"The Great King"

 "There was a little city, and few men within it; and there came a great king against it, and besieged it, and built great bulwarks against it:" (Ecclesiastes 9:14 KJV)

  ""I asked you to come here today so we could get acquainted and so I could explain to you that I am bound with this chain because I believe that the hope of Israel - the Messiah - has already come." They replied, "We have had ne letters from Judea or reports against you from anyone who has come here. But we want to hear what you believe, for the only thing we know about this movement is that it is denounced everywhere."" (Acts 28:20-22 NLT)

 Whether or not this, "great king," was an actual person, or an actual king from a local country, or from afar; this specific encounter might seem to be a little over the top; if that is, it was happing as Solomon shows it to have happened. On the other hand, if it represents something else, like something that represents a spiritual context or that embodies a sinful nature, then it takes a little bit of wondering to figure it out.

 One thing is for sure, whatever it is that Solomon is speaking about is something great: which really doesn't mean it is either bad or good, but that it is large in magnitude; something of great importance; loud and older; of God Himself! In other words, it is higher and greater than we might know.

 By the way, I was thinking about those four Advents: Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love. There is something about where they come from that reminded me of something I might have heard or believed, but that had somehow slipped my mind: He is our HOPE, PEACE, JOY, and LOVE; therefore, we absolutely must keep abiding in Him; if we want to experience all that is has for us, it is found in Him... 

""My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts," says the LORD. "And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts."" (Isaiah 55:8-9 NLT) 

"Important Things" - Too

 "This wisdom have I seen also under the sun, and it seemed great unto me:" (Ecclesiastes 9:13 KJV)

  "Who has believed our message? To whom has the LORD revealed his powerful arm? My servant grew up in the LORD'S presence like a tender green shoot, like a root in dry ground. There was nothing beautiful or majestic about his appearance, nothing to attract us to him. He was despised and rejected - a man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief. We turned our backs on him and looked the other way. He was despised, and we did not care. Yet it was our weaknesses he carried: it was our sorrows that weighed him down. And we thought his troubles were a punishment from God, a punishment for his own sins." (Isaiah 53:1-4 NLT

  As I was thinking about these next few verses, I had to wonder where Solomon saw this particular incident take place; or whether or not it might have been something the God showed him, which he seemed to take great interest in. This would have been about a thousand years before Jesus was born; at least 300 years before Isaiah had written that which we see in Isaiah 53 above. 

 We must understand how vulnerable it was for Jesus to come down as a little baby, because as Isaiah puts it: "like a tender green shoot, like a root in dry ground." In other words, He wasn't born in King's castle, or with much to keep Him safe and secure. He was raised as child without rich parents, or surroundings that would have been fit for a King. 

 Instead, He grew up poor and once He left home, He lift without anything but the cloths that He wore, setting out to save the entire world! A world that needed to be saved, as everyone that lived upon it was held in bondage to sin and death.

 His own people rejected Him, believing the Massiah would have to come as someone of great stature and yielding the power to deliver their nation from Roman rule. What a pity that they missed seeing who He really was, because the stature that He held and the power that He yielded did more than they could ever know! 

 There is something that is great, to which we will see; the wise, poor man, who saved the little city, although he wasn't thanked for doing so, he was pleased with what he had done...

"But it was the LORD'S good plan to crush him and cause him grief. Yet when his life is made an offering for sin, he will have many descendants. He will enjoy a long life, and the LORD'S good plan will prosper his hands. When he sees all that is accomplished by his anguish, he will be satisfied. And because of his experience, my righteous servant will make it possible for many to be counted righteous." (Isaiah 53:10-11 NLT) 

"Important Things"

 "This wisdom have I seen also under the sun, and it seemed great unto me:" (Ecclesiastes 9:13 KJV)

  "I don't really understand myself, for I want to do what is right, but I don't do it. Instead, I do what I hate. But if I know that what I am doing is wrong, this shows that I agree that the law is good. So I am not the one doing wrong; it is sin living in me that does it. And I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. I want to do what is right, but I can't. I want to do want is good, but I don't. I don't want to do what is wrong, but I do it anyway. But if I do what I don't want to do, I am not really the one doing wrong; it is sin living in me that does it." (Romans 7:15-20 NLT)

 You may have heard this before, but it is true and something that we must accept as our condition, under the sun! "We are not sinners because we sin; we sin, because we are sinners: We are born in sin, straight from the start, we are sinners at birth!" 

 Crazy to think how that is, seeing there appears to be such innocence in a little baby's life. But then they grow up! They actually really don't need to be taught how to sin, (as some people might not believe,) because they have a sinful nature; one that has been handed down for thousands of years, from Adam, the father of all mankind. 

 Again, read your Bible; and as you read it, do it slowly and carefully, and believe what you read; making sure that you don't set anything aside as if it might not be true! If in doubt, ask God to help you understand and accept what He has done, no matter how hard it might be to comprehend. God can do anything, and He has created everything! 

 With that, I need to make sure to address that Baby Jesus had something about Him which was quite different from all of us, that are born in sin; meaning that we all are born sinners. You see, Jesus did not have an earthly father, in the order of Adam, that had power of the curse: the seed inside of Mary was of the Holy Spirit, not of man. 

 Yes, Jesus was born in the flesh, tempted as everyone else; but He did not sin! Oh, there are some that try and say that He did; believe me, I know, because I grew up believing that He did. Trust what your Bible says, because there is prophecy about this, and there are testimonies that make it true. 

 That is one thing that puts the Bible as more important than any other book: There are prophecies of what would happen, and there are real proofs that they came to pass...

"When Adam sinned, sin entered the world. Adam's sin brought death, so death spread to everyone, for everyone sinned. Yes, people sinned before the law was given. But it was not counted as sin because there was not yet any law to break. Still, everyone died - from the time of Adam to the time of Moses - even those who did not disobey an explicit commandment of God, as Adam did. Now Adam is a symbol, a representation of Christ, who was yet to come. But there is a great difference between Adam's sin and God's gracious gift. For the sin of this one man, Adam, brought death to many. But even greater is God's wonderful grace and his gift of forgiveness to many through this other man, Jesus Christ. And the result of God's gracious gift is very different from the result of that one man's sin. For Adam's sin led to condemnation, but God's free gift leads to being made right with God, even though we are guilty of many sins. For the sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over many. But even greater is God's wonderful grace and his gift of righteousness, for all who receive it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ." (Romans 5:12-17 NLT) 

"Thoughts on Wisdom and Folly"

  "There is another bit of wisdom that has impressed me as I have watched the way our world works. There was a small town with only a few people, and a great king came with his army and besieged it. A poor, wise man knew how to save the town, and so it was rescued. But afterward no one thought to thank him. So even though wisdom is better than strength, those who are wise will be despised if they are poor. What they say will not be appreciated for long.

 "Better to hear the quiet words of a wise person than the shouts of a foolish king.

 "Better to have wisdom than weapons of war, but one sinner can destroy much that is good." (Ecclesiastes 9:13-18 NLT)

  "Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot, and blameless." (2 Peter 3:14 KJV)

 Yesterday, we had the Advent of Love, with which Pastor Chris gave a message on, showing us how that love is the most important of all four of those elements; because without love, there is no hope, or peace, or joy. It took a minute to let that sink in, because there is more to this love we have been given, then the ability we have to give it back.

 Thinking about what all four of those elements represent, each and every one of them are not things we can produce on our own. We might think that we have the responsibility to pull it off, but without God's Spirit dwelling within us, none of them will yield the power that we need; especially the power to love.

 Our love comes from knowing that God loves us; without us believing that He loves us, no matter what, we have no ability whatsoever to realize our great difficulty to love others; let alone, the obvious lack of consistency we have to love God as we should. 

 In my humble opinion, each and every one of those for elements are only made possible when we die to ourselves! Hope is one that some might think is a little more complicated; but if you are putting your hope in anything this world has to offer, then it is not the right hope! 

 Then we consider how peace works, as to die to yourself really doesn't bring about peace; well, I beg to differ; because if you are worried about yourself and the cares of this world, you really will not find the right peace! 

 Okay then, what about joy? As difficult this might be to understand, but joy is based upon the life that you have been given; which might contradict the whole patten of what it means to die to yourself; if that is, this life was about living with the comforts of this world. But Jesus never promised us that our life would be easy and comfortable; but that it would be abundant and eternal!    

 And then, the greatest of these is love; from which is the most important of all for us to die to ourselves and let God love through us...

"Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought to love one another. No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us. Hereby know we that we dwell in him, and he in us, because he hath given us of his Spirit." (1 John 4:11-13 KJV)

"Whatever, Whenever" - Too

 "For man also knoweth not his time: as the fishes that are taken in an evil net, and as the birds that are caught in the snare; so are the sons of men snared in an evil time, when it falleth suddenly upon them." (Ecclesiastes 9:12 KJV)

  "In this life, it doesn't matter if you are a Jew or a Gentile, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbaric, uncivilized, slave, or free. Christ is all that matters, and he lives in all of us. Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Make allowance for each other's faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony." (Colossians 3:11-14 NLT)

 My whole point in this, somewhat upside-down logic, is that those who are not saved or truly committed to the Lord, there fate, when taken unexpected, is what Solomon references being in an evil time. That is not the same for those who are saved and committed to Christ Jesus! We that look forward to being with the Lord, although we need to want to be able to do what God has given us to do, whatever that might involve, we truly believe that we could be with the Lord in any moment, knowing full well that our departure from this earth is not an evil thing, but that it will work towards the good, in God's timing, and for His purposes. 

 This is not just something I feel, this is something that I know that God has promised and has given us as a special hope for those that we care for and those that get ministered to by our departure. We really shouldn't worry over or fear what might happen when we die, because our death is a doorway to enter into everlasting life; a life that began when we accepted Jesus Christ into our heart! 

 Hopefully, if you are saved and reading this, you share this same understanding, because this is why we are still here in the first place: To show others that sin and death has been defeated at the cross of Jesus Christ...

"As for me, may I never boast about anything except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. Because of that cross, my interest in this world has been crucified, and the world's interest in me has also died. It doesn't matter whether we have been circumcised or not. What counts is whether we have been transformed into a new creation. May God's peace and mercy be upon all who live by this principle; they are the new people of God. From now on, don't let anyone trouble me with these things. For I bear on my body the scars that show I belong to Jesus." (Galatians 6:14-17 NLT) 

"Whatever, Whenever"

 "For man also knoweth not his time: as the fishes that are taken in an evil net, and as the birds that are caught in the snare; so are the sons of men snared in an evil time, when it falleth suddenly upon them." (Ecclesiastes 9:12 KJV)

  "Then he told them a story: "A rich man had a fertile farm that produced fine crops. He said to himself, 'What should I do? I don't have room for all my crops?' Then he said, 'I know! I'll tear down my barns and build bigger ones. Then I'll have room enough to store all my wheat and other goods. And I'll sit back and say to myself, "My friend, you have enough stored away for years to come. Now take it easy! Eat, drink, and be merry!"' "But God said to him, 'You fool! You will die this very night. Then who will get everything you worked for?' "Yes, a person is a fool to store up earthly wealth but not have a rich relationship with God."" (Luke 12:16-21 NLT)

 Much as the previous verse, speaking of, 'Time and Chance,' as it goes with success and winning, this takes it to the next level: Death and Dying! We really don't know when our time is up; but God does! He knows when you arrive and when you will depart; he knows everything there is to know about us: If He knows how many hairs there are on your head, then He knows when your time will be to depart this earth! 

 The question we must ask ourselves, is, 'Are we prepared to go, when that time might come?' We need to know that we are ready, whether think it won't happen or feel as though we have been good enough. The main thing we need to prepare ourselves for is to be with Jesus, and will He know you! 

 Last night I went to the performance they had a Pathway, and it really had a good message about being prepared for death. The whole point of the service was about Jesus and the three gifts that were given at His birth by the three Wise Men. Each gift acknowledged Him as KING! Is He your KING? 

 In preparation for coming to this earth, Jesus first had to take off His Majestic Godliness, in order to become one of us. This was a form of humility and giving away His rights in order to do that which needed to be done. 

 In order for us to be able to be prepared to be received by our KING, we must make Him our KING, giving up our rights, and taking on the form of godliness...

"The law of Moses was unable to save us because of the weakness of our sinful nature. So God did what the law could not do. He sent his Son in a body like the bodies we sinners have. And in that body God declared an end to sin's control over us by giving his Son as a sacrifice for our sins. He did this so that the just requirement of the law would be fully satisfied for us, who no longer follow our sinful nature but instead follow the Spirit." (Romans 8:3-4 NLT) 

"Paradigm" - To

 "I returned, and saw under the sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, not yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favour to men of skill; but time and chance happeneth to them all." (Ecclesiastes 9:11 KJV)

  "God has now revealed to us his mysterious plan regarding Christ, a plan to fulfill his own good pleasure. And this is the plan: At the right time he will bring everything together under authority of Christ everything in heaven and on earth. Furthermore, because we are united with Christ, we have received an inheritance from God, for he chose us in advance, and he makes everything work out according to his plan." (Ephesians 1:9-11 NLT)

 Sometimes we get hung up on trying to figure out what went wrong, or why something might be taking place in our lives, while we forget to think about the big picture: God is good and loves us; He has good plans for us, and even though we are feeling defeated or as if we are losing a battle, He has made a way for failure and weakness to become victory and strength! 

 If you don't know what 'Paradigm' means, there are several ways that it is used to be an example or pattern, such as might be discovered in a theoretical framework. If we could think for a moment what is shown by the law of gravity, it basically shows that there is force the will take you to the ground if you jump of a cliff; without wings, you do not affect that pattern.

 In this same theoretical framework, faith tells us that God is for us; as His children, we are cherished and protected; and regardless of which type or trial or tribulation we might go through here, we will always fall up into His loving arms! This is not a really a theory, it is our faith and hope! If we believe God's word, then it becomes more real than the law of gravity.

 By the way, as fast as this earth is spinning, and as quick as it is traveling around the sun, there should really not be anything that is secure on this earth; it should be flying off in all sorts of directions. But God makes things that work! Even the bad things that happen, God can make them work for good...

"Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will reveal to us later. For all creation is waiting eagerly for that future day when God will reveal who his children really are. Against its will, all creation was subjected to God's curse. But with eager hope, the creation looks forward to the day when it will join God's children in glorious freedom from death and decay. For we know that all creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. And we believers also groan, even though we have the Holy Spirit within us as a foretaste of future glory, for we long for our bodies to be released from sin and suffering. We, too, wait with eager hope for the day when God will give us our full rights as his adopted children, including the new bodies he has promised us. We were given this hope when we were saved. (If we already have something, we don't need to hope for it. But is we look forward to something we don't yet have, we must wait patiently and confidently.)" (Romans 8:18-25 NLT)  

"Paradigm"

 "I returned, and saw under the sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favour to men of skill; but time and chance happeneth to them all." (Ecclesiastes 9:11 KJV)

  ""All the people of the earth are nothing compared to him. He does as he pleases among the angels of heaven and among the people of the earth. No one can stop him or say to him, 'What do you mean by doing these things?"" (Daniel 4:35 NLT)

 It might seem as though this might be random, but there is a pattern in Solomon's thought prosses which is countering the last thought, 'Whatsoever you do, do it well.' There are no guarantees in this life that all will be well, no matter how hard you try, or how strong you might be, stuff happens, lives get cut short, and things don't go the way that you planned. 

 That said, we must always do our best, even in the time of failure, we must not give up; especially when it comes to doing that which you believe God has told you to do! Sometimes, what we think is meant to be happening is only door to what God really wants for your life. We might think God want's us doing one thing, based upon the direction or the road we are on, but it is really just something totally different that He has in mind. 

 Besides that, the whole "time and chance" thing pertains to this earth, where there are no guarantees for anything except what God has promised or determined to be. He is the one who rules over everything; there is nothing that He can't do, and there is no way to stop His plans! You would think by now the powers to be, here on earth, would have figured that out. But that is the point the Solomon is trying to make...

""Don't store up treasures here on earth where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be."" (Matthew 6:19-21 NLT)  

"Do it Well!" -2

 "Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest." (Ecclesiastes 9:10 KJV)

  "Don't you realize that in a race everyone runs, but only one person gets the prize? So run to win! All athletes are disciplined in their training. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize. So I run with purpose in every step. I am not just shadowboxing. I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what I should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified." (1 Corinthians 9:24-27 NLT)

 Sorry about yesterday, that was a pretty bad morning. I went to bed with cold sweats and woke up feeling as tired as I was before I went to bed. Went to the doctor yesterday, got a big dose of antibiotic something in a place where it hurts to sit down; and now I have to get a prescription for more, to take for ten days. I think the doctor was having fun with my diagnoses, as I heard him after he left the room, saying, "That's an angry ear!" 

 Well, 24 hours of feeling bad is more than I can take! It's time to get back to work and quit feeling sorry for myself. There are certain things in life that a cold or infection of the head should not stop; work and taking care of your family are two that others depend upon. 

 When I was working for someone else, back in the 80's, no matter how much I didn't feel like working, I would go to work anyways. I remember one day I was so sick, when I inspected the subarea of the house, I placed my head on a wastepipe and took a nap. The owner of the house thought I must have died under her house and called 911. I was woken up by paramedics screaming at me through one of the vents. 

 In this line of work, people count on you to show up! In almost 44 years of doing this, I think I might have taken only a handful of days of canceling appointments. When a Real Estate Agent schedules an appointment, they are counting on it happening; sometimes they only have so many days for finalizing the offer, and my inspection is what they are making the decision on.

 Anywho, Paul is making a case about training his flesh, not about physical training. This type of training is something that requires the Holy Spirit and discipline in doing all the things needed to be prepared to minister, in season or out of season, you are denying the desires of your flesh, and you are doing all you can to feed and mature the new man, to run the race.

 I actually know some Christians that are on anti-depressants. As strange as that might sound, it really is something that is happening. They want to get off them because it messes with their mind; but when they stop taken them, they get really badly depressed, almost suicidal.

 I asked someone, who shared with me that they were taking them, "Do you read your Bible regularly?" and they said, "No I don't. I hardly ever read my Bible." So, I suggested that they get started right away. If you are going to end your depression you need to have something better to take its place; the Bible is the best, there is. 

 I haven't had a chance to speak with this person again, put I am praying for them every day...

"So be careful how you live. Don't live like fools, but like those who are wise. Make the most of every opportunity in these evil days. Don't act thoughtlessly, but understand what the Lord wants you to do." (Ephesians 5:15-16 NLT)  

"Do it Well!"

 "Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thy goest." (Ecclesiastes 9:10 KJV)

  "I will tell everyone about your righteousness. All day long I will proclaim your saving power, though I am not skilled with words. I will praise your mighty deeds, O Sovereign LORD. I will tell everyone that you alone are just. O God, you have taught me from my earliest childhood, and I constantly tell others about the wonderful things you do. Now that I am old and gray, do not abandon me, O God. Let me proclaim your power to this new generation, your mighty miracles to all who come after me." (Psalm 71:15-18 NLT)

 I know it might seem as though this is about ministry, because it is! Only what's done for Christ will last; or so it goes. Sorry for my last start, but I had cold chills last night and could hardly sleep. As a matter of fact, I think I will cut this short, as I feel as though I need to get back in bed. So much for well...

"Never be lazy, but work hard and serve the Lord enthusiastically." (Romans 12:11 NLT) 

"Whatever Your Hand Finds to Do"

  "Whatever you do, do well. For when you go to the grave, there will be no work or planning or knowledge or wisdom. I have observed something else under the sun. The fastest runner doesn't always win the race, and the strongest warrior doesn't always win the battle. The wise sometimes go hungry, and the skillful are not necessarily wealthy. And those who are educated don't always lead successful lives. It is all decided by chance, by being in the right place at the right time. People can never predict when hard times might come. Like fish in a net or birds in a trap, people are caught by sudden tragedy." (Ecclesiastes 9:10-12 NLT)

  "The angel of the LORD encamped round about them that fear him, and delivered them. O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him. O fear the LORD, ye his saints: for there is no want to them that fear him." (Psalms 34:7-9 KJV) 

 Some call it luck when you prosper, and fate when you don't; but there is something to this little bit of wisdom, something that no one can predict or make happen on their own. I know that might fly in the face of those who believe in setting goals and making plans for a successful business venture: but things just don't work out the way everyone plans them to be; stuff happens! 

 When my wife and I moved to Northern California, we came to start a business and make a life here away from Los Angelos and the big city living. I thought it would be a good chance to relax and change from the hustle and bustle of Southern California. Working for myself seemed harder than working for someone else! 

 When we lived in L.A., we had chances to get away as a family, at least once a month. There was more freedom to do whatever we wanted, without having to worry about work. After about seven years of building a simi-successful business we started making time to get away. We learned how to play golf; my wife and I had a membership at a local club, playing almost three times a week.  

 Things were going pretty good for several years, until Marianne started getting sick. We never planned for that, but who would...

"Go to now, ye that say, Today or tomorrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain: Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away. For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that." (James 4:13-15 KJV) 

"Happy Wife, Happy Life"

 "Live happily with the woman you love though all the meaningless days of life that God has given you under the sun. The wife God gives you is your reward for all your earthly toil." (Ecclesiastes 9:9 NLT)

  "Yet ye say, Wherefore? Because the LORD hath been witness between thee and the wife of thy youth, against whom thou hast dealt treacherously: yet is she thy companion, and the wife of thy covenant. And did not he make one? Yet had he the residue of the spirit. And wherefore one? That he might seek a godly seed. Therefore take heed to your spirit, and let none deal treacherously against the wife of his youth." (Malachi 2:14-15 KJV)

 Sorry if I might have made a mistake, or so it seems; but since we were talking about joy and happiness, I thought it only fitting to add verse 9 into the mix: after all, if you have a wife that is happy, then you will have a happy life! But, on the other hand, if you don't treat your wife as you should, your wife will not be happy, and your life will be missing out on the happiness you would have enjoyed as being one! 

 This passage from Malachi might seem a little bit twisted and hard to understand; but there is something very important about the man and woman becoming one. As most of us know, when the husband and wife are joined in Holy Matrimony, they take on more than just their vows; they are making a covenant before God, to which God responds with joining the two together, as the two bodies become one.

 There is really a lot more to it than that, but for the most part, it is something special: when the one hurts, the other hurts also; when the one is happy, the other is also happy: at least that is the way it was meant to be! This word for treacherously is pretty much the same as transgress, which, if you know what it means in reference to our attitude towards God's law, we know we are stepping over the line, but we do it anyways, as if we really don't care. 

 Basically, it means that you do whatever with intent, deceitfully, and faithlessly. Please give up doing anything that you do that might offend one another; especially you men! You are the one who is given the responsibility to love first, as Paul instructs us: "love your wives, just as Christ loved the church." (Ephesians 5:25) Your wife will respond to that love, just as the church responds to the love of Christ...

  "Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; that he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, that he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing: but that it should be holy and without blemish. So ought men to love their wives as their own bodies. He that loveth his wife loveth himself. For no man ever yet hated his own flesh; but nourisheth and cherisheth it, even as the Lord the church: for we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones. For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall be joined unto his wife, and they two shall be one flesh. This is a great mystery: but I speak concerning Christ and the church. Nevertheless let every one of you in particular so love his wife even as himself; and see that she reverence her husband." (Ephesians 5:25-33 KJV)  

"Enjoy It While You Can!"

 "Live joyfully with the wife whom thou lovest all the days of the life of thy vanity, which he hath given thee under the sun, all the days of thy vanity: for that is thy portion in this life, and in thy labour which thou takest under the sun." (Ecclesiastes 9:9 KJV)

  ""Then the servant with the one bag of silver came and said, 'Master, I knew you were a harsh man, harvesting crops you didn't plant and gathering crops you didn't cultivate. I was afraid I would lose your money, so I hid it in the earth. Look, here is your money back.' "But the master replied, 'You wicked and lazy servant! If you knew I harvested crops I didn't plant and gathered crops I didn't cultivate, why didn't you deposit my money in the bank? At least I could have gotten some interest on it.'"" (Matthew 25:24-27 NLT) 

 All these years of being a Christian, I have probably heard a teaching on this passage of, "The Three servants", at least a dozen times. I was saved in 1981, most likely around the middle of September; I don't remember the date, but I do remember the day and the time: Sunday at around 11:00am. 

 The one teaching I remember most, dealing with these Three Servants, didn't have to do with actual money, as this parable gives reference to, but it had to do with time; as in, we are all given so much time on this earth, and we shouldn't waste it or think we can count on it tomorrow, what we can do with it today!    

 Whatever you think of that, it is more about family and friends, then it is about making money or running a business. We don't get second chances to do the things we should have done, once we lose the chance to do them, due to death or a critical injury. By then, we just look back and think about all the things we should have done, and all the things we wish we hadn't done.

 Matthew Henry gives a plug for this, saying, "It is all thou canst get from this world: That is thy portion in the things of this life. In God, and in another life, thou shalt have a better portion, and a better recompence for thy labours in religion; but for thy pains which thou takest about the things under the sun this is all thou canst expect, and therefore do not deny this to thyself." 

 I can honestly say that I love my wife deeper now than I did before her accident. I can't explain it, but it has taken on a deeper, more intimate, kind of love, one which causes me, or should I say, allows me to sing to her; which is something I had never done before. You really don't appreciate what you have been given until it is gone...  

"Husbands, love your wives and never treat them harshly." (Colossians 3:19 NLT) 

"Joy and Cheerfulness"

 "Let thy garments be always white; and let thy head lack no ointment." (Ecclesiastes 9:8 KJV)

  ""Be dressed for service and keep your lamps burning, as though you were waiting for your master to return from the wedding feast. Then you will be ready to open the door and let him in the moment he arrives and knocks. The servants who are ready and waiting for his return will be rewarded. I tell you the truth, he himself will seat them, put on an apron, and serve them as they sit and eat! He may come in the middle of the night or just before dawn. But whenever he comes, he will reward the servants who are ready."" (Luke 12:35-38 NLT)

 Just a quick little recap from verse 7, with a brief note from Matthew Henry: "We must serve God with gladness, in the use of what he gives us, and be liberal in communicating it to others, and not suffer ourselves to be oppressed with inordinate care and grief about the world." This was made clear to the children of Israel by God, as He instructed them not to mourn when they celebrated their special Feast's Days, but to be joyful and full of cheer, blessing God for His goodness. (Deuteronomy 28:47) 

 I know that there are days when it might not feel like dancing for joy; maybe more than most, I can find myself feeling depressed or discouraged because of my life's situation. But that is just because I am in patch of fogginess, where there is self-pity or worse, I could have unconfessed sin. We all should know what it feels like, when we are not feeling the joy of the Lord; and then, we must make absolutely sure that we don't stay that way for very long! 

 This reminds me of the 'wedding feast,' the one where Jesus speaks about a banquet when those invited didn't show up; so, He had the servants go out to the streets and invite strangers and random people. In this story, Jesus mentions the man being called out for not wearing the wedding garment, which was obviously a garment that was given to everyone as they entered the door. 

 We our given something exceptionally special, a special kind of joy that is like a garment we wear to express the honor of being a part of the Lord's banquet! When we don't feel that joy, it most likely is because we don't feel worthy of being in the banquet; or worse yet, we feel as though we don't belong to the celebration...

"Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again - rejoice! Let everyone see that you are considerate in all you do. Remember, the Lord is coming soon." (Philippians 4:4-5 NLT)

"A Good Heart" - Too

 "Go thy way, eat thy bread with joy, and drink thy wine with a merry heart; for God now accepteth thy works." (Ecclesiastes 9:7 KJV)

  "Oh, the joys of those who trust in the LORD, who have no confidence in the proud or in those who worship idols. O LORD my God, you have performed many wonders for us. Your plans are too numerous to list. You have no equal. If I tried to recite all your wonderful deeds, I would never come to the end of them. You take no delight in sacrifices or offerings. Now that you have made me listen, I finally understand - you don't require burnt offerings or sin offerings. Then I said, "Look, I have come. As is written about me in the Scriptures: I take joy in doing your will, my God, for your instructions are written on my heart."" (PSALM 40:4-8 NLT)

 Just in case you might have missed the whole point of what was said, we are not given the gifts of hope, peace, joy, and love, just to hold those inside our hearts and feel good; they must be put to work, by letting those around us see them, especially when they show up in times of hardship, trials, and tribulation.

 If you have a chance to show off the hope you have been given, then don't waste it by acting as if you have no hope, just because your temporary life has been stripped away, or health is failing. Focus on the life of eternity you have been given; on what is ahead, not what is being left behind. 

 If you have a chance to express the great peace you have been given, then make sure your fear is only in pleasing the Lord, not in things that can destroy your body, but on the One who holds your soul. You would be amazed how much peace you actually have, once you put your full trust in the Lord.

 If you have a chance to be joyful, even though your being crushed or torn apart, then think upon the cross that Jesus died upon, which was not a cross of death and destruction, but was the means of Salvation and deliverance for all mankind. Oh, what joy we can know and express, even in our sufferings! There is not a single thing on earth that could compare to what Jesus did, yet for the joy that awaited Him, He did it willingly and as a humble Servant, obedient to the Father!

 And then, the greatest gift of all, is love...

"Dear friends, let us continue to love one another, for love comes from God. Anyone who loves is a child of God and knows God. But anyone who does not love does not know God, for God is love. God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. This is real love - not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins. Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other. No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and his love is brought to full expression in us. And God has given us his Spirit as proof that we live in him and he in us." (1 John 4:7-13 NLT)