preaching God's divinely inspired Word, but he wasn’t offended when the Bereans tested his teaching with Old Testament prophecies. 

He called them noble.

“The Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.” See Acts 17:10-12

Let's be noble Christians and “never take for granted anything that touches our soul's welfare.”

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If you haven't had a chance to check out these resources, I encourage you to do so:

Are Henry Cloud's Boundaries Teachings Biblical?

From VeggieTales to Situational Ethics 

Are You Defending Errors about Christianity?

Beware of the IF Gathering for Women – I've updated this article due to some errors in my first publication.

Dallas Jenkins Explains the Story Behind the Chosen

 
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God's Love is Unreasonable...In a Good Way

God is unreasonable!

Just read the story of the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20,24,32).

God carefully and lovingly warned the people by:

• Calling them His “treasured possession.”
• Emphasizing His power with thunder, lightning, and glory.
• Speaking the Ten Commandments aloud to them.

God had Moses confirm His commands by: 

• Writing them down and reading them again to the people.
• Sprinkling blood on the people as a reminder of their promise to God.

The people:

• Promised three separate times to do all that God asked.

Then Moses went up on the mountain, and God’s glory settled like “a consuming fire.” 

But within forty days, the Israelites made a golden calf and worshiped it as their god!

Unreasonable rebellion!

But not as unreasonable as God's love. Despite this blatant, unjustified rebellion, God continued to love and guide these stubborn people to the Promised Land.

What an accurate picture of human history…your history and mine…our unreasonable rebellion, God’s unreasonable love.

When we make Christ our Lord, we see the wonder of His love, and we cannot help but listen to Him, learn from Him, enjoy Him, and serve Him. Let's take some time today to thank Him for His love.

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Be encouraged by these one-minute devotions: 

7 Important Truths about God's Love

Beyond Our Full Understanding  

If you've purchased Wisdom for Life, I suggest you read or reread Day 14 to reinforce the truths in this devotion. 

If you haven't purchased Wisdom for Life, check out the sales on Lifeway, Amazon, and CBD.

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Shallow Enough for a Child, Deep Enough for a Scuba Diver

The Bible is like an ocean that’s shallow enough for children to wade in but deep enough for adults to swim.(1)

Small children can understand enough of the gospel to make a genuine profession of faith. But the truths of God are deep and abundant, and no matter how long we’re saved, there’s always something new and wonderful to learn. 

I have a master's degree from seminary, but I’ve learned far more from life and personal study than I learned getting my degree. And no matter how deeply I dive into God's Word, I never reach the bottom. 

The knowledge of God is more valuable than any other knowledge. It’s eternally important. Let’s never underestimate the benefits of studying God’s Word, teaching it accurately, and letting it transform our hearts.

So, let’s put on our scuba gear and dive deep into God's Word! 

It dwells in us: Colossians 3:16 

It’s eternal: Isaiah 40:8 

It’s God-breathed: 2 Timothy 3:16 

It’s a light that guides us: Psalm 119:105 

It helps us stop sinning: Psalm 119:11 

Well, I could go on and on, but this is a one-minute devotion and it would take me a book to fully describe it. 

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I encourage you to read: We Need It: God's Word and We Need It: More of God's Word.

(1) I heard a similar analogy about wading and swimming in God's Word years ago, but I'm not sure of the source.

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He Sees Our Sins

"When God looks at you, He only sees Jesus. He doesn't see your sins or imperfections."  ~ popular half-truth saying

I cringe a bit when I hear this statement. It's not found in Scripture and it totally misrepresents our relationship with God.

When we become Christians, we are "in Christ." We're forgiven of every sin, but God still sees our sins and weaknesses as well as our strengths. If He couldn't see these things, He couldn't help us deal with them.

God accepts us as we are, but He expects us to grow in wisdom and faith as we walk with Him. We'll never become perfect here on earth. We will continually be seeking to renew our hearts and minds (Romans 12:1-2; Matthew 10:38; Ephesians 5).

As a loving Father, God convicts and disciplines us when we sin (Hebrews 12).

"Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent." ~ Jesus, Revelation 3:19

That's the kind of God we have and the kind we need! So let's take our renewal seriously (Philippians 2:12-13).

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To read about another half-truth misunderstanding, see: Does God "Forget" Our Sins?

I encourage you to check out the Wisdom for Life Devotional. It contains 100 one-minute devotions to challenge, encourage, instruct, and inspire your love for God's Word. Read the story behind Wisdom for Life HERE. And find out about the two free Bible studies with purchase HERE. You can read the first four devotions in the book by clicking "look inside" on Lifeway or Amazon. In addition, you can buy the book in Kindle format on Amazon and as an e-book on other sites.

 

I also encourage you to sign up for a free subscription to Bible Love Notes and get a free e-booklet. Find out more HERE.

 

 

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Only 4% Are Saved Past This Age

Studies show that 86% of American Christians came to Christ before age 14, 10% between ages 15–30, and only 4% after age 30 (source).

I knew these statistics when I felt the Lord prompting me to share Christ with my 88-year-old aunt. Even though she'd gone to church her whole life, nothing about her reflected Christ. She was a difficult person, not afraid to cut you to the quick if she didn't like something you said.

I could only imagine what she would do if I suggested she'd never accepted Christ.

But I felt God was prompting me to do it, so I shared the basic truths of salvation with her and asked if she wanted to pray to receive Christ as her Lord and Savior. I was genuinely surprised when she admitted she'd never asked Christ to be her Lord and asked me to pray with her.

And I believe her conversion was genuine because it changed her.  Knowing Jesus made her kinder for her few remaining years of life. 

Many years after this happened, I shared it with my 11-year-old granddaughter and she said I needed to share it with others so Christians would be braver about sharing the gospel.

She was right. And I've tried to honor her request. That's one reason I've written this devotion. May it encourage you to "go and make disciples" (Matthew 28:19-20). 

Don't let a person's age or personality stop you from sharing Christ with them. You might just beat the odds!

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For additional insights, see False Views about "Real Evangelism" and Jesus Asked Questions.

I encourage you to check out the Wisdom for Life Devotional. It contains 100 one-minute devotions to challenge, encourage, instruct, and inspire your love for God's Word. Read the story behind Wisdom for Life HERE. Find out about the two free Bible studies with purchase HERE. You can read the first four devotions in the book by clicking "look inside" on Lifeway or Amazon. In addition, you can buy the book in Kindle format on Amazon and as an ebook on other sites.

 

I also encourage you to sign up for a free subscription to Bible Love Notes and get a free e-booklet. Find out more HERE.

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