When you get sad Jesus says in John 14:

 1 “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. 2 In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. 4 You know the way to the place where I am going.”

When you have sinned let your heart pour out to God like David did in Psalm 51(The Message):

 1-3 Generous in love—God, give grace! Huge in mercy—wipe out my bad record.
   Scrub away my guilt,
      soak out my sins in your laundry.
   I know how bad I’ve been;
      my sins are staring me down.

 4-6 You’re the One I’ve violated, and you’ve seen
      it all, seen the full extent of my evil.
   You have all the facts before you;
      whatever you decide about me is fair.
   I’ve been out of step with you for a long time,
      in the wrong since before I was born.
   What you’re after is truth from the inside out.
      Enter me, then; conceive a new, true life.

 7-15 Soak me in your laundry and I’ll come out clean,
      scrub me and I’ll have a snow-white life.
   Tune me in to foot-tapping songs,
      set these once-broken bones to dancing.
   Don’t look too close for blemishes,
      give me a clean bill of health.
   God, make a fresh start in me,
      shape a Genesis week from the chaos of my life.
   Don’t throw me out with the trash,
      or fail to breathe holiness in me.
   Bring me back from gray exile,
      put a fresh wind in my sails!
   Give me a job teaching rebels your ways
      so the lost can find their way home.
   Commute my death sentence, God, my salvation God,
      and I’ll sing anthems to your life-giving ways.
   Unbutton my lips, dear God;
      I’ll let loose with your praise.

 16-17 Going through the motions doesn’t please you,
      a flawless performance is nothing to you.
   I learned God-worship
      when my pride was shattered.
   Heart-shattered lives ready for love
      don’t for a moment escape God’s notice.

 18-19 Make Zion the place you delight in,
      repair Jerusalem’s broken-down walls.
   Then you’ll get real worship from us,
      acts of worship small and large,
   Including all the bulls
      they can heave onto your altar!

When you have been hurt join David in this prayer from Psalm 27:5-6:

 5 For in the day of trouble
       he will keep me safe in his dwelling;
       he will hide me in the shelter of his tabernacle
       and set me high upon a rock.

 6 Then my head will be exalted
       above the enemies who surround me;
       at his tabernacle will I sacrifice with shouts of joy;
       I will sing and make music to the LORD.

When you think God has left you, hold dear to Psalm 139 and 145:18 (The Message):

1-6 God, investigate my life; get all the facts firsthand.
   I’m an open book to you;
      even from a distance, you know what I’m thinking.
   You know when I leave and when I get back;
      I’m never out of your sight.
   You know everything I’m going to say
      before I start the first sentence.
   I look behind me and you’re there,
      then up ahead and you’re there, too—
      your reassuring presence, coming and going.
   This is too much, too wonderful—
      I can’t take it all in!

 7-12 Is there anyplace I can go to avoid your Spirit?
      to be out of your sight?
   If I climb to the sky, you’re there!
      If I go underground, you’re there!
   If I flew on morning’s wings
      to the far western horizon,
   You’d find me in a minute—
      you’re already there waiting!
   Then I said to myself, “Oh, he even sees me in the dark!
      At night I’m immersed in the light!”
   It’s a fact: darkness isn’t dark to you;
      night and day, darkness and light, they’re all the same to you.

 13-16 Oh yes, you shaped me first inside, then out;
      you formed me in my mother’s womb.
   I thank you, High God—you’re breathtaking!
      Body and soul, I am marvelously made!
      I worship in adoration—what a creation!
   You know me inside and out,
      you know every bone in my body;
   You know exactly how I was made, bit by bit,
      how I was sculpted from nothing into something.
   Like an open book, you watched me grow from conception to birth;
      all the stages of my life were spread out before you,
   The days of my life all prepared
      before I’d even lived one day.

 17-22 Your thoughts—how rare, how beautiful!
      God, I’ll never comprehend them!
   I couldn’t even begin to count them—
      any more than I could count the sand of the sea.
   Oh, let me rise in the morning and live always with you!
      And please, God, do away with wickedness for good!
   And you murderers—out of here!—
      all the men and women who belittle you, God,
      infatuated with cheap god-imitations.
   See how I hate those who hate you, God,
      see how I loathe all this godless arrogance;
   I hate it with pure, unadulterated hatred.
      Your enemies are my enemies!

 23-24 Investigate my life, O God,
      find out everything about me;
   Cross-examine and test me,
      get a clear picture of what I’m about;
   See for yourself whether I’ve done anything wrong—
      then guide me on the road to eternal life.

Psalm 145:18 
18 The LORD is near to all who call on him,
       to all who call on him in truth.

When you hurt remember the pure love God has given you described in 1 Corinthians 13:4-7:

4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

When you feel like giving up remember Psalm 27:14:

 14 Wait for the LORD;
       be strong and take heart
       and wait for the LORD.

Rest assured in Jesus Mark 8:34-35 (The Message):

34-37 Calling the crowd to join his disciples, he said, “Anyone who intends to come with me has to let me lead. You’re not in the driver’s seat; I am. Don’t run from suffering; embrace it. Follow me and I’ll show you how. Self-help is no help at all. Self-sacrifice is the way, my way, to saving yourself, your true self. What good would it do to get everything you want and lose you, the real you? What could you ever trade your soul for?

All I can say is Wow! I highly suggest you see it. I cannot stop thinking about it. The movie goes deep into the viewers own life and exposes truths we don’t always like to see. I must admit that after seeing this movie, I have not been the husband God wants me to be. I left the theater longing for change, change that boils down to a better, more fulfilled relationship with God and with my wife. Bottom line, this movie can change you!

One step closer (this week) to Christ,
Scott

Money is pretty tight when you are 15 and I made $97 a week working part time as a stock boy so needless to say this was a slow going project. Piece by piece I put the car back together until all I needed was a custom length drive shaft. In short, I never got the drive shaft made and the car just sat there until my dad got rid of it.

Paul says in 1 Corinthians 12:4-11:

4 There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. 5 There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. 6 There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men.
 7 Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. 8 To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, 10 to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. 11 All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines.

The day we become a Christian; our birthday present is a gift from the Holy Spirit. Now this is no ordinary gift you see. It was never designed to be used by just the receiver. The gift is intended to be used by the body (Church) as a whole in the same way my car needed several parts before it could be used the way it was intended. I had an engine, I had a transmission I even had a car but without the drive shaft, I was just sitting in the drive way. In the same way, God blesses us with gifts of the spirit so that we may bless others. Combine all the gifts under one name (Jesus) and one church and God empowers a few lowly broken people like us to be bold, united yet diverse amazing parts of a powerful movement that changes lives, helps the needy, gives hope to the hopeless and reflects a sparkle of the Glory of Christ in the lives around us.

I know some of you reading this didn’t have a clue what a Turbo 400 is or why I needed a custom drive shaft but others of you know that the tail shaft on the tranny is longer so I needed a shorter drive shaft. You may not know what your gift is or how you could be used in the church. I implore you to read the instruction manual. I didn’t know how to work on cars until I read a few books; asked a little advice and most importantly started working on cars. Sure I messed up a few times but before long I was blue printing engines.

Reading the bible daily, seeking Godly advice and sincere praying will guide you to the answer of what your gift is and how to use it. Once you know, or even before… put it to use. Once the parts are all together, allow God’s nitro methane racing fuel to propel the whole car to victory in Christ!

“Scott, I am not asking you to be the smartest in the class, I just want you to try harder”

To be honest, I didn’t really listen back then but as I was reading a few verses in the bible I came across Ecclesiastes 5:18-20:

18 Then I realized that it is good and proper for a man to eat and drink, and to find satisfaction in his toilsome labor under the sun during the few days of life God has given him—for this is his lot. 19 Moreover, when God gives any man wealth and possessions, and enables him to enjoy them, to accept his lot and be happy in his work—this is a gift of God. 20 He seldom reflects on the days of his life, because God keeps him occupied with gladness of heart.

It suddenly dawned on me. What am I trying to achieve working as hard as I do? Am I working to become something else, provide something else for my family? What I my goal? Maybe we all want to be the best in class, maybe even some of us don’t mind being the worst in class.

Reading the verse above, I believe God just want us to be happy doing what we do and content with what we have. Never looking back on what we should have had. God knows our future, it just makes more sense to trust in God with our future than to stress and worry over what we can achieve by our own acts. Which brings me to Matthew 6:24-34:

 24 “No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.
 25 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life[a]?
 28 “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

By stressing over making more money to achieve more, what do we truly achieve? Answer: STRESS! We all know how well that works out. Now hold on a minute, I am not saying stay at home and watch football until the power gets cut off. What I am saying is: apply Gods infallible word to everyday life, do your best at whatever it is that you do and leave the rest up to God. If you are a programmer, then program your heart out! If you are a garbage collector, pick up that trash with enthusiasm and a smile! Do your best and God will first give you contentment followed by happiness! Does this mean that we should not plan for a brighter future? By all means NO! Go to college, attend that seminar, invest in your future but just don’t be consumed by it.

In Christ,
Scott Smith

 16 So I tell you: Live by following the Spirit. Then you will not do what your sinful selves want.17 Our sinful selves want what is against the Spirit, and the Spirit wants what is against our sinful selves. The two are against each other, so you cannot do just what you please.18 But if the Spirit is leading you, you are not under the law.

 19 The wrong things the sinful self does are clear: being sexually unfaithful, not being pure, taking part in sexual sins,20 worshiping gods, doing witchcraft, hating, making trouble, being jealous, being angry, being selfish, making people angry with each other, causing divisions among people,21 feeling envy, being drunk, having wild and wasteful parties, and doing other things like these. I warn you now as I warned you before: Those who do these things will not inherit God’s kingdom.22 But the Spirit produces the fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,23 gentleness, self-control. There is no law that says these things are wrong.24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified their own sinful selves. They have given up their old selfish feelings and the evil things they wanted to do.25 We get our new life from the Spirit, so we should follow the Spirit.26 We must not be proud or make trouble with each other or be jealous of each other.

After reading this maybe a thousand times in my life, I finally realized it was talking to me and about me. I had to look in the mirror. Am I really living the way I should? I was a bit shocked when the reflection was not what I expected. For example: I have an almost teenage daughter. I get to the point where I am frustrated with her rebellious attitude towards me and her mom and I often let my anger come out with a loud GO TO YOUR ROOM!!! Looking at the message above, where do I fall? The sinful self reflects anger. Now I am not saying that Christians are not allowed to be angry. What I am saying is that if I use the scripture above to handle the situation, things will be much better. Instead of lashing out to my daughter when I got angry, I should have shown patience and love followed by calm discipline. A simple; Amanda, if you are going to keep this up; you’re going to your room would have been the correct way according to the scripture above. Hold on, I know what you are thinking… Yes, she more than likely would have blew me off and ignored me BUT who’s fault is it that it got this way? Should I expect her to listen to me on the first instruction when her whole life she has learned that she can push me a little further and further until I get angry and discipline her? I don’t think so. I am not going to expect a magic POOF everything is fine now but I will do my best to reflect a fruit of the spirit in everyday life and watch God do his thing in hearts of me and the people I care about.

These precious verses above apply to every aspect of our lives, even… no especially at work. The next time you feel a little tug on the spirit, look in the mirror using the scripture above and reflect on what God has to say about how we are to act.

In Christ,

Scott

1. Pray first that you and your spouse would be humble in order that your prayers would not be hindered.

Husbands, in the same way be considerate as you live with your wives, and treat them with respect as the weaker partner and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder your prayers. 1 Peter 3:7

2. Pray that the work of your spouse’s hand would be blessed by God.

May the favor of the Lord our God rest upon us; establish the work of our hands for us— yes, establish the work of our hands. Psalm 90:17

3. Pray for wisdom to choose the God honoring option in every decision.

By wisdom a house is built, and through understanding it is established; Proverbs 24:3

4. Pray for discretion to steward the resources God has given you.

Moreover, when God gives any man wealth and possessions, and enables him to enjoy them, to accept his lot and be happy in his work—this is a gift of God. Ecclesiastes 5:19

5. Pray for godly principles and practices to characterize your communication.

Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. Ephesians 4:29

6. Pray for your spouse to take the way of escape God provides in temptation.

No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it. 1 Corinthians 10:13

7. Pray for your spouse to have spiritual victory in trials and over worry, discouragement, or doubt.

Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. James 1:2-4

8. Pray for your spouse to grow in faith and bear fruit in his/her walk with Christ.

And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God Colossians 1:10

9. Pray for your spouse’s health and protection.

The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge.
       He is my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. Psalm 18:2

10. Pray that your relationship with the Lord and with your spouse would be ever deepening in intimacy, respect, and love.

In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. After all, no one ever hated his own body, but he feeds and cares for it, just as Christ does the church— Ephesians 5:28-29

I am overwhelmed with emotion. How can I feel this way? I did not know this kind of love was even possible for me. I watched TV tonight and listened as a mother spoke of her child dying and I busted out into tears. I close my eyes and your beautiful face is all I see. I love you baby! Daddy loves you so much Gracie!

You were born on September 5, 2007 at 7:51am. You weighed 7 pounds and 12 ounces. Your eyes are as blue as the depths of the ocean and your hair is dark like you moms but light like mine also! You have my nose, eyes and ears and you mom’s feet, beauty and lungs… =)

Most any parent will say that if demanded, no if even asked that they would die for their child… Gracie, I will live for you! I will dedicate my life to you! I will become better so that you may become more. I will be wrong so that you will admit your mistakes; I will ask if I need help so that you will not be prideful. I will love so that you will know love! I will forgive, so that you know forgiveness must be given as it was given to us. Gracie, I will do my best to bring glory to our savior Jesus so that you will grow to love the one who gave you to me. Some day little baby, I hope to hear stories from my hot-rod rocking chair of the people you have touched with your life, the people who speak of your love for everyone and most importantly, your love for Jesus!

Gracie, I love you baby! I love you with all my heart.

-Daddy
__________________________________________________

Jesus,

I love you Lord! You are me God, my savior, and my source of Love. God, you have blessed me with this child and I give all glory to you and thank you with all that I am. After all that I have put you through, after all the pain I have caused others in my past, after so many wasted years Lord… You saved me, you love me, you have blessed me beyond measure and I will always love you with all of my heart, body, mind and soul.. You are a good God. You are the only God. You are mine and I am yours!

Thank you Lord!

Jesus the Alpha

Jesus is the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end (Rev 22:13). John tells us that in the beginning was the word and the word was with God and the word was God. The word became flesh and lived with us! (John 1:1 and 14). John continues to tell us that Jesus is the one and the only who came from the Father full of grace and truth. Clearly the bible is telling us that Jesus has always and will always exist.

Seed of David

The genealogy of Jesus Christ confuses many people. The misconception is that Jesus was prophesied to be born a descendant of King David and that descendant is Joseph, so how can Jesus be an offspring of Joseph if he does not carry his blood since He was born of a virgin? Joseph was a descendant of Coniah. We learn in Jeremiah 22:28-30 that any descendant of Coniah would not inherit the throne of David. Actually, Mary is the descendant of King David that ties Jesus to the family. We learn this in Luke 1:27 and 31-32. Not only does Jesus come from the bloodline of Mary but also by union of Marriage which ties both the ancestors of Joseph and Mary back to King David thus fulfilling the prophecy without a shadow of doubt.

Man or God

We discover throughout scripture the human side of Jesus. He experienced hunger, thirst, exhaustion, anger and just about every other human experience, well except one; sin (All through out the 4 gospels). So Jesus was a man… Wait! We also discover in several verses that Jesus is God. Among others, Titus 2:13 says that Jesus is our great God and savior!

Does Jesus Understand US?

If Jesus is God, then how can an all powerful huge deity understand the trials, temptations and heartaches I go through? We learned earlier that Jesus experienced the emotions we face and in Matthew 4:1-11 we see that Jesus faced a barrage of temptations not only while He was at his weakest time after fasting for over a month but by Satan himself! While Jesus did not give in to temptation as we all have and do, Jesus understands our temptations because he has been there.

Why did God forsake Jesus?

The humanity of Jesus is shown best in His death. Matthew, Mark, Luke and John all write of the death of Jesus. Have you ever seen the movie “The Crow“? Do you remember the part where Eric Draven places his hands on Top Dollar and shows him all the horrible things that were trapped in his mind? The movie makes it look like a serious torture session.
Because God is Holy and pure, to be around sin would compromise His own nature therefore God cannot be in the presence of Sin. When Jesus was on the cross He cried out: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matt 27:46). In the text Forsaken means “leave” not abandon. Since God cannot be in the presence of sin in that moment of time Jesus took on every single sin of the world on his shoulders even yours and mine! In that moment for the first time Jesus lost a signal on his connection to God. Oh how His cry must have sounded!

Jesus comes back to life

After Jesus died he appeared to both Mary’s, the disciples and more than 500 other eye witnesses (Gospels and 1 Cor 15:6). Jesus appeared to the disciples for 40 days more (Acts 1:3) and then ascended into heaven (Acts 1:6-12, Mark 16:19, and Luke 24:50-51).

The return of the King

Jesus will return in all his Glory (Matt 24:30, Rev 19). He will come to judge Satan and his demons, the dead will be judged and a New Jerusalem will be established where he will reign. ]]> http://blog.htmlinc.com/2007/09/who-is-jesus-quick-and-easy-study-of-jesus/feed/ http://blog.htmlinc.com/2007/05/is-myspace-bad/ http://blog.htmlinc.com/2007/05/is-myspace-bad/#comments Fri, 04 May 2007 22:31:27 +0000 Scott http://blog.htmlinc.com/?p=55

On the one hand gun owners can justify owning a gun and in all respects there is nothing wrong with it. Guns are a good way to bond with your child; you can take her hunting or target practice and make a day of it. Many people feel safer with a gun in the house in case of an intruder.

On the other hand, guns are deadly objects that have a purpose of killing; accidental or intentional. Anti-gun activists can justify not owning a gun and in all respects there is nothing wrong about feeling that way either. Many children die each year at the hands of a gun that went off accidentally in homes just like yours.

What is the happy medium? Knowledge! Whether you are a gun owner or not knowledge can make the difference between life and death.

I do own a rifle. I have taught my children the dangers of my hunting rifle and I keep the ammo separate from the gun and hidden. I have used knowledge as a tool to reduce the chance of danger coming to my children. This knowledge came in handy one day when my daughter was playing at another house and a child found a LOADED gun and started playing with it; my daughter knew the dangers and came and got an adult immediately. Praise God!

I have been asked by several Christian brothers and sisters why I am so cautious about http://www.MySpace.com. I don’t believe having a MySpace page or visiting MySpace is bad so please don’t think I am judging you if you have a page. I just want to share in the knowledge that could possibly prevent harm from coming to someone you know some day.

I wrote a page with plenty of resources on the subject and I pray whether you are affiliated with MySpace or not you will take a few moments of your time and increase in your knowledge. You can find out more here: http://www.squidoo.com/blockMySpace/ ]]> http://blog.htmlinc.com/2007/05/is-myspace-bad/feed/ http://blog.htmlinc.com/2006/10/god-is-good/ http://blog.htmlinc.com/2006/10/god-is-good/#comments Wed, 25 Oct 2006 21:30:24 +0000 Scott http://blog.htmlinc.com/?p=53

As usual, God is good ALL the time! I have learned that God does not change Malachi 3:6; it is me who changes my perspective at times. When I keep my focus on the Lord; all is better than well. God has blessed me in so many occasions I cannot begin to list them. Most recently, I was about to lose my house which would also put me in 40 to 60 thousand dollars of debt that would be garnished from my pay check. We prayed for God to help and also open our eyes to our mishandling of money and he answered in a big way.  

We received a little over the amount needed to repay the mortgage that was in foreclosure as well as pay all the current bills. We also made a very good budget that projects savings each month instead of a negative number… Oh, yea! My boss gave me a substantial raise! Praise God!

I am learning that to calculate without God Psalm 37:5 will always yield the wrong answer no matter how stubborn to do it our own way we are! I have also finally learned that prayer especially when others are praying with you is the only true answer to all and I mean ALL of life’s journeys. When we go to God first and put Him first in our lives He will take care of us and the Holy Spirit will guide us in those decisions that need to be made.

I have also learned that we can pray for even the smallest of things. I like to praise God all through the day Colossians 1:3 but I also like to ask him for guidance and help in the minutest matters Philippians 4:6 as small as helping me have a good day at work.

I have always heard it preached but after decades of doing it my way by “being a man” and just handling things I now know we must submit to God’s prompting to do it his way Hebrews 12. I have been through tough times as I know all of you have but I know that God will hold our hand and see us through it a better person on the other side with blessings waiting for us Matthew 11:28-30 if we put Him before all and submit to his word and his will for our lives. ]]> http://blog.htmlinc.com/2006/10/god-is-good/feed/