Sunday Morning Starters

How Long Has It Been…

Since you met someone new?

Since you took something by?

Since you sent someone a card?

Since you did something unexpected?

Since you prayed for someone sick?

Since you did something difficult for you?

Since you had someone new over?

Jesus said that the little somethings we do for someone else we do for Him. How long has it been?

Jason Moore

Practical Pointers From Proverbs

“17 He that is soon angry dealeth foolishly: and a man of wicked devices is hated. 18 The simple inherit folly: but the prudent are crowned with knowledge. 19 The evil bow before the good; and the wicked at the gates of the righteous. 20 The poor is hated even of his own neighbour: but the rich hath many friends. 21 He that despiseth his neighbour sinneth: but he that hath mercy on the poor, happy is he” (Proverbs 14:17-21; NASB).

Work on these and you’ll be wise today:

Be peaceable. Those soon angry are foolish. Peacemakers are most like the Son. “They shall be called sons of God,” Jesus said.

Be inquisitive. Hungering and thirsting for righteousness is an acquired appetite. Work at it, because “the simple inherit folly.”

Be good. It may not seem so from the headlines, but the evil will some day “bow before the good.” In fact, “every knee shall bow, and every tongue confess” before the good God.

Be merciful. Know someone who needs a friend? Don’t ignore them—he that despises his neighbor sins.

Get Wisdom. And character will follow.

Jason Moore

Idols of Our Age

Scripture: Jeremiah 10:1-10

Song: Father I Adore You

It is a marvel that men ever served idols. It is even more a marvel to read of the distinguished believers who fell prey to the folly of idolatry. Even Solomon, the wisest man of his age, succumbed to the practice. Men of lesser wisdom should take warning and observe the idols of our day.

Myhobby. He is the god of leisure. The god of simple pleasures gone to seed. The vestiges of his worship are the deer lease, the fishing boat, the woodshop, the golf course, the latest computer upgrade. There is nothing wrong with leisure, but we live in a time when folks are fat with leisure while their religion is anorexic.

Morestuff. He is the god of things. Bigger barns. Better cars. Louder speakers. Clearer pictures. Faster hard drives. The evidence of his duping of mankind is excessive credit. Men are slaves to indebtedness. They work not to share but to meet their minimum monthly payment. They have not the time or the means to invest in heavenly treasure because men cannot serve two masters.

Imbusy. He is the god of the jet set, a people who are preoccupied with their own schedules. There is no nobility in being so busy that there is not time for God, for worship, for family. Good intentions won’t do. That’s the reason men worship idols. They expect less of you. They’ll settle for excuses. Jehovah expects the best of your time and your person, not the leftovers, not lame sacrifices.

Jason Moore

Fulfilling Our Charge

Scripture: Ephesians 6:1-4

Song: Where Love Is In The Home

The commandments of the Lord are uttered with such wisdom and precision. They are so stated that the accountable person is left without any excuse for his disobedience. His submission to or his rebellion against the commandments of God is entirely a matter of his own personal regard for God and for God’s right to rule his life.

Take the commandment for children to obey their parents. There is no condition attached to this commandment save the obvious one—that such obedience be “in the Lord.” There is no other. Obeying one’s parents is not conditioned upon agreeing with them. It does not depend upon understanding or even hearing their reasons. Some things cannot be explained to the immature. The only thing to be understood is that such obedience “is right.” Those who bless their parents with such honor will live long and prosper in their dealings.

The commandment to fathers answers any questions about roles and responsibilities. Who is responsible for the spiritual education of the child? The preacher? The elders? The Bible class teacher? None of the above. It is the father. And he must not shirk this responsibility. By shouldering this load which the Lord has equipped him to carry he will not only avoid provoking his children to wrath, but avoid provoking them to the wrath to come.

Jason Moore

The One Leper

Scripture: Luke 17:11-19

Song: Fairest Lord Jesus

Jesus had passed through Galilee into Samaria, making His way toward Jerusalem and the Cross (Luke 9:51; 13:22; 17:11). Coming to a small village, He encountered a group of lepers—nine Jews and a Samaritan—who, keeping their distance, tried to call Him. "Go, show yourselves to the priests," Jesus said. He didn't heal them on the spot but gave them an assignment to go to the priests in Jerusalem who were designated as the only ones who could pronounce them cured (see Leviticus 13-14). The ten started off by faith. As they walked along, they noticed their skin was clearing up. They were being healed. That's when the Samaritan stopped and said, "I'm going back to thank Him."

Have you noticed there were two thankful people in this story? The leper and the Lord. The Lord Jesus was thankful for thankfulness. Being the God-Man, He both receives and renders thanksgiving. Thankfulness is simply an element of Christlikeness. When we're thankful, we're modeling the Master.

The Lord's response to this leper is two-fold. While appreciating the thanksgiving of the one man, He noted the ingratitude of the nine. We must consciously watch ourselves that we don't fall into the 90% who never pause to regularly say, "Thank you," to GOD. Thanksgiving, after all, is a command, and Jesus always notes disobedience. Thanksgiving, remember, is therapeutic. It lifts the soul. If you want to enroll in Thanksgiving University where the Master Teacher tutors us in Gratitude 101, begin intentionally thanking God and others for the blessings surrounding you.

A sense of our spiritual leprosy should make us very humble whenever we draw near to Christ. We may look for GOD to meet us with mercy, when we are found in the way of obedience. The others only got the outward cure, he alone got the spiritual blessing.

Question: Who am I?

Answer: I am the one leper.

This week meditate on…

“I am the one leper.”

Jason Cicero

Christ Gave Thanks

Scripture: Colossians 2:6-7

Song: God Is The Fountain

“As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving” (Colossians 2:6-7; NKJV).

Thanksgiving is the expression of gratitude. Thankful people express gratefulness to GOD, the source of all blessings. Christ gave thanks.

To GOD the Father for the revelation of His will. “At that time Jesus answered and said, ‘I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes’” (Matthew 11:25; Luke 10:21; NKJV). Jesus expressed gratitude for the revelation of GOD’S will.

To GOD the Father for food. “And Jesus took the loaves, and when He had given thanks…” (John 6:11). When Jesus fed the 5,000 He gave thanks for the food. He also expressed thanks for the food that fed the 4,000 (Matthew 15:36).

To GOD the Father for hearing His prayer. “Then they took away the stone from the place where the dead man was lying. And Jesus lifted up His eyes and said, ‘Father, I thank You that You have heard Me. And I know that You always hear Me…’” (John 11:41-42; NKJV). Jesus expressed thanks to the Father for listening to His prayers.

To GOD the Father for the unleavened bread and the fruit of the vine. “And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them and said, ‘Take eat; this is My body.’ Then He took the cup, and when He had given thanks He gave it to them, and they drank from it” (Mark 14:22-23; NKJV). Jesus gave thanks for the emblems that symbolized the sacrifice He was about to make for all mankind.

Jesus came to do GOD’S will (John 8:28-29). It is GOD’S will for His people to give thanks (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18). To be this man’s disciple one must deny self, take up His cross, and follow Him (Luke 9:23).

Follow His lead. Give thanks for the revealed word of God (Ephesians 3:3-5). Give thanks for the food you eat (Romans 14:6). Give thanks for the hearing of prayer (1 John 5:14-15). Give thanks for the body and blood of Jesus (1 Corinthians 11:26). And above all else, give thanks to the Father for “His indescribable gift,” the one who will deliver us: “I thank God – through Jesus Christ our Lord!” (Romans 7:24-25).

Jason Cicero

Sunday Morning Starters

“17 He that is soon angry dealeth foolishly: and a man of wicked devices is hated. 18 The simple inherit folly: but the prudent are crowned with knowledge. 19 The evil bow before the good; and the wicked at the gates of the righteous. 20 The poor is hated even of his own neighbour: but the rich hath many friends. 21 He that despiseth his neighbour sinneth: but he that hath mercy on the poor, happy is he” (Proverbs 14:17-21; NASB).

Work on these and you’ll be wise today:

Be peaceable. Those soon angry are foolish. Peacemakers are most like the Son. “They shall be called sons of God,” Jesus said.

Be inquisitive. Hungering and thirsting for righteousness is an acquired appetite. Work at it, because “the simple inherit folly.”

Be good. It may not seem so from the headlines, but the evil will some day “bow before the good.” In fact, “every knee shall bow, and every tongue confess” before the good God.

Be merciful. Know someone who needs a friend? Don’t ignore them—he that despises his neighbor sins.

Get Wisdom. And character will follow.

Jason Moore

Lesson From a Donkey

Scripture: Numbers 22:21-35

Song: In Heavenly Love Abiding

We don’t often think about God’s grace being expressed in discipline. We usually think of God’s blessings in a positive fashion when we think of grace. But sometimes God shows favor to man when He disciplines. He did in the case of Balaam. Balaam was behaving stubbornly—so stubbornly that God used his donkey to rebuke him. The alternative to the donkey’s reproof of Balaam was for the angel to slay the disobedient prophet. Yet God in His grace spared his life and used the occasion to teach Balaam a needed lesson.

The Apostle Paul learned this same lesson when he prayed three times for the Lord to remove his “thorn in the flesh.” The response came back from the Lord, “My grace is sufficient for you.” This thorn in the flesh which was a curse to Paul was actually a gift of God’s grace to keep Paul “from exalting himself,” from losing his humility.

You may run into some walls today or come across some bumps in the road or some blockade to your path. Don’t be overly sensitive to such hindrances to your progress. We have no revelation from donkeys or from men to guarantee that our trouble is divinely sent. But there are certainly some difficulties we will encounter that are the product of our Father’s gracious discipline. Don’t despise such lessons. They’ll keep you in the right path.

Jason Moore

Practical Pointers From Proverbs

“14 The backslider in heart shall be filled with his own ways: and a good man shall be satisfied from himself. 15 The simple believeth every word: but the prudent man looketh well to his going. 16 A wise man feareth, and departeth from evil: but the fool rageth, and is confident.” (Proverbs 14:14-16; NASB).

Three good rules to apply to your listening:

1. Keep working. The backslider’s bucket is filled too early, but a good man is not content until he’s digested what he’s heard.

2. Watch your step. Don’t leave your bible study to the preacher. The simple believe every word—check it for yourself.

3. Check your pulse. Don’t hasten to put the worst construction on what is said. You have no right to disagree until you’ve first understood what is said.

Get Wisdom. She’ll help your hearing.

Jason Moore

Eureka

Scripture: John 1:35-42

Song: The Lily Of The Valley

Eureka! I don’t know who invented the word Eureka, but I like it. I’ve been told that it was Archimedes when he discovered that the mass of irregularly shaped objects could be measured by water displacement. I don’t know if he said it first, but he probably used it because Eureka! is the interjection of the inventor. It means, “I found it!”

It’s a Greek word. And we’ve adopted it having transliterated it into the English language. It sounds like what it celebrates. No expression better fits the mood of the moment of discovery.

In all the discoveries that have ever been made, the word Eureka was never more nobly and aptly applied than in Andrew’s excited declaration to Peter, “We have found the Messiah!” The word “found” in the Greek is Eureka. What a find indeed! A find worthy of celebration. A find worthy of publication. A find worthy of being shared. No find has ever rivalled this one in its significance.

Oh that the enthusiasm of that moment of discovery for each prospective child of God could be preserved. If we could only distill it, condense it, and place it into some capsular form for periodic consumption. Does that little explosion that took place in your mind when you discovered the Messiah still thrill you? Then tell it. Make it happen for someone else. Great discoveries are meant to be shared. That’s the reason for words like Eureka!

Jason Moore

Courage for the Disciple

Scripture: Matthew 10:24-33

Song: Each Step I Take

It is the disciple’s aim to imitate the Master’s life. But following His cue means inheriting His reproach. If men possessed the gall to persecute the Master, they will not leave His servants unattended. But take courage. There is assurance for the disciple who suffers reproach.

The sufferings of the saints will not go unnoticed. It’s a promise. “There is nothing covered that will not be revealed, and hidden that will not be known.” The Lord keeps an eye out for His own.

The worst of all fates is the least of all worries. It’s a promise. Even if the life of a disciple is snuffed out because of his testimony of the gospel, he has merely hastened his reward. “And do not fear those who kill the body… but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.”

The least of disciples is of more value than the least creature. Yet even the most common of them is not forgotten. Not even one sparrow among a thousand “falls to the ground apart from the Father’s will.” If the sparrow’s fall gains His notice how much more the passing of the faithful?

To know the Savior is to be known of Him. It’s a promise. “Whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father.”

I have one difficulty with these assurances—how easy is our cross. Makes me nervous about our service when we encounter so little resistance.

Jason Moore

Private Property

Scripture: Proverbs 5:15-20

Song: Blest Be The Tie

There are some things that are not to be shared. The sexual relationship of man and wife is one. It is for them alone. The wise man pictures it euphemistically as a private well or cistern. Most wells in ancient cities were public domain. They were too rare to be owned privately. So the wise man’s image suggests what a privilege and rich blessing the union of man and wife is. The marriage bed is their wonderful oasis and one that unlike the public cistern is peculiarly their own private drink.

To open the cistern to strangers is to spoil the fountain, to pollute its waters, and to spill its streams into the streets. It renders the giver a betrayer of secrets and the taker a thief for having stolen a drink from that which belonged to another. There is no pretty picture of adultery. It is the worst kind of trespassing. There is no way to soften the sin of unfaithfulness. It is the most heinous kind of lie, the most contemptible violation of trust.

But how charming is the picture of the secret well that is enjoyed by the man and women joined by God. How romantic is the rural image of the stone well and wooden bucket from which only two lips dare to drink. Be sure and post by yours a sign with large letters, easy to read, “Let your fountain be blessed, and rejoice with the wife of your youth.”

Jason Moore

Sunday Morning Starters

Why Start Sunday Morning And Stop Sunday Night?

If you don’t assemble with fellow believers when the opportunity exists on Sunday night, you are missing:

1. The strength which comes from associations with others.

2. The encouragement you can give to help others become stronger.

3. The opportunity to let your light shine.

4. The extra power you need to face the coming week.

Dee Bowman

Real Faith

Scripture: Habakkuk 3:17-19

Song: Higher Ground

What is faith? Is it trusting in God? Precisely. But it’s trusting in God not just when the barn is full but especially when the barn is empty.

What’s faith? Is it believing God answers your prayers? Yes sir. But it’s still believing when His answer is, “No,” or, “Not yet,” or when His answer is not forthcoming.

Explain faith. Is it obeying God? Certainly. But especially is it obeying God when there are consequences to suffer, enemies to face, storms to weather, and when you walk the pathway of duty alone.

Faith? Is it attending the services? Surely. But also attending the services when another venture competes for your attention or perhaps when brethren pay you no mind.

Faith. How do measure it? By the dollars you place in the collection plate? Perhaps. More so, when you like the widow give from your poverty.

What is real faith? The prophet said that the test of real faith is that it’s still there when spring never comes, when the harvest fails, when the land is barren, when the stalls are empty and the well is dry. When life is void of all comfortable reasons to believe, and faith persists, you know you’ve got it. That’s hard. That’s real hard. That’s faith. Real faith. It’s the real thing.

Jason Moore

A Plea For Purity

Scripture: Ephesians 5:1-8

Song: Purer In Heart, O God

It is too easy to be bad in our day. There is no shame in ungodliness. Impurity is flaunted, applauded, and praised as normal—as American. There is no stigma attached to sexual perversion. Tolerance is the supreme virtue of our times. There are few social consequences to be suffered from indulging your appetites. We live in an age when it is more socially acceptable to live together than to smoke a cigarette. What are we to do?

Keep our innocence. “Be followers of God as dear children.” If it’s not fit for the children’s eyes, ears, and tongue, it’s not fit for your own.

Watch our motive. “Walk in love.” Love has an evil twin called Lust. They sometimes look the same and feel the same. True love is moral and intellectual at its base. It performs not what feels right but what is right.

Ask, “What price?” The Devil sells his wares at seemingly bargain prices. Men don’t consider that they cheapen Christ’s blood by their indulgence. “Christ also has loved us and given Himself.”

Let them not be named. Fornication, uncleanness, covetousness are dirty words. They describe dirty deeds. We have heard them too often for too long. They are not fitting for saints.

In an age of easy sin, we need to build fences for ourselves—high fences, broad fences—that keep us from wandering into dangerous territory.

Jason Moore

The Story of Ruth

Scripture: Ruth 1:1-18

Song: A Beautiful Life

The book of Ruth is like a rose among thorns, an oasis of refreshment in a parched, deserted land.

Ruth is a testimony to the possibility of living a godly life in an ungodly generation. She lived in the time of the Judges when everyone did “what was right in his own eyes.” Not so Ruth. She was an exception. She proved that we can be exceptions.

Ruth is a tribute to the enthusiasm of first generation believers. Her faith is simple. Her affection is genuine. Her devotion is absolute. She doesn’t know that she’s not supposed to believe.

Ruth is a model of the worthy woman. Put her in any age. Place her in any culture. Shoulder her with any burden, and she’ll bear it with courage. She is the picture of unassuming, unpretentious, unsoiled virtue. Women in our age would beautify and beatify themselves by following her lead.

Ruth is an OT example of the Good Samaritan spirit. She, an outsider to the covenant and an enemy of Israel, showed unexpected kindness to another in need. She went beyond what justice required, and operated on the principle of mercy. It is the better way. It is the Savior’s way.

Ruth is easy to read, easy to love, but hard to follow. Blessed are the ruthful.

Jason Moore

Practical Pointers From Proverbs

“23 Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life. 24 Put away from thee a froward mouth, and perverse lips put far from thee. 25 Let thine eyes look right on, and let thine eyelids look straight before thee. 26 Ponder the path of thy feet, and let all thy ways be established. 27 Turn not to the right hand nor to the left: remove thy foot from evil” (Proverbs 4:23-27; NASB).

Here’s a good sermon from Solomon, and sound advice for the assembly:

Keep your heart—No seed can survive the heart that’s full of weeds.

Watch your mouth—A “froward” mouth is a crooked one. Ever notice how your mouth looks when you say ugly things?

Open your eyes—Don’t be distracted, and don’t go to sleep. Will the Lord give attention to those who yawn in His presence?

Look where you’re going—Worship must be directed to the throne. It won’t arrive there accidentally.

Stay on course—Keep your mind between the ditches of indifference and excessive enthusiasm.

Get Wisdom. Bring her with you to worship.

Jason Moore

Sunday Morning Starters

Tomorrow, if the Lord wills, we will sing!

"...speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord, giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ..." (Ephesians 5:19-20; NKJV).

Oh. And He will be there singing too.

"I will declare Your name to My brethren; In the midst of the assembly I will sing praise to You." (Hebrews 2:12; NKJV)

Jason Cicero

The Twelve Apostles

Scripture: Luke 6:12-19

Song: Room In God’s Kingdom

Consider the twelve men Jesus chose.

Simon—impetuous, impulsive, impertinent Peter. There is room in the kingdom for the extrovert.

Andrew—went back to bring his brother Peter. There is room for the second fiddle.

James and John—cousins of Jesus who sought chief seats. There is room for the overly ambitious.

Philip—made the simple reply to doubting Nathaniel, “Come and see.” There is room for simple men.

Bartholomew—likely the Nathaniel whom Philip brought. There is room for the honest skeptic.

Matthew—a publican, an office despised by his countrymen. There is room for the outcast.

Thomas—the doubter. There is room for those with imperfect faith.

James—called “the less” likely because of his youth. There is room for the young.

Simon—member of a militant Jewish nationalist sect. There is room for the misguided.

Judas—called Thaddeus, of whom the gospels record only his naive question. There is room for the ignorant.

Judas—the betrayer. There is room even for the betrayer, except the unrepentant one.

All these men were under construction at the time Jesus called them. There is room in the kingdom for men like them who are willing to become what the Lord can make of them.

Jason Moore

Sunday Morning Starters

Tomorrow, if the Lord wills, is the Lord's Day...

Will you make it His Day in your life?

Then a voice came from the throne, saying,"Praise our God, all you His servants and those who fear Him, both small and great!" (Revelation 19:5; NKJV)

Jason Cicero

The God of All Comfort

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 1:3-7

Song: Be With Me Lord

“Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort…” (2 Corinthians 1:3; KJV).

Thayer’s defines the word “comfort” to mean to call near for the purpose of comfort, solace. The Creator of all things, the Sustainer of all living things, the Redeemer of all mankind is calling those created in His image to come to Him. To draw near to Him for the purpose of being comforted by Him.

Our God is the Father of Comfort. “3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, 4 who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. 5 For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also abounds through Christ. 6 Now if we are afflicted, it is for your consolation and salvation, which is effective for enduring the same sufferings which we also suffer. Or if we are comforted, it is for your consolation and salvation. 7 And our hope for you is steadfast, because we know that as you are partakers of the sufferings, so also you will partake of the consolation” (2 Corinthians 1:3-7; NKJV).

Jesus is the comfort of Israel. “And behold, there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon, and this man was just and devout, waiting for the Consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him” (Luke 2:25; NKJV).

As the people of God we are to be people of comfort. “Now Joseph, a Levite of Cyprian birth, who was also called Barnabas by the apostles (which translated means Son of Encouragement)…” (Acts 4:36; NASBU).

We are to walk in the comfort of the Holy Spirit. “Then the churches throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace and were edified. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, they were multiplied” (Acts 9:31; NKJV).

The Scriptures contain words of comfort which produce hope in our hearts. “For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that through patience and through comfort of the scriptures we might have hope” (Romans 15:4; ASV).

The God of All Comfort longs for us to have strong comfort deep within our hearts. “…so that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us” (Hebrews 6:18; ESV).

Our Prayer: May our God of all comfort, our Father grant us to be likeminded toward one another, according to Jesus Christ, that we may with one mind and one mouth glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. See Romans 15:5.

Jason Cicero

Jesus Knows, Jesus Cares

Scripture: Hebrews 4:14-16

Song: Jesus Knows And Cares

Jesus Knows. He is God. He is omniscient. He became the God/Man. He knows from personal experience our struggles. He knows what it is like to be hungry, thirsty, tired, and sleepy. He knows what it is like to be tempted, because He was tempted. He knows pain. He knows mental anguish. He knows suffering. He knows what it is like to watch a loved one suffer and die. He knows the pain of loss. Jesus knows.

Jesus Cares. No one cares more about you than Jesus. No one cares more for you than Jesus. No one is more sympathetic. No one is more compassionate. No one's embrace is warmer than His. No one's words of comfort are as effective as His. No one loves as He loves. Jesus cares.

My Response: I must go boldly to the throne of grace. I must obtain mercy. I must find grace to help me, in this, my time of need.

Jason Cicero

God Had Mercy on Him

Scripture: Philippians 2:25-30

Song: He Is Able To Deliver Thee

Epaphroditus was sick. His brothers and sisters in Philippi knew he was sick, and they were distressed. The truth is, Epaphroditus was very sick. He was sick unto death...

"...but God had mercy on him..." (Philippians 2:27; NKJV). Epaphroditus did not die because God intervened. Mercy, by definition, is God withholding from us what we deserve. While it is "appointed for men to die once," I do not believe that the specific time of one's death is determined. Epaphroditus did eventually die, but his life was spared at this time by his merciful God.

When you or someone you love is sick, remember Epaphroditus. Remember the mercy God showed him. Pray for that same mercy: "And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven" (James 5:15; NKJV).

Jason Cicero

Eleanor Miles

Scripture: Titus 2:3-5

Song: Fairest Lord Jesus

Eleanor Miles is now asleep in Jesus: "For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus" (1 Thessalonians 4:14; NKJV).

She spent her life fulfilling Titus 2:3-5 in her life. She made those words her own. What an example she leaves behind...

She loved the Lord. She lived for her Savior. She died in Christ.

Who will I love? Who will I live for? How will I die?

Father, Thank you for Sister Miles' good example. May I learn from her good life. May I make the same wise choices in my life, that she did in hers. In Him, Amen.

Jason Cicero

Our Greatest Friend, Our Greatest Enemy

Scripture: 1 Peter 5:5-6

Song: O To Be Like Thee

Humility is our greatest friend. Humility gets GOD'S attention: "For My hand made all these things, thus all these things came into being," declares the LORD. "But to this one I will look, to him who is humble and contrite of spirit, and who trembles at My word" (Isaiah 66:2; NASBU). To be humble is to be "depressed in mind or circumstances," to be afflicted, lowly, wretched, or weak (Strong's). GOD "gives grace to the humble" (James 4:6). GOD lifts up those who humble themselves in His presence (James 4:10). To humble oneself as a little child is to be great in the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 18:4).

Pride is our worse enemy. "GOD is opposed to the proud..." (James 4:6; NASBU). Proud people think to highly of themselves. They present themsleves as being above others. As being above GOD. And so, GOD opposes the proud.

My Daily "To Do" List: "Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you." James 4:10; NASBU)

Jason Cicero

Sunday Morning Starters

Practical Pointers From Proverbs:

“5 Get wisdom, get understanding: forget it not; neither decline from the words of my mouth. 6 Forsake her not, and she shall preserve thee: love her, and she shall keep thee. 7 Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding. 8 Exalt her, and she shall promote thee: she shall bring thee to honour, when thou dost embrace her. 9 She shall give to thine head an ornament of grace: a crown of glory shall she deliver to thee” (Proverbs 4:5-9; NASB).

Solomon, the great herald of Wisdom, tells us why we should make her our companion today:

“She shall preserve thee”— She keeps you from sinking when you’re in over your head.

“She shall keep thee”— She shows you where to build fences to prevent you from trespassing.

“She shall promote thee”— She makes the young man wise beyond his years and the old man wise beyond his time.

“She shall bring thee honor”— Fame is the prize of those in the news; honour is the reward of those in the right.

“She shall crown thee”— Victory is her promise. Maybe not today. Maybe not tomorrow. But someday. Guaranteed.

Get Wisdom. She is man’s best friend.

Jason Moore