26

Jump Start # 1238

Posted on November 26, 2014 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 1238

NOTE: There will be no Jump Start tomorrow. I wish each of you a thankful day.

Proverbs 27:6 “Faithful are the wounds of a friend, but deceitful are the kisses of an enemy.”

  This week we have been looking at things to be thankful for. Our list has been a bit unusual. We looked at opportunities. Yesterday, we discussed trials. Today, yet another important, but rarely thanked subject, rebuke. In Ecclesiastes we find, “It is better to listen to the rebuke of a wise man than for one to listen to the song of fools” (7:5).

 

Rebuke, it’s one of the three words Paul told Timothy to do as a preacher (reprove, rebuke and exhort). Rebuke isn’t pleasant and much too often we do all we can to avoid it, including coming up with excuses, dodging the issue, or blaming others. No one likes going to the woodshed. I’ve never heard anyone publicly thank the Lord for the times they were rebuked in their life. Maybe we should.

 

Here’s what is involved with rebuking. First, it is believed that you have done something wrong. Rebuke is not a compliment. It involves changing wrong behavior. It involves pointing out wrong in your life. Maybe your attitude wasn’t right. Maybe your behavior was out of line. Something is amiss in your life.

 

Second, what you have done or said, caught the attention of someone else. Now others know. They approach you about your wrongs. Hopefully, with kindness and with the word of God they point out your sin.  They do this because they care. They do this because they want you to be in Heaven. They do this because you are damaging yourself and others.

 

Third, we are stung by the rebuke. It hurts. We were wrong. A godly conscience produces guilt and shame.   It is here that the rebuke brings us back to the Lord. A good heart recognizes that things were out of line in our life. The rebuke leads to a course correction. It causes us to change. Many times, the adjustment is lifelong. We throw out a judgmental attitude that was hurting others. We put the brakes on flirting that would have led to an affair. We kill the porn in our lives. We stop being rude to others. The rebuke saved us.

 

It’s hard to be thankful for rebukes, but we ought to be. Can you imagine what would have happened had someone not jumped in and helped us? Can you imagine how far from Christ we may have fallen? Can you imagine the damage we may have caused? The rebuking is necessary.

 

There are different forms of rebuking. Sunday sermons can be a generic form. You are sitting in the audience and the preacher is hammering away on a point. Without any knowledge, he is nailing you. His points, the verses he uses, are like a shot to the heart. Right then and right there, you make up your mind to do better. You determine to change your ways. You have been rebuked. Sometimes we politely say, “Preacher, you stepped on my toes.”

 

We can rebuke ourselves as we read Scriptures. We see that our hearts are not like Jesus. It hits us. We determine to do better. We determine to change our ways. What has happened? We were rebuked.

 

Then there is the rebuke that comes personally from a friend. They care enough to say something. It’s hard for them to bring the subject up. They fear our reaction. They fear the friendship may end. But doing the right thing pushes them through that to talk to us. They point out what they have noticed. They remind us of our commitment to Christ. They tell us of the example of Jesus. They are right. We have been rebuked.

 

Too often, instead of thanking someone for helping us, we can turn on them. We holler at the preacher as we leave the church building. We find a loophole in the Scriptures that we manufacture to keep us from changing. And to our friend, we become unfriendly. The rebukes fail because of our heart. We go on our merry way, living in denial and refusing to change. Hard headed and stubborn, we can give rebukes but we can’t take them. Such is a sorry state to be in.

 

When a rebuke is taken to heart, it leads to repentance, faithfulness and commitment to the Lord. That’s the goal. That’s the good. We all need this. None of us are perfect, including the preachers. We need God’s word in our lives to keep us on course. We need those dear friends to remind us of our attitudes, words and actions that may be straying from the Lord.

 

Thank the Lord for the times people loved you so much that they spoke to you. Thank the Lord for their courage. Thank the Lord for listening ears that led you to apologize to God. Thank the Lord for the fellowship we have with one another. Accountability is a key to our fellowship. We need each other. It’s important to know that others have our back in support and they are there to help us stay in the game.

 

Thankfulness…for open doors, for trials, for rebukes. You won’t hear those around the dinner table tomorrow, but we know and understand their values. These are the things that have helped us, molded us and allowed us to continue on.

 

Be thankful in all things…

 

 

Roger

 

25

Jump Start # 1237

Posted on November 25, 2014 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 1237

James 1:2 “Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials”

  This week we are considering some thoughts to be “Thankful.” These are not your usual run of the mill ideas. However, these are the very things that have shaped us, caused us to be reflective and built character and hope within us. Yesterday, we talked about “Open Doors.”

 

Today, trials, adversity, hardships. First, no one wants these. We don’t pray, “God make my life difficult.” It’s not that we enjoy pain, tears and heartache, but it’s through those things that we become better people.   In our verse today, James identifies three important aspects of trials.

 

First, he says, “WHEN.” He didn’t use the word, might. He didn’t say, a few of you. Rather, WHEN YOU. James is certain that somewhere in our lives, the trials will come. Peter told his people not to be surprised by the fiery trial. The Lord ended the sermon on the mount with the story of two men who built their houses upon different foundations. To BOTH men came rains, floods and winds. Both men experienced storms. They’re coming. That’s what James tells us.

 

Second, he says, VARIOUS TRIALS. There is not just one kind of trial. They come in different sizes and different ways. There are the afflictions that come upon us from nature. The people in Buffalo experienced massive snowfall last week. That snow is melting and turning into floods. Nature causes trials. Droughts. Tornados. Fires. They come in “Various” ways. There are layoffs, and health problems. There are victims of crimes. There are sufferings that come uniquely to God’s people, persecution. Obeying God can bring resistance from family and friends. It is much easier to go along with the world than it is to be holy and blameless. Some trials seem worse than others. Some last longer than others. Understand, for those who are experiencing them, it is bad. It’s hard.

 

Third, he says CONSIDER IT ALL JOY. The joy is not in the pain received, but in the positive benefits that come as one endures and overcomes. The joy is in developing patience. The joy is in the reaching out to God. The joy is in remaining faithful to God. The joy is in the outcome. James sees benefits in our difficulties. He sees that they have the potential to shape and mold us into something better than we are. Without those trials, we may never become what we should. The trials are the roadway to a better us.

 

Thankful for hard times. That’s tough. Some of our Jump Start readers are in the midst of these difficulties right now. Cancer. Having to put loved ones in assisted living. Death. Prodigals. Loss of jobs. Having to move from a home that you love. Wrong choices from others have brought pain into your lives. Marriages that are not going to make it. Congregations that are dying. Kids that have messed up.

 

You find yourself praying more than you ever have before. Your prayers are not rehearsed generic prayers that we say over and over. They are real. They are pinpointed. They are full of emotion, tears and begging the God of Heaven and Earth to help you. You find yourself pouring through the Psalms. That book becomes the guide for the hurting heart. You now understand David’s fears and turmoil as he ran from King Saul. You look at Job and believe that you may be reliving his nightmare. Worship is hard. Some hymns bring tears. Those around have a hard time understanding. Some pat you on the shoulder and walk away. Some offer cheap words such as, “turn your lemons into lemonade.” Others simply tell you to “snap out of it.” You’d love to. But how? It’s a struggle to get out of bed. The holidays are times of family and fun, but for you that empty chair, that phone call that will never come, only deepens your sorrow and pain. Consider it all joy? Really? Is he serious? More likely, is he nuts? There is nothing joyous about the way you feel. Crying yourself to sleep and hoping you’ll wake up from this to a better situation, but it never happens.

 

But without realizing this, something is happening. You are getting tough. You are pushing yourself through. You are not giving up on God. You can’t. You see things in hymns that you’ve never seen before. You find great comfort in passages that you never have before. It’s tough. No one knows nor understands. Your situation is unique. Some will say, “I know what you are going through,” but they don’t. No one ones, but God. But God. He’s always been there. He is still there. That thought. That image on the cross. That hope. Heaven becomes more than a wishful thought way off in the future, it becomes something real and now. God’s way becomes more sure and absolute in your heart. How dare any one mess with the word of God. Worship becomes passionate. How dare people sleep during services. Sermons bring great peace and hope to you.

 

What has happened is that these serious trials in your life has awakened your soul and your heart. God is real. What we do is right. You find yourself more passionate and determined than ever before. You look back and realize that you were taking God for granted. You were floating through spiritually and not really engaged nor very serious. Sure you went to church services, but it was easy to forget all that by Monday. Not anymore. God is never out of your mind. Your pain has brought God to the forefront. Shallow living and shallow thinking and shallow worshipping and shallow talking dominate the world. You recognize it now. Your interests are in the things above. You feel a fire within you when people want to abuse worship or bring up silly things in a Bible class. Your heart wants God. Depth, meat, digging deeper, lowering the nets, these are the things that your heart longs for. You are not ashamed to talk about Jesus, to anyone, anywhere. You are not ashamed to defend the Gospel, before anyone at anytime.

 

What’s happened? You are not the same. Trials have changed you. They have changed you for the better. You are more spiritual, more caring, more compassionate than ever before. Remember the story of “The Christmas Carol?” Ole’ Scrooge was a changed man after his visits by the ghosts of Christmas. You are changed, not because of ghosts, but because of trials. The very thing that can cause some to walk away from God, can cause the right heart to walk closer to God. You have chosen the latter.

 

The difficulties have been hard. But look where you are today. You wonder, had it not been for those things, would I have drifted into a state of apathy and lukewarmness? But thanks be to God, that because of trials, I am focused, determined and set to go to Heaven. Hand in hand with the Lord.

 

Trials. Pain. Sorrow. Heartache. They become the vehicles to help you get closer to the Lord. Have they? Are you?

 

Thankful for difficulties. That’s hard.

 

 

Roger

 

24

Jump Start # 1236

Posted on November 24, 2014 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 1236

Colossians 4:3 praying at the same time for us as well, that God will open up to us a door for the word, so that we may speak forth the mystery of Christ, for which I have also been imprisoned

 

This week is Thanksgiving. A thankful heart is part of the makeup of a Christian. To be thankful is to appreciate a blessing and to recognize the effort and cost that made it possible. It is easy to be superficial with our thankfulness and to get fixed upon the same things, such as, our jobs, family, health. Those are all important but our thanks ought to go much further and deeper. We are to sing with thankfulness. We are express our thankfulness. We remember the nine lepers who were healed by Jesus, but never came back to thank Him. The one who did, a Samaritan, caught the attention of Jesus.

 

This week, I want to explore some things that have made a difference in our lives and that we may forget to be thankful for. Today, I want to consider the wonderful opportunities that have been presented to us in our lives. Everyone has them. Most would not be where they are today, if it wasn’t for those opportunities. Consider such things as:

 

  • A program at a school that you applied for and received. That education and training made it possible for other doors to be opened in your life.

 

  • A company that hired you when you were green and new and took a chance on you. Because of that experience you were able to move on to other jobs. That line on most applications, “three to five years experience” always shut doors. But there was that one place, the first place, that hired you without that experience. What an opportunity that was.

 

  • A church that allowed a young man to give his first lessons. He was raw, disjointed and pretty simplistic. But that church was patient. They may have allowed that young man to enter into a training program and years later, he is a seasoned preacher. What an opportunity that was for him.

 

Most can look back and see the open door, the mentor who believed, the coach who took a chance on us, the opportunity that was made available. Sure we had to stick with it. Sure there was a lot of hard work, learning and molding. But had that first door never opened, we may have gone down a different path.

 

I look in my life and at the time you don’t really see what a great opportunity and opened door that stands before you, but it is. Five years after I was baptized I was preaching full time. But within those five years there were many congregations that allowed me, challenged me and pushed me to preach. Great men like Bob Dickey and L.A. Stauffer saw something that I never saw. They got me up in front of congregations, months after I became a Christian. I didn’t know much. They helped. They pointed me in the right direction, filled my arms with books and filled my heart with the love of Christ and the joy of preaching the Gospel. I really expect that I probably wouldn’t be where I am now if I didn’t have those open doors.

 

Opportunity, a chance, is so important. Our verse today, is about such things. Paul was praying for an open door to preach. Just give me an opportunity is what Paul prayed. He realized that the opened doors came from Heaven. It was God who provided such opportunities. So he prayed. He prayed for more doors to be opened.

 

This leads us to these thoughts:

 

First, we need to be thankful for the opportunities and opened doors in our lives. Have you thanked God for the people who gave you a chance? What a difference those opened doors have made.

 

Second, it is important to see what a game changer and life experience those opportunities are. We need to be the one who is now opening doors for others. There is that person who, lacking much experience, is just wanting a chance. Look in their eyes. See their determination. Can you sign that letter than may help them get that scholarship, that job, that opportunity. Put your hand on that doorknob and open it for someone else.

 

Congregations need to see the value and importance of allowing young men to lead singing, give lessons and do things publicly. Most preachers today would not be doing what they are had not some church long ago gave them a chance. It takes patience as a church to do this. It takes some one with the heart of a mentor to fine tune and give great tips to these young guys. But who knows that in doing this, one of them will decide that he wants to devote his life to preaching. It all starts somewhere.

 

Third, share your story, your life lessons, your insights with others. Help the guy below you. Make the road easier for him. The school of hard knocks teaches like no other school and experience will help so much, but some mistakes can be avoided, some pains do not have to be experienced if we only tutored someone else. Be kind about this, not arrogant. Be helpful. Understand everyone has their own style and own way of doing things. I see Paul shaping and helping Timothy. I see the trust, the love and the long conversations that helped Timothy carry on in such a fine fashion. Timothy would never have been the way he was had it not been for Paul. It all started when Timothy was young, possibly late teens. Paul saw something in him. He wanted to take Timothy with him. They were traveling long and far from home. The journey would not always be smooth nor safe. Timothy’s parents allowed him to go. Parents must do this sometimes. It’s hard. We want our babies to stay close to home where we can watch them. But sometimes the best opened door is not close to home. Sometimes allowing them that chance to catch a dream is something that parents must do.

 

The congregation that I now work with is made up of some of the finest people that I have ever met. When the leadership first contacted me about moving here to work with them, they took a chance. They didn’t know me and I didn’t know them. I believe God was opening doors. What a rich and powerful journey it has been so far.

 

Some people dream dreams and others live those dreams. Some talk about all the things that they wanted to do, but they never did. They never took that chance. Chasing dreams is risky. Sometimes you fail. Sometimes you fall. Sometimes you find out that there are other dreams greater than the one you started with. But in pursuing those dreams, there are those open doors, those opportunities, that turn those dreams into reality.

 

This day, put some thought into the people and the places that opened doors for you. It probably starts with your parents. Give the Lord some thanks for those people and places that gave you a chance. Thank the Lord for being there. Thank the Lord for people that have made you a better person.

 

I have found that open doors is not just a thing for young people. Doors continually are opened throughout all of our lives. One door that surprisingly opened for me, is through these Jump Starts. I would have never dreamed that they have gone as far reaching and would have touched as many lives as they have. Open doors. We all have them.

 

Thank you, Lord.

 

Roger

 

21

Jump Start # 1235

Posted on November 21, 2014 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 1235

Revelation 3:3 “So remember what you have received and heard; and keep it, and repent. Therefore if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come to you.”

  Our verse today comes from the admonition addressed to Sardis. The Lord knew what was going on. They had a great reputation, a name that they were alive. This would have been the general thought among brethren. Romans and pagans would not know, understand, nor care what God’s people were doing. However, among Christians, the church at Sardis was the place to be. They were thought to be alive. Much activity. Much busyness. Christians from other places may have tried to model what was going on at Sardis. But something was not right. Something was missing. Jesus knew. Their reputation was a cover. What was really going on was much different than most thought. They were dead. Lifeless. No faith. Apathy and indifference and being caught up in the world choked and killed what faith they had. Sure they still met as a church. Services were conducted. Plans were made. They still looked good on the outside, but on the inside, there was serious trouble. And Jesus knew.

 

A few were awake. A few had not been ruined. A few were still faithful to the Lord. These thoughts lead us to a few observations:

 

First, I don’t have to go along with what others are doing. Most at Sardis were dead. Not all. You can still shine, be faithful and please the Lord in a dead church. These verses prove that. Too often, when everyone around us is dead, we just complain and give up. We use them as an excuse for not doing what we ought to. We point our fingers at others but allow our own faith to die. It doesn’t have to be that way. For many today, as with the folks at Sardis, you do not have the option of just going to another congregation. There is no other congregation nearby. You have what you have. Some congregations lack vision, leadership, heart and hope. They are stuck doing things the way they always have. Nothing is working and no one is stepping up to try something else. Slowly, one by one, members die. Things are stale, sour and negative. More time is spent talking about what’s wrong with others than looking in the mirror. Within a generation or two, that congregation won’t be meeting any more. But that doesn’t mean you have to die along with it. You can still extend hospitality in your home. You can invite others. You can teach the Bible out of your home. I have seen amazing things that take place in a congregation. One family, just one family, can change the atmosphere of an entire congregation. One family moves in that is sour, complaining, against everything, and like mold on a wall, it just spreads and kills a congregation. I’ve also seen one family move in who were alive, exciting and wanting to do things. They had the heart of a servant and before long, others have caught their spirit and things brighten up. One family. That one family could be your family. Don’t throw in the towel because everyone else has.

 

Second, it is possible to change. That’s the hope given to Sardis. The Lord is optimistic. If they will but wake up, remember and get about doing what they should, the direction of that congregation can change. This happens when the individual people change. Stingy people can become generous. Hard, demanding people can become forgiving. Stubborn people can become submissive to others. Ignorant folks can learn. Dead faith can be awakened and resurrected to what it ought to be. God hadn’t given up on Sardis. Not yet. Sometimes we do not allow folks to change. We see them one way and that’s the way they are for the rest of their lives. Not so. People change. Congregations change. The living word of God intersecting with honest and good hearts will bring about great things.

 

Third, Jesus expected the folks at Sardis to be responsible and take care of things themselves. They were in a desperate situation. They were dead spiritually. They could awaken. The help wasn’t coming from Corinth, Rome, Jerusalem, a visiting apostle, Timothy or Apollos. These thoughts are addressed to the people of Sardis. They alone, with the word of God, could turn that ship around. That’s wonderful news. Open up that Bible. Start really chewing, digging, looking, and believing. Pray powerful prayers. Count on one another. Get busy. Help isn’t coming from afar. The help is there. It’s among the people. It’s about time churches started asking themselves, “Are the best days ahead of us, behind us, or right now.” How they answer that question tells you what their mindset already is. Some may have already given up. The best days are in the past. Pack house. Great preaching. Strong leadership. That’s how it once was. But now…Sardis may have felt that way. Jesus didn’t. Wake up. Remember. Get busy.

 

It’s time we took responsibility for our faith and stop blaming the church for our lack of knowledge, activity or hope in Christ. Sure things may stink down at the church house. There may be all kinds of problems, fighting, jealousy, and indifference. That doesn’t mean I can be the person Jesus wants me to be. My faith is not lived through the church, it is linked directly to Jesus Christ. I can soar with the Lord even when others can’t tie their shoes spiritually. We know what to do. Don’t wait for others. Do what you can. Pray often and deeply. Walk by faith. Believe and trust in the promises of God. Shine your light everywhere you can. Grow. Be strong in the Lord. Worship enthusiastically. Attend all the time. You’ll feel tried and alone. You’ll feel like you do it all. You’ll think no one else cares. May be that’s true. Do it anyway. Do it because it’s right. Do it because there may be others who are counting on you that you do not realize.

 

I have seen dead churches. Sad, sad, sad. I have seen churches that are truly alive. Exciting. Busy. Faithful. Everyone wants to be part of the live church. These things do not just happen. It’s not based upon location, size or the building. It’s when the people, one by one, decide to believe in Jesus and do what they should. They don’t wait for others. They move by their own faith. Their faith is alive. Together, the church becomes alive.

 

So it starts with you. It starts with me. Where are you and the Lord at? Get your faith where it needs to be. Work on this at home. Develop spiritual habits. Get strong. Then work on your family. Then it will trickle to the congregation. It starts with you.

 

Roger

 

20

Jump Start # 1234

Posted on November 20, 2014 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 1234

1 Peter 3:7 “You husbands in the same way, live with your wives in an understanding way, as with someone weaker, since she is a woman; and show her honor as a fellow heir of the grace o f life, so that your prayers will not be hindered.”

  Several places in the New Testament, Ephesians, Colossians, and here in Peter, God gives specific instructions to husbands and wives. Marriage isn’t easy. Two becoming one can be hard, especially when each in the marriage thinks the other ought to think and do what they want. In our passage today, Peter addresses husbands. He says, “You husbands in the same way…” The same way was used in verse 1 toward the wives. It carries us back to the end of chapter two and how Christ behaved when mistreated during His trials. In the same way, do what is right. In the same way, you act, don’t react.

Husbands are told three things.

First, Peter reminds men that they are not God’s sole gift to the world. Wives are “fellow heirs.” Men are not the sole heir. Fellow or joint, means sharing. They share God’s grace, blessings and promises. Women can feel like second rate citizens in the church,  but that’s not how God views them. Peter is reminding husbands about this.

 

Second, Wives are to be treated as weaker vessels. This does not mean that she is literally weaker. I know some wives that could probably beat their husbands up. This statement deals with how husbands are to treat their wives. She not a cheap piece of plastic that you toss in the back of your pickup that rolls around for a month or so. Instead, she’s fragile. She’s expensive. When moving, we take the breakable things and wrap them up with bubble wrap. We gentle sit it in a box and fill the box with those shipping peanuts. Then we tape it up carefully and write “Fragile” on the top of the box. Then when moving boxes, we sit it on the top so nothing else will sit on it. We take care of those fragile things. This is how the husband is to treat his wife. She’s not one of the guys. She’s not to be teased and punched in the arm as you might do one of the guys. Treat her special. Treat her as something breakable, expensive and fragile. “Handle with care” ought to be stamped on her forehead so we guys would get the message.

Third, and most difficult, live with her in an understanding way. Understand your wife. One guy complained, ‘The only thing I understand about my wife is that I don’t understand her.’ The feminist movement has tried and failed to show that men and women are the same. We are not. In some areas, they may do the same work. They may receive the same pay. But men and women are different. We look different. We act different. We are different. Consider a few ways:

  • Like most guys I have one wallet. Mine is black. I wear it with my suit. I wear it with jeans. I take it to the ball game and I take it to the symphony. One wallet, all seasons. Women have purses, lots of purses. They have casual, jean wearing purses. They have fancy purses. They have some that are so large that a small child could fit in it. Black, brown, fancy, plain, big, little, shiny, stripped, poka-dot, shoulder bags, hand held ones—different purses for the occasion and for the season.

 

  • Guys don’t go to the bathroom together. We wait until one comes back to the table and then we go. Women all go together, like a little party. I’m not sure why, but they do.

 

  • When traveling, I can carry all the things I need to get ready in a zip lock bag. Razor, brush, toothbrush, paste, cologne, little tube of shampoo, deodorant—that’s pretty much it. One zip lock bag and I’m ready to go. It’s different with wives. They have a truck load of shampoos, conditioners, brushes, creams and things that I’m not sure what they do. They have those things so they look good. None of these things are right or wrong. It illustrates that men and women are different.

 

Peter is telling husbands to understand your wives. Live with them in an understanding way. They are not you, guys. They are not going to think like a man thinks. They are not going to respond like a man responds. The other night I was watching a movie. It was great. It was a war movie. Lots of shooting and planes dropping bombs. The enemy was getting destroyed by the American troops. My wife happened to walk through the room. She paused and asked, “what are you watching?” I said, “A war movie.” She said, “Oh.” It was, Oh and then she left the room. I understand “Oh.” Oh means she don’t like watching people get shot and dying. She’s not into zombies either. There’s too much chomping, chewing and blood by the zombies. Oh means this is a show that she won’t sit and watch with me. Oh means I have better things to do than watch bombs blow people up. Now in my book, watching bombs blowing up bad guys is pretty important. Understand her. That’s what Peter is saying.

 

It is interesting that Peter doesn’t tell wives to understand their husbands. I suppose that would help relationships, but most guys are not that complicated. We are pretty easy to figure out. It’s the other way around that Peter is after. Husbands are to understand their wives. This means that we must learn to speak “womaneze”. We must learn what they need and what they like. We must learn how to comfort them when they’ve had a bad day. War movies work for me, it doesn’t for my wife. My wife is more complicated than I am when it comes to food. I’ll eat about anything, especially if you sprinkle chips on the top. Add some chocolate and I’ll just about lick the sidewalk. We were at the store the other day. She was looking at breakfast bars. She was reading the box. I only read the box if there is a game on it. She is interested in calories, carbs, fat, salt and those things. I’m interested in what it tastes like. We shop differently. She looks, thinks and looks some more. I’m more the Biblical type of shopper, “seek and ye shall find.” I go in looking for something specific, find it and leave.

So all of this leads to two conclusions:

We are different and for that I am glad. I wouldn’t want her to be just like me. It would be bad news if there were two of us that were just the same. She compliments me, brings the best out of me and helps me in so many wonderful ways. When the kids call, I get to the point and am finished within five minutes. She’ll talk and talk. They like that. This tells me that God designed the home with a man and a woman. A dad and a mom are not the same. The kids will run to mom when they want tenderness, kisses and comfort. They’ll go to dad when something is broken or they want answers. The homosexual community can’t deal with this. Two moms, or two dads, don’t work. Even when one is acting like the opposite sex, they are not. God knew what He was doing.  The home at it’s best, has a mom and a dad. That’s the way God wants it to be.

 

Second, for men to understand their wives, they must work at it. They must quit being so stubborn, selfish and pigheaded and give it a try. Peter tells us that we are to, which means that we can. Conversations, situations, and time together helps us to understand. Many wives are crushed by insensitive husbands who have not tried to know and understand them. This is wrong. Much of this falls into the category of wanting to. If a man wants to know his wife he can. If he doesn’t, then he won’t. The relationship will suffer when he doesn’t try. It will suffer if he treats her like one of the guys. We’ve got to be better at this men.

 

Marriage, when it’s working, nothing beats it. When it’s not working, fewer things are more miserable. The joy of marriage comes from a couple that works at it.

 

Roger