Articles

In Hosea 11:7 is the sober warning, “My people are bent on turning from Me. Though they call to Him on high, He will not exalt them at all.” In this nation where our Pledge of allegiance still states “one nation under God,” humanism has erected itself to the point God might well describe the nation as a people who “are bent on turning from Me!” While referring to the trends and would-be-leaders en...

I have happily recovered from a nasty cold that never seemed to end. The experience led me to think about some very basic things that even the common cold can teach us. Here are seven that mine taught me:Les.#1. A 7 day cold does not last 7 days.Contrary to popular belief that you’re in and out of a cold in seven days, the reality is that full recovery is often not realized until 10 days or beyond...

"The Winner"As I write this article, the nation has gone lottery crazy. One point five billion (with a 'B") dollars is the amount to be paid for picking the correct Powerball numbers. For just $2 you, and your government, would receive an astronomical amount of money..."easy street" from now on. And the fact that you have a little less than one in 292 million chances of winning doesn't seem to det...

The applied math site Durangobill.com explains what the recent changes in Powerball lottery rulings meant for the “players” who buy tickets.Game Rules for the new Powerball game that went into effect for the Oct. 7, 2015 game. As “game players” (“suckers”) woke up to the fact that they were throwing money away trying to win the old 59/35 game, Powerball ticket sales slumped. Thus Powerball officia...

Sad and sobering trends in the land that are crowding out Christ and God, plus demoralizing, and undisciplined domestic problems and patterns, to disastrous and destructive drug and drinking addictions—all in daily doses of carnal conduct that erupt in tears, trials, and terror—make it imperative that God’s people and general public seek a new focus in this New Year. Let it be done in three dimens...

I am not against New Year’s resolutions. Any effort we make to do better is worthy of praise in my book.It strikes me, however, that Jesus pointed us to today, and only today. He also said not to worry about things that we consider absolute necessities in life such as food and clothing, but rather to seek God’s kingdom and his righteousness. Jesus encouraged us with the idea that if we put God fir...

Tis’ the season when the Heavenly Host did sing,That to earth had come a “Heavenly King!”“Peace among men,” was the Divine Plan,For a Savior had come to redeem man!The earthly powers, with a jealous air’,On babes enacted slaughter without-a-care;Peace turned to pain without and within;Seeking to thwart God’s plan among men!While “Celebration” relates to His arrival on earth,There remains much conf...

In part one of this article I said that we sometimes don’t recognize the full implications of the punishments or rewards that come our way when choosing to obey or disobey God’s commands. In this regard I mentioned the many rewards that await one who actively pursues sexual purity.Another reward that is seldom understood is that which results from generous giving or liberality. We are familiar wit...

When I was in Junior High my English teacher taught our class how to write a “precis”. A precis is a shortened version of an essay or article that maintains the meaning of the original piece of writing. He would do this by assigning us a 500 word essay on a particular topic and once completed would require the class to rewrite that same essay in 250 words, then 100 words and finally 50 words. This...

2400 years ago, an oath attributed to the Greek Physician Hippocrates was put in writing. I find it interesting that in ancient Greece, a culture famous for its Pagan idolatry, a man would be so committed to such high moral ideals as are included in the oath.Do you realize that the original Hippocratic oath prohibited both abortion and euthanasia?“I will neither give a deadly drug to anybody who a...

1. Never belittle your spouse, even in jest; and especially never in public. Just don’t.2. Always lavish legitimate praise for any and all of your spouse’s qualities or accomplishments, especially in public.3. Almost all marriages that end badly do so because of selfishness. If your immediate inclination is to look for selfish behavior in your spouse instead of yourself, it is a good sign that you...

Perhaps you’ve seen videos on the internet of people who do themselves great harm by doing terribly foolish things. They dive off houses into swimming pools and miss, mess around with explosives and discover that they work as advertised, or misjudge the amount of bungee cord they needed to maintain an intact cranium.We look at them and wonder, “What were they thinking?”We seem to have some of the ...

I recently baptized our eldest grandson, Christian. He is nine years old and because of his age I had some hesitation before going ahead with his baptism. There are many examples in the Bible of people who were spiritually sensitive at an early age. Samuel was a young boy when called by God to serve as prophet (1Sam.3:1-21); and it was said of Jesus as a boy that He grew in wisdom and stature (Lk....

The Devil’s deception strikes again. A recent report traces the progressive (?) pattern of marijuana use in Colorado (cf. The Oklahoman, “Legalized Marijuana Certainly No Panacea,” September 27, 2015, p.14A). “In 2006 Colorado legalized ‘medical’ marijuana use. Greater commercialization was unleashed in 2009. And since 2013, full-blown recreational use has been legal.” This not only shows the Sata...

The above is not simply the title of this brief article; it is the last question a number of people were asked just before being shot dead on Thursday October 1st, 2015.On Monday October 5th, a stone monument bearing inscriptions of the ten commandments was removed from the grounds of the Oklahoma state capitol. The monument bearing such subversive thoughts as “Thou shalt not kill”, “Thou shalt no...

Pope Francis has good teeth. I noticed this about him in a picture connected with his recent visit to the U.S. This is as it should be for one who strives to be the new face of the Catholic church witnessed by the carefully choreographed Papal appearances in New York and other cities recently.He is loved by the media because he preaches on their favorite themes of climate change, the plight of the...

Are you struggling or have you struggled with any of “life’s issues”? Financial troubles, divorce, straying children, chronic illness or pain, addiction to alcohol, nicotine, drugs, pornography, sex; do you struggle with anxiety, depression, doubt, fear, frustration, faithfulness, anger, disappointment, abandonment, abuse, a sense of shame or guilt, loss of a loved one, a job, a relationship, tryi...

Increasing InsanityGod designed our minds to function in sync with his own. When one turns his mind away from God, the only possible result is insanity.Jesus’ apostle Paul wrote the following to the saints in Rome (1:21-22):“…but they became futile in their speculations”“…their foolish heart was darkened”“Professing to be wise, they became fools”“Futile speculations”? The so-called theory of evolu...

Skeptics, agnostics, atheists, philosophers, and even scientists (by evidence, laboratory experiments, etc.) theorize, speculate, postulate, and express varied assumptions as to the origin of things, life, and the universe. There is an amazing plethora (the state of being too full, excess) of print, seeking to explain the heavens and the earth, plus all life—plant, animal human—that are so evident...

Some wise person somewhere once said, "It's not where you start...it's where you finish that counts!" We see that all the time in sports, in business and in life itself. Someone starts in the back of the pack and perseveres to get to the front. One can start with nothing and end up wealthy, (especially in our great country), or someone can start with lots and end up with nothing. That holds true i...