Category: Book Reviews

From Great Days with the Great Lives, by Chuck Swindoll.

Read Genesis 37:36, 39:1-6.

The sovereign God of Israel was intimately involved in Joseph’s life. He guided him. He gave him facility in the Egyptian language. On top of all that, He gave him favor in the eyes of Potiphar. Clearly, God was the secret of Joseph’s success. Luck had nothing to do with it.

          Joseph didn’t have to tell Potiphar that the Lord was with him; Potiphar could see it for himself. “Now his master saw that the Lord was with him” (Genesis 39:3). Furthermore, Joseph didn’t use his spirituality as a manipulative tool to get benefits from his boss. Simply because the Lord caused all that Joseph did to prosper, Joseph found favor in his sight. Notice, it doesn’t say that Joseph asked favors from Potiphar; he found favor with Potiphar.

          With greater success comes greater measures of trust, which, by the way, lead to greater times of unguarded vulnerability. Regarding the latter, F. B. Meyer writes insightfully,          

“We may expect temptation in the days of prosperity and ease rather than in those of privation and toil. Not on the glacier slopes of the Alps, but in the sunny plains of the Campagna; not when the youth is climbing arduously the steep ladder of fame, but when he has entered the golden portals; not where men frown, but where they smile sweet exquisite smiles of flattery – it is there, it is there, that the temptress lies in wait! Beware!”

What a wise exhortation! This warning is not of concern to the person who is down and out. Its message is addressed to the successful, to the up-and-coming executive, to the man or woman on the way to the top of the heap, to the individual who is experiencing the benefits and favor of God, who is reaping the benefits of increased privacy and trust. Thomas Carlyle, the Scottish essayist, was right when he said, “Adversity is sometimes hard upon a man, but for one man who can stand prosperity, there are a hundred that will stand adversity.” The temptations that accompany prosperity are far greater (and far more subtle) than those that accompany adversity.

NEXT UP: Run For Your Life

Change of Plans! Due to the pre-emptive nature of this recent email from Marlin Miller of the Winesburg OH Plain Values Magazine, I’m posting this recent home run out of the park admonition (and it is 1600 words, an 8 min read!) from Mark Gregston, parenting expert and founder of Parenting Today’s Teens, a nonprofit offering biblical insights and practical wisdom for families across the country. Go to parentingtodaysteens.org for the PTT’s wide array of helpful materials.

Not Every Argument Needs to be Argued!

It’s everywhere! Turn on any news channel and you hear arguing. There are TV programs where the focus of interaction is to do nothing but argue. Newscasters love a good argument because it creates good stories. Teens argue back and forth on social sites. Adults argue their points of view in postings and blogs. Politicians spend their lives arguing for this or against that, and groups of people argue for their rights and their longing to be heard. Teens fight to feel valued, older folks fight to be heard. Will someone please listen to me?

People master the art of arguing in hopes of being heard. That longing is born from a craving to be valued, a yearning to be appreciated, treasured, and cherished. I would suggest the underlying thread is the desire to be truly known.

Arguing flourishes today because people aren’t listening to one another. When the art of listening disappears, people choose to quarrel, disagree, squabble, bicker, fight, wrangle, dispute, and feud. It’s been that way since the beginning of time. Today, technology and electronic gadgets make arguments more readily available, and the capacity for not listening a little easier.

We feel valued when we are in accord with each other. In the same way, we feel less valued when others do not agree with us. The fight to express diverging or opposite views, usually in a heated exchange, is self-focused. If we are intent on persuading others to share our views at all costs, we are self-centered on our one-way street—our way or the highway. When two or more people engage, it’s all me-first thinking, with a goal of meeting personal needs rather than the needs of anyone else in the conversation. You might wonder how that type of conversation lines up with Scripture.

Don’t have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments, because you know they produce quarrels. And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful. (2 Timothy 2:23-24)

It may take everything you’ve got not to hotly defend biblically-based beliefs you hold dear—especially when you feel attacked. However, here’s where your gentle answer can turn away anger. Your reasoned responses, delivered in ways that honor and respect the other person, allow them to hear a different belief without going on the defensive.

In a culture where arguments are the norm and resolution is rarely achieved, I suggest arguing isn’t the best way to influence. Matter of fact, arguing with teens, many times, just solidifies their position and justifies their viewpoint.

Remember this: Not every argument needs to be argued.

I was with a fellow a few months ago who has been receiving quite a bit of criticism about his views on homosexuality. Adamantly opposed to the homosexual lifestyle, he has been bashed and bruised by some media outlets. Others applauded him for his stance and willingness to speak the truth and be a voice in the wilderness. He told me stories of what people are saying about him, revealed threats that have been thrown his way, and showed me how vicious people’s responses have been to him.

After listening to what had been happening to him because he stood up for what he believes in, I just sat. He then asked what I thought.

I said, “Dude, I think you might need to just keep your mouth shut. You’re only going to get bashed, and you may be worsening the issue, not helping.” He was shocked and replied, “Well, someone’s got to stand in the gap!” I responded, “No, not really. If a gentle answer turns away wrath, then I wonder why your answer is not doing that.”

It’s because his message wasn’t being heard as gentle. It came across as abrasive, in fact. Maybe he wasn’t delivering it in an abrasive way, but today’s culture has not only ceased to listen, but also hears things differently as well. In a world where everyone is looking for a fight, you have to carefully determine when to speak, when to hush, and when to leave it alone. He might have done better to abide by these words:

“Do not give what is holy to the dogs; nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you in pieces.” (Matt. 7:6, NKJV)

That’s exactly what was happening to him. He based his beliefs on what is holy. The Bible can be seen as his pearls here. But casting them widely into a culture that largely doesn’t care to hear it didn’t work.

One tool you might use to decide whether to speak is to ask yourself this question first: Does what I am about to say, HEAL? What I mean by this acronym is, does it Help? Does it Encourage? Does it Affirm? Is it Loving? The young man I was speaking to might have the right beliefs, but his comments were not interpreted as helpful, encouraging, affirming, and loving. As such, they did not HEAL.

While well-meaning, they caused more division as seen in the directly opposing comments and backlash he received. I find as I get older, I don’t want to argue anymore. If someone says something contrary to what I believe, I just let them think what they want and leave it alone. That doesn’t mean I don’t defend my beliefs if I am directly asked. It just means I don’t butt in where I’m not invited. It also means I think my beliefs stand on their own. I don’t feel I must defend them. Why? Because I will win more people with my love and genuine care for their hearts than I will if I’m known as a big mouth.

Until there is a place of safety established, relationships where people will listen and allow others to be heard, there’s no use in throwing your pearls before swine. You got to know when to hold them, know when to fold them, know when to walk away, and know when to run. That’s called wisdom.

Many parents go to sleep at night feeling they did what is right in the eyes of the Lord when they stood up against their kids. They mistakenly believe it’s a good thing when they let their teen children know what is right and what is wrong. They never realize what they are truly doing is alienating their kids, not only from them, but often, from the truths they are trying to communicate. By wielding verbal swords, some parents cut their kids down, prohibiting any positive influence in the future.

Doing what is right in the eyes of the Lord doesn’t mean you have to argue anything contrary to Scripture. Please hear me carefully here. You should honor God in all that you do. I’m not encouraging you to give up your beliefs for the sake of a better relationship with your children. I am encouraging more forward thinking. Think through the impact of what you might argue for or against. Then determine whether the argument will deepen your special relationship.

Your teens know the difference between right and wrong. They know what Scripture has to say about certain issues. I can remind them of what they know through encouragement in a much better way than I can through criticism, accusation, or argument. It’s not my role to fight with them. It’s my role to be a sounding board for them.

They talk; I listen. I ask if they want input. If they say no, I honor that and stand by them as they figure it out the right way or the hard way. When they make good choices, I rejoice with them. When they make wrong turns, I hurt with them and for them. I don’t control their choices or beliefs. I couldn’t even if I argued ’til I’m blue in the face. I have to learn to button it—not agree with it— but just hold my opinions until I’m invited to share.

Teens live in a world where differing views are prevalent. How they see issues and how we parents see them, may be as different as night and day. I must keep trying to view it from their perspective if I’m going to have any impact.

Saddleback Church Pastor Rick Warren, the author of the best-selling The Purpose-Driven Life, once stated, “Our culture has accepted two huge lies. The first is that if you disagree with someone’s lifestyle, you must fear or hate them. The second is that to love someone means you agree with everything they believe or do.”

Both are nonsense. You don’t have to compromise convictions to be compassionate. But make sure your discussions are filled with compassion as you avoid arguments and create an atmosphere of communication that allows for differences of opinion. Those are tough places for your kids to find. Jesus said, “Come to me and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28). Be like Jesus to your kids. Offer them a place of safety and rest, not argument and rejection. If you do, when life gets too tough to handle, they’ll run to you.

NEXT UP: Nothing more important than further contemplating and applying the above; least ways, I need to….

From Great Days with the Great Lives, by Chuck Swindoll.

Read Genesis 37: 3-35

This is a good time to call to mind several lessons we can learn from Jacob’s family and Joseph’s adversity.

The first is obvious. No enemy is more subtle than passivity. When parents are passive, they may eventually discipline, but by then the delayed reaction is often carried out in anger. Passivity waits and waits until finally, when it can wait no longer, it comes down with both feet! When that happens, children are not disciplined, they are brutalized. Passivity not only blinds us to the here and now, it makes us inconsistent.

There is a second lesson we learn from Joseph’s teenage struggles. No response is more cruel than jealousy. Solomon was right when he said, “Jealousy is as cruel as the grave.” (Song of Solomon 8:6 RSV). Jealousy, if allowed to grow and fester, leads to devastating consequences. If you allow jealousy to rage within your family or between your children, you are asking for trouble. At some point it will manifest itself in detrimental ways.

Enough of the negatives. Let’s find in all this at least one magnificent lesson of hope: no action is more powerful than prayer. I realize that the biblical story does not state that Jacob turned to prayer, but surely he did so! How else could he have gone on with his life? Where else could he have turned for hope?

The same can be said for you and me. Prayer brings power to endure. Those who are older are a source of wisdom for young parents and for children and grandchildren. Single men and women also have much to offer, whether within their own extended families or within the family of the church. Broken, hollow lives can find new strength to recover. It’s at this point I would say Joseph, without question, turned his situation over to God, even as the caravan made its way toward Egypt. Surely he knew, even at seventeen, that his only hope would come through God’s faithful intervention! Surely, he cried out to the one who, alone, was in sovereign control of his future! And so must we!

NEXT UP: Temptations of Prosperity

Read Genesis 37:1-4

Before we get better acquainted with Joseph, let’s take a quick glance at some background information. It will help if you remember that his biography falls neatly in three distinct segments.

          Birth to Seventeen Years (Genesis 30:24-37:2) During this time Joseph’s family was in transition – everyone was unsettled, on the move. A low-level antagonism was brewing as his family clashed ans argued in jealousy and hatred.

          Seventeen to Thirty Years (Genesis 37:2-41:46) This second segment occurs as Joseph reaches young manhood. It seems as though his life becomes out of control. Enslavement, unfair accusation, and imprisonment assault him.

          Thirty Years to Death (Genesis 41: 46 – 50:26). Joseph’s last eighty years are years of prosperity and reward under God’s blessing. He had the classic opportunity to get even with his brothers, to ruin them forever, but he refused, Instead, he blessed, protected, and forgave.

          God continually uses the lives of Bible characters to teach us, to encourage us, to warn us. Who can forget the impact of the truths lived out in the lives of David and Esther, of Moses and Elijah, of Peter and Paul? It’s impossible to leave truth in the theoretical realm when you see it revealed in the lives of real – life men and women. That is what these divinely inspired biographers do; they distill truth and weave it into the fabric of everyday living. God’s training manual is full of lives that inspire and instruct.

          Romans 15:4 states, “For whatsoever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, that through perseverance and the encouragement of the scriptures we might have hope” (emphasis added). This reference to “earlier times” encompasses all the truths written in the Old Testament. And if I read this verse correctly, there are two basic reasons God has allowed us to have the Old Testament available for study and application: first for present instruction, and second, for future hope. God has given us this information so that our minds can learn the truth about Him and about life, and so that we will be encouraged to persevere in the future. Who knows, perhaps beginning even today?

NEXT UP: Lessons In Adversity. Who better than Joseph?

Reading again thru the 121 chapters of Romans thru Jude as Pastor Bryan suggested for 2025, I was especially impacted and inspired Wed AM when I encountered these verses in my Parallel NIV/The Message Bible from Romans 8: 1-27

With the arrival of Jesus, the Messiah, those who enter into Christ’s being-here-for-us no longer have to live under a continuous, low-lying black cloud.

A new power is in operation. The Spirit of life in Christ, like a strong wind, has magnificently cleared the air, freeing you from a fated lifetime of brutal tyranny at the hands of sin and death.

God went for the jugular when he sent his own Son. He didn’t deal with the problem as something remote and unimportant. In his Son, Jesus, he personally took on the human condition, entered the disordered mess of struggling humanity in order to set it right once and for all.

The law code, weakened as it always was by fractured human nature, could never have done that. The law always ended up being used as a Band-Aid on sin instead of a deep healing of it.

And now what the law code asked for but we couldn’t deliver is accomplished as we, instead of redoubling our own efforts, simply embrace what the Spirit is doing in us.

Those who think they can do it on their own end up obsessed with measuring their own moral muscle but never get around to exercising it in real life. Those who trust God’s action in them find that God’s Spirit is in them—living and breathing God!

Obsession with self in these matters is a dead end; attention to God leads us out into the open, into a spacious, free life.

It stands to reason, doesn’t it, that if the alive-and-present God who raised Jesus from the dead moves into your life, he’ll do the same thing in you that he did in Jesus, bringing you alive to himself?

When God lives and breathes in you (and he does, as surely as he did in Jesus), you are delivered from that dead life. With his Spirit living in you, your body will be as alive as Christ’s!

So don’t you see that we don’t owe this old do-it-yourself life one red cent. There’s nothing in it for us, nothing at all. The best thing to do is give it a decent burial and get on with your new life.

God’s Spirit beckons. There are things to do and places to go! This resurrection life you received from God is not a timid, grave-tending life. It’s adventurously expectant, greeting God with a childlike “What’s next, Papa?” God’s Spirit touches our spirits and confirms who we really are. We know who He is, and we know who we are: Father and children.

And we know we are going to get what’s coming to us—an unbelievable inheritance! We go through exactly what Christ goes through. If we go through the hard times with him, then we’re certainly going to go through the good times with him!

That’s why I don’t think there’s any comparison between the present hard times and the coming good times. The created world itself can hardly wait for what’s coming next.
Everything in creation is being more or less held back. God reins it in until both creation and all the creatures are ready and can be released at the same moment into the glorious times ahead.

Meanwhile, the joyful anticipation deepens. All around us we observe a pregnant creation. The difficult times of pain throughout the world are simply birth pangs. But it’s not only around us; it’s within us. The Spirit of God is arousing us within. We’re also feeling the birth pangs.

These sterile and barren bodies of ours are yearning for full deliverance. That is why waiting does not diminish us, any more than waiting diminishes a pregnant mother. We are enlarged in the waiting. We, of course, don’t see what is enlarging us. But the longer we wait, the larger we become, and the more joyful our expectancy.

Meanwhile, the moment we get tired in the waiting, God’s Spirit is right alongside helping us along. If we don’t know how or what to pray, it doesn’t matter. He does our praying in and for us, making prayer out of our wordless sighs, our aching groans. He knows us far better than we know ourselves, knows our pregnant condition, and keeps us present before God. That’s why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good.

it has not yet been revealed what we shall be… 1 John 3:2

My Utmost For His Highest April 29th

Is it your natural inclination to be so precise that you bug or alienate those about you? Do you gravitate towards trying to forecast accurately what will happen next? Do you view your uncertainties about the facts of past-present-future events as a negative; perhaps even a character flaw?

We may obsessively think that we must reach some predetermined goal or sequence, but that is not the nature of the spiritual life. The nature of the spiritual life is simply that we are certain in our uncertainty.

Consequently, we do not put down roots. Our common sense says, “Well, what if I were in that circumstance?” It is difficult to see ourselves in any circumstance in which we have never been.

Certainty is the mark of the commonsense life– gracious uncertainty is the mark of the spiritual life.

To be certain of God implies that we are uncertain in all our ways, not knowing what tomorrow may bring. This is generally expressed with a sigh of sadness, when it should be an expression of breathless expectation! We may be uncertain of our next step, but we are certain of God! As soon as we abandon ourselves to God and do the task He has placed closest to us, He marvelously begins to fill our lives with surprises, and sometimes, beyond the scope of our imaginations.

When we descend to becoming simply a promoter or a defender of a particular belief, something within us dies. That is not believing God – it is only believing our belief about Him. Jesus said, “…unless you…become as little children…” (Matthew 18:3 ). The spiritual life is the life of a child. Remember your imperfect earthly parents; their love and protection regardless, even with their physical restraints? Well, God’s dimensions far exceed our parents imaginations and potential, and though we are not uncertain one iota of God’s I Am’ness, we do live in the tension of being uncertain of what’s coming next.

BOTTOM LINE TODAY! If our certainty is only in our beliefs, we develop a sense of self–righteousness, become overly critical, and are limited by the view that our beliefs are complete and settled.

INSTEAD, CONSIDER THIS! For when we have the right relationship with God, life is full of spontaneous, joyful uncertainty and expectancy. Jesus said, “…believe also in Me” (John 14:1), not, “Believe certain things about Me”.

GO FORTH TODAY: leaving everything to Him and it will be gloriously and graciously uncertain how He will come in– but you can be certain that He will come. Remain faithful to Him in all things!

NEXT UP: We are now practicing Gracious Uncertainty. Join us before the night comes…

Psalm 55:22 NIV “Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you”

Message “Pile your troubles on God’s shoulder’s – he’ll carry your load, he’ll help you out.”

Stimulated by April 13th My Utmost For His Highest

Folks, there are times when we really need to recognize the difference in His assignments that may become burdensome. There are those that are right for us to bear vs. those burdens that are beyond our current gifts and capabilities, much like I’ve heard answers to prayer summarized: yes, no, not yet, maybe even, never! Attractive burdens beyond our reach or grasp require we’re intimately communicating and discerning under the Spirit’s influence.

First, we should never bear the burdens of sin or doubt; they require our immediate attention. However, there are some burdens placed on us by God which He does not intend to lift off. Rather, God wants us to roll them back on Him— to literally “cast your burden,” which He has given you, “on the Lord….” We are simply not aware how devoted Satan is that we totally destroy our very souls, once we’ve set out to serve God and do His bidding while traveling the sanctification interstate highway of bliss or its detour route, Trail of Tears, depending on His placement at the moment in our HisStory.

Either way, because of the sinful roots that the sanctification tears have yet not shaken loose deep within our heart, mind & soul, nor have they yet been purged by the Son’s Light of Truth, thereby allowing Satan’s negativity to cause our instinctual cultural work ethic desire to kick in taking charge of an apparently failing spiritual situation in our life, thereby setting asunder our initial justification desire and passion for His continuing quiet refreshing moments of intimacy and spiritual refueling, while we transition from milk to meat.

Suddenly we realize, as did Adam & Eve in the Garden of Eden, we’ve been snookered by Satan’s deceptions, we’ve lost our intimate closeness with Him. And just as with other Bible characters, such as King David and Peter’s thrice denial, our guilt will be overwhelming and defeating. We’ve been here before. We’ve experienced forgiveness, renewal, & restoration. But next time, let’s pause, reflect, and simply relish the Spirit’s intimacy, and then roll back on God shoulders those burdens He has placed on us, and his desire to train us for greater spiritual competencies, so as to not allow our spiritual immaturity to hijack our sanctification process to date. He will take away that immense fear of failing after accepting an assignment, or responsibility, replacing our fear (false evidence appearing real) with an awareness and understanding of His I AM’NESS and His empowering presence to complete whatever the task that became a burden, by we humbling ourselves and accepting His help.

Many servants set out to serve God with great courage and the right motives. We disciples, however innocently we’ve become disconnected from the Vine, once derailed and without daily intimate fellowship with Jesus Christ and His body of disciples, are very soon defeated producing a fatal overwhelming weariness in our lives. Other disciples may see this and say, “What a sad end to someone that had such a great `beginning!”

“Cast your burden on the Lord….” You have been bearing it all, but you need to deliberately place one end on God’s shoulder. “…the government (perhaps even confused Anabaptist lone rangers) will not merely accept, but will seek the help of His shoulder” (Isaiah 9:6) my paraphrase). Commit to God whatever burden He has placed on you. Don’t ever just cast it aside, but put it over onto Him and place yourself there with it. You will see that your burden is then lightened by the sense and innate strength of His intimate companionship. Neither should you ever try to separate yourself from your burden. He is trusting you, even training you by opportunity, and will reward you, or not, just as in the parable of the talents.

And that my friend, is another subject for another day.

NEXT UP: No idea. The fact is though, this blog may be suspended until fall because of prior commitments back in Ohio. The next month(s) may well reveal much to all of us.

Until next time and even far beyond, always remain vigilant in His spirit, never internalizing any hypocrisy, fervent in both scripture and prayer, continually watching His fruits (love, joy, peace patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control) being formed, tasted, distributed and intimately shared from His orchard (see Galatians 5:22 The Message) by His disciples as encouraged in I & II Peter, and specifically in 1 Peter 3:15-16 (MSG) “Through thick and thin, keep your hearts at attention, in adoration before Christ, your Master. Be ready to speak up and tell anyone who asks why you’re living the way you are, and always with the utmost courtesy. Keep a clear conscience before God so that when people throw mud at you, none of it will stick. They’ll end up realizing that they’re the ones who need a bath.”