As Stubborn As… - Martin Wiles

Do not be like a senseless horse or mule that needs a bit and bridle to keep it under control. Psalm 32:9 NLT

“Gitty up” meant nothing when Uncle Ransom said it.

My grandfather’s dad died when my grandfather was twelve years old, leaving him as the man of the house to run the family farm. One brother and a number of sisters still lived at home, and his mother needed his help. But at twelve years of age, he couldn’t run the farm alone.

His favorite uncle, Ransom, agreed to help. Plowing fields with mules could be gratifying or aggravating. For Ransom, it was the latter. Perhaps his temperament didn’t jive well with the mule’s. Maybe he used words they didn’t appreciate or gave commands with tones they detested. When Ransom plowed, the mule either balked or plowed a crooked row. But with my grandfather, things differed. He had a pleasant voice and a kind demeanor. When he commanded the mules, they did as he asked: gittied up and plowed straight.

The psalmist prefaces his command with a promise from the Lord: “I will guide you along the best pathway for your life. I will advise you and watch over you” (Psalm 32:8). But often I’m like the senseless horse or stubborn mule when He tries to guide me.

In spite of our stubbornness, God wills to guide us along the best pathway. He does so because He loves us and has our best interests at heart. We are His masterpieces, capable of great evil or capable of great good. He will lead us to accomplish the latter if we’ll place ourselves under His watchful care.

God also has the power to lead us along pathways that enhance the good parts of our nature. He created us in His image, and, though sin has marred that image, He can still form us into creations who mimic His attitudes and actions if we allow Him. He is an all-powerful God, able to do supernatural things. Among them, changing our stubborn wills.

And God wants to lead us along these wonderful pathways. He is a God of love who adores us with all of His heart and who wants us to love Him in return with our whole hearts. He doesn’t enjoy seeing us suffer unnecessarily because we have strayed from the paths of righteousness.

Don’t be as stubborn as a mule. Listen to God. He’ll take you down life’s best pathways.

Tweetable: Are you being stubborn as a ...?

Prayer: Father, turn our hearts toward You, so we will follow Your pathways obediently. 

Looking for a wide selection of genres in inspirational books at discount prices? Click here to see selections.

Thanks to all our faithful followers who are "sharing" our posts--please keep it up! We also invite you to follow and like us on Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter. Help us spread God's encouragement through his love lines.

Flashback Friday - Unproven Faith - Martin Wiles

Unproven Faith

He donned a t-shirt and jeans and sat in an upstairs office building with the window open in 40-degree weather. Not necessarily my picture of a flaming evangelist.

I met Dave Russell in the late 1990s. He was a burly man with long hair, a gruff beard, and a bulky build to match. Winter comes early to Burlington, Vermont, and this year was no different. Flakes of snow were already beginning to fall, and the temperatures were dropping rapidly. This meant nothing to Russell. He was accustomed to hard living. He had once lived on the streets. Simply having a roof was a luxury. Read more...

Tweetable: Are you proving your faith?

Looking for a wide selection of genres in inspirational books at discount prices? Click here to see selections.

Thanks to all our faithful followers who are "sharing" our posts--please keep it up! We also invite you to follow and like us on Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter. Help us spread God's encouragement through his love lines.

Life, Fragile, Handle with Care - Martin Wiles

Your life is like the morning fog—it’s here a little while, then it’s gone. James 4:14 NLT

Life is like a gingerbread manger scene.

After fifty-seven years of not having done it, I decided I wanted to. Put a gingerbread house together. Or in this case, a gingerbread manger scene.

We scheduled a night where two of our grandboys and their mom could join the fun. Sitting five Type A personalities around a kitchen table with flour and gingerbread dough would have tested anybody’s nerves.

I quickly discovered I must handle gingerbread figures with care. Not enough flour and they’ll come apart before I get them on the cookie sheet. Even the premade were fragile. The least little bit of pressure and the cookie shape snapped. In this case, one of the wise men’s head. But then again, who wants hard cookies?

James compares life to morning fog. Even when fog chooses to hang around until mid-morning—or even lunch time—it evaporates quickly. In the realm of things, several hours within a twenty-four hour period is brief.

As I get older, I notice the brevity of life more. My wife recently remarked, “You know next year you will be fifty-eight.” As if I needed reminding . . . or wanted it. “And I’ll be ….” Hopefully, we both have a number of years to live, but we know how fragile life is. An accident, terminal illness, or crime could end quickly what we hope continues for a long time yet.

Fortunately, life doesn’t end when it ends. God has created us with a soul (or spirit) that lives on after we take our final breath. Paul said absence from the body meant presence with the Lord (2 Corinthians 5:8). Of course, the key to being with Christ is to know Him as our Savior. Otherwise, we’ll still make it home but in a home we won’t want to live in for eternity.

Yet, we make our impact now . . . on earth . . . while we’re living. Since life is fragile, we need to do all we can in the short time we have. Our decision for or against Christ makes an eternal impact, but Christ wants us to impact people’s lives in the present through acts of love and kindness.

Life is fragile. Don’t wait until tomorrow to live it to its fullest. Begin today.

Tweetable: Are you handling life with care?

Prayer: Father, prompt us to impact people’s lives today and every day. 

Looking for a wide selection of genres in inspirational books at discount prices? Click here to see selections.

Thanks to all our faithful followers who are "sharing" our posts--please keep it up! We also invite you to follow and like us on Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter. Help us spread God's encouragement through his love lines.

Understanding Fear - Martin Wiles

The Lord is my light and my salvation—so why should I be afraid? The Lord is my fortress, protecting me from danger, so why should I tremble? Psalm 27:1 NLT

We faced each other, jaws squared, feet spread, and knives ready.

My cousin was famous for inventing games to play when I visited. High tech games hadn’t been invented yet, or if they had he didn’t have any. Since hogs, dogs, and chickens were the closest thing he had for friends, he had an active imagination.

He named one of his games chicken. We stood facing each other on my grandparents’ wrap-around porch, spread our legs apart, and held one of our large hunting knives in hand. Then he dropped the knife between my feet. Since they were initially spread far apart, the first landing didn’t bother me. Wherever the knife landed, I moved my foot beside it.

After a few times of repeating this action on each other, our feet were close together. That’s when fear took over and someone would eventually holler, “chicken,” and quit.

The psalmist had fears, but he knew they were irrational. He depended on the Lord to save him. His God loomed large. There was no need for him to tremble when God hung close beside him.

Unfounded fear paralyzes. Had I allowed it to do that to me when playing chicken, I would have kept my foot still even though I could see the knife heading for my toe. But I didn’t. When the choice came down to moving my foot or risking injury, I moved. When real or imagined fears become unrealistic, I cannot function.

Fear can lead to avoidance. If fear had ruled me, I would not have played the game at all. Then my cousin would have still called me chicken. We live in a scary world. If I think of all that could happen to me, I’ll never go anywhere or do anything.

Healthy fear is godly fear. A reverence for God because He is our creator and the One we’ll one day stand before and give an account of our lives to. A fear that leads us to worship Him and beg for His forgiveness, believing unforgiven sins will separate us from Him and bring punishment. And a fear that is overruled by trust in a loving God who holds our lives in His hand and will not let anything into our lives that doesn’t filter through His hand of grace and love. 

Don’t let unhealthy fear rule your life. Instead, entrust each day to your heavenly protector.

Tweetable: Is fear controlling your life?

Prayer: Father, calm our fears and assure us You are our protector and guide. 

Looking for a wide selection of genres in inspirational books at discount prices? Click here to see selections.

Thanks to all our faithful followers who are "sharing" our posts--please keep it up! We also invite you to follow and like us on Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter. Help us spread God's encouragement through his love lines.

Throwback Tuesday - Restoring Broken Relationships - Martin Wiles

Restoring Broken Relationships

They had no intentions of getting along; they merely stomached each other.

Within a few months of becoming their pastor, I knew I had inherited a long-standing conflict. Not one that would ever come to blows but one that would persistently be a thorn in the church’s side. The first call came from June.* She was perturbed at Jessica* over what appeared an insignificant issue. I listened patiently and contacted Jessica. Her side of the story was different. From her perspective, it was June’s fault. I offered to mediate. They weren’t interested. Because both had strong personalities, neither was willing to compromise. And the cold air continued to blow until one of them finally told the church goodbye. Read more...

Tweetable: Are you suffering from broken relationships? 

Looking for a wide selection of genres in inspirational books at discount prices? Click here to see selections.

Thanks to all our faithful followers who are "sharing" our posts--please keep it up! We also invite you to follow and like us on Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter. Help us spread God's encouragement through his love lines.