“…… the joy of the LORD is your strength.”-  Neh. 8:10

Over the years I have lost many things due to various reasons. In some cases it was no big deal, but in other instances it brought tears to my eyes. The good news is that I’ve never lost anything I couldn’t live without. As much as I wanted those things I could survive without them.

In addition to things, as we get older we suffer losses of a different sort– strength, flexibility, hearing, eye sight, etc.– things we can’t do anything about. But today I’m talking about something we can control. Have you ever thought about the seriousness of losing your joy? It’s no minor matter – “the joy of the Lord is your strength” ( Neh. 8:10). That being the case, we are weak if we lose our joy. That puts us in great danger. It makes us susceptible to sin. Without the strength of joy we cannot escape temptation, or endure trials.

Sadly many fail to see how serious this is. They recognize the loss of other things as a serious matter, but when it comes to the loss of joy they act as though it is no big deal. But it is a big deal. The loss of joy affects you and others. It can destroy your testimony and your ability to witness effectively to others. They need to see the difference Christ makes in a person’s life.

If you’ve lost your joy do whatever is necessary to regain it. If it is due to sin, confess it. If it is due to other factors, spend as much time as possible in the Word and prayer. Don’t ignore it. Rest assured that God desires and demands you to be joyful, and He will make it possible. Of all our many needs, joy is high on the list. You need joy more than fortune, fame, and a host of other things often sought. Doing what it takes to be a joyful Christian is worth it. You can gain everything your heart desires, but without joy it is worthless. It’s something you can’t do without. And knowing it is possible should encourage you to pursue it. Joy is within the reach of every Christian. Don’t live without it! — HDS

David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346

“”And above all things have fervent charity among  yourselves...” (1 Pet. 4:8)

It is a great thing when we finally acknowledge that love is the greatest thing, and it’s even better when we are honest enough to admit our failure and concerned enough that we want to change. Next comes the challenge, the struggle to do as we should. Having faced our failure and confessed our desire to change we come face to face with our need of help, of divine aid. Regardless of how good, smart, or strong you think you are, the standard is too high for your feeble flesh. There is not a person on this planet who doesn’t need God’s help. It is only through commitment to and communion with Christ that we are able to do as we should. It is impossible to live at a distance from God and be like God. Your greatest need is to gain the greatest thing–love, and that can’t be done apart from Christ. Only He can enable you to do what He requires of you.

Listen, God wants to help you, not hurt you. He has designed for you a life that is for your good and His glory, and put within your reach all that He requires– if you will but trust Him. He doesn’t ask you to climb the highest mountain, swim the widest sea, walk on water, give away all your goods, or live a perfect life. He simply wants you to trust Him and love Him. He makes it so simple and easy that a child can do it. This could be the greatest day of your life. Believe me, no one ever received Christ and regretted it.

Keep in mind that it was Peter who wrote “And above all things have fervent charity among  yourselves...”(1 Pet. 4:8) and “Seeing ye have purified your  souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto  unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one  another with a pure heart fervently:” (1 Pet. 1:22). This is the same man to whom the Lord said three times “Lovest thou me?” (John 21:17). If anyone understood the need to love it was Peter! What about you? Think about it! – HDS

David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346

“Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:”– Phil. 2:5

We speak a lot about serving the Lord, but some folks have never given any thought as to what that really means. So let me get right to the point and tell you. We serve Jesus by serving like Jesus. It is that simple, and that serious. The problem is that the word “servant” doesn’t sound very appealing to people. Most folks are more concerned about being served than they are about serving. They want to get rather than give.

That attitude is just the opposite of Jesus. He dignified servanthood– “For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.” ( Mark 10:45). In Phil. 2:4-15 we see Christ pictured as the model or ultimate servant and an example for us. That’s the life Paul aspired to live – “For to me to live is Christ..” (Phil. 1:21). His favorite title for himself was “servant”. And that’s the attitude we all should have. Sadly too many of us are like the disciples in Luke 22:24-27 who were more concerned about who was the greatest rather than the godliest. Before you criticize them you better examine your own life.

Many today are satisfied with being students without becoming servants. They are forever learning, but never doing. They can quote the verse that says “But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.” (Ja. 1:22), but they fail to apply it to themselves. Christ, on the other hand, came to do the Father’s will and he did. May God help us to do the same. We will never reach others for Christ until others see Christ in us.–HDS
David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346

“Behold, happy is the man whom God correcteth: therefore despise not thou the chastening of the Almighty:” Job 5:17

 He is not happy at the time! No one enjoys having troubles, sufferings, sorrows. Therefore this verse appears very strange to some people. They cannot understand it. It is contrary to all their thoughts of happiness. Of course, the word happy is not used here in the world’s sense. In the world’s estimation, “happiness is the pleasure that comes from the things that happen. It depends on personal comfort, on prosperous circumstances, on kindly and congenial conditions. When these are taken away the happiness is destroyed.”

 But the word here means blessed; and the statement is, that blessing comes to him who receives God’s correction. To correct is to set right that which has been wrong. Surely if a man is going in the wrong way, and God turns his feet back and sets him in the right way, a blessing has come to him. Afflictions are God’s corrections. They come with a purpose of love in them. They are hard to accept—but afterward the blessing is revealed. “Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby.” Hebrews 12:11  (J. R. Miller)

We complain about our problems because we fail to see God’s hand in them. We cannot imagine why God would allow or appoint something so troublesome in our life. Let’s face it, we don’t like to admit that we need correcting. We tend to think we are good enough to warrant a free pass when it comes to pain. The fact is, if there was nothing more, that attitude alone is reason enough for us to need correcting. Be glad that you don’t get what you actual deserve! – HDS

David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346

” But let a man examine himself….”1 Cor. 11:28

Self-examination is important ( see 1 Cor. 13:5; Gal. 6:3-4; 2 John 8), but it’s something most folks are afraid to do. Truth beknown we are more than suspect of what we will find. We already know all is not well in our life. Not only do we know things we would rather not think about, we are fearful of what we might discover. We are fearful because we know it is no minor matter to displease God. We sing “Search me O God”, but we are fearful of actually making that our prayer. We seem to forget that it is our duty to examine ourselves. We ought to open God’s Word and pray that the Holy Spirit would show us the things with which God is displeased. Such discoveries might not be pleasurable, but they will be profitable.

Socrates said, “The unexamined life is not worth living”. While the circumstances of your life are much different than his, there is much to be said of his statement. If we hope to gain Christlikeness we must see our need and we can’t do that without self-examination. While there is an unhealthy introspection that does harm rather than good, there is a greater danger in failing to examine ourselves as we should. We must be willing to ask the hard questions about our present state. We must look at our life in the light of God’s Word. Comparing ourselves to others isn’t wise and it is more foolish to let our conscience be our guide. It is only by looking unto Jesus as He is revealed in the Scriptures that we see ourselves as we ought to be. And the moment we see our short-comings we ought to confess them to God (1 John 1:9). Then as we focus on Christ, “beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord” we “are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord“. ( 2 Cor. 3:18). So then, “Let us search and try our ways, and turn again to the LORD.” (Lam. 3:40)–HDS
David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346