Rubber On The Road  

Late one evening, as I sat reading, I heard the sad mewing of a lost kitten. I put my jacket on and went outside to see if I could find the pitiful source of all the crying.

Underneath my house was a small frightened kitten! I tried and tried to get the poor kitty out but it kept backing away from my coaching hand because it was afraid.

No doubt, it had been badly treated and the memory made the poor thing a scaredy cat.  Wanting so much to reassure the little cat that not every venture ends badly; I lay a trail of meat scraps and was finally able to overshadow the kitten’s bad memories with good ones.

Sometimes, Christians can be “scaredy”.  One Barna study among un-churched adults shows that nearly four out of every ten non-church going Americans (37{03cfc460ee471696895095d15914aa94e2affa08ca8863622c4ab45d0198dbc7}) said they avoid churches because of negative past experiences in churches or with church people.” 

When I walk away from fellowship with God’s family because somebody in church has hurt me; sometimes, that “person” isn’t even aware that I’ve been hurt!  Nobody can make the decision to stop going to church for me; that’s a choice that I make and satan dances in glee if I do that.

Because of another person’s immaturity or callousness, I’m now dealing with my own anger, bitterness and un-forgiveness. Un-forgiveness is a sin (Matthew 6; 14-15).  When I let the callous or sinful behavior of somebody else lead me into sin—then who loses?   I DO. Who wins? Satan does.

Running away from what hurt me might make sense on the surface, but, when leaving does more damage than the original hurt, where’s the wisdom? Scripture tells me that the devil runs around LOOKING for ways to destroy me; why should I be surprised when what the Bible says turns out to be true (I Peter 4:12-16)?

When I allow myself to be angry and bitter, I’m handing satan a tool to use against myself!  Only when I understand that satan is at the root of every disagreement, every hurt, every neglect, can I rise above what EVER is used against me (John 10:10). Just like the scared little kitty hiding under the house, I need to come out and allow new, good experiences to replace the bad ones.  

People in the church and out in the world can be thoughtless and insensitive. I have no control over the attitudes or ways of others. The only thing that I DO have control over is to make sure that I’m not one of the people who CAUSE pain!   

God knows all the tricks of the devil and has equipped me for battle. Through the blood of Jesus and the gift of the Holy Spirit, I have the tools to stand strong and not be dissuaded from having relationship with God’s people.   I know who I AM and I refuse to be a scaredy cat and let satan rob me of the very thing God intended to encourage me; fellowship!

Hebrews 10:23-25 Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

Our youngest daughter had a minor medical procedure done and had to “take it easy” for the rest of the day. That evening when she had returned home to her family, I took supper over to them.

Little 6 year old Dalton met me at the door and asked me what I was doing at his house.  I told him I’d brought supper. His face lit up and he started jumping up and down laughing and dancing and yelling, “We ARE gonna get supper!  We ARE!”

In his little boy mind, he had made notice that his mama wasn’t feeling well. There was nothing in the oven and he knew that his Daddy wasn’t coming home till late. So, he just figured he was out of luck, no supper tonight!

God’s plan often does not fit into our “box.” He provides for us in a way we don’t anticipate. When our need is great, we often can’t imagine how it could be met. We dutifully pray; hoping for a miracle but accepting our plight as one of those things in life that may just have to be, “handled.”

We expect nothing because the possibility of “something” is so unlikely.  Then, we are surprised when; simply, with no fanfare, supper shows up! (John 21:3-6) God answers our prayers again and again, yet, we are astonished. (Acts 12:6-16)

God cares for every area of our lives; He has a plan for provision for our needs. Whether through ordinary ways that we just didn’t think of, or through miraculous intervention, God always makes a way. Trust Him.

Luke 12:24 (Amplified Bible) Observe and consider the ravens; for they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn; and [yet] God feeds them. Of how much more worth are you than the birds!

Prayer: Father, thank you for always being on time when I need intervention in my circumstances. Forgive my doubt and help me to be confident that even though my need may not be met the way I anticipate, it will be met. Thank you for loving me and taking care of me. Amen.

Scriptural References:

John 21:3-6 ‘I’m going out to fish,’ Simon Peter told them, and they said, ‘We’ll go with you.’ So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.  Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus. 

He called out to them, ‘Friends, haven’t you any fish?’ ‘No,’ they answered.  He said, ‘Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.’ When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish.

Acts 12:13-16 Peter knocked at the outer entrance, and a servant named Rhoda came to answer the door. When she recognized Peter’s voice, she was so overjoyed she ran back without opening it and exclaimed, “Peter is at the door!”

 “You’re out of your mind,” they told her. When she kept insisting that it was so, they said, “It must be his angel.” But Peter kept on knocking, and when they opened the door and saw him, they were astonished.

This afternoon, I was spending time with my grandson, who is four.  He was playing with his toys when he jumped up, ran to the corner and stood there, as if being disciplined.  Curious, I inquired what he was doing. 

He turned around and told me that he’d done something the other day and his mom had stood him in the corner.  Then, he’d done ‘that’ again and his mom stood him in the corner again! He took a deep breath, shrugged his shoulders and said, “SO, I thinking if I get over myself and stand in the corner FIRST, I’ll be remembering not to do THAT again.”   

God is merciful, but, as any good parent; He is also relentless. He will discipline us however many times it takes to bring us into a place of maturity in Christ. There are always lessons to be learned and disciplines to conform our life to; God is faithful.  

When we willingly yield to the Holy Spirit and begin to discipline ourselves, we struggle far less to live the Christ life.  God will discipline us, but He will never make us do what is right, that’s our choice. 

Galatians 5:22-23 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires

Prayer:  Father, please teach me how to have a heart that is sensitive to your voice.  Help me to yield my heart so that I walk in the direction that your Spirit leads. I love you and want to please you in every way I walk. Amen.

After living in one city for over 30 years, my husband and I moved to another state.

It was very difficult to pack all of our things into boxes, tell our friends good bye and give our grandchildren one last hug.

I was thrust from the warmth of familiarity into the chill of anonymity. There was no family other than my husband, no friend, or community to reassure me. The only familiar activity was my quiet time with Jesus and I clung to that stability with all of my might.

My husband and I realized that we had to establish priorities quickly because a new environment makes it easy to leave life habits behind. Finding a church home had to be placed on the top of our list because we knew that satan takes advantage of every circumstance. Life is about choices and doing nothing IS the easiest choice of all. As Christians, we knew satan’s game plan and refused to cooperate.

Over the first couple of months, we visited every church within a reasonable distance from where we lived. Of course, no church felt like ‘home,’ because we’d never been there before! We reminded ourselves that the feeling of “belonging” comes with familiarity.

Finally, we chose a church where we felt God would have us to both minister and be ministered to. It was close to home, had Bible based preaching and meaningful worship. God had not spoken to us in an audible voice, but, we felt God’s peace in our decision.

Sunday, as I sat in church, I reassured myself with the thought, “Soon, I will put names with these faces and these people will be my friends.” Following the direction of the New King James version of Proverbs 18:24 “A man who has friends must himself be friendly—;” we began to do ‘our part’ to make friends.

People were welcoming, and I understood if I made the quick judgment that some people “just aren’t friendly;” who wins in that game? Satan. Making friends is a two way street; introduction is the first step of relationship. 

When we are both strangers, putting all the responsibility of ‘meet and greet’ on the other person is unreasonable! Finding activities on the church calendar that were ‘my kind of thing,’ I showed up, put on a smile, held out my hand and said, “Hello.”  Once the door is open, the shared foundation in Christ can be built upon and strangers became precious friends.

The fact that making new friends at church is difficult speaks directly to how important friends are to both God and satan; for opposite reasons.  Satan knows that if I have no friends at church, I will be vulnerable to his tools of discouragement, bitterness and loneliness.

Godly friends can sharpen our awareness of Christ and profitable attitudes. (Proverbs 27:17)  He also knows if I choose ungodly friends to be my closest friends, I can suffer harm in my Christ walk. (Proverbs 13:20). 

God knows that there is growth in friendship and strength in fellowship (Proverbs 11:14).  It’s up to me which plan I choose to participate in. I choose to make friends.  

Ecclesiastes 4:10 If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up!

Prayer:  Father, help me to reach out instead of drawing within myself. Show me how to touch the hearts of others by revealing the love of Christ for them.  I want to have friends but most importantly, I want to BE a friend.  Thank you, I love you. Amen.

Scriptural References:

Proverbs 27:17 “As iron sharpens iron, so a man sharpens the countenance of his friend.”

Proverbs 13:20  Walk with the wise and become wise, for a companion of fools suffers harm.

Proverbs 11:14 For lack of guidance a nation falls, but victory is won through many advisers.

Kids today live in a different world than we lived in.

Today, the average 10 year old knows more about sex than their parents knew on their wedding night! 

Kids today have “Way Too Much Information.”

Sit-coms depict the family unit as dysfunctional. Cartoons are bloody and full of mysticism.  Hollywood produces movies where kids are in charge and the parents are at best, stupid and irresponsible.  (II Timothy 3:1-5) 

Commercials and programming reinforces a sexually explicit lifestyle.  From fashion to food, sex is used as a sales media. A walk through the teen department in any retail store is like walking through a costume shop that specializes in prostitution and street gangs.  (Ephesians 5:3).   

In a world gone crazy, how do we protect our children? As parents, it is up to us to teach our kids about respect, responsibility and purity.  As parents, we are intimately aware of our child’s maturity level, their ability to understand Christian principles and their every day exposure to worldly situations.  

Kids need instruction on how to recognize and walk away from playmates that participate in ungodly speech, attitudes and lifestyles. They need to know that it’s ok to be pure. (Galatians 5:22-25).   

The youth pastor is not responsible for teaching your kids how to live in Christ. You are. The youth pastor’s job is to encourage and reinforce living for Jesus.  He spends at best, a few hours a week with your teen; your life example is lived before your kids every day.  

If your teen is hanging out with teens that think cursing, drinking and slutting around is ‘cool.’ it is your responsibility to take whatever measures necessary to end those friendships.  As Godly parents, we are also required to take a serious look at our OWN friendships and activities.    

God does not expect us to be our kid’s best friend. He DOES expect us to teach our kids how to choose a best friend. I promise that you will never stand before God and have to explain why you insisted on Godly principles in every area of your children’s lives.  

Prayer is powerful and God is faithful.  Pray WITH and for your kids every day. Even though they roll their eyes at you, the presence of Christ in their home will be a stronghold when they are faced with temptation.  

Even kids raised in a Godly home with the reinforcement of strong Youth Pastors can make bad life choices.  God’s Word says they will return. (Proverbs 22:6)

The battle for the heart and minds of our children is fierce and relentless.  Put your war clothes on.  

Ephesians 6:11 Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes

Prayer:  Father, I love you and I’m so thankful for the children you have put in my life. Open my eyes to know how to teach the young ones how to handle temptations and attitudes. Show me how to be a good listener and a good teacher. In Jesus’ name, Amen. 

Scripture references:

II Timothy 3:1-5  But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people. 

Ephesians 5:3 But sexual immorality and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints.

Galatians 5:22-25 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,  gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit.

Proverbs 22:6  Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.

When we read the scriptures that talk about our relationships with each other; one thing stands out. How we get a long with others has a direct affect on our own relationship with God. 

So much so that if we are angry with somebody, the Word says to get up from the altar and go work it out before you pray (Matt. 5:23-24)

Certainly, people can do and say mean things! Sadly, even Christians can offend each other. Thanks to the devil and his favorite tool, the magnifying glass, small insults can feel big and big hurts can feel HUGE.  

All of us have been angry with somebody at one time or other. The devil loves to use our disagreements to get between us and our Lord. No matter what the disagreement is over; is the argument really worth compromising your relationship with Jesus? 

It’s especially frustrating when you’ve tried to work things out with a person and nothing you do mends the rift. Since satan’s ultimate goal is to destroy our relationship with Jesus; be assured, the evil one works from both sides of a disagreement! 

Even when the other person is to blame; search your own heart. If needs be, ask forgiveness for whatever your ‘part’ in the disagreement is. If the other person is not willing to reconcile, you have made your heart pure before God so the anger doesn’t come between you and your Lord.  

The anger your friend holds must be worked out within their own heart; pray for them. There is no anger, bitterness, betrayal or misdeed that is worth hindering our relationship with Jesus.  

Mark 11:25 And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins

Prayer:  Father, help me to not hold a grudge. Show me how to forgive and move on and how to be sensitive to the feelings of others.  I want to represent the love of Christ in all I do.  Amen.

Scripture Reference:

Matthew 5:23-24 Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you,  leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to them; then come and offer your gift.

Failure requires my participation—life is all about choices. 

Throughout the Old Testament, God took events and circumstances that would seem to be destructive, and worked them to serve His own purpose (Genesis 50:20). 

If I choose to let Him, God will take every event in my life and work it for His purpose too. Only when I trust Him and let His direction lead me can I live victoriously. (Romans 8:38-39).

God gives me freedom of choice. Most often, I can’t control circumstances. But, I DO have full control over how I let life events affect my relationship with the Lord. 

Romans 8:37 says we are conquerors through Christ. However, there are some personal commitments that I must make in order to be an overcomer.

First, I commit to spend time in conversation with my Lord so that I’m aware of the holiness and majesty of God as a conqueror over every trick of satan. When I talk to God, like talking to anybody else, I begin to know Him. Listening is as important as talking so, secondly, I spend time in reading God’s Word.

When I purpose to the discipline of daily prayer and Bible study, through the Holy Spirit, I realize the heart of God so I can pray in knowledge of His will (I Corinthians 2:10). Like in any relationship, intimacy comes through time well spent.  

If I have not made those two commitments, then, satan’s plan for defeat and destruction in my life is working. In order for satan to wreck my life, all I have to do is——participate in his plan. Or, I can participate in God’s plan, the choice is mine.

John 10:10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I (Jesus) came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.

Prayer:  Father, help me to focus on your plan for my life. Show me how to overcome every obstacle and circumstance life throws in my path.  I want to live victoriously for Jesus. I love you, thank you for directing me.  Amen.

Scripture References:

Genesis 50:20  You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.

 Romans 8:38-39  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 8:37  No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 

I Corinthians 2:10  these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God.

One year, my daughter had gotten a spooky candy bowl for Halloween.  It has a big monster hand that looked quite real–as real as a green hand with black fingernails can look, anyway.  It had an electronic eye and when you reached for a piece of candy, the hand came to life, lowered to touch your hand and an eerie voice said, “That’s Myyyyyyy candeeee!”

It was placed on the table as a sweet treat holder.  My granddaughter, Ally, who loved candy, reached for a piece of her favorite confection. The grisly hand lowered, hit her little hand and said, “That’s Myyyyyyy candeeee!”  Startled, she stood really tall and hollered “IS NOT!  That’s MY candy, and you CAN’T take it!” She hauled back and slapped that hand so hard the bowl went flying off the table throwing candy everywhere!

One of the ways that satan steals our joy is to whisper, “life is so not fair, God doesn’t care” or “you aren’t forgiven, God still remembers that sin” or “you’ll never make it, you’ll go back to the world, you’re just bad.”  Or how about, “you’re sick, you weren’t healed.”  And another of the devil’s favorite taunts is,”You’re too busy to go to church, those people are hypocrites any way.”

Imagine the daily strength we’d find, the power of ministry through us, if we’d respond to that evil voice the way Ally responded to the stealing of HER candy!  The next time satan tries to steal your joy, your peace or your victory, stiffen your back, hold up your hand in Jesus’ name and boldly proclaim, “THAT’S MINE and you CAN’T take it!”

Romans 8:37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.

Prayer:  Father, show me how to stand tall and strong in the face of my adversary.  Give me wisdom to deal with every attack and to not be intimidated, I’m your child.  Amen.

One night, in Kid’s Church the theme was, “What Time is It? It’s Time to Get Serious About Serving God!” As my lesson illustration, I brushed my teeth. 

 I started brushing, then told them it didn’t feel right, wait—and I put on my bathrobe. 

I started to put toothpaste on my brush and stopped, saying, “Nope, sorry, it still just isn’t right”.  I pulled out a dainty pink overnight case, tied with a pink ribbon, and put curlers in my hair.  (The kids were starting to laugh)

Once again I started to brush my teeth. Again, I stopped and told them “Nope, something still isn’t quite right–.” Fumbling around, I took a bottle of hand cream and pumped a TON of it into my hands.  Then, I squinted my eyes shut and plastered it allllll over my face!  The kids were falling out of their chairs they were laughing so hard! 

Finally, I told them now, I could brush my teeth!  Of course, I brushed really good and hung my tongue out and brushed my tongue and then, of course, I gargled long and loud and spit it in the trash can. 

The kids were nearly hysterical they were laughing so hard! While I’d brushed my teeth, I had one of my helpers time me. It took nearly 5 minutes to mess around and brush my teeth.

When the kids were settled down, I took prayer requests.  The kids were asked why they felt that sometimes we don’t hear God when he speaks to us. 

Finally, I told the kids to quietly sit and pray, telling them that we wouldn’t pray long; we’d only pray for one fifth as long as it took to brush my teeth.  ONE minute isn’t a long time.

Needless to say, for them, a minute in quiet prayer was an eternity. When a minute was FINALLY up, I told them that most of the time, we spend more time brushing our teeth than we spend with God! 

God wants us to take time to be with Him, to get to know HIM.  He wants to hear everything we think and feel. He never get’s tired of listening. AND, God talks to us through His Word and sometimes in a quiet voice straight into our heart!

 I asked the kids why THEY thought it was so hard to hear God’s voice sometimes; figuring my illustration would speak volumes about the need to spend time just enjoying God’s presence. 

Billy held up his hand and said, “We don’t hear God’s voice cause we don’t give him  time to finish brushing His teeth so He can say something back.”  Not exactly what I was trying to illustrate; I’ll have to work on that illustration before I use it again! 

God loves us and wants us to spend time talking to Him, just like we talk to our friends.  And like when we talk to our friends, we need to stay around awhile and listen.  God speaks to us through His Word, through annointed teachers/preachers and sometimes, He speaks directly to our hearts by the Holy Spirit.  But, we have to take time to listen. 

 Colossians 4:2 Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.

My Mom’s favorite TV show, when I was growing up, was “Let’s Make a Deal.” A contestant was given the opportunity to choose between three doors.

Behind two doors were undesirable prizes. Behind one door was a very expensive, wonderful prize. On the surface, the doors looked the same.

Life has three choices; one of them is to actively serve God with all of my heart. The other two choices are satan’s plans, to choose active sin or—–do –nothing.  Each day, I choose one of those three plans, whether intentionally or not, the choice is made.

Because of my busyness, it can be easy to focus on my “to do” list and keep on moving; doing nothing for God.  However, it really is not a big deal to make doing something for God a part of my daily accomplishments. Satan whispers I’m too busy already, but a common sense approach shouts, “THIS IS DOABLE!”

Many of Jesus’ directions were for common ministry; visit the elderly, share the Gospel with those around me and pray for the sick. These are things that I can fit into my schedule with little effort. I simply have to plan, like I do for a hair appointment or coffee with a friend. Why is it only ‘God Stuff’ that I struggle with making time for—hmmm, interesting.   

I’m a Christian, satan knows that he’s not going to have much luck in tempting me with serious sin, like lawlessness or the ‘flesh’ sins.  He does, however, have a pretty good chance of convincing me to do nothing. The choice of nothing is easy; no effort required, but it is a conscious choice.

Do I plan and commit to a daily time of Bible reading and prayer?  Satan makes that seem like a BIG deal, taking up way too much time, but, remember; satan is a liar. With a little planning, I can fit quiet time with Jesus into my daily schedule just like I do putting on my makeup and exercise.

Have I determined to be faithful in church? Do I look for ways to minister to those around me? Or, have I done nothing? Just like all the other important things on my ‘tado’ list; “God things” require planning and action. I must choose to plan, then, I must act on my decision because, doing nothing is—-a sin.

James 4:17 Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn’t do it, sins.

Prayer: Father, help me to choose to do SOMETHING for you today.  I’m the only person who can make my daily choices, direct my heart. I want to love you with actions, not just my words. Amen.