Paul's Ponderings

{Isaiah 1:18-20; ESV} “Come now, let us reason together, says the LORD: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool. If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land; but if you refuse and rebel, you shall be eaten by the sword; for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.”
One of the wonderful promises God has made to us is that He will remove our sin and make us new. Let me put it another way: God will redeem our lives!

God will take all the junk, the sin, the pain, and the tragedies and exchange them for eternal life. This promise speaks to the heart of many people because we want our lives to have weight to them.  We want our lives to matter!

At this moment many of us feel like our lives are being wasted. The consequences of sin hold us in bondage and the addictive nature of sin has turned us into people we don’t want to be. Our hearts come alive when we discover that God promises to cha…

Woven within the masculine spirit is the desire to produce. Men need to be productive in order to give their lives meaning and purpose. This is why some men spend time creating through writing, carving, or inventing. It is why other men spend time building things like tables, hot rods, or houses. This is why some men spend time growing gardens, raising animals, or planting trees. It is why other men spend time restoring old houses, antique furniture, or rusty cars.

Men need projects that are both fulfilling and rewarding. It is essential for men to enjoy the fruits of their labor.

We live in a culture where many jobs no longer offer men the opportunity to produce. There are numbers to be crunched and PowerPoint presentations to be put together, but real productive work is missing. This reality eats away at the spirit of a man. Men require productivity.

See more at Paul's Ponderings : Masculine Craving - The Need to Produce 

Follow @PaulBSteele
Like Paul's Ponderings on Facebook

Take a moment and think about what John Maxwell and Jim Dornan wrote in their book Becoming a Person of Influence; “Slaves is the right term to describe people who lack integrity because they often find themselves at the whim of their own and others’ changing desires” (p. 32)

The movie version of The Lord of the Rings has made J. R. R. Tolkien’s story accessible to thousands of people who would never bother with actually reading the story. One of the characters that people seem to identify with is the character Gollum. Gollum is a pitiful creature because he has been corrupted by the power of the One Ring. The Ring consumes Gollum’s life, and there is nothing he can do to break free from its power.

This is how Colin Duriez describes Gollum in The J.R.R. Tolkien Handbook:
“In The Lord of the Rings a once-hobbit who bore the marks of long centuries underground guarding yet possessed by the One Ring which he called ‚ ‘my precious’, and which he had deluded himself into thinking was a bi…

{James 1:1-4; ESV}  James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, To the twelve tribes in the Dispersion: Greetings. 
Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. 
 It is no secret that life is filled with heartbreak, disappointment, tragedy, and an assortment of other troubles. We understand that God has not promised us an easy life. We are also aware of His ability to use the junk of our lives to mature our faith and transform us into the people He created us to be. The reason we should find joy in our suffering, is because God redeems our pain to make us new creations.

Yet, we also know that this is easier said than done. When our lives are going smoothly, or at least manageable, we can say, “I trust God no matter what happens.” It is easy to trust to God when things seem to be easy.

…

Following Jesus is more than having correct doctrine about God. Having knowledge of God is not the same thing as having a relationship with Him. A person can know the Bible, but be far away from God.I don't want to make Bible study seem unimportant. Study is a very essential discipline in the process of spiritual formation. It is crucial that we have an accurate understanding of what the Bible says. Reading and studying the Bible is the main way God guides our lives. Therefore, correct doctrine is very important, and correct doctrine begins with the Bible.The Apostle Paul wrote this to Timothy; Keep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching. Persist in this, for by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers (1 Timothy 4:16; ESV).What we believe about God matters! Remember, it doesn't matter how sincerely we believe something, if that belief is not true, then what we believe is wrong. Our believing something sincerely doesn't make that something true. The Tru…