WHO CARES?
“Brethren, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might be saved.”- Rom. 10:1

I’ve heard people say “I don’t care what anyone else thinks”, and there are times when that might be appropriate. However, in most instances it should matter very much what others think about us. Well over 100 years ago James Smith wrote about “An unsaved person’s perspective of Christians”. Here’s the letter:

“I do not believe that you Christians believe your own creed — for if you     were persuaded that things really are as your Bibles teach, and that we poor     lost people were really going to such a dreadful place as you say     Hell is — then you would act more humanely toward us.
   
    If you saw our houses on fire — you would run and help us to put the     fire out; or if you saw us in danger of death — you would try to do     something to save us. But you pretend to believe that we are going to     Hell, and that Hell burns with fire and brimstone forever, and that once     there we can never get out — and yet you talk to us about all sorts of     things — but never say one word to us about saving our souls from this     terrible doom!
   
    So I have reasoned thus: either you Christians don’t believe what you say —    or else you must be the most hardened and unfeeling wretches in the     universe! Now, as I don’t believe that you are such cruel, hardened, and     unfeeling people as this supposes — then I must conclude that, with all your    talk — you Christians don’t really believe what your Bibles teach!    
   
    For if you really believe what you say about sin, and Hell, and our danger —     then you would act differently; and if you have a spark of kindness in your     hearts — you would try to save us from such a dreadful doom. And, on the     other hand, if you do not believe what you profess — then you     Christians cannot be honest; and to say the least, there must be a great     deal of hypocrisy among you.
   
    Now, I honestly tell you that these are the things which have stumbled me     more than anything, and until I can see you Christians act differently — I     will not be persuaded to believe what your sort of folks say.”

Think about it! Are others convinced that you are truly concerned about their spiritual welfare? If not, it’s time to remove all doubt–go tell them! – HDS
 
David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346

SELFWILLED
“For a bishop must be blameless, as the steward of God; not selfwilled….”- Titus 1:7
Here is what God demands form pastors. It is also what He desires for all His people, that they be “not selfwilled“. A life well lived isn’t always easy and of all the difficulties we face nothing gets in the way more than self will. We are our own worst enemy. Discipleship demand the we deny ourselves, but the flesh insists on pleasing self, so a struggle ensues. Since we are stubborn creatures the struggle is intense, but one side or the other prevails.
Perhaps you remember the song that says, You’ve got to serve somebody”. That’s true. We will either be controlled by our Creator or by sinful self. And self is a cruel taskmaster. It is also a troublemaker. It makes trouble because of its traits, the chief of which is pride. Self-willed people think they are deserving of what they desire and wise enough to make their own decisions. Such people offend others, cause conflicts, and ruin relationships. They resent rules and rebel against responsibility. All that is bad enough, but it becomes worse when the self-willed person’s attitude and actions affect others. In an effort to get what he wants he disregards the rights of others, disrespects them, and deprives them of their needs.
Such people, pursuing pleasure, are miserable because they are never really content. More for them is never enough. Even if they finally recognize that they have a problem their pride won’t allow them to admit it. So they keep tormenting themselves trying to satisfy self. That puts us in danger because we aren’t wise enough to know how to chart the course we ought to take. Our stubborn self-will causes us to ignore God’s counsel and commands and that eventually causes us to get hurt. When we live as though we have the right to do as we please we make decisions that are destructive.
The propensity to please self starts at an early age, and without the restraint of having a relationship with Christ it just gets worse. That is our only safeguard. He is able to satisfy the longing of our soul, give us peace that passeth all understanding, and joy unspeakable and full of glory. We learn to be content because we know that Christ satisfies. We become willing to deny ourselves when our love for Christ motivates us to please Him rather than self. When our greatest pleasure is pleasing God we seek to do His will rather than our own. Problem solved! –HDS
David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346

WHY WE ARE RESPONSIBLE
“Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus? Hath not the potter power over the clay….”– Rom. 9:20-21

Man’s most foolish choice is to set himself in a confrontation with God– to oppose and resist what God does, allows, or requires. We are out of place when our attitude or actions are against God who made us. As created beings we don’t have the right to resent, resist, and reject the will of our Creator. We are under obligation to the One who by His wise design made us with a will. He also created us with a need to be guided by His infinite wisdom. That’s why He gives us rules to regulate our behavior. But He also gives us the ability to resist what we need– an ability we have terribly misused. We do ourselves the greatest favor when we choose to be controlled by our Creator. Such submission is not only what He demands it is also what He deserves.

That is clearly true when you consider that there is something more than a creature/Creator relationship, something more compelling — we belong to God by way of redemption (1 Cor. 6:19-20). Christ redeemed us with His “precious blood” (1 Pet. 1:18-19). So our obedience ought not be just the discharging of our duty. it should be our great delight. We should cheerfully surrender to the Lord out of love because it is both right and best. When God’s will becomes our will we win! When governed by self-will we lose– and have only ourselves to blame.

Rather than blame our circumstances we need to put the blame where it should be– on the unwise choices we’ve made. The freedom to choose is a great privilege, but it also carries with it a great responsibility. We must give an account to God for the decisions we make. We belong to Him by creation and redemption and have no right to do as we please when it doesn’t please Him.

Here’s the good news. Having been redeemed you not only have a great responsibility, you have great potential by virtue of your relationship with Christ. The same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead dwells within you. He enables you to do as God commands. As Paul said, “For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.” ( Phil. 2:13)- HDS

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

THE ERROR OF ENVY
“For I was envious at the foolish, when I saw the prosperity of the wicked” – Psalms 73:3
Having just read a comment giving praise to a man that I knew well, I was shocked that such adulation was given to a man so undeserving of praise. My first thought was “How unfair!” And I suspect that praise for the wicked is troublesome to a lot of folks.

When we see the prosperity, popularity, and praise of ungodly people it’s easy to get perturbed. It seems that all the wrong people get rewarded. We see athletes, actors, etc. being admired and making millions, while the soldier, cop, school teacher, single parent, housewife, etc. are under paid and unappreciated. That just doesn’t seem fair. Indeed it is an up-side down world that we live in.

This problem might be worse today, but it’s nothing new. Even such a great man as the Psalmist said, “my feet were almost gone; my steps had well nigh slipped” (vs. 2). And we put ourselves in great danger if we allow ourselves to become “envious at the foolish”.  We must not allow that which is troublesome to us to become troublesome for us by becoming envious of the foolish. We always put ourselves in danger when we allow such things, any thing, to shift our focus away from God. Why fret about evildoers getting what they don’t deserve? None of us are deserving.

The fact is, God hasn’t been unfair with any of us. And whatever service we render unto the Lord will be aptly rewarded at the time of His choosing. For the Christian, payday is someday. Don’t fret about the prosperity of the wicked. The praise they get here is all the reward they shall ever have. But, for those who live only to please the Lord it can be said, has been said, “great is your reward in heaven” (Matt. 5:12). Therefore, regardless of our circumstances, we should “Rejoice, and be exceeding glad” (Matt. 5:12), rather than making ourselves miserable by being envious of the foolish.–HDS
David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346

HAVE YOU ASKED GOD?
“The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD: and he delighteth in his way.”- Psalms 37:23

I asked God if I could–
— express how I was feeling
— say what I was thinking
— tell what I heard
— start doing what I wanted
— stop doing what others expect
— quit what I’m doing
— leave where I am
— go where I please

He said “No”
So, I wondered why others are allowed to do so? Or, do they just do it without asking?

Wise men inquire of the Lord before making their decision and they are spared the awful consequences of not having done so. They look to God as their guide and are directed by His just commands and wise counsel. They know life is a journey made up of many steps and that each one is significant. They refuse to listen to the many voices clamoring for their attention. They tune their ears to hear the voice of the great Shepherd of the sheep. They live with the assurance that His way is right, best, and safest. Because of that, God directs them, delights in them, and delivers them if they stumble- “Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the LORD upholdeth him with his hand.” (37:24). As the old hymn says-
He leadeth me! O blessed thought,
O words with heav’nly comfort fraught;
Whate’er I do, where’er I be,
Still ’tis Christ’s hand that leadeth me.
So how is it with you my friend? Are your steps, stops, and starts ordered by the Lord? Or do you just do as you please without asking? – HDS
David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346