ISSUE: #41

MEM

Message

What is good?

On my desk is a calendar of quotes. Each day I turn a leaf and think about the quote of the day. What do you think of the above quote?

Our life is so occupied with self and trivia; we do not take time to think about how we can make others better. We see people with a cell phone or MP3 player, stuck up to their ear; almost non-stop in some cases. When do we take time to listen to the Spirit of God? With the demands of life we need to discipline ourselves to stop or slow down without distractions. Take some time; take a break; no TV or radio, no phones or music, no books or magazines, no outside activities or sports, no interruptions, yes, even no e-mails, just you and your Bible in a secluded spot with the door closed. Can you do it?

Listen, Yeshua says: Revelation 3:20 ‘Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me.’

What will it take for us to influence others to be better? The quote says by being good ourselves. How can we "be good"?

Mark 10:18 And Jesus said to him, "Why do you call Me good? No one is good except God alone. Then the quote must be wrong if only God is good.

Matthew 5:16 "Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven." Reading through the gospels we find we should be doing good works, bearing good fruit, giving good gifts; it even talks about doing good to our enemies.

Then how do we do these "good" deeds? Matthew 13 talks about sowing good seed and about good soil. The good seed is the Word (verse 19). And the good soil; Matthew 13:23 "And the one on whom seed was sown on the good soil, this is the man who hears the word and understands it; who indeed bears fruit and brings forth, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty." Verse 37 And He said, "The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man,".

1 Peter 2:12 Keep your behavior excellent among the Gentiles, so that in the thing in which they slander you as evildoers, they may because of your good deeds, as they observe them, glorify God in the day of visitation.

1Peter 3: 1-2 In the same way, you wives, be submissive to your own husbands so that even if any of them are disobedient to the word, they may be won without a word by the behavior of their wives, as they observe your chaste and respectful behavior. Here is an example of how one can make another better by being good yourself.

1 Peter 3:16 and keep a good conscience so that in the thing in which you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ will be put to shame.

Go to a place of seclusion, close the door, alone, with nothing but your and a concordance, look up the word good. Then you will have plenty to think about and prepare to feast with the Spirit of Yeshua.

Proverb

Proverbs 28:21 To show partiality is not good, Because for a piece of bread a man will transgress.

Proverbs 19:17 One who is gracious to a poor man lends to the LORD, And He will repay him for his good deed.

Proverbs 16:20 He who gives attention to the word will find good, And blessed is he who trusts in the LORD.

Saying (s)

The fact is, regardless of what exists "out there," the solutions to the issues that face us never exist "out there." The solutions lie entirely within our choices - within our actions, our attitudes, our methods and strategies of influence. Stephen R. Covey

Romans 12:2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.

Bible Quiz

1. How many demons had come out of Mary Magdalene?
2. What did the people in Shinar (Babel) try to build?
3. Samaria was the capital city of what kingdom?
4. Who did Isaiah say were a disobedient and obstinate people?
5. How long did it take to build the temple?
6. Who was the giant David killed?
7. Who said, "Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way"?

Humility

"When the creature realizes … and consents to be - with his will, his mind, and his affections - the vessel in which the life and glory of God are to work and manifest themselves, he sees that humility is simply acknowledging the truth of his position as creature and yielding to God His place." Andrew Murray

One of the greatest tools Satan can use on mankind is keeping us busy. So busy we do not have time to think about our Creator, to study His Word, to listen to Him or enjoy His creation. Because of this we do not realize we are His creation, created for a purpose.

Realize our Maker wants a relationship with us, His desires to tabernacle within should cause us to pause and think. It will take effort, as Andrew Murray says "...and consents to be - with his will, his mind, and his affections…". Just like we have to discipline ourselves to make a regular time for prayer and Bible study we need to take the time to meditate on our need to be a prepared vessel for the Creator to fill.

Did you know:

Andy Rooney 

DID YOU KNOW?
As you walk up the steps to the building which houses the U.S Supreme Court you can see near the top of the building a row of the world's law givers and each one is facing one in the middle who is facing forward with a full frontal view .. it is Moses and he is holding the Ten Commandments!

DID YOU KNOW?
As you enter the Supreme Court courtroom, the two huge oak doors have the
Ten Commandments engraved on each lower portion of each door.

DID YOU KNOW?
As you sit inside the courtroom, you can see the wall, right above where the Supreme Court judges sit, a display of the Ten Commandments!

DID YOU KNOW?
There are Bible verses etched in stone all over the Federal Buildings and
Monuments in Washington, D.C.

DID YOU KNOW?
James Madison, the fourth president, known as "The Father of Our
Constitution" made the following statement:

DID YOU KNOW?
Patrick Henry, that patriot and Founding Father of our country said:

DID YOU KNOW?
Every session of Congress begins with a prayer by a paid preacher, whose
salary has been paid by the taxpayer since 1777. 

DID YOU KNOW?
Fifty-two of the 55 founders of the Constitution were members of the
established orthodox churches in the colonies.

DID YOU KNOW?
Thomas Jefferson worried that the Courts would overstep their authority and instead of interpreting the law would begin making law an oligarchy the rule of few over many.

DID YOU KNOW?
The very first Supreme Court Justice, John Jay, said: "Americans should select and prefer Christians as their rulers. "How, then, have we gotten to the point that everything we have done for 220 years in this country is now suddenly wrong and unconstitutional?

It is said that 86% of Americans believe in God. Therefore, it is very hard
to understand why there is such a mess about having the Ten Commandments on display or "In God We Trust" on our money and having God in the Pledge of Allegiance…  

Lighter Side

When you are arguing with a fool, make sure that he isn’t doing the same.

Two little kids are in a hospital, lying on stretchers next to each other outside the operating room. The first kid leans over and asks, "What are you in here for?" The second kid says, "I'm in here to get my tonsils out, and I'm a little nervous." The first kid says, "You've got nothing to worry about. I had that done when I was four. They put you to sleep and when you wake up they give you lots of Jell-O and ice cream. It's a breeze!" The second kid then asks, "What are you in for?" The first kid says, "A circumcision." And the second kid says, "Whoa! I had that done when I was born. Couldn't walk for a year."

Children’s Story

(… the phrase sowing wild oats was applied figuratively to young men who frittered away their time in stupid or idle pastimes.)

Harry was small of frame but big on ideas. Even as a small child Harry would always try to do things other than the normal way. If you could not find him look in the corner, he was there a lot. Sitting on a stool, feet on the stool rung, face pressed into the corner. He was supposed to be quiet during his time of punishment but if you listened closely you could here him singing softly or making sounds like the racing engine of a car.

As Harry grew his mischievous behavior did not diminish. He would play tricks on his brothers and sister; he was good at getting out of doing chores he did not like. He could talk someone out of their candy in exchange for his least favorite food. When Harry did not feel like going to school he would simply disappear for the day. It did not seem to affect his grades because reading, writing and arithmetic came easy for him. The teachers would often not report him absent because of his good grades and class time was better when Harry was not around. But his father would catch him in his con-games and send him off to the corner for a cooling off period; after his fanny was warmed by a big Dutch hand. His brothers would tease Harry, claming his forehead was taking the shape of the corner.

Later Harry had outgrown the corner punishment (it did not appear to do much good), now his father would sit him down and lecture him. Harry would squirm under long talks and the quoting of Bible verses and lessons from Scripture. As much as he disliked this type of correction it later proved to be of great value to Harry.

Harry’s inquisitive attitude got him into a lot of trouble but also proved a benefit to the family and himself. All Harry needed to do was use a little wisdom. For example when new blueberry plants were started, a piece from a mature blueberry bush was cut and put into the ground. This would grow into a new young plant, well most of the time. Harry wondered why they did not all grow, or why some of them died later, or why they would not all be strong and healthy. So he would experiment - he over watered some - others he withheld water - he would pull them up and investigate their roots. He did not tell his father what he was doing or why. When it came time to trans-plant the young bushes there were few to plant because of Harry’s experimenting. Big lecture for Harry.

Over time Harry discovered interesting methods of growing the young plants so most if not all grew into hardy, healthy plants. His father soon had bumper crops; it also turned into a profitable business by selling new plants to other blueberry growers.

Harry completed high school with honors, how, many wondered. By this time he had started to show compassion for others; going out of his way to help someone in need, sending a note of encouragement to a neighbor who had suffered an injury or sickness, or just helping his mother wash the dishes without being asked. What happened? Was it the silent example of a hard working mother and father? Was it the sermons he heard every Sunday, or the long lectures he had received from his father after some infraction?

Even the church minister noted the change in Harry and asked if he would like to teach a Sunday School class of younger children. Harry was taken back by the request and asked several questions before requesting for some time to think about it. He then went home and talked it over with his father and mother. They felt a tinge of pride and encouraged him to try it for few months to see if this would work out for him and the students. They all prayed and asked God for direction.

Harry had been reading the Bible more on his own lately. He decided to request from God some indication as to what he should do about teaching others; he asked that the direction might come through Scripture reading. He would try reading at night after a long day helping with farm chores, but his eyes would grow tired quickly. Harry was a morning person so he decided to get up extra early to read and pray. That worked well for staying awake yet there seemed to be no answer. It was early Saturday morning when he wrote down in a note book Ecclesiastes 9:10 Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might… and 1 Thessalonians 5:14 We urge you, brethren, admonish the unruly, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with everyone.

So Harry prayed, "Oh God Most High, if you will but help me help others I will do as has been requested of me."

Next time: Harry, in trouble with pastor Mike!

Quiz Answers

1. Seven Luke 8:2

2. A tower to reach the heavens Genesis 11:3-9

3. Israel 1 Kings 16:29

4. Israel Romans 10:20-21 and Isaiah 65:2

5. Seven years 1 Kings 6:38

6. Goliath 1 Samuel 17:23, 51

7. Thomas John 14:5