"Not Too Old"

"They shall still bring forth fruit in old age; they shall be fat and flourishing."  Psalm 92:14

How many times have you heard someone say, "It is too late for me.  I am too old."?  Perhaps you have said it yourself.  We tend to think that when we get older, we are too old for the Lord to use us, to fulfill dreams, to be of any service or value. 

When we look through the scriptures, we see that the Lord has used many young people to do His work and accomplish His plan. He crowned Josiah to be king over Israel when he was only eight years old.  He chose a young virgin to give birth to His Son Jesus.  He used a young Timothy to pastor a church.  He anointed David to be king of Israel when he was still a young shepherd boy.  But God is not a respecter of persons.  He looks for willing hearts and yielded vessels regardless of age, gender, education, position, financial status, etc. 

God used Moses to lead His people out of Egyptian bondage at the age of eighty until he was one hundred and twenty years old.  Caleb fought a battle and took possession of a mountain that was promised to him when he was between eighty and ninety years old.  Elizabeth was old and pass the childbearing age when she gave birth to John the Baptist, the forerunner of Christ.  Sarah gave birth to the son of promise when she was around ninety years of age.  These are only a few that the Bible tells us about. 

The point this morning is this-- you are never too old for the Lord to use you to accomplish the task that He has called you to.  You are never too old to not fulfill His plan for your life.  It is never too late.  Age doesn't matter to the Lord.  He chooses young and old alike.  Stop letting the devil convince you that you are too old.  Stop letting other people intimidate you and make you think that your best days are past and you are of no use.  Stop letting society label you as too old and unable.  Don't let the weakness of your own body determine God's plan for you.  It is God's calling, it is God's plan, it is God's work, it is God's will and He can call and equip whoever He chooses to do it. 

Have a great day.  It is not too late.  You are not too old to do what God has planned for and designed you to do.     

"Protect Valuable Things"

"The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy..."  John 10:10a

We all decide for ourselves what is valuable and the things we treasure most.  For some it is money.  For others it is a family heirloom or some other material object.  For some a relationship, family or friends are what is most valuable.  At any rate, the things that we think are the most valuable, we aren't careless with.  We take care of them and take care to make sure they are safe and secure.  To take care of our valuable possessions we purchase safes, rent a deposit box or have a secret hiding place for them.  But what about the things that are truly valuable?  What do we do to secure them and make sure they aren't stolen from us?

I am talking about eternal things.  I am talking about the things that deal with your soul.  Those things are peace, joy, holiness, godliness, contentment, love, etc.  What are you doing to ensure that the thief doesn't steal them from you?  What are you doing to ensure that the circumstances and cares of this life aren't robbing them from you?  The first thing you have to do is decide just how valuable they really are to you.  If they are, then you have to decide to protect them.  That means you can't be careless or casual with them.  You have to guard them.  

How do we do that?  You can't put peace in a vault.  You can't place joy in a lock box.  No, but you can still protect it.  The way you protect them is through the Word of God.  Keep your mind renewed in God's Word.  That way when the enemy comes to steal it you will recognize him and have the weapon to fight him with.  Keep on the full armor of God.  Wear it always and the enemy will have a hard time "penetrating" through it to get to your treasure.  Keep your heart and mind fixed and stayed on spiritual things-- things above.  Stay full of the Holy Spirit, who will make you aware when the enemy is sneaking around trying to steal.  And He will give you the needed strategy to defeat him. 

The bottom line is you have to decide how truly valuable these spiritual things-- these gifts from God-- are to you.  Then you have to decide to protect them.  Then you have to do whatever it takes to make sure they are protected and not allow anything to steal them from you.

Have a great day.  Just how valuable are spiritual things in your life?  If they are, are you doing everything necessary to insure they are protected?    

"Use More Effort"

"Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you."  Matthew 7:7

Occasionally I will do some painting in my house.  I usually use the kind of paint that just washes off with water.  Once, though, in a particular room I had to use an oil-base primer.  (I think I got as much on me as I did on the walls.)  When I get paint on myself, I am accustomed to just going to the bathroom and using soap and water to get the paint off, but not in this case.  Soap and water didn't work.  It took something extra.  It took more effort on my part to get clean.  I had to use a paint thinner and "wash" in it. 

There are times, and situations, in our lives when it is going to take a little more than just simply "asking" God for an answer.  Sometimes we are going to have to go a little deeper and a little further.  We are going to have to do more than just ask.  We are going to have to seek.  Seeking involves putting forth more effort and continuing until you find the answer that is needed.  Knocking involves even more effort.  Knocking is more serious petitioning. When we knock, we are determined to stay there in prayer until the door/answer is opened.

We are so used to having everything quickly, easily and without much effort on our part.  But prayer isn't always like that.  It involves more than just the simple way.  But if the prayer is worth praying and the need is worth the answer, we need to learn to go the extra mile in prayer, take the longer path, persevere and stick with it until the answer comes.  Don't give up or quit until you have not only asked but sought and knocked to get your answer. 

Have a great day.  Prayer is not always as simple as just asking.  Sometimes it involves more effort on our parts.   
 

"Who Accepted Who?"

"All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out".  John 6:37

When we get saved, we say that we accepted Jesus as our Savior.  It would be more correct to say that He accepted us instead.  We don't "accept" Him.  We put our faith in Him as Savior.  We come to Him in faith believing that what He did at the cross was the way for us to be saved.  "We are saved by grace through faith".  We are only saved when the Father accepts us and says that we are.

The story of the prodigal son is one that shows us the plan of salvation.  It shows a lost son who repents and goes to his father for forgiveness and restoration.  When the prodigal son finally came to himself and got up out of the pigpen, he decided to go back to his father's house and see if he would make him a servant.  The father did not make him a servant; he welcomed him back as a son.  The father could have rejected him.  The father could have made him a hired hand.  The decision was all in the father's hand.  The outcome would have been whatever the father decided.

The outcome as to our salvation is strictly in the Heavenly Father's hands.  He decides and chooses to accept or reject us.  When we come to Him in faith through His Son Jesus, we have the assurance that He will accept us.  But if we come to Him any other way-- good deeds, religious adherence, to make a show, through pride or arrogance-- He will reject us.   

So, when we get saved, it is because the Father loves us so much.  It is because He sent His Son to make a way.  It is because He drew us by His Spirit to repentance.  He saved us by accepting us.  In the Old Testament they brought an offering to Him.  He either accepted or rejected their offering.  It hasn't changed.  We still bring Him an offering.  Only our offering is not a lamb, a goat or a bull.  Our offering is us, given to Him in faith.  So, if we are saved it is because He accepted our offering-- our faith. 

Have a great day.  We aren't saved because we accepted Him, we are saved because He accepted us. 

Psalm 51:16-18; 40:6
Ephesians 2:8

"We Can't Help Ourselves"

"And he said, The things which are impossible with men are possible with God."  Luke 18:27

We have all heard it said, "The Lord helps those who help themselves".  This is not a scripture, and it is not even true.  The truth is that the Lord helps those who can't help themselves. Man was hopelessly lost because of his rebellion against God and unable to "help" himself out of his sinful lost condition.  So, God helped us and offered us hope and salvation by sending His Only Begotten Son into the world to save us from our sins... because we couldn't save ourselves.

God required a sacrifice for our sins.  He is a holy God and in order to come into His presence there has to be a sacrifice.  The whole Old Testament taught us that there weren't enough sacrifices, even offerings, even obedient acts that we could do that would save us.  It taught us that it was impossible for us to "help" ourselves have a relationship with God and eternal life on our own. 

Since we couldn't "help" or "save" ourselves, God sent us a gift that would.  That gift came wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger.  It was a gift.  It was freely given.  We didn't earn it.  We didn't work for it.  We didn't deserve it.  It wasn't something He gave us as a little extra help to what we were already doing. 

A virgin (Mary) could not get pregnant on her own.  It took God intervening and opening her womb and planting the "seed" (the Savior) in there.  Neither can we save ourselves on our own.  Neither can we help ourselves and make it possible for us to be saved on our own.  It takes God.  Without Him it is impossible for us to do-- no matter how hard we try, or how much we help ourselves.

Have a great day.  We couldn't help ourselves, so God sent the gift of His Son to help us and save us.