On this day in history: In 1789, President George Washington moved into Franklin House, New York. It was the first executive mansion. In 1900, the word “hillbilly” was first used in print in an article in the New York Journal. It was spelled “Hill-Billie.” And in 1954, Hank Aaron of the Milwaukee Braves hit his first major-league home run.
Today Is National Take A Chance Day! Break out of your comfort zone and do something bold!
Hacking Dark Roast – I’m a fan of a light roast coffee. I find darker roasts carry a burnt taste that I just don’t care for; I’d rather taste the flavors inherent in the bean itself. But if you like dark roast, here are few ways you can make it better.
Turn Off Your Push Notifications – How many times a day does your phone draw your attention away from your work to see what just came in? Now ask yourself how many of those distractions do you really need. Now read this article.
In the first half of this stanza, we saw the psalmist speak of his experiences of God’s love. In the second half, we will see what his response must be. Take a look at it for yourself in Psalm 119:45-48:
The writer of Psalm 119 describes the outpouring of God’s love and the salvation that is linked to it in the first verses of this strophe, and concludes that there must be a response on his part, and ours. Those two responses must be as genuine from our hearts as his love and saving grace are for us. What really stands out about this though is that God’s love and salvation result in practical, tangible responses. These are things we must do in response to his love and salvation. Not because that earns us any point, but because we love in return.
These two practical responses are obedience to God’s Word, and sharing his love with those around us, or evangelism.
Till men have faith in Christ, their best services are but glorious sins.
Church leadership is a critical aspect of ministry and the life of any local congregation, but there are so many churches that approach it differently and in varied ways. Some of those approaches are beneficial, others not as much. But the New Testament lays out a solid and necessary approach to church leadership in the form of elder or overseers and deacons.
Our church is currently examining these two offices describes in the New Testament and evaluating how we are doing in in comparison to the letters from Paul to the Philippians and to Timothy and Titus, along with Acts 6, where we see the first examples of deacons.
To that end, we are reading Aeaxander Strauch’s excellent work called Ministers Of Mercy: The New Testament Deacon. In this detailed examination of this office, Strauch looks deeply at the occurrences of the term “deacon,” and the examples and descriptions of this role in the New Testament.
I read this book for the first time in college, in a class on pastoral ministry. It has been very good to read it again, along with several other men who are serious about following the instructions the New Testament gives us, especially in the area of church leadership.
This is a book worth your time to read, especially if you play any role in the leadership of your church. You can get a copy at Amazon. I highly recommend that you do. You’ll be challenged, and encouraged, and blessed as you read it.
On this day in history: In 1900, the first book of postage stamps was issued. The two-cent stamps were available in books of 12, 24 and 48 stamps. In 1922, Annie Oakley shot 100 clay targets in a row, to set a women’s record. And in 1972, Apollo 16 blasted off on a voyage to the moon. It was the fifth manned moon landing.
Today Is National Bean Counter Day! Give your tax preparer a big “Thank You!”
3 Alternatives To Using A Keurig Coffee Maker – I bought one. I am ashamed to admit it, but I did. It lasted a few months and then I gave it away. It was a complete disappointment. There are better ways to make coffee.
Eight Unique Ozarks Legends – Have you ever heard of the Blue Man? Or the Joplin Spooklight? Or the Albino Farm? These are all legends heard in the Ozarks, and I heard them all growing up in this region. This article lists several of the more famous ones, and provides links for further reading. Check it out!
TerraGenesis – I recently discovered a strategy game that I really enjoy that allows you to terraform and colonize the planets in our solar system and beyond. I’m hooked for the moment and am thoroughly enjoying it.
Jupiter – Based on the link above about the game TerraGenesis, I decided to colonize one of Jupiter’s moons. So here’s a video of Jupiter to whet your appetite.
The next three strophes of Psalm 119 are centered around finding God in his Word. We will spend several weeks looking at these verse, beginning with the first half of the stanza “waw,” in verses 41-44. You can see it here:
The first of these three stanzas is all about God’s love, and the psalmist starts right off with that thought in verse 41. He will also end with that thought in verses 47 and 48, which we will look at next week.
What may be surprising to some readers is that this is the first time the psalmist has addressed God’s love in Psalm 119. What many consider to be the greatest of all of God’s attributes has been largely ignored to this point. Now, however, he jumps right in and speaks of the unfailing nature of that love.
This is also the first mention of God’s salvation in Psalm 119. To be sure, the author has implied it a few times, but here he specifically speaks of God’s promise to save.
Those two concepts go hand in hand however, so it is not surprising that they appear together here. God’s salvation of mankind, of you and me, is entirely dependent upon his love for mankind, and for you and me. The evidence of his love for us is that he saves us, and perhaps it is best stated in 1 John 3:16: “This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us.”
When we think too lightly of sin, we think too lightly of the Savior.
