Warning, Warning

Why do we ignore warning signs?  We cross railroad tracks just before the arms go down. We speed through yellow traffic signals.  We make U turns where it is prohibited.  We are all guilty.  I received an email from a friend requesting my cell and home phone numbers because her phone had crashed.  She lost all of her data.  In retrospect, she said the warning signs were there.  I think I have been ignoring those same signs.  Dropped contacts, needing to reboot frequently and avoiding places that do not have charging stations all feel like premonitions of oncoming doom.  Paying attention to warning signs and responding accordingly leads to a good outcome.

 

                                                                                    ^{Matthew 2:12}

¹² Then, being divinely warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed for their own country another way.

 

The wise men had been asked by Herod to inform him of the location of this child who would be king.  After worshipping the baby Jesus, they were warned in a dream not to comply with Herod’s request.  They took heed of the warning and returned home a different way.  What if we took notice of the warnings God graciously places in our lives.  What if we responded to warning signals by actually changing direction, make a course correction and without hesitation head down the correct path.  We lose a lot more than data when we ignore God sent warnings.  Let’s all agree to comply with the signs.

 

 

A Day Planner

This past week, Zachary and me attended the University of North Texas Freshman Orientation in Denton. The UNT administrators planned a three day college boot camp loaded with an onslaught of information.  Advisors assisted with class registration, adapting to campus life and planned activities to foster friendships.  Speaker after speaker emphasized the need for a day planner. Organization is crucial to student success.  If you do not plan your time at school, you are subject to repeat the time the following year.  When Zachary leaves in a few weeks, I want him to know that though you can plan your day, but God orders your steps.

Proverbs 16:9

⁹ A man’s heart plans his way,
But the Lord directs his steps.

 

Of course, Zachary’s backpack will include a day planner.  It is critical that he knows that God will keep him, He will direct his path and He has already made a way.  With God on his side, he will have the ultimate day planner. 

God Delivers

It has been said that neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed round.  This motto is inscribed on the General Post Office in New York City.  In other words, the mail will get delivered no matter the storm.  

 At times, adversity assails us with a vengeance.  Troubles seem to pile up all at once.  My mother has dementia, my father passes away, my longtime business partner retires and now my youngest son is going away to college.  For a second, I question God’s timing and His sovereign will.  I cannot but ask, will He deliver me through this?  Christians at times mistakenly believe we are entitled to a stress free life.  We tend to think our works exempt us from the problems that afflict all mankind.  We expect to be delivered to the other side minus the storms. The scripture says quite the opposite.

Psalm 34:19

¹⁹ Many are the afflictions of the righteous;
But the Lord delivers him out of them all.

The righteous should expect afflictions.  God has given us a guarantee that trials will come.  What we forget so easily is the promise He gave us.  The Lord will deliver us out of them all.  We cannot change the circumstances nor hold back the storm but we can rejoice knowing God will deliver us to our appointed destination. He’s even better than the United States Postal Service.  He delivers seven days a week, He is always on time, He handles us with care and He never loses a soul. 

 

Washed Out

Our sins have been washed away!  Now that's something to post on Instagram.  A cleansed life is news we can all use.  To be able to live a fearless life with joy and peace of mind, assured of your eternal destiny is worth broadcasting to the world.

Psalm 51:2

 Wash away all my iniquity     and cleanse me from my sin.

 

 

In light of our cleansing, our walk, talk and how we interact with others should reflect the change in our lives.  We should be uplifting and infectious people magnets drawing the lost, broken and hurting souls into our sphere of influence.  Be prepared to direct them to the Savior who desires that all men be saved.  Be bold enough to testify to what God has done in your life.  We tell everything else. Why not take a "selfie" of the new, cleansed you and post that.

What To Do With a Wreck

I have been towed several times in my life.  I don’t know if it is because of the cars I choose or my failure to pay attention to car maintenance.  Either way, I have watched my car on the back of a tow truck hauled away for repair .  It was not until last month that I took notice of the configuration of the apparatus that raises the car, keeps it stable and delivers it safely to the automotive shop.  Look closely.  It’s the cross.

 

John 12:32

³² And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to Myself.”

We were all broken, abandoned on the side of road with no hope of rescue.  But God sent His Son to bring us back to Him for repair.  When Jesus Christ was lifted up on the cross, He became our tow truck.  There is no need to call AAA.  Call on Jesus, He will pick you up and make you brand new.  Turn off your control, allow His chains to connect you to Him, then go where He leads.  No matter how broken you are, there is nothing He cannot fix.

 

In Honor of Bruce E. Hall, Sr.

“I’ll Fly Away” is an old Southern Gospel Song most often heard at funerals.  It is an uplifting, joyous song turning an otherwise solemn occasion into one of excited anticipation.  The butterfly sitting on the live plant in front of my father, Bruce E. Hall, Sr.’s casket brought back memories of the song.  On July, 1, 2014, my Dad flew away like a butterfly takes flight from its resting place to parts unknown.  Contrary to the butterfly, I am comforted because the scripture says I can be assured of where my father has gone. 

2 Corinthians 5:1-8

5 For we know that if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. ² For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed with our habitation which is from heaven, ³ if indeed, having been clothed, we shall not be found naked. ⁴ For we who are in this tent groan, being burdened, not because we want to be unclothed, but further clothed, that mortality may be swallowed up by life. ⁵ Now He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who also has given us the Spirit as a guarantee.

⁶ So we are always confident, knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord. ⁷ For we walk by faith, not by sight. ⁸ We are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord.

 

Absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.  To see that butterfly next to the casket gave me comfort and brought a smile to my face.  He flew away quickly.  The timing was much sooner than I expected but he had finished his work and was prepared for his flight. From hence forth, butterflies have a new meaning for me.

 

Access Key

Hotels dispensed with door keys years ago.  At check-in, guests are issued an access key.  This past weekend, my room at the Westin was spacious, outfitted with heavenly linen and a plethora of pillows.  The rainfall showerhead in the bathroom was warm and relaxing.  A comfortable, well-appointed room was mine for the evening.  All that was left to do was to use the access key I had been given.  As believers, we have access to a place that far outweighs a room at the Westin.

Romans 5:1-2

5 Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, ² through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.

What’s better than the Westin?  The answer is to have peace with God though faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.  He is our access key to right standing with God.  Therefore, we do not have to live in fear of God’s wrath.  Because of our access through Jesus Christ, we have been declared justified. With our access key, we will be able to enter heaven’s door.  I can only imagine what’s beyond the door.  Use your access key today and one day I’ll see you on the other side.

 

I Can Only Imagine by Mercy, Mercy