“For if thou altogether holdest thy peace at this time, then shall there enlargement and deliverance arise to the Jews from another place; but thou and thy father’s house shall be destroyed: and who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this?”- Esther 4:14

I love Norman Rockwell paintings. They awaken pleasant thoughts of yesteryear. However, a Norman Rockwell world is not the real world– it’s not even the ideal world. I’m sorry if that disappoints you, but it is true. I suspect we all envision what we would like the world to be like. For those my age, there is likely a desire to get back to what we call “the good old days”. But those “good old days were not always so good. “Better than today!” you say, and in some ways you are right , but in some ways they are much worse.

The fact of the matter is, life at the moment is what it is and this is the time God has appointed for us. We can let ourselves get  lost in the fifties or bemoan the fact, complaining that things aren’t better, or we can do what we can in the time we have. We are not here by accident. Whatever the time and the place, God put us here, and He did so for a special purpose. Esther, no doubt, had a lot of questions as to how she ended up as a queen, especially in that place at that time– but God knew! None of it could have happened without Him allowing it, and none of it would have happened had God not had a reason for it. It is the same in your life. We can’t always control or change our circumstances, but as the old song says, “Brighten the corner where you are”. Bloom where you are planted. Do what you can with what you’ve got, where you are, while you can, and God will bless you and make you a blessing. – HDS

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

” Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you”.– 1 Thess. 5:16-18

Here we find a tremendous trilogy of truth, given in staccato like style–” Rejoice evermore, Pray without ceasing. In everything give thanks…” This is divinely designed to get our attention and to be easy to remember. And it is for good reason. These three things– rejoicing, prayer, and thanksgiving not only makes life better, they make life different. They transform us. They might not change our circumstances, but they will change us.

Although certain conditions are not conducive to the practice of these precepts, we are to do them nevertheless, as we see by the words “evermore”, “without ceasing”, and “In everything”. Regardless of what is going on in your life these things are to be put into practice–regardless of how you feel. In the doing of them God will cause “all things” to “work together for good” ( Rom. 8:28). If you want to defeat depression, beat the blues, and alter your attitude, put these into practice and it can happen.

Not only should we do this because of the benefits, but also and more so because “this is the will God in Christ Jesus concerning you”. That makes this of utmost importance. Pleasing Him is the path to being pleased in life. This is what prompted Paul to say, “..we beseech you, brethren, and exhort you by the Lord Jesus, that as ye have received of us how ye ought to walk and to please God, so ye would abound more and more”. ( 1 Thess. 4:1). If you are convinced that you can’t be happy unless something changes you will never be happy– happiness will forever elude you. Happiness is found in doing God’s will, not getting our way. That means we will have to live with conditions that are not ideal, fair, or comfortable, and yet we are required to “Rejoice in the Lord always” ( Phil. 4:4). That would be impossible unless we “” Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In everything give thanks”. That is “the will of God”. And obeying God empowers us to do what seems impossible. In that sense it can be said that happiness is a choice. That doesn’t mean we are happy with our situation, but that we are happy in it. Others have made that choice, and if you are a child of God in the will of God you will do the same.- HDS
David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346

It’s obvious to everyone that something is seriously wrong with the world. Surely you don’t think the world is what it should be or could be. There is a conflict between good and evil, a battle between darkness and light. That’s why it is so important to think of Christ as “the Light” ( John 1:4,7), the “true Light” ( John 1:9), “the light of the world” (John 8:12). Satan, on the other hand, is referred to as the “prince of darkness”. But those who receive Christ “shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.”( John 8:12).

When Jesus came into the world He came to give life, thus He came as “the Light“. There can be no life without light. That’s why the first thing God created was light. It alone can drive out darkness. In John 10:10 Jesus said, “…I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.” When John the Baptist came it was “to bear witness of that Light” ( John 1:8). He did so because he knew that Christ was man’s only hope for life. Sadly not everyone received Him, because “men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil” ( John 3:19).
All this sounds simple and it is, but it is also serious. The only way to conquer the conflict is to receive the Light, otherwise a person is doomed to darkness. Hopefully as you think of Christmas you will be reminded of the need for the Light, upon which your life depends.

Just as “the glory of the Lord shone round about the shepherds” ( Luke 2:9) drawing their attention to the announcement of the Savior’s birth, and as the wise men were later guided by the star, God has given us the light of the Scriptures to guide us to the Light of life and to guide us throughout life by that light. God forbid that we close our eyes and remain in darkness.- HDS

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

“For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.”– Luke 2:11
Like most people I have a lot of fond memories of Christmas as a child. It was my dad’s favorite day of the year. Every year he and I would combine a hunting trip with a search for what he considered to be the perfect Christmas tree. When he decided on the one he liked most we would shoot it down with our shotguns, tie it to the top of the car and deliver it to mom. That was the end of dad’s work on the tree. Then sis and I would help mom decorate. We didn’t have all the ornaments folks have today so we would string popcorn on a string and wrap it around the tree and make popcorn balls to hang from the tree. The last step was to put the star on top, and it was a special star. I don’t know where mom got it but she had a large white star trimmed in red that we put on the tree as long as I can remember.

I’m reminded of that every Christmas or when I hear mention of what some call “The Christmas star” or “the star of Bethlehem” that guided the wise men after the birth of Christ. Of course for some the “star” of Christmas is something else— Santa Claus, gifts, mom’s home cooked meal, family, or friends, etc.– whatever they enjoy the most. But the real star of Christmas is Christ! He is the main attraction. If you’re going to celebrated Christmas keep your thoughts on Christ. It is upon Him, the light of the world, that our attention should be focused– not only on Christmas, but each and every day of the year. So lets remember that Christ is the cause of our celebration. Remembering who He is and why He came gives us a reason to rejoice regardless of what our situation is. Let us ever be “Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith” ( Heb. 12:2). There isn’t anything we can’t endure if we keep our eyes on the Savior rather than the situation. Merry Christmas! -HDS
David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346

“But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.”- Gal. 4:4-5

When a baby is born we often wonder what life will hold for the child. As parents we sometimes have certain hopes of what the child might become, or at least what will be best for them. We have life on our mind, not death. And it usually isn’t long before children start thinking about what they want to be when they grow up. Even though we all know we are going to die, no one thinks of that as their purpose in life. No one that is but Jesus!

While there’s a lot of debate about how much Mary knew about the impending death of Jesus, there can be no doubt about what Jesus knew. He came into this world with death on His mind. He was born to die. Think about what Jesus could have done or become had he chosen to do so. With His wisdom and ability he could have become a king or accomplished anything he desired, but he was born to die and he knew it ( John 18:4). He was, as promised in Isa. 9:6, the Son “given” to be the sacrifice for man’s sin. He came into the world aware of His purpose and he was fully committed to the Father’s plan for His life. He lived in the shadow of the cross. It stands to reason that every tree would remind him of the cross. Every sacrifice offered was a reminder that as the Lamb of God He would be offered as the sacrifice for all. He knew every detail of what awaited him and yet he never wavered from the course appointed for him. And he did so with joy. he could say, “I delight to do thy will, O my God” ( Psa. 40:2). Not for one moment did he ever resent or resist the Father’s will.

It was not His lovely life, tremendous teaching, mighty miracles, or excellent example, but His death that delivers us. It was by means of His death for our sin that we are forgiven, spared from wrath, and receive everlasting life. Without His sacrifice everything about Christmas would be meaningless. He was born to die that we might live! – HDS

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