Ephesians 4:26, “Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath.” Some people get angry a lot. There are different types of anger. Jesus got angry with the money changers in the temple. He was concerned with God’s holiness and worship.

     I get angry sometimes over things that really don’t matter in the long run. For instance, the sight of cyclists in the road as I’m driving down it makes me hot under the collar. If there’s not enough room on the road for a car  WITHOUT having to go around them, I don’t think they should be on that road. To me, I feel completely justified in my anger. But in the end does it really matter? (I suppose it would matter if one of them got run over!)

     I tend to get angry with those worldly things that I’m trying to protect my children from. Like ungodly billboards and advertising. Indecency and even pornography being shoved into my kids’ eye gates. Satan knows what He is doing. He knows the weaknesses of man. He’s been around long enough.

     We must always strive to be angry at the right things, in the right way. Too often we get trapped with a human anger versus a godly anger. One leads to more problems, one leads to results. A good verse about this is found in Proverbs 25:28, “He that hath no rule over his own spirit is like a city that is broken down, and without walls.”

  I know, this is scary. Kids have a way of just being themselves. They are creative and innocent in their perception of things around them. They are free mentally. They are not encumbered with prejudices, egos, and self. They have a way of looking at things that makes me smile. One of my sons once asked me, “How do they turn a car upside-down when they have to put a new battery in it?” A child’s perspective on life.

     Jesus loves children. So goes the song, “Jesus loves the little children, all the children of the world.” In fact he loves them so much that He has a stern warning for those that would deceive a child. Matthew 18:5-6 says, “And whoso shall receive one such little child in my name receiveth me. But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea.”

     In a society today that somewhat frowns upon having “too many” children, I dare say that they are still a blessing from the Lord. A gift to cherish for all eternity. Trying to raise godly kids is no easy task. But it is worth the effort. I pray that all my children get saved. I pray we will all be in Heaven together for all eternity.  Only by God’s grace can it be done.

  There’s an epidemic in America. A new disease to label the kids with. It’s called “ODD”. Outside Deficit Disorder. It is characterized by the lack of outdoor time for children. Many adults have this disorder and don’t even know it. Scientists are working on a pill to remedy this new disease.

     Kids today want to stay indoors. Play video games. Watch TV. Atrophy. I know of teens that will come home from school and sit in front of a computer screen into the night hours. They can go ”outdoors” on their computer. A virtual existence however is no existence at all. It is sad that kids don’t want to play outside anymore. They don’t want to get dirty. Their senses are so used to being bombarded with entertainment that good ol’ fashioned outdoor fun is “boring”. We wonder why our children are overweight. Overweight children become overweight adults. America is overweight. Go outside!

      If people would just get up and get out, they would see what a wonderful creation God has made. Even in it’s present cursed condition, it is a beautiful world. From bugs to butterflies, mountains to molehills, there’s something for everyone. Creation is for our enjoyment.

 The next time your kids want sit and watch another lame TV show, throw them outside! It is healthy, educational, and most of all FUN! I leave you with this:  Proverbs 19:15, “Slothfulness casteth into a deep sleep; and an idle soul shall suffer hunger.”

Photo courtesy of Rebecca L.

 Hebrews 4:16  “Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.” Our God is always there, waiting to hear from us. He is a loving Father who does not repay us according to our sins (Psalm 103:10). He certainly is just and demands holiness from his children, but He is merciful as He knows we are but dust (Psalm 103:14).

     I know that whatever happens in life, I don’t need to worry. I can go to the Lord and cast those fears upon Him. What is the worst thing that can happen in this life? Is it death? Is it pain and suffering? Is it loss? Yes, those things are very real. But also very temporal. Heaven awaits us. Until we get there, we need to be in constant, close communication with the Lord. That’s why it is so important to confess sin to Him and keep short accounts. He won’t hear us otherwise (Psalm 66:18).

     Our God is available every moment of each day. 24hrs, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. We certainly need grace and mercy like a 911 call for help sometimes. More importantly however,  He wants fellowship with us on a  daily basis. He delights in walking with His children. We don’t need a priest to intercede for us. The above verse in Hebrews says we may go BOLDLY to the throne. May we take God’s Word for what it says and bring ourselves before the Lord each day.

 Proverbs 22:6  “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” This is a very heavy verse. My responsibility as a father is God-given. I am given an imperative to train, teach, and nurture my children to grow up to be godly. Without God’s grace and empowerment, this is impossible. Without the Lord, I am a lousy parent.

     In my opinion the  most important tactic in raising kids is this: walk the talk. I say I am a Christian that loves the Lord. Do I act like it? All the time? Am I a hypocrite? As the saying goes, “your walk talks louder than your talk talks.” Unfortunately I think there is a huge problem with this in churches today. I see teens that are not in love with the Lord, but are playing Christian. Playing church. As soon as they’re on their own, the facade disappears, and the world takes it’s hold.

     I pray that the Lord would help me to raise my kids to be godly, not just good. In closing I have a good verse from Deuteronomy concerning God’s words and commandments. Deuteronomy 11:19  “And ye shall teach them your children, speaking of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.”

  I wrote a few posts back about the 2nd coming of Jesus Christ after the great tribulation this world will endure.  The next event on God’s prophetic calendar however is the rapture of the church. That glorious day of the Lord gathering together the saved out of the earth to commence the rise of the Antichrist and the 7 year tribulation period. These are incredible days.

     The rapture could occur at any moment. The way things are setting up in the world today, it seems very near. There is a problem however. Not everyone that goes to church is saved. There are unsaved people in a lot of pews throughout the world today. There always has been. At some point (and it could be in the near future) the saved will vanish. Caught up in the clouds with the Lord Jesus. Some people who thought they were saved will be left behind for the darkest years of the earth’s history.

     2Corinthians 13:5 admonishes us to “Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves.” A friend of mine said to me, “I think we’ll be surprised at who’s NOT in Heaven on that day.”  Are you ready for that day? Maybe there’s someone you know who doubts his/her salvation and needs assurance from God’s Word. Maybe there’s that one you’ve been praying to get saved. Or that one who you’ve been meaning to witness to but haven’t. The day is quickly approaching when you won’t have that opportunity again. 

     John 9:4, “I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work.”

I do not know any of these people. It is a sea of humanity. This is not a gathering of Christians at some fellowship. I would dare say that most of these people are condemned for all eternity. This is just a small sample of what people will look like at the Judgement seat of Christ. But they will have a knee bowed to the King. This picture has a wide range of different races, colors, and languages. But God is not a respecter of persons. It doesn’t matter who’s got what personality, riches, or fame. It only matters who’s got Jesus as their Savior.

     The people in this picture may go to hell without anyone ever telling them about Jesus. It is a wide road to destruction. Matthew 7:13 says, “Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.”

     May we take advantage of divine appointments from the Lord to help even one soul enter that narrow way.

 Yesterday I had the privilege of being invited to a friend’s house for some food and fellowship. My family and I arrived and instantly felt at home. That is one of the great blessings of Christian fellowship. The conversations were uplifting and God-honoring as we discussed everyday life, our struggles and challenges, and the goodness of God.

     I used the word “privilege” above because I felt grateful to the Lord for bringing this family into our lives. They have been an encouragement to me and my family, and I hope to reciprocate. There was a time in our Christian walk that there were not many friends around any longer. People move, churches split, lives go on. It is not an easy path. But it is easier when you have a friend or friends to go through the valley with.

     Romans 12:10  Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honour preferring one another.”

I’m a morning person. I have a routine that works for me. Get up, get coffee, sit down and spend time with the Lord. If that routine is altered, I get cranky. If I do not get up before everyone else, my routine is a wash. With the constant interruptions and distractions that kids bring, I almost think they are doing it on purpose.

     Spending time with the Lord EVERYDAY is the only way to walk with Him. Reading the Bible and prayer are so important, especially in these hectic and uncertain days. Daily devotions are a necessary part of every believer’s day and should be the #1 priority. Fight for them.  All other things follow after. May your fellowship with Him be sweet!

     Matthew 6:33  “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.”

Proverbs 3:5-6    “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.”