“For if our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and knows all things.” – 1 John 3:20

  

 

According to Webster’s Dictionary, the term omniscience is a noun that means “possessing unlimited knowledge; an attribute particular to God.” That confused me for a long time. How can God know what I’m going to do before I do it? Even I don’t know what I’m doing sometimes, but yet, He knows all things. How can this be?

 

 

Think of an architect. He can tell you all about the building; how many floors it has, how many rooms, what kind of structure it will be and what it’s made out of. He knows all of these things, but the building isn’t even built yet. How? Because that building has already been built in his mind. He is the designer of the becoming of the building. There isn’t a square inch of that building that he doesn’t know already. That is the same way with our Heavenly Father, God Almighty. He knows it all before it even comes to be, because He created it.

 

 

You might ask, “What about my free will?” It is just as a carpenter is with the architect. The architect knows the building will get built, but which board comes in which order, to some extent, is the carpenter’s choice. However, certain things must be done in a certain order. If not, the building will collapse and the architect could never allow that to happen. When it comes to those details, if one carpenter chooses not to follow directions, the architect will bring a different carpenter in to do it right. Either way, the building shall get built correctly. That explains just how we are with God. We decide which path we take, but it is God who ultimately decides the final outcome of our actions. We have the choice to follow Him and His wishes. If we don’t, God’s Holy Will is still going to get done, it just won’t be by us. We are either with Him or against Him, but rest assured that God’s plan shall remain intact even if we get a little disobedient.

 

 

It brings me a sense of peace knowing that God sees all things and knows all things. I’ll be the first one to say that I definitely don’t have all of the answers, but I am glad that my Heavenly Father does. Frankly, I don’t need all of the answers. Certain things I’m not supposed to know until it’s time. Jesus said himself that the end of the world is only known by the Father. Does that mean that Jesus and God aren’t one and there is no such thing as the Holy Trinity? Certainly not! Jesus is fully God and yet fully man. His comment only meant that at that time and in His earthly mission, the foreknowledge of the end of the world was not meant for His role. Jesus was playing the role of carpenter that day rather than the role of architect.

 

 

It’s OK to wonder about things, but don’t second guess God. He has His divine plan and we are blessed to be included in it. However, when we choose to “play god”, we are only setting ourselves up for a horrible failure. We are meant to align ourselves with the Son, Jesus Christ. He is the carpenter, just as we are meant to be. Each good deed we complete is another solid brick in God’s creation. And God’s not just making any old house or even some flashy skyscraper; God is creating the kingdom of all kingdoms, not built with hands and eternal in Heaven. Follow His lead and stay true to His design so that one day you too shall hear His voice saying, “Well done! Well done my good and faithful servant. Now at last, enter into the joy of your Master’s house.”

 

 

God’s blessings to you.

 

  

DH

“But as for me, my prayer is to you, O LORD, in an acceptable time…” – Psalm 69:13
 
A few years ago, there was a woman who saw an ambulance pass by her place of work. The ambulance was moving quickly with its lights and sirens on. Although she was busy, she felt moved to stop what she was doing in order to say a prayer for the person in the back. This woman, whom I hold very dear, is someone that I’m proud to say is close to Jesus and turns to Him in troubled times. She knows He’s there and listening. So when she saw the ambulance, she immediately spoke to the Lord and asked for a special blessing for that person. Later, she found out the rest of the story.
 
The person in that ambulance was her own mother, nearly at death’s door. If not for interventions from God Almighty, this story would have gone a different way. The situation ended on a happy note though, in that her mom survived the ordeal and went on to live another 11 years before she was called home to glory. There were times during the ambulance ride and at the hospital that her mom was not expected to survive, but in the darkest of times Christ shows that He truly is the light of the world.
 
God is mindful of our prayers. The book of Philippians says to be careful for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication and with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. It doesn’t say to pray only when we have nothing left, but that’s where we as human beings seem to go with prayer. It becomes an afterthought until poop hits the fan, then prayer is all we can do because it’s all we have to fall back on. When things are good, we almost forget that God is around. We say, “Thanks Lord, but I got this for now.” It’s all about us. Then, when bad times hit (and they always do), we go back to God asking for His help. Thankfully, we have a loving and merciful God who hasn’t stopped listening and never will.
 
What God wants is a fellowship with Him, in and through Jesus Christ. It’s all about a relationship where there is an open line of communication; not just when bad things happen, but always. When you spend time with the Lord, you get to be better connected with Him so that when you pray, you are constantly praying His will rather than you own. The better connected you are with God, the more you can be sure that when you pray, your needs will be met. They aren’t just your needs then, they are His as well.
 
That connection with the Lord will also result in Him placing you into different situations that He needs His best people in. A football coach knows to use his first string players in the toughest situations. Same thing goes for God. When the outcome of a situation is critical, God will use His best and most trustworthy tools to get the job done. Are you one of those trustworthy tools? Are you one of God’s go-to people? If you are, you will be placed into various circumstances where you have a chance to witness to someone who needs Christ or to bring comfort to those in need. You will find yourself driving past an accident scene and almost instinctively, you will start praying for those people in the accident as well as the responders. You will feel a stronger and stronger tug on your heart to be more like Jesus and approach situations the way He would and with boldness. Just like the story I told above, you will see something and without thinking you will turn your eyes to the Lord. Your prayers will be less about you and more about others’ needs.
 
If I can offer any advice, it’s to stay close to Jesus. He is more than a crutch to me, He is a stretcher. He opens my blind eyes to see the problems around me and then lets me know that He’s listening. Don’t ever think that prayer could be done at an inappropriate time, because it’s always the right time to talk to your Heavenly Father. When you stay with Jesus, all of your prayers will be ‘just in time.’
 
God’s blessings to you.
 
DH

“But we know that the Law is good, if one uses it lawfully” – 1 Timothy 1:8
 
Our laws in the United States were originally based off of biblical principles. Somehow through the years, we’ve twisted those laws in order to agree with whatever we wanted to do at the time. Our Creator endowed us with certain unalienable rights, but those rights have been changed for some people as the majority saw fit.
 
If you try really hard, you can make the Bible say whatever you want. Just like a hammer, it’s a great tool when used correctly, but if used otherwise you risk killing someone or yourself. I hear people say that God made us free, so we must be able to do whatever we want, whenever we want, and with whomever we want. Sorry, but life doesn’t work like that and neither does God.
 
Jesus, our Lord and Savior, came to set the captives free; captives that were enslaved by sin. Everyone has a master that they serve and while sin might be fun for a time, you become shackled to it like a prisoner. Pretty soon, you feed that evil habit more times than not. You can try to convince yourself that it’s Ok and that “everybody’s doing it” or that sin is acceptable in today’s society, but sin is sin and wrong is wrong. You are not free to sin, no matter what society says or how you interpret the Bible.
 
You are free. Not free to do whatever you’d like, but free to do the right thing. And while our society applauds these so called free people for taking a stand for such things as gay marriage and abortion, they are not right and not how God created us to live. Im not just harping on those two things since in reality they are parts to a larger, more eternal problem. In short, we all sin and I’m not going to look down upon anyone for doing a different sin than what I do. That being said, I’m also not going to justify my sins by saying that it’s acceptable in today’s world or especially that our country has made a law for it. If I agree with you that your sin is acceptable, then I’m not helping you, I’m only confirming you in that sin.
 
Good is not a relative thing. There’s right and wrong and the two don’t mix. No matter what your thought or agenda is, if it doesn’t keep with God’s moral law, it’s wrong and you shouldn’t do it. We all make some bad choices sometimes and that’s why we need the saving grace of Jesus, but Jesus also wants us to repent and turn away from that sin. If you love someone, you want the best for them. Jesus loves you, but if you sin, you are denying His best for your life. So please, turn away from your sin and follow Jesus and the example He set for us before it’s too late for you, our country, and our world.
 
You can’t break God’s moral law, you will only end up breaking yourself first.
 
God’s blessings to you.
 
DH
 

“For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope.” – Romans 15:4

 

 

 

I always carry a small pocket version of the New Testament with me while I’m at work. It gives me strength through some of the rough times that we all have now and then. A day or two ago, I was talking to a fellow Christian and we looked up a verse with that tiny Bible of mine. He was shocked and kind of angry about there being notes and highlighter marks in my Bible. He said, “The Bible is nothing to be toyed with. You can’t just go writing in there; that is the Word of God. I just can’t forgive that.” Taken aback, I replied, “So you believe that the Bible is the Holy Word of God, but you can’t do what it says?”

 

 

 

I believe every word of the Bible. It is 66 books written over a period of 1500-2000 years by about 40 different authors from 3 different continents. The amazing part is that is the message is continuous. It’s contained in a single book binding, because it reads like a single book. The reason for that is that it was penned by about 40 authors, but the true writer of it is the Holy Spirit Himself. It seems crazy and maybe it is, but once you truly get the first 4 words of the Bible that states, “In the beginning, God…” the rest comes easier. If you think that there is an almighty being who created something as big as the universe and as small as a quark, then it’s not too far of a stretch to think he also created a book or brought someone back to life.

 

 

 

 

We should all give reverence to the Bible. Not only is it the word of God, but it really does contain some of the finest literature ever made. The Bible is filled with history, songs, and poetry. It is a close friend of mine, but really it’s a book. Granted, it’s not just any old book. It should be kept in high esteem, but all in all, it is just another collection of words if you don’t take those words to heart. You need to internalize God’s Word and make it a part of your everyday life. If you put more faith in the book rather than the Creator, you aren’t living as a Christian.

 

 

Just like any book, our minds are not usually adept enough to retain all of the contents of the Bible. For that matter, even if we did remember all of the scriptures, it’s not easy implementing its teachings. Many people I know can spout off certain special verses for different situations, and that’s great, but the real test is are they living those verses? The Bible contains great instruction, but if you can’t put those things to practice, then what good is it? I’m not saying it’s easy to forgive or to love our neighbor, but Jesus says we must, so that’s that. You may be saved by Christ, but the only way to truly help our brothers and sisters is by applying what we have learned from Him.

 

 

 

Whatever it takes to remember and truly ingrain the words of the Lord, whether it’s highlighting a Bible or tattooing the verse on your forehead, if that’s what needs to be done, then I’ll do it. I still have the Bible that my Grandad Harlow preached from and whenever I’m in the pulpit, that’s the book I have with me. It’s absolutely falling apart and even held together in spots with black tape, but I wouldn’t use anything else. It would be like going to battle with a weapon that’s still in its case. The devil loves to see dust on a Bible. You show me a person with a well-worn, marked up, and dog-eared Bible and I will show you a life lived for Jesus. I wouldn’t have it any other way.

 

 

God’s blessings to you.

 

DH

 

 

 

 

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” – Romans 8:28

A couple of days ago, my family and I came home from an overnight trip. We were all tired and arguing about silly stuff. The kids were bickering back and forth and my wife was trying her best to control it, but we were all hitting our breaking point.

Well, my digestive tract also hit its breaking point during the long car ride. I was heading to the bathroom, but I still arguing all the way there. Not to be crude, but just at that moment, I passed a large amount of gas that made quite a noticeable sound. Where there was disagreement and bickering was now stunned silence. Then, laughter erupted. After that, it was like the family did a complete turnaround. That simple toot was enough to break the tension and gave us all a chance to stop and think about what we were saying. Instead of blind anger and annoyance, there came an understanding between people about how their actions affected each other. There were apologies sent around and my family members went their separate ways in relative peace.

What started as a rough and argumentative morning was changed all because of some common bodily functions. We had a pretty good day after that, which goes to show that God will use truly everything for His good.

 

God will put us into situations that call for us to extend mercy and love, but He will also give us a moment to think about it as well and make the change for the better. Whether it’s a person cutting you off in traffic or the cable TV going out, you will never be faced with a scenario that God doesn’t build in a way to take the holy path.  

A little while ago, my wife and I took the kids out to a nice restaurant for dinner. It’s not something we get to do too much, so we were looking forward to a good dinner and quiet time spent together. That night, however, quiet was not on the menu.

A table away was a young set of parents that were dealing with their two year old child’s meltdown. You could see the frustration and anxiety in the mom and dad’s eyes. They just kept looking over at the tables around them, mortified. The child had an outburst and the mom looked over and apologized to my wife and I for the child’s crying. Even though we were stressed because of the crying, my wife Monica brought it down to earth, so to speak. Monica looked at the young mom with compassion and said, “It’s Ok, we definitely understand. These times won’t last too long. It gets better.”

Those words were exactly what that couple needed to hear. We saw their faces change and suddenly things weren’t so bad. There was an understanding that they could get through this rough patch.

 

That situation wasn’t ideal. Neither I, nor my wife, nor the young couple ever wanted a screaming and unhappy two year old to be in a normally quiet restaurant, but sometimes there needs to be faults and rough patches for grace and mercy to abound.

If everything was perfect, there would be no need for compassion. The trick is to see the best in others and the worst in ourselves. We’ve had crying and inconsolable babies once in a while in our younger days. We know what it’s like and we also learned that our anger at that moment won’t change anything; it’s like adding gasoline to a brush fire. We don’t need further stress and strife, but normally we don’t think of that. We only think about ourselves and how we are inconvenienced at the time.

Did you ever have a time that you had to stop in miles of traffic only to find out it was an ambulance at a car wreck? Were you a bit angry and relieved to get past all the mess and on to your destination, or did you take a moment and pray for those affected by the accident as well as the first responders involved?

Or how about a time that an elderly lady took what seemed like forever in a checkout line to dig through her purse for some change? Were you exasperated by how slow she went? Or were you compassionate towards her because you too will be slower when you get past your prime?

 

The point is that God and His Holy Spirit will use common, everyday situations to make you more like Christ. He will chip away at everything in you until all that remains is Jesus. It takes a long process for a pebble to get polished by the sand and the river, but what you have after the process is done is a beautiful piece of the Master’s artwork.

The Bible says that you are God’s masterpiece. You are one of a kind and not something that can be done overnight. Sure, God could miracle you into being a saint, but that’s not His way. He will use small things every day as a process to create a better and lasting saint out of you.

 

Look for those opportunities to grow every day. And remember, God can and will use all things, even the occasional bout of flatulence, to the betterment of His children.

 

God’s blessings to you.

 

DH

 

 

 

 

 

 

“So then, it was not you who sent me here, but God.” – Genesis 45:8

In the book of Genesis, we see a man named Joseph who’s brothers got so jealous of him that they sold him into slavery. You would think that was the end of the story, but God had something different in mind. Joseph was so blessed by God that he not only prospered, but he eventually became the second to Pharaoh and in charge of all Egypt. 

This story goes to show that even your worst situations can be used for God’s best work. The Bible says that God works all things for the good of those who love Him. Joseph loved God and followed His word, and that helped him use a string of bad situations as a springboard to a life of great abundance. Was it the best of times, certainly not, but Joseph trusted God and he was generously rewarded for his perseverance.  

How many times do we try to control our own lives and destiny, only to get stressed and upset when things don’t go our way? We think we have life figured out and we may even get a little cocky for it, and then all of a sudden life smacks us down a peg or two. The truth is that we will all experience some highs and some lows in this world, but rest assured the God loves His children and has our best interests in mind. 

For instance, I remember the funeral for my brother David Lee. He was active in the church and a member of a successful touring gospel quartet. There’s not too many people I know who are any more in love with Jesus than my brother was. And yet, God decided to take my brother home to glory at a young age. It was an incredibly sad time for our family, but yet, in a sense, we were happy for him as well. We trusted God that his passing was for the greater good of things, and it was indeed. The day of his funeral, our brother-in-law Stan was touched by Jesus in a big way. Stan is a really good man, but just being good isn’t going to save you. He had jumped around in religion throughout his life, but never really got to know the real Jesus. That day, the day of my brother’s funeral, Stan was fully introduced to the love and fellowship of Christ thanks to David Lee’s gospel quartet buddies. Stan was moved by the Love and demanded to be baptized on the spot. I know without a doubt that if my brother knew he could help save a soul, especially the soul of our brother-in-law Stan, he would have agreed to passing away so it could happen that day. It’s a good thing to save a life, but the true miracle comes in saving someone’s soul. God is a God of miracles.  

It’s impossible for us to see things from God’s perspective, but if we could, we would agree to some of the bad things occurring because we would know that a greater good would come from them. All the proof I need is in the cross. The worst evil and yet, without Christ’s crucifixion, we would never find forgiveness of our sins. We would never know eternal life without our Heavenly Father who is ready to make those tough decisions for the good of His children. 

Praise God each and every day for His blessings. Praise Him for the blessings we know as well as for the innumerable blessing that we don’t even recognize. Everything in your life, good or bad, has been expertly placed by the Master. It may look a little rough now and then, but I promise that when we get to Heaven, we will see the whole picture for what it is. We will know that each thread had to be in a specific place in order to weave the grand tapestry of life. It was all for the greater good and it all came together to make a beautiful life worth living. 

God’s blessings to you. 

DH

“He told them, The man they call Jesus made mud and spread it over my eyes and told me, ‘Go to the pool of Siloam and wash yourself.’ So I went and washed, and now I can see!” – John 9:11

 

 

 

A few weeks ago, a man asked me to pray for him. He said that he didn’t feel like he was close enough to Jesus and that he needed help becoming more humble. I promised him that I would pray for him. A couple of days ago, he came back to me saying that that I must not have prayed for him. I told him I kept my promise and prayed for him often. The man said that since he last saw me, his life was turned upside down. He was humiliated at work and that he felt like nothing went right for him at all. I asked him how he was handling it, to which he replied that he was praying all the time, because that was the only place left to which he could turn. I said, “Prayers answered then?” He thought a minute and said, “Well, yes I suppose, but I didn’t want it like this.”

 

 

We all face troubles in life, but how we react to those troubles makes all the difference. In the book of John, we find Jesus healing a blind man with some mud that Jesus made from dirt mixed with His spit. I’m sure that the blind man heard all of that happening. Jesus spit on the ground, made some mud, and wiped it on the man’s eyes. It’s almost adding insult to injury, in that not only is the man blind, but now some joker is putting some spit-mud on him. However, Jesus was more than just some other guy and the blind man knew it. The blind man trusted Jesus and that was what made the miracle happen. I’m certain that the blind man didn’t ask Jesus to spit and make mud to be healed with. Frankly, if it was one of us in that situation, we probably would have asked if there was a cleaner, less spit-filled way of healing us. The blind man wasn’t like that. He believed that he would be healed and that Jesus had his best interests in mind, even thought maybe it wasn’t the way the man would have chosen first. He didn’t question the methods, he just believed in the outcome.

 

 

Too often, we pray for everything to go well. We want nothing but peace in our lives with no struggles. I’m not saying that praying for good things is a bad thing, but just like a muscle, we can’t grow unless we are put under stress sometimes. You don’t become a runner without running. Just the same, you can’t have humility without being humbled. Thank God that there are some trying times, because they give us a chance to exercise those virtues of faith, hope, and charity. Like the story of the blind man, the disciples asked Jesus who sinned to make the man blind. Our Lord replied, “This happened so the power of God could be displayed in him.” It’s not the ideal situation and not something we would ask for, but if it meant being saved for all of eternity and helping other souls to become saved as well, then it was well worth it.

 

 

 

You might ask, “But isn’t there another way?”

 

 

 

God’s ways are so far above our ways, as the heavens are above the earth. I promise you that the plan that our Creator has is better than anything you or I could come up with. The Apostle Paul spoke of “a thorn in his side,” meaning Paul had some sort of medical condition or something that kept plaguing him. He asked God to take it way, to which God replied, “My grace is sufficient for you.” It is when we are weak that we are strong in Christ. If we think that we can change our own ways and live a blessed life, we are only fooling ourselves. Men and women will fail, but with God, all things are possible.

 

 

 

Jesus died on the cross to save our souls. God could have done it any way He saw fit, yet He still chose to save us through the pain and anguish of the cross. He took the punishment we couldn’t. God has a plan for our lives and it’s not for us to second guess His ways. If the blind man would have slapped Jesus’ hands away from his eyes, the blind man would still have been blind. God wants you blessed. He wants you to see the greatness of what He has in store for you. If you think, “But that’s not how I would have done it,” then get your ‘but’ out of the way of God’s plans and watch Him turn your life into something extraordinary. Trust in the Lord and He will take you higher than you could imagine.

 

 

 

God’s blessings to you.

 

 

DH

 

 

 

“He answered and said, Whether he be a sinner or not, I know not: one thing I know, that, though I was blind, now I see.” – John 9:25

In the Gospel of John, Jesus and His disciples come across a man who was blind since birth. Jesus spat on the ground, made some clay, and placed it on the blind man’s eyes. Jesus then told the man to go and wash the clay off in the nearby pool of Siloam. When the man did this, he immediately began to see.

That confused me as a young boy. Jesus could have snapped His fingers or even just spoke a single word and the man would have gained his sight. So why did Christ go to the trouble of making mud and having the man go and wash himself off?

The reason is that even though the man did not cause his blindness, he needed to be a part of the solution. All of us have our sins and problems in this world. God does occasionally remove a problem from our path without our intervention, but just as any good Father, He wants us to be obedient children. If we continue to get something for nothing, we will begin to be too familiar with just having everything go well. We would become indignant if the slightest thing didn’t go perfectly the way we’d want it to.

There are many times in the Bible that God shows He wants our obedience before He blesses us. His blessings are coming our way; He’s promised health and favor to His people. That being said, He also wants us to appreciate what we get and we do that through fostering a relationship with God first, giving Him our “first fruits”.

“But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” Mathew 6:33.

“And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God…” Romans 8:28

God has plentiful blessings waiting for His children, but we need to first show Him that we are ready for them.  If we show our love for God through obedience, He will in turn fill our cups abundantly.  We can’t earn God’s blessings, but we do show that we appreciate Him by trying to follow His lead. We won’t always get it right, but the point is to try.

Think of it as an investment. You won’t see a return unless you first invest something. The blind man followed Jesus’s instructions as a faith investment. It paid off for him when he gained his sight. Imagine how much your investment will pay off when you invest in your relationship with the Almighty.

So don’t just sit there hoping for change. Foster your relationship with our Savior and you will see His mighty works be made visible through your life. 

God’s blessings to you. 

DH

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness” – Galatians 5:22

In Paul’s letter to the Galatians, he speaks of the “fruits of the Holy Spirit.” Love, joy, peace, and faithfulness just to name a few. He also makes a contrast of the works of the flesh versus the gifts of the Spirit.

The point the Apostle Paul was trying to make is just like Jesus said in the Gospel of Matthew. “By their fruits, you shall know them.” And again Jesus saying in the Gospel of John, “They shall know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

Being a Christian is not easy. It goes against the ways of this world. The world tells you to look out for number one. Your flesh screams at you to feed its desires. When you give in to those base desires, it feels good only for a little bit. You soon need more and more to fill that void inside of yourself. You can’t physically do enough to keep your urges in check.

By contrast, Christ teaches you to have compassion for others and to put the greater good over your own self interests. You are to be happy, but not at the expense of the true joy that comes from a life lived in service of others. You will seek less for the lusts and greed of right now, but instead reach for a forever kind of love.

When you accept Jesus into your heart, the Holy Spirit starts blessing you with those fruit that Paul spoke of. It is easier to feel joy in the midst of trials. It’s easier to be faithful to your spouse. It’s easier to feel compassion towards those who are in need of a helping hand.

Indeed, by their fruits, you shall know a true follower of Christ. And the more time you spend with our Savior, the more fruit you will produce. It’s easy for a tree to bring forth fruit when it is planted by the river of living water that is Christ Jesus. Its life is everlasting and its fruit is inexhaustible.

Drink from the river of Christ and watch the fruit of the Holy Spirit grow in your life.

God’s blessings to you. 

DH