MORNING MANNA            3-1-22

THE BELIEVER’S BLESSED HOPE

“Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;”– Titus 2:13

Although it is called the believer’s “blessed hope” few seem to have any interest in the Lord’s return. But it hasn’t always been that way.

Alexander Maclaren described the perspective of the early church writing “The primitive Church thought more about the second coming of Jesus Christ than about death or heaven. They were not looking for a cleft in the ground called “the grave,” but for a cleavage in the sky called “glory.” They were not watching for the “undertaker” but for the “Uppertaker.” They felt man’s chief end was to get right with God or be left behind when Christ returned.”

Blessed are those whom the Lord finds watching,
In His glory they shall share;
If He shall come at the dawn or midnight,
Will He find us watching there?--Crosby

Thank God for the wonderful promise of the Lord’s return. Regardless of the perilous times in which we live the redeemed have reason to rejoice because Jesus is coming again. He promised He would and He can’t lie. Rest your weary head on that promise and be at peace! – HDS

David Stone

Lakeway Baptist Church

Humble, Tx.

MORNING MANNA           9-30-22
BRING OTHERS TO JESUS
“He (Andrew) first findeth his own brother Simon…and he brought him to Jesus.”- John 1:41-42
The normal method of personal evangelism is for Christians to witness for Christ within the context of their daily lives. This does not mean that God never uses the “cold turkey” approach, that is, walking up to total strangers and presenting the Gospel to them. He does! But it is far more convincing when a believer witnesses to people who know him and who can see that Christ makes a difference in his life. This is what Simon did.Walter Henrichsen tells of a young man who was extremely apprehensive about witnessing on his college campus. Henrichsen asked him, “Joe, how many students on campus do you know personally? By that I mean when they see you they know you by name.” After being there for a couple of months, he knew only two or three men.“I said, ‘Joe, in the next four weeks, I want you to get to know as many students on campus as you can. Let’s set our goal at fifty students. You don’t have to witness to them. You don’t even have to tell them you are a Christian. All you have to do is get to know them. Stop by their rooms and chat with them. Play ping-pong with them. Go to athletic events with them. Go to meals together. Do anything you want, but get to know fifty men so that one month from today, when I return, you can introduce me to each one of them by name.
’“When Henrichsen met the young man a month later, this fellow had led six men to Christ. “We didn’t talk about whether he had gotten to know fifty people. We didn’t have to. He had discovered for himself that as he became friends with ‘the publicans and sinners,’ the Lord naturally provided opportunities for him to share his faith.”
With regard to this method of evangelizing within the context of our daily lives, two observations should be made. First, the life of the personal worker is important. It makes a difference whether he is walking close to the Lord. He may be ever so glib in presenting a prepackaged message, but if his life isn’t holy, it cancels out his message.
The second observation is that this method doesn’t put the emphasis on instant results, and that is in its favor. Jesus likened the salvation process to the growth of grain; you don’t harvest the crop the same day you plant the seed. It is true that some people are saved the first time they hear the gospel, but they represent a small fraction of the total. Generally speaking, conversion is preceded by a period of hearing the message, of being convicted of sin, and of resisting the voice of the Holy Spirit.- William MacDonald
David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346

MORNING MANNA        9-29-22 

WILLING SERVANTS

When [Lydia] was baptized, and her household, she besought us, saying, If ye have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come into my house, and abide there. And she constrained us– Acts 16:15

The hurricane in Florida reminds me that a great many folks are in need. It also reminds me of a time here in Houston when one of our members said, “If anyone needs a place to stay you are welcome to stay with us“. That’s impressive. I was thinking of that when I read the following from the Baptist Bible Hour.

“Lydia is a wonderful, faithful example to every new believer. Many times, after a person becomes a Christian there is a loss of inertia, a waning of energy. Perhaps they don’t know what to do next, or perhaps they feel intimidated by other, more seasoned, Christians.

But Lydia did not allow any of these things to hinder her in her Christian commitment. She immediately threw herself wholeheartedly into the kingdom of God, opening her home and her heart to weary and persecuted saints.

Notice the vehemence of her determination: Luke says, “she constrained (forced) us.” It seems she would not take “no” for an answer, but insisted on taking part in the kingdom work that was available to her. She did not wait for others to ask her for help, or until someone informed her of a need; rather, she dove headfirst into the first place of service she could find.

It seems she had so joined herself to the ministry of the church that her house soon became the default place of worship and refuge for Christians. When Paul and Silas were later let out of prison, it was in Lydia’s home they met with, and comforted, the brethren before they departed (16:40).

Lydia reminds us that years of experience is not necessary in order to be an active, contributing, committed member of the kingdom of God. So what are you waiting for? Exercise hospitality, minister to the needy, comfort the disheartened, support the weary. It’s never too soon to start.”

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

MORNING MANNA                9-28-22

WHEN “BAD” BECOMES GOOD

“It is good for me that I have been afflicted; that I might learn thy statutes”. –Psalm 119:71

This story has been told many times and in many places, but it is too good to not repeat. There is a valuable lesson that we all need to remember.

Farmers in southern Alabama were accustomed to planting one crop every year—cotton. They would simply plow as much ground as they could and plant their crop. Year after year, they made their living by growing cotton.

Then one year, the dreaded boll weevil devastated the whole region. The next year, the farmers mortgaged their homes and planted cotton again, hoping for a better harvest. But as the cotton began to grow, the insects returned and completely destroyed the crop—wiping out most of the farms that grew cotton.

The next year, the few farmers who survived decided to plant a different crop in hopes of regaining their livelihoods—peanuts. The new crop proved to be so hardy and the market so ravenous that it enabled the farmers to pay off all their debts from the two previous years of failed crops.

Every season thereafter, the farmers planted peanuts…and they prospered greatly. And eventually, the farmers spent some of their new wealth to erect a monument to the boll weevil in the town square! They figured if it hadn’t been for the pesky insect, then they never would have planted the prosperous peanut crops.

As believers, we have the assurance of knowing that God can use the “boll weevils” in our lives for something good. In fact, Romans 8:28 says, “..all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose.”

No matter what trials may come knocking on your door unexpectedly, know God is in control and working behind the scenes for your ultimate good!

Thank God for being in control of all the situations in your life—good and bad. And ask Him for the patience you need to wait for the light after the darkness of your trials.(Senior Living)

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

MORNING MANNA              9-26-22
KEEP WHITTLING
“One thing have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to inquire in his temple.” (Psalm 27:4)

This is a rich verse. David had whittled his life down to one point: “One thing have I desired of the LORD.” Also Paul did that with his life. He said, “… but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:13, 14). In this day, whittle down your life, as you would whittle down a pencil, until you can write with it. Our lives are very complicated, so just keep whittling.

Most of my life I felt like Martha in the kitchen. She was encumbered with much service (see Luke 10:40). Poor Martha reached for a pot to cook something in it, then she reached for a pan to boil something in it, and she reached for another container to put the potatoes in, and by that time something fell out of the cupboard. She became frustrated trying to do everything at once. How complicated life has become for many of us. We are frustrated, under tension and pressure all the time. It is wonderful to whittle your life down to what is important. It is a relief to reduce your life to the lowest common denominator…..

I have whittled my life down to the one thing I want to do – teach the Bible. That is all I am doing. My life has been whittled down to that, and I am enthusiastic about it. I believe this is what God wants me to do.Now notice the “one thing” in David’s life was “that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life.” I don’t think David intended to take his sleeping bag into the tabernacle and stay there. But he wanted the ark, which was God’s meeting place with His people, with him in Jerusalem. He went to great lengths to bring it to Jerusalem and erected a tabernacle for it and planned an elaborate temple for God. Why? Through that he had access to God. That was the “one thing” in David’s life.

We have access to God through Christ, and this is the thing we ought to rejoice in. Paul gives us the eight benefits of being justified by faith in Romans 5:1-5. The second benefit Paul mentions is access to God: “By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.” What a wonderful thing it is to have access to God! He is the One who will enable us to whittle our lives down to that one point.
–from Edited Messages on Psalms by Dr. J. Vernon McGee