Following Jesus Son of God …

Our pastor began a study in Leviticus today, and I am looking forward to it.

Yeah, right. You probably look forward to going to the dentist and doing your taxes too, dude!

Do you want to know why I am looking forward to it even though a person could be tempted to spell Leviticus — B-O-R-I-N-G? Do you want to know?

Because he has built up “street cred” with us because of his good approach to the truth of God.

If most of the pastors I have sat under would have announced a study in Leviticus, I would have cringed and volunteered for children’s church for the next three months.

But “our guy” actually does take a proper approach to the words of God. It is called biblical exposition. Most guys say they do this but they don’t. One of the easiest give-aways is if they normally reference multiple cross-references as they preach. This is not preaching the entire counsel of God; it is skipping your opinion over the surface of the water. Another easy give-away is announcing a text, reading all or part of it, and then barely, or not at all, referencing it before running to and fro, back and forth, through the Bible, turning to a zillion references.

Yes, many of us were taught to study the Bible this way, but it is time to change, time to quit skipping over the surface, quoting “God-words” to ram home our own opinions and religious viewpoints. About time we starting letting God speak and about time we started listening.

Yip, that’s what I’m saying out loud.

Another tip from PC World

 http://www.netvibes.com/

“Create a Customized Web Portal With Netvibes”  August 2007

Had this on my to-do list; got around to it this afternoon; excellent.  Can completely customize your home page; is similar to My Yahoo! and others  except is totally customizable.  Don’t want something then delete it.  Add web pages, rss feeds, blog search, everything it seems.

Very easy to use and set up.  Give an email address and password.  If you don’t have a Google or Yahoo or Hotmail account, I would suggest setting one up first and then use the same info for your Netvibes account.

Really is excellent.

Where are you?

Think about that one for a minute.

For me geographically – on Planet Earth, in the United States, state of Indiana, city of Terre Haute, in my study in our modest neighborhood north of the city limits.

Physically – One heartbeat removed from eternity.

Spiritually – I have received the gift of eternal life, and now I want to make the most of it but often the daily grind steals my view of heaven. Riding my vapor trail, trying to make a living, trying to live in view of forever while locked into the day-to-day, fighting to remember where I am, sometimes who I am.

Where am I?

God asked this question to Adam and Eve after the rebellion in the Garden of Eden.

(Genesis 3.8-10 BBE) And there came to them the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the evening wind: and the man and his wife went to a secret place among the trees of the garden, away from the eyes of the Lord God. (9) And the voice of the Lord God came to the man, saying, Where are you ? (10) And he said, Hearing your voice in the garden I was full of fear, because I was without clothing: and I kept myself from your eyes.

God knew where they were, but he wanted them to think about it. Can you imagine the dread they felt? Sometimes we move past this too quickly. For the first time they felt the effects of sin, and they were the ones who opened the door to the darkness.

I think each of us should ask: Where am I? Not my stated position, not my theological or philosophical viewpoint, not my church affiliation, association or denomination, but my actual position. When the vapor trail I call life dissipates, where will I be before God and eternity?

Too many people don’t ask the question.
More specifically, too many church people don’t ask the question because, as with any subject which we don’t want to address, we are afraid that we will have to change the direction of our lives when faced with certain information.

So the next question is: Do I want to know the truth?
If I am wrong, do I want to know the truth? An evangelist I used to listen to on the radio states that he asks unbelievers a question which I presume to be regarding their world-view and the gospel of Jesus Christ: “If you are wrong, would you want to know the truth?” I think it is only fair then that we ask ourselves as professing Christians as we tackle the various issues of life: “If we are wrong, do we want to know the truth?”

Some help.
Something that helps me face issues I would rather not is to project myself on “the big screen,” standing before God, earth is history, forever comes into view, and I am better able to see what is sinful, selfish, petty, shortsighted, etc.

See that smile.
I want to do some things while here on Earth and locked in mortal combat with the spiritual forces of wickedness that brings a smile to the face of God.

Or not.
Yes, we can also project ourselves to that heavenly scene and picture God’s judgment, but no smile would be judgment enough for me.

You’ve got to try Foxy Tunes when you try the Firefox browser. If you don’t know and are concerned, as I was, about a conflict with Internet Explorer, you may install and use as many browsers as you please. No conflict. They operate separately. So give it a try. and try some of the add-ins that come with, such as Foxy Tunes. I just discovered that I can right-click on a web page and Foxy Tunes will list the audio in a menu under — “Web Media” — and then you can click on the song or lecture or whatever it is and Foxy Tunes plays it. Groovy! Foxy Tunes does much more; very helpful and entertaining also.

Here is an example, which is how I discovered this neat little trick.  I was on my site — livingbythewordsofGod.com  — and I right-clicked to activate another program and noticed that Foxy Tunes listed my audio welcome and my daughter’s songs on that page.  I clicked on “audio welcome” and voila!

New addition you may be interested in viewing.

Passion, Purpose, Perspective for Living by the Words of God.

FREE DOWNLOAD

Performancing.com | Helping Bloggers Succeed

Dave Scott Living by the Words of God – Lulu.com

Powered by ScribeFire.

I am not really a worrier but sometimes. . .

(Matthew 6:34 NCV) So don’t worry about tomorrow, because tomorrow will have its own worries. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Man, tomorrow gets heavy, and frightening when we try to live it today, or as with me sometimes in the middle of the night. Sometimes I wake up in a sweat, filled with anxiety.

Do you have those times? Mine could be 5 am, could be 3 am. I am flooded with worry. Worried about one of my children. Worried about finances. Worried about my wife’s health. Pick one. Choose an area of life, and I feel I have been attacked in that area.

It seems that the enemy is pounding me; knee in the gut.

I need truth – fast!

Chuck Swindoll says “Pray about everything; worry about nothing.” Even better, God says the same thing.

(Philippians 4:6 MSG) Don’t fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns.

I need that truth. It becomes my mantra in those spiritual firefights. Pray about everything; worry about nothing. Pray about everything; worry about nothing. Pray about everything; worry about nothing. And do I ever pray.

And I get specific. I pray that God will help me be supportive of my disabled son who gives his utility money to charities. I pray that my daughter will have strength to go on in spite of severe health problems. I pray that my life-partner of 35 years stays around for a long while yet.

“Instead of worrying, pray.” That’s what Paul wrote. True then and true now. I repeat this truth over and over. It’s like a lifeline, and I allow God to pull me closer and closer to: “Give us this day our daily bread” (Matthew 6:11 NKJV) .

It’s not just a nice idea, or a timely thing to say. It doesn’t need a “happy face” by it. It stands alone; it stands forever; it is the truth of God.

I need to learn that I can trust God for tomorrow by trusting him right now.

And I need to quit trying to carry tomorrow. I’m too old for this stuff.

Okay, I think I can go back to sleep now.

Another tech note.  Had a real problem with my computer yesterday; was afraid had picked up a virus or spyware.  But no, the problem was with Adobe Reader.  Apparently many people are having the same problem.  When you start AR by opening a PDF auto updater begins running and consumes 98 – 99 percent of your CPU resources.

This was running version 8.1 I believe.  I had stayed current on my updates.

I un-installed  AR and tried a program I had heard recommended before — Foxit Reader.  Seems to be working very well.

A suggestion:  When you are having a computer problem, don’t underestimate what a Google or Yahoo! search can do for you.  Not always, but I have sometimes found solutions in seconds.  I fought this problem too long before thinking of running a search.  Duh!!!

Have you tried Firefox?  It is all I use now; kept reading how great it was and it is, and it’s free.

eMusic.com  25 music downloads for 9.99/ month;  every kind of music and the music is yours to burn to CD, put on player or whatever, doesn’t expire, no DRM; lots of good stuff

My wife and I had a mini-getaway over the weekend; quick trip up north to visit friends Saturday afternoon, back Sunday evening. As we were driving and talking, my wife shared some thoughts, and I am like “Now that’s what I’m saying. That’s what happens when you bow before the words of God and listen and let God speak.”

Do you remember the story in 1 Kings where God said to Solomon: “Ask! What shall I give you?” Solomon could have asked for anything — riches, power, long life, victory over his enemies. But he asked for an understanding heart – wisdom- so he could serve well as king.

(1 Kings 3:9 NKJV) “Therefore give to Your servant an understanding heart to judge Your people, that I may discern between good and evil. For who is able to judge this great people of Yours?”

Okay. Are you ready for this?

Where did he get it? I mean where did he get this desire, this insight, to bring wisdom to the top of his wish list.

You are going to love this. Here’s the story. My wife was reading the following text.

Proverbs 4:3-8 MSG When I was a boy at my father’s knee, the pride and joy of my mother, (4) He would sit me down and drill me: “Take this to heart. Do what I tell you–live! (5) Sell everything and buy Wisdom! Forage for Understanding! Don’t forget one word! Don’t deviate an inch! (6) Never walk away from Wisdom–she guards your life; love her–she keeps her eye on you. (7) Above all and before all, do this: Get Wisdom! Write this at the top of your list: Get Understanding! (8) Throw your arms around her–believe me, you won’t regret it; never let her go–she’ll make your life glorious.

How did Solomon know to ask for wisdom? Where did he get such powerful advice?

Sitting on his Daddy David’s knee. Woa, baby! Are you with me on this?

My Sweetie is telling me this and I am incredulous. Wow! Yes, we all commend Solomon for his savvy and his excellent choice, but if you are like me you never made this connection before.

King David, Solomon’s dad, gathering him up on his knee one evening after supper, giving him the drill: “Above all and before all, do this: Get Wisdom! Write this at the top of your list: Get Understanding!”

Insight…method.
Not only was I captured with the insight, but I was grateful for the method. My wife is continuously reading through the Bible. We both do, but she usually comes closer to making it in a year and it usually takes me a year and a half.

But she wasn’t forcing the issue.
She wasn’t studying. She wasn’t even looking for insights per say. She was merely sitting before her God, word in hand, heart bowed, listening, expecting, enjoying the proximity of the Presence of God. And the Spirit dropped this in her lap.

And this is what I believe we often miss with our studying, and proving our points, and defending and searching for answers. . .

There is a time for everything, and God has providentially carried his words from generation to generation so we could sit, “Book” in lap, and hear God. God’s intent and purpose for his words – his children bowed before him reading and listening.

K_____ was doing this, and God went “whoosh” scene 1 – Solomon commenting on the value of wisdom, then God went “whoosh” scene 2 – rewind, flashback – Solomon on his dad’s lap learning the value of wisdom.

Wow! Am I overusing that word? Wow!!!

About a week and a half ago we were talking about the weather at work, and the possibility of rain that evening.

One of the guys said, “They say that this will be our best chance for rain for the rest of the month.”

Wow! It was already really dry and to go for another 11 days or more without rain would not be good. Duh, me! It rained that evening and has several times since. We received more than four inches of rain in some places last weekend.

“They” or I or you may say, but we don’t really know. But God does, every little bit and the big stuff too. Big words would be sovereignty, providence, omnipotence and the like. I just like to know that God is in control, and I am part of his good plan. Sigh!

(Daniel 2:20-22 NKJV) Daniel answered and said: “Blessed be the name of God forever and ever, For wisdom and might are His. (21) And He changes the times and the seasons; He removes kings and raises up kings; He gives wisdom to the wise And knowledge to those who have understanding. (22) He reveals deep and secret things; He knows what is in the darkness, And light dwells with Him.

I’m feeling pretty good about things when I am hearing what HE says. 🙂