Is that how the song goes? Well at least it rhymes. The original words of the hymn are something like this “Come and dine the Master calleth come and dine…”
Jesus said “Come and die” when he said “If anyone comes after me, he must deny himself, take up his cross and follow me.” When the people originally heard these words, they understood only one implication for the word “cross” used here. They would have understood it to be an invitation to go die with Jesus.
Many enjoyed the benefits of Jesus’ ministry, but only a few became followers.
NOTE: Did you like this post? Be sure to click the “Like” button and then share this post on Facebook, and tweet it on Twitter! I would love to hear from you! Let me know what you thought of this post by leaving a comment below. Be sure to Follow me on Twitter, Facebook, and subscribe to my blog to receive each new post by email.

“Did God actually say, ‘you shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” (Gen 3:1b).

Questions with half truths and half lies commonly come with an evil or inappropriate intent. Dissecting the question is easy to do. We can easily separate the lies from the facts. But as you begin to do that, you’ve already begun your descent into the intended evil trap. Then as you continue with your explanation, your feet go deeper and deeper into the trap until you are completely trapped.
Some questions need to be ignored. Carefully select the ones that deserve an answer. Then what do you do with the rest? Just smile and walk away. If the questions continue, just continue the smile and keep walking.
It’s hard to decipher the differences. This is where we need discernment and maturity to know which questions deserve an answer and which ones deserve a smile. Otherwise, this trap will continue to trap us every time. But if we can grow in our discernment, we can avoid numerous traps.
NOTE: Did you like this post? Be sure to click the “Like” button and then share this post on Facebook, and tweet it on Twitter! I would love to hear from you! Let me know what you thought of this post by leaving a comment below. Be sure to Follow me on Twitter, Facebook, and subscribe to my blog to receive each new post by email.

I stood there looking at the app on my phone to see all the available cabs. Looks good. Great low price. No extras. No strings attached.

But the booking wouldn’t go through. No one wants to take the short ride. Finally one took the bait. My wife and I put our luggage in the back and got in. As the vehicle moved forward, I gave the driver my destination. The car stopped. He said he can’t go. He’s got something urgent. We got out in the hot sweltering sun. My card was charged the minimum rate. 

It was a great price. But what’s the use? I’ve heard the term “Race to the bottom” from Seth Godin. It’s the race to be the cheapest. But if it’s useless to the customer, no one wins. 

God created Adam and Eve and gave them the task of taking care of the land. But even before they were created, God had set up his own “sprinkler system” to water the land.

And a mist was going up from the land and was watering the whole face of the ground (Gen 2:6).

The natural world we live in is more supernatural than we understand. God’s activity in our present world is quite real. Similar to how God took care of the land, we can be confident that he takes good care of us.
As we go about our daily tasks, it’s easy to only think of our natural world. Or, we think of our world as only natural. We evaluate every event with a string of cause and effects. We look at difficulties and problems and look for what caused those problems. In the same way we look at good things and commend ourselves for what we did right, and the hard work and efforts we applied to get things moving along.
There is no problem with such thinking until some tragedy occurs that’s beyond our control. Then we begin to blame God. We look back to our “faithfulness” and wonder how God would allow such things in our lives.
But all along, God has been faithful to take care of us each day. Just like in Gen 2:6, he is “watering” our lives with all the basics of what we truly need.
And what about the tragedies? Since we live in a “fallen” world, we must expect these things. But God continues to sustain us in the midst of such a fallen world.
NOTE: Did you like this post? Be sure to click the “Like” button and then share this post on Facebook, and tweet it on Twitter! I would love to hear from you! Let me know what you thought of this post by leaving a comment below. Be sure to Follow me on Twitter, Facebook, and subscribe to my blog to receive each new post by email.
 

Stepped out of church and saw the candy wrappers just outside the front door. Surely there were several or many who saw it.

“But it’s not my job.” That famous line is famous for a reason. That line keeps people from growing. That mentality promotes mediocrity.

That person also complains that things are just not right. Someone should do something about it. But not me. “It’s not my job.” Enough of such thinkers, and the entire organisation become mediocre.

NOTE: Did you like this post? Be sure to click the “Like” button and then share this post on Facebook, and tweet it on Twitter! I would love to hear from you! Let me know what you thought of this post by leaving a comment below. Be sure to Follow me on Twitter, Facebook, and subscribe to my blog to receive each new post by email.

You can talk all you want, but don’t miss the timing. You may be absolutely correct, but the timing can’t be ignored. Your frustration may be validated, but you didn’t do what you should have done at the time you should have done it.
We may think that we need time to consider all the options. But it’s got to be done within the appropriate time. Otherwise all your efforts are wasted simply because you missed the timing.
NOTE: Did you like this post? Be sure to click the “Like” button and then share this post on Facebook, and tweet it on Twitter! I would love to hear from you! Let me know what you thought of this post by leaving a comment below. Be sure to Follow me on Twitter, Facebook, and subscribe to my blog to receive each new post by email.

But they’re supposed to prosper. Aren’t they? We know the verse in the Bible that says:

“That person is like a tree planted by streams of water,
which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither—
whatever they do prospers” (Psalm 1:3).

So when the righteous don’t prosper, where is the problem? Are you not righteous enough? Is God incapable of taking care of the righteous? Are the powers of evil too strong for the righteous and for God?
Or, have we misunderstood the Bible? A tree will bear fruit of its own kind. So as the verse in Psalm 1 speaks of the righteous, we’d expect a fruit of righteousness. But today it’s common to equate fruit with material prosperity.
Centuries later Jesus said, “Truly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands, for my sake and for the gospel, who will not receive a hundredfold now in this time, houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and in the age to come eternal life. But many who are first will be last, and the last first” (Mark 10:29-31).
This statement was in the context of a man asking Jesus what he should do to inherit eternal life. The man claimed to be perfect in everything that Jesus mentioned. Then Jesus asked him to sell all he has and give it all away to the poor. If he would do that, he would have treasure in heaven. But the man went away sad because he had great wealth and couldn’t part with it.
After the man walked away, Jesus continued this discussion with his disciples. It is clear they were to have their focus and values on the kingdom of God. In Mark 10:30, Jesus promised them they’ll get the basics “(homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children, and fields – and with them persecution), and in the age to come, eternal life.”
That’s a great bargain.
NOTE: Did you like this post? Be sure to click the “Like” button and then share this post on Facebook, and tweet it on Twitter! I would love to hear from you! Let me know what you thought of this post by leaving a comment below. Be sure to Follow me on Twitter, Facebook, and subscribe to my blog to receive each new post by email.

When people reject you, it’s time to move on. It was for a good reason that Jesus said to his disciples: “And if anyone will not receive you or listen to your words, shake off the dust from your feet when you leave that house or town” (Matthew 10:14 ESV).
Don’t keep on trying to turn the no to a yes. You may want to try several times just to see if they have misunderstood you or if you have not understood them correctly. Once it is clear to you that what you have to offer is unacceptable to the other person, it’s time to move on.
Move on to the next person. What is not beneficial to one will be helpful to another.  There are people who need your message. There are those who are eagerly waiting to receive the help you can give them. You are the answer to their prayers. If you don’t move on, you’ll never get to these people.
Keep refining your approach. Your core message remains the same, but your way of presentation may change according to the circumstances. Maybe as you face more rejections, that will give you an opportunity to refine your methods.
NOTE: Did you like this post? Be sure to click the “Like” button and then share this post on Facebook, and tweet it on Twitter! I would love to hear from you! Let me know what you thought of this post by leaving a comment below. Be sure to Follow me on Twitter, Facebook, and subscribe to my blog to receive each new post by email.

Sometimes, no response is the best response. Know who you are and what you stand for. Stand your ground. At some points, your silence is a clear statement.
In other situations, silence can be a sort of hiding. As if those who hide are naturally the guilty ones. Giving an appropriate answer in the proper time is of utmost importance. It adds great value during a crucial time.
NOTE: Did you like this post? Be sure to click the “Like” button and then share this post on Facebook, and tweet it on Twitter! I would love to hear from you! Let me know what you thought of this post by leaving a comment below. Be sure to Follow me on Twitter, Facebook, and subscribe to my blog to receive each new post by email.