by George Whitten
1 Corinthians 15:55-58 O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye steadfast, immoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.
Every day roughly 150,000 around the world die. Death has a way of raising our spiritual temperature and quickening us to re-evaluate life…especially to ask, "Am I doing all that I can do?"
Have you ever heard of how the Nobel Peace Prize originated?
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by George Whitten
1 Timothy 6:6-10 But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and raiment let us be therewith content. But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.
As I write, it seems the prevailing concern among people everywhere is -– what’s going on with the economy? Europe is on the verge of an economic collapse. Even the kings of wall street are suffering huge losses with JP Morgan reporting losing over $2 billion yesterday. People are watching their wealth dissipating and dwindling away. Reflecting on these material losses reminds me of a story about a lady who perished in Pompeii in the first century.
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by George Whitten
Galatians 6:9 And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.
William Wilberforce led a campaign against the British Parliament to abolish slavery in the late 1700′s and early 1800′s. During the course of his intense efforts, Wilberforce came to a desperate place of discouragement, feeling he had absolutely no more strength to continue. In this condition he was about to give up, when his elderly friend, John Wesley, lying on his deathbed, was informed of his friend William’s distress. Wesley requested pen and paper, and with a quivering hand, wrote these words,
"Unless God has raised you up for this very thing, you will be worn out by the opposition of men and devils. But if God be for you, who can be against you? Are all of them stronger than God? Oh be not weary of well-doing! Go on, in the name of God and in the power of his might, till even American slavery shall vanish away before it."
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by George Whitten
Philippians 4:8-9 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you.
In the midst of the American Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln called Vicksburg "the key to the Confederacy", and told his generals, "We do not yet have the key in our pocket!"
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by George Whitten
John 10:10 The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
Have you ever heard about how the Eskimos kill wolves? You’re not gonna believe this one!
First the Eskimo coats the blade of his knife with animal blood and allows it to freeze. He then adds and freezes more layers of blood, several coats, in fact, until the blade is completely covered with frozen blood. Next, he plants his knife in the snow, the blade facing up and goes about his business.
When a wolf finds his way to the luring aroma of fresh blood, he starts licking. Then more and more vigorously, lapping it until the sharp blade of the knife is exposed. However, by this point, so intense is his craving for the scrumptious blood, that the wolf does not notice the sharp sting of the blade on his own tongue, nor does he even realize that his ravenous craving is now being satisfied by his very own blood! By light of dawn, the Eskimo will find him laying dead in the snow.
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by George Whitten
Matthew 25:26-29 But his lord answered and said to him, ‘You wicked and slothful servant, you knew that I reap where I have not sown, and gather where I have not scattered seed. Then you should have put my money on deposit with the bankers, and on my coming I would have received my money back with interest. Therefore take the talent from him, and give it to him who has ten talents. For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away.
Reading this parable, we are struck by the serious consequences of failing to produce Kingdom fruit. But there’s something I want to particularly point out. Many of the great heroes of the faith – people like Moses and David, were not given great responsibilities immediately. Each of these men first served as a lowly shepherd, tending sheep. Having tested them first in this humble vocation, God then felt confident to elevate them to positions of greatness — but it all started with a small step!
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by George Whitten
Psalms 23:2 He makes me to lie down in green pastures: He leads me beside the still waters.
The average American who reads this passage probably thinks of green pastures as wide areas of unending soft green grass. But here in Israel the climate is so dry, that there’s really no such thing.
Long ago, the shepherds of Israel learned to find grass where most people wouldn’t think to look. Here, green pastures are created as the breeze from the Mediterranean Sea brings moisture into our arid climate. It is from this moisture that a kind of dew settles upon the sides of certain hills creating little tufts of grass — just enough for one day’s feeding for a flock of sheep. The shepherds would lead their flocks through the hot parched desert in search of these. It’s no wonder those sheep would obey the shepherd’s voice. They would easily die in the desert trying to survive on their own. The sheep learned to depend on the shepherd to daily lead them to their sustenance.
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