Timeout With Christ

Rep. Winthrop is noted for the following quote.

  “Men, in a word, must necessarily be controlled either by a power within them or by a power without them, either by the word of God or by the strong arm of man; either by the Bible or by the bayonet.”

The Bible verse he uses to back his thought is:

Proverbs 4:23

“Keep thy heart with all diligence, for out of it are the issues of life.”

WHO IS ROBERT CHARLES WINTHROP?

Robert Winthrop was born in 1809 and died in 1894.   He was a representative in the House of Representatives from Mass.   He served as Speaker Of The House from 1847 to 1849.  

Winthrop stood on the principles of scripture to form his opinion about matters of the day.   How many Senators today use the word of God to form their opinion? 

A MORE RELEVANT QUESTION!

Is our congress today a mirror of the people they serve?    Do YOU allow the scriptures to form your opinion?  “Birds of a feather flock together.”   People, most the time, will vote for those who they feel represent their belief.   

This country was formed on Biblical standards, do, we the people, need to change our standard  so we can elect God fearing people into our government? 

May God bless your day as you take Timeout With Christ.

“…encouraging people to build a relationship with Christ.”

“A good tree can’t produce bad fruit, and a bad tree can’t produce good fruit. ⁴⁴ A tree is identified by its fruit. Figs are never gathered from thornbushes, and grapes are not picked from bramble bushes. ⁴⁵ A good person produces good things from the treasury of a good heart, and an evil person produces evil things from the treasury of an evil heart. What you say flows from what is in your heart.

Building on a Solid Foundation

⁴⁶ “So why do you keep calling me ‘Lord, Lord!’ when you don’t do what I say?⁴⁷ I will show you what it’s like when someone comes to me, listens to my teaching, and then follows it. ⁴⁸ It is like a person building a house who digs deep and lays the foundation on solid rock. When the floodwaters rise and break against that house, it stands firm because it is well built. ⁴⁹ But anyone who hears and doesn’t obey is like a person who builds a house without a foundation. When the floods sweep down against that house, it will collapse into a heap of ruins.”

 Luke 6:43-49 NLT

WHAT IF THIS HAPPENED TO YOU?

I went to my favorite steak house, Texas Roadhouse.  I love prime rib and a loaded baked potato.  I told the waiter exactly what I wanted and sat there contemplating what my meal was going to be like.   Shortly the waiter came to my table with a large chef salad and fat free dressing.  I asked what this was about, and reminded him that I had ordered prime rib and a baked potato.  The waiter said they had talked about this in the kitchen with the cook and management.  They decided because I am a little over weight with possible high blood pressure and high cholesterol that a salad would be better for me. 

This did not happen to me, but, they may be right.  I am over weight and high cholesterol and blood pressure.   I do not want to lose control of what I need or want.  I place my order with the waiter and expect him to deliver exactly what I want.  

HOW DO WE PRAY?

When we pray, do we tell God what we want and how we want it?  Do we act as though God is our waiter and expect Him to deliver what we order?  Most  of the time we do not want to relinquish the control of our life, even to God.  We want full control of our life and expect nothing less or different from God.  

WHAT IS YOUR ODER FOR THE DAY? 

Today why not search your heart.  Is your heart full of self serving ambitions and wants?  Where does your desire rest?  Do you truly seek God and yield complete control over to Him?   Why not give God a chance to take control of your life and see what the outcome is.  You may be surprised, your life may be better and things may go well for you. 

May God bless your day as you take Timeout With Christ.

“…encouraging people to build a relationship with Christ.”

“Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator-who is forever praised. Amen” (Rom 1:24-25).

There is a story told about a frog in a kettle. The frog is placed in a kettle of warm water. The frog does not notice that the water temperature is being turned up gradually until it is too late. He dies from the heat of the water not realizing the danger he was in.

Societies are suffering from the “frog in the kettle” analogy. They make decisions that seem innocent enough, only to realize later the impact these decisions bring to their society. Whether the issue is gay rights, abortion, euthanasia, or simply a lack of spiritual influence over society, the changes seem logical to the unregenerate mind but reveals the moral compass of the nation has been removed.

In 1945, a book was written about the spiritual condition ofEngland. “We are convinced thatEnglandwill never be converted until the laity use the opportunities daily afforded by their various professions, crafts and occupations.”* During the time of this writing, 30% ofEnglandattended church. Today, less than 7% attend church inEngland. It has become a secularized nation.

During this same time more than 40% ofAmericawas attending church. Today, less than 30% attend church and it is rapidly declining. The reason is that more and more believers are seeing the local church as irrelevant to the world they live in. Surveys reveal that up to 90% of church members believe they are not being taught how to apply the Bible to the complex world of work where they spend 60-70% of their time. It is not a question of them being taught the Bible; it is a question of making it relevant to their world.  Os Hillman

Where do you fit in the world today?  Are you like the frog and dying a slow death and not even know it?   When you attend church are you looking for change in your life?  Are you learning to apply the scriptures to your own life circumstance?   Are you ready to make changes in your life if God convicts you of sin or failure in your life?   We have a habit of putting aside what God desires from us and putting blame everywhere but on our self.   Take a few minutes and reflect on what God desires from you.   Put your trust in His word and confess your sin and get right with Him. 

May God bless your day as you take Timeout With Christ.

“…encouraging people to build a relationship with Christ.”

 As we worship today, let us worship with reverence, remembering He paid the price of our salvation. Are you going through a tough time? Just as Christ learned obedience through the tough times, we to can learn obedience through our tough times.

 May God bless your day as you take Timeout With Christ!

Hebrews 5:7-10 While Jesus was here on earth, he offered prayers and pleadings, with a loud cr…y and tears, to the one who could rescue him from death. And God heard his prayers because of his deep reverence for God. 8 Even though Jesus was God’s Son, he learned obedience from the things he suffered. 9 In this way, God qualified him as a perfect High Priest, and he became the source of eternal salvation for all those who obey him. 10 And God designated him to be a High Priest in the order of Melchizedek.

¹⁰ He takes no pleasure in the strength of a horse
    or in human might.
¹¹ No, the Lord’s delight is in those who fear him,
    those who put their hope in his unfailing love.

Psalm 147:10-11 NLT
God being who and what He is, and we being who and what we are, the only thinkable relation between us is one of full lordship on His part and complete submission on ours. We owe him every honor that it is in our power to give Him.

A. W. Tozer (1897-1963)

Who does God truly look at?

In Psalm 147, we learn an important secret about relating to the Lord. Our mighty God, who has absolute power over everything in heaven and on earth, is not impressed with powerful people, or those who are strong and mighty in in themselves do not get God’s attention. Instead, it is the brokenhearted and humble he notices and supports.   

³ He heals the brokenhearted
    and bandages their wounds.
⁴ He counts the stars
    and calls them all by name.
⁵ How great is our Lord! His power is absolute!
    His understanding is beyond comprehension!
⁶ The Lord supports the humble,
    but he brings the wicked down into the dust.

He chooses to work not through those who are strong but through those who are weak. And most of all, we don’t earn his approval by being great or strong. He delights in those who reverently honor him, put their hope, and trust in his unfailing love and mercy, not in their own ability.

Today, if you have put your hope in anyone or anything else, ask the Lord to forgive you. However, don’t stop there. Ask his Spirit to work in your life so that your primary goal becomes honoring and pleasing God.

May God bless your day as you take Timeout With Christ.

“…encouraging people to build a relationship with Christ.”

“For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for Me will save it.” – Luke 9:24

When the time came for God to fulfill Joseph’s dreams, Joseph himself had virtually no interest at all in it. Jesus said, “For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for Me will save it” (Lk. 9:24). God wants to teach us a different set of values so that the kind of thing we start out wanting becomes secondary. God has something in mind for us that is far greater than the interest we began with.

Joseph’s day of exaltation had arrived. Yet, through it all, a very real humiliation had to take place. We know about the humiliation Joseph had experienced for 13 years after being sold by his brothers into slavery, then taken to Egypt. We know how he was falsely accused and cast into prison.

Then came a different situation. Joseph had had a triumph and was given an exaltation, but the kind he really never asked for. He did not appear to be all that interested in what was about to happen. He watched as the Pharaoh took his ring off his finger and put it on Joseph’s finger. Joseph never asked for that. All he wanted was to go home. He longed to go back to Canaan, to see his father, and to have his dreams fulfilled.

Therefore, here we find an extraordinary incongruity: a humiliation in the heart of vindication. A triumph that was the opposite of everything he, himself, could have envisaged. Joseph wanted to go home, but a one-way ticket to Canaan wasn’t available. Before he knew it, he had Egypt in his hip pocket. He had never prayed for that. But God wanted Egypt. What God wanted is what Joseph got.

Joseph was given something that he could be trusted with because it didn’t mean that much to him.[

R.T. Kendall, A Treasury of Wisdom Journal (Uhrichsville, Ohio: Barbour and Company, 1996), January 16 day reading, email books].

May God bless your day as you take TIMEOUT WITH CHRIST.

“Surely you desire truth in the inner parts; you teach me wisdom in the inmost place” (Ps 51:6).

 A famous CEO wrote the following in 1996.

 ”In my own case I grew up the son of a Baptist minister. From this background, I was fully exposed to not only legal behavior but moral and ethical behavior and what that means from the standpoint of leading organizations and people. I was, and am, a strong believer that one of the most satisfying things in life is to create a highly moral and ethical environment in which every individual is allowed and encouraged to realize their God-given potential. There are few things more satisfying than to see individuals reach levels of performance that they would have thought was virtually impossible for themselves.”

Something went very wrong in this man’s thinking from 1996 until June 6, 2006.   These words were written by chairman and CEO of Enron, Kenneth Lay..  Ken was convicted on June 6, 2006 for the part he played in the collapse of Enron.  Ken never served any of his sentence because he passed before he could go to prison.

Many people start out with good intentions but finish badly.  David started out serving God in a tremendous way.   Because of his sin, many things went wrong prompting God to not allow him to build the temple. 

Is, position, wealth or ungodly character causing you to yield your integrity to the sin of pride?   When you are alone to your thoughts, where does your mind travel?  Do you think upon those things which are Holy or do you allow your mind to drift to thoughts of power , wealth or unrighteous  behavior?

Ask God today to protect you from pride that can lead to a breakdown of integrity.

May God bless your day as you take TIMEOUT WITH CHRIST.

“…encouraging people to build a relationship with Christ.”

I Peter 1:3-9
³ Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, ⁴ to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, ⁵ who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.⁶ In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, ⁷ that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ, ⁸ whom having not seen^[a] you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, ⁹ receiving the end of your faith—the salvation of your souls.

One of the great tragedies of the Christian life is that if we fail to enter into a relationship with God that is born of the Holy Spirit, we are left with a religion, not a relationship. Many a person today lives with an intellectual belief in God, but without a relationship that is based on two-way communication. This is the greatest tragedy of all. It’s like having a brand-new car but never having the gas to run it. It can’t move you anywhere. It only looks pretty, but one cannot enjoy the ride or smell the newness inside.

Peter tells us that until our faith is proved genuine, we will never be able to give praise, glory, and honor to Jesus, because until such testing He will not be revealed in our lives.  Trials are designed to bring us to a level of trust and experience with God that we would never know otherwise. These “faith experiences” with God allow us to know firsthand the faithfulness of God, the love of God, and the personal nature of God. If you cannot recount several instances when God has met you personally, then chances are your faith has not been born of the Holy Spirit into a living relationship with God. It is easy to fall prey to a relationship to God that never experiences His real presence; rather, it is based on knowledge only. This is a tragic place to be.

If this is where you have been in your Christian experience, ask God today to make Himself real to you. Ask Him to show you His personal nature and love. He desires to do this. Those whom He has called know His voice. He will show Himself to those who are His. “He who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I too will love him and show Myself to him” (Jn. 14:21b).

May God bless your day as you take TIMEOUT WITH CHRIST!

“…encouraging people to have a personal relationship with Christ.”

A little boy was selling newspapers on the corner,
the people were in and out of the cold.
The little boy was so cold that he wasn’t trying to sell
many papers.
He walked up to a policeman and said,
‘Mister,
you wouldn’t happen to know where a poor boy could
find a warm place to sleep tonight would you?
You see, I sleep in a box up around the corner there and
down the alley and it’s awful cold in there for tonight.
Sure would be nice to have a warm place to stay.’
The policeman looked down at the little boy and said, ‘You
go down the street to that big white house and you knock
on the door. When they come out the door you just say
John 3:16, and they will let you in.’

So he did. He walked up the steps and knocked on the
door, and a lady answered. He looked up and said,
‘John 3:16.’ The lady said, ‘Come on in, Son.’
She took him in and she sat him down in a split bottom
rocker in front of a great big old fireplace, and she went
off. The boy sat there for a while and thought to himself:
John 3:16…I don’t understand it, but it sure makes
a cold boy warm.
Later she came back and asked him ‘Are you hungry?‘
He said, ‘Well, just a little. I haven’t eaten in a couple of
days, and I guess I could stand a little bit of food,’
The lady took him in the kitchen and sat him down to a table
full of wonderful food. He ate and ate until he couldn’t eat
any more.. Then he thought to himself:
John 3:16…Boy, I sure don’t understand it but it sure
makes a hungry boy full.
She took him upstairs to a bathroom to a huge bathtub
filled with warm water, and he sat there and soaked for a
while. As he soaked, he thought to himself: John 3:16…
I sure don’t understand it, but it sure makes a dirty boy
clean. You know, I’ve not had a bath, a real bath, in my
whole life. The only bath I ever had was when I stood in
front of that big old fire hydrant as they flushed it out.
The lady came in and got him. She took him to a room,
tucked him into a big old feather bed, pulled the covers
up around his neck, kissed him goodnight and turned out
the lights. As he lay in the darkness and looked out the
window at the snow coming down on that cold night,
he thought to himself: John 3:16…I don’t understand it but
it sure makes a tired boy rested.
The next morning the lady came back up and took him
down again to that same big table full of food. After he
ate, she took him back to that same big old split bottom
rocker in front of the fireplace and
picked up a big old Bible.
She sat down in front of him and looked into his young face.
‘Do you understand John 3:16?‘ she asked gently. He
replied, ‘No, Ma’am, I don’t. The first time I ever heard it
was last night when the policeman told me to use it,’
She opened the Bible to John 3:16 and began to explain
to him about Jesus. Right there, in front of that big old fireplace,
he gave his heart and life to Jesus. He sat there
and thought: John 3:16 — don’t understand it, but it sure
makes a lost boy feel safe.
You know, I have to confess I don’t understand it either,
how God was willing to send His Son to die for me, and how
Jesus would agree to do such a thing. I don’t understand
the agony of the Father and every angel in heaven as
they watched Jesus suffer and die. I don’t understand the intense
love for ME that kept Jesus on the cross till the end.
I don’t understand it, but it sure does make life worth living.
John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only
begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should
not perish, but have everlasting life.

May God bless your day as you take Timeout With Christ

5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart;
do not depend on your own understanding. 6 Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take. Prov. 3:5-6 NLT

 Have you ever been lost in a strange place and need directions?   It is not a good feeling.  You never know if where you find yourself is a safe place, and fear can sweep over you.   One of the most useful inventions has been the G.P.S.  Type in or speak the address where you want to go and just listen for the voice to give directions at every turn you are to make.  If you get off track, the voice will direct you back on the correct path.   If you want a place to eat or purchase gas on your trip the voice will help you find these places. 

 As Christians, we have a built in G.P.S. giving us directions.  The Christian system is called the Holy Spirit.  The Holy Spirit wants to direct our path and lead us to the proper turns.   When we get off the preferred path, He is there to give directions back. 

 Many times, we may think our direction is the best and ignore the leading of the Holy Spirit and go off on our own path.  We learn latter this was not a good idea. 

 A story is told about an underground Chinese church.  It was far too dangerous for them to announce when and where their next service would be held.  They would pray and ask the guidance of the Holy Spirit to arrive at the proper place and time.   All members would arrive to worship.

 If this was your story, where would you end up?  How much control does the Holy Spirit have over your life?   Do you even have the faith to turn all over to the leading of the Holy Spirit? 

 A G.P.S. in our car or on our phone may help us to navigate from one place to another, but Jesus has given the Holy Spirit to help us navigate through the many turns we face in live. 

 Why not pray today for the Holy Spirit to take over your life and put your trust in Him that He will give the best directions for your life.

 May God bless your day as you take TIMEOUT WITH CHRIST!

“…encouraging people to build a relationship with Christ.”